January25, 2007:
The cost of the Iraq war has gone from $4.4 billion a month in 2003,
to $8 billion a month in 2006. Why the increase? A large part of it is wear and
tear on equipment. Helicopters and armored vehicles have taken a real beating
in the heat and dust. These vehicles must be repaired, maintained and
refurbished. But another, less publicized, reason is that the U.S. Army is
using the refurbishment as an opportunity to upgrade equipment. Older parts and
components, especially electronics, are replaced with newer stuff. In some
cases, the refurbishment is actually a substantial upgrade. A lot of those
billions are also going into research and development. Nothing sneaky here, the
R&D is directly related to conditions in Iraq (dealing with roadside bombs
and the special intelligence needs for running down terrorist groups.) The new
techniques developed include lots of computers and cutting-edge sensors. This
stuff will be useful in any kind of war, and the army is getting the money to
develop and build this advanced gear years before they could expect it in
peacetime. Moreover, they can take the new equipment and test it under combat
conditions. So, while the war is expensive, the army is seeing to it that lots
of the money goes to fund long range needs.