Reflecting on 9-11: An EA Special Collection

Today and Monday, EA will be presenting a series of articles to prompt thought and discussion not only about the events of 11 September 2001 but about the US and the world from then to today.

Joseph Stiglitz: "A US Response More Costly Than the Attacks"
Tom Engelhardt: "Let's Put 9-11 Behind Us"
David Dunn: "What the War on Terror Has Cost the US...and Us" 
Scott Lucas: "Why 9-11 Was Not a Turning Point for the World" 

Scott Lucas: "A Discussion on the BBC"

Reflecting on 9-11: A US Response More Costly than the Attacks (Stiglitz)

Even if Bush could be forgiven for taking the United States, and much of the rest of the world, to war on false pretenses, and for misrepresenting the cost of the venture, there is no excuse for how he chose to finance it. His was the first war in history paid for entirely on credit. As the US went into battle, with deficits already soaring from his 2001 tax cut, Bush decided to plunge ahead with yet another round of tax “relief” for the wealthy.

Today, the US is focused on unemployment and the deficit. Both threats to America’s future can, in no small measure, be traced to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Increased defense spending, together with the Bush tax cuts, is a key reason why the US went from a fiscal surplus of 2 per cent of GDP when Bush was elected to its parlous deficit and debt position today. Direct government spending on those wars so far amounts to roughly $2tn - $17,000 for every US household - with bills yet to be received increasing this amount by more than 50 per cent.

Click to read more ...