If this is true...

I seem to remember, not that long ago, we were all pissed off, yelling, and pointing fingers at the United Nations and its Oil For Food Scandal. Billions and billions of dollars were stolen over nine years when Saddam was in power. Many countries and even more companies, including some in the United States, were implicated. It was a bad moment for everyone.

If this this is true we are about to have another bad really bad moment.

Now, it looks like we have 8.8 billion dollars that we, the United States, let someone steal from the Iraqi people. This is money that went from the US to Iraq that was supposed to help them and did not. It went who knows where. It could have gone to buy some slimeball a yacht or it could have been funneled to terrorist groups so they can buy all manner of nastiness to kill us with. Osama could be walking around with our money for all we know and the President has just requested tens of billions more for the war in Iraq.

If there is really 8.8 Billion missing, if this report is accurate, then we have over 2,000 American’s that have been killed and 17,000 wounded and nothing to show for it. While it is true that Iraq is now free, the average Iraqi citizen still has no electricity and the toilets don’t flush. This money was supposed to make that happen. As long as Mohammad can’t flush his toilet or turn on his lights and we allow criminals to get rich off of the money that was supposed to make these things happen we will never win the hearts and minds of the Iraqi people. If we don’t do that, the insurgency and secular fighting will increase. Disenfranchised Iraqis will not help us with intelligence, they will not become part of the political process and they will not stand up for their country so that we can stand down. This will get more of our guys killed.

If this story is true, and the money was stolen by Iraqis we should announce that we’ve had enough and done enough and given enough, that we are done. Bye! Have a nice day.

If this story is true, and there are Americans involved, we should put the bastards on trial for treason and when they are found guilty; execute them. And I mean in a public lynching kind of way.

Come on all you right-wing-nut-jobs, come on all you left-wing-pansies, come on all you uncaring, apathetic people who are sitting on your fat asses watching Johnny Carson reruns. We are in a war, our guys are dying daily and some asshole or assholes are stealing money by the BILLIONS. Enough is enough, can we, now, get excited and really care about how we are fighting this war?

Comments

[Chris Sears]

Thank-you Col Hunt, but you need a much wider forum for this. I assume you have talked to you "buddy" Bill O' and can make this national (OR INTERNATIONAL REALLY!!....oh dear...?? )I know "he and his" can rightfully pull this apart. I am almost embarassed enough and so sad enough that I don't want it out there for "our guys" to see. But it must be. There are many people out here who have done so much, in our "small" way (comparatively speaking) and thought that it has meant so much, but the "Big Stuff" we cannot have any trust in?

[Chris Sears]

And, as far as the "public lynching", I would travel to wherever it is and I would be sitting in the front row, if someone of importance can get me there, to see justice proclaimed.
And, I would and will, in whatever way appropriate, show that our fight, no matter how unresolved with the realty of this news, was the most honorable and true, and righteous of battles.
Where are we to go from here?

[JO]

It looks to be true.

It's been reported before by CNN and others. Of course, Bremer and the CIA deny the reports. It would make both look terrible. Both were in charge and would be responsible.

From the article:
Auditors were unable to verify that the Iraqi money was spent for its intended purpose. In one case, they raised the possibility that thousands of "ghost employees" were on an unnamed ministry's payroll.

"CPA staff identified at one ministry that although 8,206 guards were on the payroll, only 602 guards could be validated," the audit report states. "Consequently, there was no assurance funds were not provided for ghost employees."

It certainly doesn't look very good. Sadly, I think many on the Right will be quick to sweep this under the rug and provide an excuse. But it looks just like another case of war-time profiteering.

[Nurse Judy]

Didn't Col Cowan and you allude to this corruption on Bill O's show some months ago, and Ann what's-her-name referred to you as background noise? Or was that a different corruption?

[Col. Hunt]

Maybe partly.

Our story was the Iraqi cabinet guys taking money, this may be part of it but the problem is much bigger than we thought.

8.8 billiion, my God.

David

[Drewesmom]

The missing money is bad but its not much worse than money in our so called goverment given away to people who want to sit on their butts and not work while I work my ass off to support them and all the illegal mexicans already here sucking up stuff like hoover vacumns.

[Denise D]

Drewesmom

DITTO!