Write your congressmen. (I know, I know)

Taxpayers in New Hampshire have paid $1.9 BILLION for the cost of the Iraq War through 2007.  For the same amount of money, the following could have been provided:

• 422,054 people could have been provided with healthcare
• 2,602,075 homes could have been retrofitted with renewable electricity
• 42,468 public safety officers could have been hired
• 32,898 music and art teachers could have flooded our schools
• 190,723 could have been made available as scholarships for university students
• 140 new elementary schools could have been built
• 9,739 affordable housing units could have been constructed
• 460,199 children could have been provided with health care
• 227,973 head start places could have been made available to children
• 33,332 elementary school teachers could have been hired
• 32,348 port container inspectors could be hired (you know, to protect us from terror)

So how do we feel?  Do we feel as though our tax dollars could have been better spent?  I think it sucks, personally, and that is why I email my congressmen quite frequently.  It's easy, and let's face it, they do everything based on polls.  They don't actually READ the emails, but my assumption is that some nerdling hands them these beautiful reports full of smashing statistics, and when they see that the statistic for "constituents emailing against war" rising, they think, oooooh.  The people are getting restless.  Or not.  But can it hurt?  It really is so simple, and again, I believe it's all about polls, stats, pie charts ... certainly not common sense!  All you need to do is click on the link, put in your zip code and it gives you the email addresses of your congressmen.  Congress.org  In addition to that it also gives you a view on what they stand for and how they vote.  Again, addressing Lizbetty's comment that it's too darn bad we have to police those we put into office to do our bidding ... it is.  But they're running our country into the ground -- it's worth taking a little interest I think.

And then, to make it even easier, you can use my message by cutting and pasting it if you like!

It's time to end our involvement in the war in Iraq. Let's bring our troops home and find an alternative way to run this country besides oil. We have better things to spend the money we are borrowing on. Don't you think?

THE KEY IS TO DO SOMETHING! REALLY.