Will the War in Afghanistan Help Me Get a Job?

Posted by Robert Greenwald, Brave New Foundation at 12:21 PM on April 15, 2009.

We bring you Cost of War, part three of our Rethink Afghanistan documentary, which delves into the financial costs of this broadening war.

As we pay our tax bills, it seems an appropriate time to urge everyone to Rethink Afghanistan, a war that currently costs over $2 billion a month but hasn't made us any safer. Everyone has a friend or relative who just lost a job. Do we really want to spend over $1 trillion on another war? Everyone knows someone who has lost their home. Do we really want spend our tax dollars on a war that could last a decade or more? The Obama administration has taken some smart steps to counter this economic crisis with its budget request. Do we really want to see that effort wasted by expanding military demands?

Watch Pulitzer Prize-winning authors and journalists, military and foreign policy experts, leading economists, and many more explain just how much the war in Afghanistan will cost us over how many years. View both the trailer and full segment of Cost of War, part three of the Rethink Afghanistan documentary.

Last week, we delivered a petition to Sen. John Kerry and Rep. Howard Berman, demanding oversight hearings. These hearings could raise the critical questions about costs and many other issues. Now, we want to know what questions you would ask in such hearings. Would you want to know how exactly the war is weakening the U.S. economy? What about whether more troops can solve Afghanistan's problems or the escalating instability in Pakistan, subjects explored in parts one and two of this documentary?

1. Record your questions on your webcam and send them to us! Simple instructions for doing this can be found here. It's easy!
2. Post your video to our Facebook page! Go to our Facebook page, click in the "Write something" box, and then click the video link.
3. Vote on the written questions you think are the most critical for oversight hearings and submit your own.

We must urge Congress to raise key questions about this war at once. As FireDogLake blogger Siun recently wrote, "Once again we are planning a surge with no exit plan and a continued lack of concern for the most basic protection of the civilians in the land we claim to liberate."

Tagged as: economy, al qaeda, military, barack obama, pakistan, brave new foundation, taliban, unemployment, afghanistan war, andrew bacevich, rethink afghanistan, lawrence korb, anand gopal, ahmed rashid, jo comerford

Robert Greenwald is a producer, director and political activist. His new media company, Brave New Films, is currently focused on making short videos like the FOX Attacks (FoxAttacks.com) and The REAL McCain (TheRealMcCain.com), which educate and empower viewers to take action and have been seen by millions.