War in Iraq Cost Over $1.7 trillion dollars / Private Contractors PROFIT from US War: $138 billion US taxpayer to private contractors

Cheney's Halliburton Made $39.5 Billion on Iraq War By Angelo Young, International Business Times 20 March 13 The accounting of the financial cost of the nearly decade-long Iraq War will go on for years, but a recent analysis has shed light on the companies that made money off the war by providing support services as the privatization of what were former U.S. military operations rose to unprecedented levels. Private or publicly listed firms received at least $138 billion of U.S. taxpayer money for government contracts for services that included providing private security, building infrastructure and feeding the troops. Ten contractors received 52 percent of the funds, according to an analysis by the Financial Times that was published Tuesday. The No. 1 recipient? Houston-based energy-focused engineering and construction firm KBR, Inc. ..., which was spun off from its parent, oilfield services provider Halliburton Co. ..., in 2007. The company was given $39.5 billion in Iraq-related contracts over the past decade, with many of the deals given without any bidding from competing firms, such as a $568-million contract renewal in 2010 to provide housing, meals, water and bathroom services to soldiers, a deal that led to a Justice Department lawsuit over alleged kickbacks, as reported by Bloomberg. Who were Nos. 2 and 3? Agility Logistics ... of Kuwait and the state-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corp. Together, these firms garnered $13.5 billion of U.S. contracts. As private enterprise entered the war zone at unprecedented levels, the amount of corruption ballooned, even if most contractors performed their duties as expected. According to the bipartisan Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan, the level of corruption by defense contractors may be as high as $60 billion. Disciplined soldiers that would traditionally do many of the tasks are commissioned by private and publicly listed companies. Even without the graft, the costs of paying for these services are higher than paying government employees or soldiers to do them because of the profit motive involved. No-bid contracting - when companies get to name their price with no competing bid - didn't lower legitimate expenses. (Despite promises by President Barack Obama to reel in this habit, the trend toward granting favored companies federal contracts without considering competing bids continued to grow, by 9 percent last year, according to the Washington Post.) Even though the military has largely pulled out of Iraq, private contractors remain on the ground and continue to reap U.S. government contracts. For example, the U.S. State Department estimates that taxpayers will dole out $3 billion to private guards for the government's sprawling embassy in Baghdad. The costs of paying private and publicly listed war profiteers seem miniscule in light of the total bill for the war. Last week, the Costs of War Project by the Watson Institute for International Studies at Brown University said the war in Iraq cost $1.7 trillion dollars, not including the $490 billion in immediate benefits owed to veterans of the war and the lifetime benefits that will be owed to them or their next of kin. http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/308-12/16561-focus-cheneys-halliburton-made-395-billion-on-iraq-war COMMENT The things that stood out for me are: War in Iraq cost $1.7 trillion dollars PLUS $490 billion in immediate benefits owed to veterans PLUS lifetime benefits owed to them or their next of kin Privatization of US military operations rose to unprecedented levels Private contractors (companies) received min.  $138 billion of US taxpayer money for contracts doled out by US govt Half (52%) of that went to 10 govt contracts Biggest recipients: KBR, Inc ie parent, oilfield services provider Halliburton Co received:  $39.5 billion in Iraq-related contracts over past decade Agility Logistics (of Kuwait) &  state-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corp Kuwait contractors received  $13.5 billion of US contracts (jointly) Private enterprise entered the war zone at unprecedented levels Amount of corruption ballooned Costs higher than paying government employees Professional, disciplined soldiers - displaced No wind-back by Obama admin on doling out contracts (without public tender process) - on contrary: increase of such contracts Iraq = private contractors remain on the ground, although US military has largely pulled out of Iraq eg.  $3 billion taxpayer money to private guards for USG sprawling embassy in Baghdad This is really mindblowing.   The amount of money that is made by PRIVATE companies enriching themselves through war is staggering. Bear in mind also, that those who PROFIT from war will lobby FOR WAR. What is also staggering is that the functions of the US military have been farmed out. The danger of that is lack of (a) accountability and (b) transparency. So, really, the government is pulling a stunt where they've probably got an 'anything goes' thing happening, because what's going on is contracted and therefore beyond public scrutiny. Hopefully, that makes sense.  I don't have a way with words.  But I hope that idea comes across. If the military screws up, it is on government heads.  But if private contractors screw up, it is passed off as a bad apple, renamed and redeployed as a mercenary. The 'decommissioning' of the US military for these private contractor forces or functionaries is worthwhile considering. And there's also the costs incurred by the taxpayer funding those that: do the job at higher price than professional soldiers introduce corruption and those that don't even compete (put in tenders) but I think these aspects aren't half as important as the establishment of 'private' State armies and functionaries that are arm's length and beyond public accountability and scrutiny. What's also interesting is the Kuwait profits.