Why isn't the recession being blamed on the Iraq and Afghan wars?

If I were an advisor to the POTUS, I would tell him to blame our economic troubles on the War on Terror. It would get him off the hook for a lot of things. And it would be an accurate statement. The Iraq war costs more than TARP, and much of the money isn't being spent here. Our best and brightest are putting their time and energy towards overseas destruction, rather than building up our own economy. Plus it should be obvious to all that permanent injuries suffered in battle will cause further strain on our healthcare resources.

In a necessary, justified war, these are unavoidable costs. But these costs are also one more reason to rethink going to war in the first place. Civilians may think that they are unaffected by what happens on the other side of the world. While you may be at less personal risk than a soldier in a combat zone, wars mean higher taxes, higher prices, and less resources for non-defense industries. It certainly can have an impact on your quality of life.

One would think that economic considerations would be secondary in a time of war. When there is an ongoing life or death crisis going on, the collapse of a few companies doesn't seem so bad. On the other hand, it feels so good to gripe about a new ballpark for a change of pace.

Ending the war in Iraq may be the best thing that Obama will ever do for the economy. Starting another war would be the worst.