Coalition Deaths Continue to Decline in Iraq

The above graph illustrates the decline in coalition deaths from hostile activity in Iraq since "the Surge" began in May of 2007.  Since the beginning of "the Surge," hostile deaths have declined from 123 in May of 2007 to 8 in July of 2008.  Additionally this continued decline in violence is occurring even as the five surge brigades have left Iraq.  See the link here for more statistics.   

The Cost of War in Context, Part III

The Bush administration is seeking $108 billion in funding for the War in Iraq in 2008. While this is a sizable sum by any measure, how large is it in the context of the $14 trillion US economy? An interesting data point for comparison was given today by the American Automobile Association and Cambridge Systematics. According to research performed by Cambridge Systematics for the automobile association, auto accidents in the United States cost consumers $164 billion annually.  In comparison to the often decried cost of war in Iraq, the even greater cost of auto accidents is incurred almost without notice.

The Cost of War in Context, Part II

What percentage of active duty United States Army and Marines does the war in Iraq require? The pie chart below shows the percentage of Army and Marine troop deployment at the peak of the "surge" in September of 2007. The percentage of active duty military deployed to Iraq is much smaller when all branches of the military are considered, however, since the war in Iraq primarily drains ground troop resources only Army and Marine forces were included in this pie chart. For the source of these figures, see here.

The Cost of War in Context

Although the loss of even one human life is a tragedy, the toll in the Iraq war is low by historical standards, not only in comparison to other wars but also in comparison to years of peace. When all causes are taken into account, the number of deaths of active duty military personnel during the Iraq war has not reached the number of peace time deaths during the 1980s. This is primarily do to the fact that the number of active duty military was much higher during the Cold War. See the graph below.



For source data see here.

Coalition Fatalities Continue to Decline in Iraq

From a peak of 123 fatalities in May of 2007, the month before the United States announced it was beginning its "Surge" related maneuvers, coalition fatalities in Iraq have declined to 30 in February of 2008. See icausalties.org for more detail.