Moveon.org has a fascinating new resource, a listing of the expense of the Iraq War extrapolated out to every Congressional district in the nation.
So let's take a look at what New York City's lone republican, Vito Fossella, is costing his community (.pdf file).
The Iraq War has cost New Yorkers as a whole $40.91 billion. The cost to residents of the Thirteenth Congressional District amounts to $1.56 billion.
From the report:
What Citizens of New York's 13th District Could Have Gotten Instead:
· Health care coverage for 283,252 people—or 536,733 kids, or
· Head Start for 177,181 additional kids, or
· 18,745 new elementary school teachers, or
· 256,786 scholarships to make college more affordable, or
· Renewable electricity for 2,917,228 homes, or
· 8,857 affordable housing units, or
· 30,939 public safety officers to keep the streets safe
These numbers become more scandalous when you compare them with actual Census data. The total population of the district is estimated in 2005 at 669,362; that's $2,330 and change per person in the district. The district has only 45,471 children under five, thereby eligible for Head Start - not 177,181. It has only 257,907 housing units - not 2,917,228.
The comparative cost of the war by New York Congressional District shows that the 13th has paid more than many for the war, with only the 1st, 2nd, 3d, 4th, 5th, 14th, 18th and 19th having paid more.
Maybe it's time for a Congressman who doesn't insist on throwing his constituents' tax dollars down the Iraq sinkhole. And that's without the human costs, which in a district with 45,046 veterans - notably not including the current Congressman - aren't exactly negligible, either.
