The Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, a nonpartisan Washington think tank, has estimated that the Korean War cost about $430 billion and the Vietnam War cost about $600 billion, in current dollars. According to the latest estimates, the cost of the war in Iraq could exceed $700 billion.

Put simply, critics say, the war is not making the United States safer and is harming U.S. taxpayers by saddling them with an enormous debt burden, since the war is being financed with deficit spending."

Fun. </Willow>

I also continue to be amused, or is it outraged, by the fact that the whole point of GTA is killing people and dealing drugs and other sorts of crime, and yet it's the sex download that everyone's up in arms about. I mean, right?!?

I'm leaning toward outraged, but yeah. Word.

I still don't have a problem with grownups playing it, but I think the sex is the least of the "bad influences" on kids there. Shit. I assume nearly all of the little kids out there will eventually have sex, but I hope many fewer of them will grow up thinking a life of crime is a good idea.

This turns out to be one of the big divides in the culture war. The right wing is outraged about sex, but cool with violence; the left wing has no problem with sex, but is outraged by violence.

So, for instance, the Buffy episode I never let my kids see was HUSH (too scary), while I squirmed through WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE but didn't make the kids quit watching.

I am pretty much OK with sex and violence.

I squirmed through WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE but didn't make the kids quit watching.

I dunno... do you think your kids were mature enough to learn the adult lesson that sometimes good TV shows have crappy episodes?

I am pretty much OK with sex and violence.

Crazy anarchist! Or centrist. I'm not sure which.

Me neither.

I am pretty much OK with sex and violence.

Ditto.

Although I did realize I would have been embarassed if my parents had come in the room while I was watching Nip/Tuck over the weekend.

This turns out to be one of the big divides in the culture war.

Ayup. Illustrated very awkwardly this past christmas where my brother got his 16 year old bil just this game and some cd/movie/? that had a very suggestive cover. My parents were appalled by the VIOLENCE!!!11, sil's parents by the PORN!!!11!.

Really, the two families are moderate stereotypes of the whole culture war dynamic. It'd be more amusing if I didn't know my brother and his wife spend all christmas just waiting one or the other of their parents to inadvertently (or not) offend the other.