Must U.S. Taxpayers Pay for Iraqi Electricity?

by Daniel Pipes
Tue, 11 Mar 2008
updated Thu, 13 Mar 2008

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I have complained for five years now that the U.S. government assumed responsibilities in Iraq – constitution writing, school textbooks, inter-tribal relations, dam conservation – that rightfully belong to Iraqis. The purest symbol of this usurpation, however, is the provisioning of utilities. In particular, Americans have for five long years assumed responsibility for, and Iraqis have griped about, the inconsistent supply of electricity. Here is a new report on the problem, by Glenn Zorpette of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers:

During a cold snap this January in Iraq, I spent a morning interviewing people on the streets of Falluja. Over and over again, I heard variations on two basic themes: appreciation that the coalition had driven the insurgents out of town, and anger over the inability of their government, with American assistance, to provide them with more than an hour or two of electricity each day. The number of hours may vary, but much the same complaint can be heard just about anywhere in Iraq. Electricity remains a dispiritingly scarce commodity, even though more than $6 billion, mostly in American money, has been devoted to improving supply.

Comment: This is the worst combination, with American taxpayers paying through the nose for the welfare of Iraqis – and to no avail, as the money is squandered. One wonders when Washington will end this unhappy dependence. (March 11, 2008)

Related Topics: Iraq, US policy

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Reader comments on this weblog entry

Title	By	Date
U.S. Assumes Iraqi Govt. Responsibility [102 words]	Richard H. Shulman	Mar 29, 2008 17:04
We had good reason to suplly electricity in Iraq -- for a while. [207 words]	William A. Wheatley	Mar 17, 2008 00:14
You broke it, you own it. [145 words]	Ghulam Muhammed, Mumbai	Mar 16, 2008 03:20
How to close this can of worms? [159 words]	jennifer solis	Mar 16, 2008 03:14
Must U.S. Taxpayers Pay for Iraqi Electricity? [24 words]	Riva Moris	Mar 15, 2008 17:38
What in the World? [47 words]	Blackspeare	Mar 15, 2008 16:25
AMERICA: SOON TO BE A THIRD WORLD NATION [1069 words]	DANIEL REDMOND	Mar 14, 2008 22:47
No system stands without a physical foundation. [68 words]	Ynnatchkah	Mar 13, 2008 17:17

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