Wars are costly in the extreme. The Vietnam War cost $168 billion, or $1 trillion in today’s dollars. Post-war benefits for veterans and their families have cost about $22 billion per year since 1970. The Iraq War will cost almost $3 trillion — about $2 trillion in direct costs and another trillion for long-term care for veterans. The war in Afghanistan cost about $2 trillion, not counting care for its veterans.

Even more than the money, those wars caused the deaths of thousands of our finest men and women in arms. I grieve every time I think of the 58,220 Americans, including 251 Idahoans, who died in the Vietnam War. Many thousands more suffered serious injuries, while many are still dying from causes such as suicide, substance abuse and exposure to toxins. The wars in Iraq and Afghanis

See Full Page