Peter Ferenbach has this look at the costs of the Iraq war, in lives and treasure.
Twenty years ago, after joining some friends for dinner in Oakland, our two families sat in their living room and watched on TV as the US began bombing Iraq.
Anniversaries are interesting markers of our lives. Some bring back joyful memories like births and marriages and in others, we remember our moments of loss.
The measured passing of time itself causes us to reflect.
And so, it should be with this anniversary.
It seems right to start by remembering that several thousand US service personnel died in the war. Their loved ones will carry that pain forever and reflect on loss measured by empty seats at family tables. Tens of thousands more suffered disabilitating injuries that changed the course of their lives and the lives of those who care for them.
But the human cost for Iraq was much higher.
Credible researchers point to more than 200,000 civilian deaths alone. Others view that as a low number, reflecting the inattention we pay to civilian suffering in wartime.
As we all know, the invasion was followed by horrific sectarian violence that created the conditions for the rise of ISIS, leading to even more terrible violence.
Just like their American counterparts, countless Iraqi families will never be the same.
But the cost lingers in other ways too. A Brown University study determined that more than 30,000 active-duty service members and veterans of the post-9/11 wars have died by suicide – significantly more than those killed in military operations.
Veterans are grossly over-represented in our homeless population and among those who struggle with drug and alcohol addiction. Post-traumatic stress disorder is frequently linked to domestic abuse.
The suffering continues.
And the cost is measurable in other ways. We have paid over $2 trillion for the war since our invasion, averaging about $8,000 for every single one of us.
These are all large and complex issues, to be sure, but we have a responsibility to consider them as we mark this sad anniversary.
Because more than likely, there will be other future calls to war.
With a Perspective, I’m Peter Ferenbach.
Peter Ferenbach is the co-founder of an East Bay nonprofit.