We are back to report...more of the same

We are back after nine days, the longest lay-off at this site yet. I've been working on a lawsuit against Mayor Bloomberg, which has eaten up my time. Here are some refreshers:

The war in Afghanistan has now lasted 3024 days.

As of this moment, the war has cost the United States $247, 604,000,000.

The U.N released a report calling 2009 the bloodiest year for civilians since the war began in 2001. According to the report, 2412 civilians were killed, two-thirds by anti-government forces, mainly the Taliban. The number killed by NATO forces was actually lower than the year before. General McChrystal has made the reduction in civilian deaths a priority, and he deserves credit for that.

President Obama's $33,000,000,000 request to fund the surge has confirmed the once disputed notion that this war costs the United States approximately $1,000,000 per soldier per year. Obama's overall defense budget request will top $700,000,000, becoming the largest defense budget in history. To be fair, the defense budget grows pretty much every year, so this is a 'record' that will only last until the 2011 budget request.