WASHINGTON - October 28 -

• Khalid Jarrar, khalidjarrar@gmail.com, http://www.afamilyinbaghdad.blogspot.com
• Fazia Jarrar [mother] eng_faiza@yahoo.com
• Raed Jarrar, [brother currently in Amman], jarrar_raed@hotmail.com
  The Jarrar family lives in Baghdad, and has set up a blog listed above. Khalid Jarrar said today: "The costs of war have been so many innocent souls, Iraqi and American souls, and the destruction of a country. ... Explosions outside our home are common. ... There isn't any political process, there is a military process that is hoped to accomplish political goals. The government is planning to attack, with the help of the American army, anyone who doesn't agree with it. The resistance is widely respected by Iraqis, terrorism is widely condemned. People generally support the attacks on the American army, as it's an occupation army now. There are many reasons for this -- religious reasons, patriotic reasons, and even for revenge -- the American army has killed over 13,000 civilians and is bombing houses in different places. Children and women are dying. All the families of those are possible fighters."
  
  
• Teri Willis Allison,teri@asapchoice.com, http://www.tomdispatch.com
• Nancy Lessin, mfso@mfso.org, http://www.mfso.org
  Author of the recent article "The Costs of War: A Mother's View," Allison said today: "I know something about the costs of an unjust war, for my son, Nick -- an infantryman in the U.S. Army -- is fighting one in Iraq. I don't speak for my son. I couldn't even if I wanted to, for all I hear through the Mom Filter is: 'I'm fine, Mom, don't worry, I'm fine, everything is fine, fine, fine, we're fine, just fine.' But I can tell you what some of the costs are as I live and breathe them." Lessin is a founder of Military Families Speak Out. She is in contact with close relatives of the 343rd Quartermaster Company soldiers who refused to take orders for a "suicide mission."
  
  
• Anthony Swofford, anthonyhswofford@yahoo.com, http://msnbc.msn.com/id/5031075/site/newsweek
  Author of the book "Jarhead: A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles," Swofford said today: "The crucial thing is what's happening on the ground. We still don't know what the plan is for Iraq. We've simply been treated to justifications for the invasion of Iraq under the banner of the 'war on terror,' which is a conveniently open-ended enterprise. We need to begin to understand why we're there, when we're getting out. What has happened is that dissent has been crushed under the weight of endless misinformation."
  
  
• Miriam Pemberton, miriam@ips-dc.org
• Erik Leaver erik@ips-dc.org
  Peace and security editor for Foreign Policy In Focus, Pemberton said today: "Pentagon officials are now saying they will be requesting about $70 billion to pay for the next phase of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, raising the monthly cost to $5.8 billion per month. In perspective, adjusted for inflation, Vietnam cost $5.1 billion per month. The administration is downplaying this news, saying the final figure has not been determined. ... Back before the war, chief White House economic advisor Lawrence Lindsey predicted it could cost between $100 and $200 billion. The administration disputed this, predicting a cost of $50 billion, and fired him." Pemberton testified before Congress in 2002 on the estimated costs of the war. Leaver is policy outreach director for Foreign Policy In Focus. He said today: "The President promised that with the 'transfer of power' in June, things would be getting better in Iraq. In fact, the situation has become far more dangerous and far more costly. This new request is the highest to date for military operations in Iraq." Leaver is a co-author of the report "A Failed 'Transition': The Mounting Costs of the Iraq War" from the Institute for Policy Studies.

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