This week, the Pentagon marked the official end to the war in Iraq with a brief ceremony in a secure part of the Baghdad airport -- helicopters hovering protectively overhead. Although Defense Secretary Leon Panetta later declared that the cost paid by America was "worth it," a look at the price tag offers a more sobering assessment: 4,487 U.S. military personnel killed, over 2,000 U.S. government contractors killed, over 40,000 American troops wounded, over 100,000 Iraqis killed, at least 2 million Iraqis displaced from their homes, and a final tab that could ultimately reach $4 trillion doled out by U.S. taxpayers (a far cry from the $50 billion to $80 billion the Defense Department originally predicted it would cost). And beyond the cost in lives and treasure are the less quantifiable costs we'll be paying for years to come, including the strengthening of Iran and the weakening of America's moral standing in the world.
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Read more from Huffington Post bloggers: Stephanie Schriock: Women and the Road Home From Iraq
Though there are no words, I can only say today thank you to every American woman and man who served in Iraq. I will always be grateful for their sacrifice, and grateful for the women fighting to make sure that sacrifice is honored.
Tom Matzzie: You Ended the War in Iraq
America is weary of war and this war has been a psychic trauma on the United States that has shaken core beliefs of many. Now that it is over we must work to end other wars and start nation building here at home.
Alex Cornell du Houx: Welcome Home
The men and women of our military have, with skill and bravery, brought Iraq back from the brink. Today, they can all be proud of what they've accomplished and overjoyed to be coming home.
Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/sunday-roundup_212_b_1155689.html
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