Common Council Condemns the War
I learned via a diary by EquationDoc over at MLN that the New Britain Common Council voted 13-2 on a resolution condemning the War in Iraq:
WHEREAS, The New Britain Common Council expresses its deep opposition to the Bush Administration’s continuation of the war in Iraq after its mendacious and deceptive methods of garnering initial support; and
WHEREAS, the City of New Britain relies heavily on Federal money to provide services to its residents; and
WHEREAS, The United States Congress has appropriated over $400 billion to fund military operations and Iraqi reconstruction, while a steady decline in Federal Housing and Urban Development grants has been experienced since 2002, the year before the war began.
The resolution was drafted by Eva Magnuszewski, one of the newly elected New Britain alderman in last year’s election. Rick Guinness reports on this week’s common council meeting for the NB Herald:
Magnuszewski’s resolution — amended to cast equal blame on President Bush and Congress for starting and funding the war — estimated the city’s portion of paying for the war at $204 million. “All politics is local,” Magnuszewski said, quoting former U.S. Speaker of the House Thomas P. “Tip” O’Neill. “The war is unraveling — in money, international relations and human lives.”
Hat tip to EquationDoc for posting about this at MLN, which called my attention to it.
Hm. I’d never thought of the cost of the war figured at the local level. I highly doubt an accurate number can be calculated, but that’s a pretty cool concept.
They did a decent job of illustrating some of the “trickle down” economics of the war spending, but I suspect what they’ve mentioned is just the tip of the iceberg. Good for them, anyway. Good for them.