Bush plea for cash to rebuild Iraq raises $600

[JohnRich 4]

Quote

Quote

Quote

The USAID Mission in Iraq implements programs in four strategic areas:
Restoring Essential Infrastructure
Supporting Essential Health and Education
Expanding Economic Opportunity
Improving Efficiency and Accountability of Government

So you (and freethefly) would prefer that the U.S. not do any of those things for Iraq?

You seem to think it's somehow praiseworthy to rebuild someone's house after you destroyed it. I think it's an obligation and it would have been far better not to have destroyed it in the first place.

It's not just about houses. Look back up there at that list again. We didn't bomb schools and hospitals. And yet we are spending money on those things, because Saddam had neglected them for his own people. We're fixing up the ones that were already there, and building new ones. Same thing with water and power.

Can't you quit hating Bush long enough to acknowledge that those are good things we're doing?

[rehmwa 2]

Quote

Can't you quit hating Bush long enough to acknowledge that those are good things we're doing?

I don't see the prerequisite. He can hate Bush and still acknowledge some of those things are good. The trick is to do it in a way the doesn't connect the good action with the pres.

I'd attack it this way - I'd acknowledge that soldiers are regular guys and that they, and the contractors are actually doing the work. Then I'd note that the leaders in the administration only authorized funding but didn't actually lift a hammer. This way, I both acknowledge the good things and still turn it into a bash of the president.

Now if you just plain hate everything American, then you note that, sure it's a good thing, but it doesn't make up for what happened to the Indians. Add the caveat that it's not enough - that is also a nice tactic used frequently. "Sure you built 10 schools, but you didn't build 11 now did you? Why must you hate so much to not just build that 1 single school?"

CNN HEADLINE - BUSH ADMINISTRATION REFUSES TO BUILD ONE SINGLE SCHOOL - sources note giggling and dry washing of hands

and so on

...
Driving is a one dimensional activity - a monkey can do it - being proud of your driving abilities is like being proud of being able to put on pants

[JohnRich 4]

From the USAid web site:

Iraq Reconstruction:
A Brief Overview

In 2003, USAID framed its assistance program for Iraq around the minimum conditions that the country must attain if it were to have a stable government and economy. With a portfolio valued at
$5.2 billion, USAID supports the transition of Iraq to a stable, democratic, and prosperous state.

TRANSFORM THE IRAQI GOVERNMENT

AID-managed programs enable the democratic transformation in Iraq. We worked with the United Nations, the World Bank, and the European Community to gain a successful January 30, 2005 election. We will use the same techniques to achieve the best possible constitutional referendum on October 15 and national election on December 15, 2006. We provided expert assistance from numerous countries and Iraqi civil society to assist the Iraqi Constitutional Drafting committee. We continue to support decentralization, empowering provincial and city authorities so that Iraq will be less likely to return to authoritarian national government. Our assistance teams work with the Provincial Reconstruction and Development Councils to help them shoulder the burden of decentralized power. Women's issues remain to be addressed, so Iraqi NGOs continue to press for a constitution that allows women to have the same rights as men.

CREATE A MARKET ECONOMY

Assistance to the Iraqi Central Bank helped stabilize the dinar, prevent hyperinflation, and lead Iraqis to qualify for IMF resources and debt reduction. At the Ministry of Finance, a financial management information system is beginning to track the Iraqi government's budget. We support agriculture, which provides 25 percent of the Iraqi workforce, and seek to better target the social safety net, the Public Distribution System, to reach those who cannot purchase enough food. Our infrastructure repairs plugged the first gaps in power and water delivery. USAID projects will put 820 new megawatts onto the national grid in 2005. Further generation increases are planned by contractors under the Department of the Army, and eventually from the World Bank and Japan. USAID managers are moving to operation and maintenance, working to safeguard the investment of U.S. assistance.

PREPARE FOR THE FUTURE

A demographic bulge threatens Iraq's future: In 2004, half of all Iraqis are under the age of 20 years, and the population will double by 2030. Despite vast oil reservoirs, Iraq has low literacy numbers and poor health statistics. USAID's initial education and health projects smoothed the way for United Nations work with schoolchildren and vaccinations for polio. The World Bank expanded a USAID pilot program for textbooks - our 8 million books leveraged their program of 70 million books. Poor girls bear the greatest burden of custom and discrimination, reinforcing the need for equal education and adequate health programs for young mothers.

* * *

HEALTH

Health conditions in Iraq deteriorated under Saddam Hussein due to inadequate policies and funding; during the 1990s, public health care funding was reduced by up to 90 percent. By 2003, health in Iraq was among the poorest in the region with almost a third of the children in southern and central Iraq suffering from malnutrition. Low breastfeeding rates and birth weights, diarrhea, acute respiratory infections, high fertility rates, anemia, and a lack of care for childhood diseases, pregnancy, and delivery contributed to high infant, child and maternal mortality rates. Malaria, cholera, and leishmaniasis are endemic in several parts of the country.

In collaboration with the Ministry of Health (MOH), USAID assistance through its first health contract and grants to UNICEF and the WHO worked to revitalize Iraq's healthcare system by rapidly re-establishing essential health services, increasing the availability of water and sanitation systems, and improving delivery and maternal and child health services. Under its second heath contract, USAID is focusing on building MOH capacity to improve the delivery of and access to health care services and strengthen primary health care services for mothers and children; and
increase community participation in primary health care services.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

USAID worked to restore essential health services, focusing on women and children:

# Vaccinated over 3.2 million children under five and 700,000 pregnant women with
# Provided supplementary doses of vitamin A for more than 600,000 children under two and 1.5 million lactating mothers, and iron folate supplements for over 1.6 million women of childbearing age.
# Screened more than 1.3 million children under five for malnutrition and distributed high protein biscuits to more than 450,000 children and 200,000 pregnant and nursing mothers.

USAID addressed urgent water and sanitation needs to prevent disease outbreaks:

* Provided potable water for 500,000 persons each day in Basrah, Kirkuk, and Mosul.
* Repaired 1,700 breaks in Baghdad's water distribution network, rehabilitated water treatment facilities in four governorates, and repaired over 100 sewage pumping stations, rainwater stations and collapsed sewer lines in 6 governorates.
* Procured supplies to service water treatment facilities in Baghdad and other cities.

USAID programs enhanced the effectiveness and long-term impact of health services:

* Provided skills training for 2,500 primary health care providers and 700 physicians. Trained
* Provided skills training for 2,500 primary health care providers and 700 physicians. Trained 2,000 health educators, teachers, religious leaders and youth to mobilize communities on hygiene, diarrhea, breastfeeding, nutrition and immunization issues.
* Disseminated information on essential health messages to families around the country.
* Renovated 110 primary health care centers and provided basic clinical and laboratory equipment to support the delivery of essential primary health care services to 600 primary health care centers.
* Provided vaccines and cold chain equipment to selected remote health centers.
* Developed a national plan for fortification of wheat flour with iron and folic acid.
* Re-established the national disease surveillance system.

WATER & SANITATION

Today, Iraq's 140 major water treatment facilities operate poorly due to poor maintenance, a lack of plant operators, power shortages and post-conflict looting. Iraq also has 13 major wastewater treatment facilities which are operating at about a quarter of their capacity. Baghdad's three sewage plants did not treat waste for over six years prior to the conflict, allowing raw waste to flow into the Tigris River and endangering public health. Elsewhere, sewage treatment facilities were only partly operational before the conflict, while electrical shortages and a lack of parts, chemicals, and trained staff exacerbated the situation.

USAID's is spending $520 million on projects to restore potable water and sewage treatment facilities across the country, benefiting more than 11.8 million Iraqis.

* * *

yada yada yada... That's just a few of the things the US is doing for Iraq.

Damn those evil Americans!

[kallend 2,026]

How many civilians did we kill?

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[shropshire 0]

<> Way too many -but no body bothered to count them

(.)Y(.)
Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome

[mnealtx 0]

Quote

How many civilians did we kill?

Quote

Way too many -but no body bothered to count them

Nice strawmen, you two....care to refute the post showing the good that has been done?

Mike
I love you, Shannon and Jim.
POPS 9708 , SCR 14706

[busaunit 0]

Quote

How many civilians did we kill?

they are civilians they dont count.

lol

no, sorry sometimes smart bombs miss there targets this is war civilians die, nothing we can do about that.


now i sound like one of them

[busaunit 0]

Quote

From the USAid web site:

Iraq Reconstruction:
A Brief Overview

In 2003, USAID framed its assistance program for Iraq around the minimum conditions that the country must attain if it were to have a stable government and economy. With a portfolio valued at
$5.2 billion, USAID supports the transition of Iraq to a stable, democratic, and prosperous state.

TRANSFORM THE IRAQI GOVERNMENT

AID-managed programs enable the democratic transformation in Iraq. We worked with the United Nations, the World Bank, and the European Community to gain a successful January 30, 2005 election. We will use the same techniques to achieve the best possible constitutional referendum on October 15 and national election on December 15, 2006. We provided expert assistance from numerous countries and Iraqi civil society to assist the Iraqi Constitutional Drafting committee. We continue to support decentralization, empowering provincial and city authorities so that Iraq will be less likely to return to authoritarian national government. Our assistance teams work with the Provincial Reconstruction and Development Councils to help them shoulder the burden of decentralized power. Women's issues remain to be addressed, so Iraqi NGOs continue to press for a constitution that allows women to have the same rights as men.

CREATE A MARKET ECONOMY

Assistance to the Iraqi Central Bank helped stabilize the dinar, prevent hyperinflation, and lead Iraqis to qualify for IMF resources and debt reduction. At the Ministry of Finance, a financial management information system is beginning to track the Iraqi government's budget. We support agriculture, which provides 25 percent of the Iraqi workforce, and seek to better target the social safety net, the Public Distribution System, to reach those who cannot purchase enough food. Our infrastructure repairs plugged the first gaps in power and water delivery. USAID projects will put 820 new megawatts onto the national grid in 2005. Further generation increases are planned by contractors under the Department of the Army, and eventually from the World Bank and Japan. USAID managers are moving to operation and maintenance, working to safeguard the investment of U.S. assistance.

PREPARE FOR THE FUTURE

A demographic bulge threatens Iraq's future: In 2004, half of all Iraqis are under the age of 20 years, and the population will double by 2030. Despite vast oil reservoirs, Iraq has low literacy numbers and poor health statistics. USAID's initial education and health projects smoothed the way for United Nations work with schoolchildren and vaccinations for polio. The World Bank expanded a USAID pilot program for textbooks - our 8 million books leveraged their program of 70 million books. Poor girls bear the greatest burden of custom and discrimination, reinforcing the need for equal education and adequate health programs for young mothers.

* * *

HEALTH

Health conditions in Iraq deteriorated under Saddam Hussein due to inadequate policies and funding; during the 1990s, public health care funding was reduced by up to 90 percent. By 2003, health in Iraq was among the poorest in the region with almost a third of the children in southern and central Iraq suffering from malnutrition. Low breastfeeding rates and birth weights, diarrhea, acute respiratory infections, high fertility rates, anemia, and a lack of care for childhood diseases, pregnancy, and delivery contributed to high infant, child and maternal mortality rates. Malaria, cholera, and leishmaniasis are endemic in several parts of the country.

In collaboration with the Ministry of Health (MOH), USAID assistance through its first health contract and grants to UNICEF and the WHO worked to revitalize Iraq's healthcare system by rapidly re-establishing essential health services, increasing the availability of water and sanitation systems, and improving delivery and maternal and child health services. Under its second heath contract, USAID is focusing on building MOH capacity to improve the delivery of and access to health care services and strengthen primary health care services for mothers and children; and
increase community participation in primary health care services.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

USAID worked to restore essential health services, focusing on women and children:

# Vaccinated over 3.2 million children under five and 700,000 pregnant women with
# Provided supplementary doses of vitamin A for more than 600,000 children under two and 1.5 million lactating mothers, and iron folate supplements for over 1.6 million women of childbearing age.
# Screened more than 1.3 million children under five for malnutrition and distributed high protein biscuits to more than 450,000 children and 200,000 pregnant and nursing mothers.

USAID addressed urgent water and sanitation needs to prevent disease outbreaks:

* Provided potable water for 500,000 persons each day in Basrah, Kirkuk, and Mosul.
* Repaired 1,700 breaks in Baghdad's water distribution network, rehabilitated water treatment facilities in four governorates, and repaired over 100 sewage pumping stations, rainwater stations and collapsed sewer lines in 6 governorates.
* Procured supplies to service water treatment facilities in Baghdad and other cities.

USAID programs enhanced the effectiveness and long-term impact of health services:

* Provided skills training for 2,500 primary health care providers and 700 physicians. Trained
* Provided skills training for 2,500 primary health care providers and 700 physicians. Trained 2,000 health educators, teachers, religious leaders and youth to mobilize communities on hygiene, diarrhea, breastfeeding, nutrition and immunization issues.
* Disseminated information on essential health messages to families around the country.
* Renovated 110 primary health care centers and provided basic clinical and laboratory equipment to support the delivery of essential primary health care services to 600 primary health care centers.
* Provided vaccines and cold chain equipment to selected remote health centers.
* Developed a national plan for fortification of wheat flour with iron and folic acid.
* Re-established the national disease surveillance system.

WATER & SANITATION

Today, Iraq's 140 major water treatment facilities operate poorly due to poor maintenance, a lack of plant operators, power shortages and post-conflict looting. Iraq also has 13 major wastewater treatment facilities which are operating at about a quarter of their capacity. Baghdad's three sewage plants did not treat waste for over six years prior to the conflict, allowing raw waste to flow into the Tigris River and endangering public health. Elsewhere, sewage treatment facilities were only partly operational before the conflict, while electrical shortages and a lack of parts, chemicals, and trained staff exacerbated the situation.

USAID's is spending $520 million on projects to restore potable water and sewage treatment facilities across the country, benefiting more than 11.8 million Iraqis.

* * *

yada yada yada... That's just a few of the things the US is doing for Iraq.

Damn those evil Americans!

so nice of those damn evil americas spend 192 billion to blown the shit out of a place then spend 5.2 billion
to rebuild it.

i would be happy if i was an iraq. would you

[busaunit 0]

5.2 billion divided by 11.8 million people

help


help them do what

I think that articale is nothing more then a puff peace.

[crozby 0]

Quote

It's not just about houses. Look back up there at that list again. We didn't bomb schools and hospitals.

Yes 'you' fucking did. You also bombed residential areas, markets, weddings and a whole lot more besides. Try typing 'us bomb iraq school' or 'us bomb iraq hospital' into google.

Quote

... Same thing with water and power.

That's a bunch of crap too. The Iraqis had water and electricity and petrol before American bombs and missiles fucked things up.

Seriously man, where do you get your 'facts' from? You need to open your eyes and take a good look at what is *really* going on in the world around you - its significantly different than what Bush press releases or Fox 'news' is bullshitting you with.

For fucks sake, do your own research. Read some books. Question the shit that is being spoon-fed to you. The sooner Americans like you actually understand the subject matter, the sooner the rest of us can live in a bit of peace.

[kallend 2,026]

Quote

Quote

How many civilians did we kill?

Quote

Way too many -but no body bothered to count them

Nice strawmen, you two....care to refute the post showing the good that has been done?

So if someone came into your home, killed your family and wrecked the place, would you be eternally grateful to them if they then spent a few bucks to fix up the bathroom?

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[mnealtx 0]

Quote

Quote

Quote

How many civilians did we kill?

Quote

Way too many -but no body bothered to count them

Nice strawmen, you two....care to refute the post showing the good that has been done?

So if someone came into your home, killed your family and wrecked the place, would you be eternally grateful to them if they then spent a few bucks to fix up the bathroom?

Like I said...strawman. You can't refute the post so you change the subject.

I also like how some seem to have this mental image of Hussein-era Iraq as some glowing paradise, with everything just perfect.

Mike
I love you, Shannon and Jim.
POPS 9708 , SCR 14706

[EricTheRed 0]

Quote

I also like how some seem to have this mental image of Hussein-era Iraq as some glowing paradise, with everything just perfect.

Well, it was kinda nice for quite a few Bathists...

illegible usually

[kallend 2,026]

Quote

Quote

Quote

Quote

How many civilians did we kill?

Quote

Way too many -but no body bothered to count them

Nice strawmen, you two....care to refute the post showing the good that has been done?

So if someone came into your home, killed your family and wrecked the place, would you be eternally grateful to them if they then spent a few bucks to fix up the bathroom?

Like I said...strawman. You can't refute the post so you change the subject.

I also like how some seem to have this mental image of Hussein-era Iraq as some glowing paradise, with everything just perfect.

Mussolini made the trains run on time. I wonder why he wasn't made a saint.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[crozby 0]

Quote

Like I said...strawman. You can't refute the post so you change the subject.

Essential services (water, elecy, gas) are still sporadic, 2 years on. They are still in a worse state than they were prior to the invasion. If you cared about getting an objective opinion you could always try searching for this kind of information, and much more, at www.google.com.

Quote

I also like how some seem to have this mental image of Hussein-era Iraq as some glowing paradise, with everything just perfect.

No one is suggesting that. Despite the Bush propaganda it is possible to disagree with American foreign policy and also disagree with SH domestic policy at the same time.

[tso-d_chris 0]

Quote

He also knew that to continue into Iraq would be a horriable mistake. I recall hearing him say something along the line...You break it, you will have to fix it. I have far more respect for GHB than his son whom I have zero respect for.

While I have not heard GHWB say anything bad about W's actions as president in the interviews I have heard, Praise for his son's decisions has also been conspicuously absent, unless I am just reading/hearing the wrong interviews.

[shropshire 0]

O.K matey,.....So, I cannt give you actual numbers (cus as I said no one counted them!) ... but even 1 was way too many or are you suggesting that a couple here or there was O.K? After all, those kids shouldn't have been in the way, I mean, it's only their country that we bombed back to the stone age.

Strawman 2,

(.)Y(.)
Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome

[billvon 2,990]

>Yeah, that's why there are armed forces from 30+ countries in
>Iraq right now . . .

Nope, most have pulled out. Gotta keep up with the news!

>We're alone alright.

"Alone" as in "the coalition of the willing" which effectively means the US and the UK. Here are the nations that have already pulled out:

Nicaragua (Feb. 2004)
Spain (late-Apr. 2004)
Dominican Republic (early-May 2004)
Honduras (late-May 2004)
Philippines (~Jul. 19, 2004)
Thailand (late-Aug. 2004)
New Zealand (late Sep. 2004)
Tonga (mid-Dec. 2004)
Hungary (end Dec. 2004)
Portugal (mid-Feb. 2005)
Moldova (Feb. 2005)
Netherlands (Mar 2005)
Singapore (Mar 2005)

Poland, Bulgaria and the Ukraine are pulling out soon. Japan said it's pulling out depending on their elections.

[JohnRich 4]

Well, you didn't disappoint me. I didn't think you were capable of acknowledging a single good thing that has been done by Americans in Iraq. I think it would make your hair fall out or something...

But your inability to do this, in the face of some things that are unquestionably good, makes your credibility plummet.

My strawman versus your strawman:
How many civilians did Saddam Hussein kill?

[kallend 2,026]

Quote

Well, you didn't disappoint me. I didn't think you were capable of acknowledging a single good thing that has been done by Americans in Iraq. I think it would make your hair fall out or something...

But your inability to do this, in the face of some things that are unquestionably good, makes your credibility plummet.

My strawman versus your strawman:
How many civilians did Saddam Hussein kill?

Do you consider Mussolini's good works in the greater scheme of things?

As someone pointed out, the US has spent on rebuilding a tiny % of what it spent destroying the place in the first place.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[shropshire 0]

Hi John,

<How many civilians did Saddam Hussein kill? >>

Yeah, alot (we know that he and his mates were well naughty!!) but how does that excuse our actions (killing innocent people who just happen to be countrymen of the badies)?
2 Wrongs most certainly do not make a Right.

Regards,

(.)Y(.)
Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome

[billvon 2,990]

>How many civilians did Saddam Hussein kill?

None! He was killing potential insurgents, not innocent civilians, and defending his country from foreign fighters that came across his borders from other countries. OK, perhaps a few bad apples in his military tortured and raped people, but that's clearly not his fault.

[christelsabine 1]

My strawman versus your strawman:
How many civilians did Saddam Hussein kill?

[JohnRich 4]

Quote

My strawman versus your strawman:
How many civilians did Saddam Hussein kill?

Question is slightly incomplete, should be posed like that:
"How many US civilians did SH kill?"

Just in order to keep balance in fairness ...

[GTAVercetti 0]

Quote

Quote

My strawman versus your strawman:
How many civilians did Saddam Hussein kill?

Question is slightly incomplete, should be posed like that:
"How many US civilians did SH kill?"

Just in order to keep balance in fairness ...

Oh, I see. So it doesn't matter if he kills a couple hundred thousand of his own citizens. No one has the right to stop him from doing so. Got it!