1. War in Iraq Statistics http://nationalpriorities.org/index.p hp?option=com_wrapper&Itemid= 182

2. Approved Spending from U.S. Taxpayers- $435 Billion U.S. Troops in Iraq- 133,000- 7,200 from U.K., and 11,800 from other nations U.S. Casualties- 2,596 98% Male 53% under age 25, 68% enlisted in Army U.S. troops wounded 19,387 U.S. Military Helicopters downed, 52 total, cost of repairs, staggering due to intakes in the blades motors from sand- ex: 1 Set of blades cost $8000.00 Private Contractors in Iraq 84,105 Journalist killed 74 Iraqi Military and Police Casualties 5,202 Iraqi Civilians killed 48,100- 98,200 Iraqi Insurgents killed 55,000 Daily Insurgent attacks- Feb 2004- 14, July 2005- 70, August 2006- 90

3. Iraqi Unemployment rate27-60% across country Average Hours a home has electricity- 11 hours- homes in Baghdad 6.4 hours Number of Iraqi homes connected to sewer systems, 37% Percentage of Iraqi homes with running water 78% Telephone Subscribers pre war- 833,000 since April 2006 7.4 Million

4. Permanent Military Bases Occupation and Rule in Iraq Permanent Bases Since 2003 the US military has been quietly constructing bases in Iraq, using durable materials such as reinforced steel and concrete. Government officials, including President George Bush, refuse to state publicly that the US has no plans to station troops in Iraq over the long term. This has led some analysts to speculate that the US wants to maintain a permanent military presence in Iraq for geo-strategic reasons, even if the number of US troops in Iraq decreases significantly. Such long-term basing would require a formal agreement with the Iraqi government. In the short run, an agreement of this type seems likely, since the Iraqi government depends on US military support. But the question remains whether Iraq will continue to be a US military satellite and, if so, whether the bases will be used to exercise control over the Iraqi political system and to launch interventions elsewhere in the region.

5. War for Oil ???? Iraq has the world’s second largest proven oil reserves. According to oil industry experts, new exploration will probably raise Iraq’s reserves to 200+ billion barrels of high-grade crude, extraordinarily cheap to produce. The four giant firms located in the US and the UK have been keen to get back into Iraq, from which they were excluded with the nationalization of 1972. But UN sanctions (kept in place by the US and the UK) are keeping the older contracts that governments made with Iraq inoperable. Since the invasion and occupation of Iraq in 2003, everything has changed and the companies have been scrambling to grab their share of the spoils. In the new setting, with Washington running the show, "friendly" companies expect to gain most of the lucrative oil deals that will be worth hundreds of billions of dollars in profits in the coming decades. The new Iraqi constitution of 2005, greatly influenced by US advisors, contains language that guarantees a major role for foreign companies. Negotiators hope soon to complete deals on Production Sharing Agreements that will give the companies control over dozens of fields, including the fabled super-giant Majnoon, whose 21 billion barrels are worth $1.5 trillion at today's prices. Iraq's political future is very much in flux, but oil remains the central feature of the political landscape.