53 Interesting Facts (bologna alert)

One of those silly email forwards | Who knows? | Who knows?

[sparkomatic]

I searched for this and couldn't find it in FR so forgive me if it's already been posted.

My mom sent me this. She probably believed every word in it.
I'd like to see you guys pick it apart.

[Centurion2000]

7. Q: What percent of US military spending would ensure the essentials of life to everyone in the world, according the UN?
A: 10% (that's about $40 billion, the amount of funding initially requested to fund our retaliatory attack on Afghanistan ).

Who cares ... most of the rest of the world can go hang as far as I'm concerned. After all they all seem to hate America.

8. Q: How many people have died in wars since World War II?
A: 86 million
Most of these people were killed by communists (liberal democrats) ... see China, Cambodia and the Soviet Union

[William McKinley]

Al-Jazeerah, 2/19/03*

Does your mom have any idea who she is quoting here?

[DoughtyOne]

 

[hellinahandcart]

My mom sent me this. She probably believed every word in it.

I am so sorry. Really.

[Psalm 73]

45. Q: How many nuclear warheads does Iraq have?
A: 0
46. Q: How many nuclear warheads does US have?
A: over 10,000

Then I think we should share, and give at least a few of them to Iraq, and save them the trouble of dealing with finicky detonators and detonate them as they arrive...

[Scarlet_Pimpernil]

This is a brilliant example of rhetorical technique, without much in the way of substance.
Its hard to refute only because it doesn't say anything, its all innuendo.
They never come out and say that the US shouldn't invade Iraq because we should feel guilt over capitalism and freedom working to the tune of 50% of the wealth and 6% of the population, so you can't refute it. In the softer liberal head, an emotion is evoked and they don't know why.
It builds to a crescendo with each factoid, some of which aren't factoids but obvious fabrications--like Israel was never ordered to have weapons inspections--the West universally condemned Sodom for gassing his own people when it was de-classified and made known, of course no one decryed it when they didn't know about it...

[ClearCase_guy]

7. Q: What percent of US military spending would ensure the essentials of life to everyone in the world, according the UN? A: 10% (that's about $40 billion, the amount of funding initially requested to fund our retaliatory attack on Afghanistan ).

Anyone know what the US spends in foreign aid each year? I'm sure it's not 40 billion, but I think it's over $10 billion. And I'm sure Germany and France also make heavy contributions to provide the world with "essentials".

[William McKinley]

1. Q: What percentage of the world's population does the U.S. have?
A: 6%
2. Q: What percentage of the world's wealth does the U.S. have?
A: 50%

Liberty and capitalism work.

3. Q: Which country has the largest oil reserves?
A: Saudi Arabia
4. Q: Which country has the second largest oil reserves?
A: Iraq

Kinda shoots the whole war-for-oil argument to pieces. Because we don't appear to be going to war with Saudi Arabia, do we?

5. Q: How much is spent on military budgets a year worldwide?
A: $900+ billion
6. Q: How much of this is spent by the U.S. ?
A:50%

Which does put us in a position to be able to do things when our national interests are threatened. Good.

7. Q: What percent of US military spending would ensure the essentials of life to everyone in the world, according the UN?
A: 10% (that's about $40 billion, the amount of funding initially requested to fund our retaliatory attack on Afghanistan ).

How much does the UN collect in dues from various nations?

And another question- how much do we spend, per year, on foreign aid? And how long have we been doing so?

So why have the essentials not been provided for these people?

The answers to those questions are the reasons why those two questions from the propagandists are gibberish.

8. Q: How many people have died in wars since World War II?
A: 86 million

How many wars have broken out between two democracies?

Wouldn't that be a good reason to get rid of dictators and foster the growth of Democracy?

9. Q: How long has Iraq had chemical and biological weapons?
A: Since the early 1980's.
10. Q: Did Iraq develop these chemical and biological weapons on their own?
A: No, the materials and technology were supplied by the US government, along with Britain and private corporations.

Better let them keep it then, damn the consequences!

11. Q: Did the US government condemn the Iraqi use of gas warfare against Iran ?
A: No

The author apparently never heard of the "Prevention of Genocide Act of 1988".

12. Q: How many people did Saddam Hussein kill using gas in the Kurdish town of Halabja in 1988?
A: 5,000
13. Q: How many western countries condemned this action at the time?
A:0

The author apparently never heard of the "Prevention of Genocide Act of 1988".

Etc etc etc. By the way, by answering these questions as I chose to I am in no way stating I think there is any validity to any of the numbers or assertions being made by the author.

[William McKinley]

In 1995 it was up to just over 12.5 billion per year.

Hey, with that huge oil reserve, how much does Iraq contribute to providing the necessities of life for those the UN says could have it with a mere 40 billion?

[sparkomatic]

You guys are doing great. Thanks.

[An.American.Expatriate]

5. Q: How much is spent on military budgets a year worldwide?
A: $900+ billion
6. Q: How much of this is spent by the U.S. ?
A: 50% [that would be 450 billion] - Wrong: FY 2000 = 304 billion, FY2001 = 329 billion, FY2002 = 350 billion, FY 2003 (requested) = 397 billion]
7. Q: What percent of US military spending would ensure the essentials of life to everyone in the world, according the UN?
A: 10% (that's about $40 billion, the amount of funding initially requested to fund our retaliatory attack on Afghanistan )
Wrong 10% for 2002 would be 35 billion, actual figure [total foreign affairs] 21 billion - which means the US is already funding 60% of what the UN claims is needed to ensure the essentials of life to everyone in the world!!!

[bsaunders]

Q: Is Israel illegally occupying Palestinian land?

NO ! ! !

[hellinahandcart]

9. Q: How long has Iraq had chemical and biological weapons?
A: Since the early 1980's.
10. Q: Did Iraq develop these chemical and biological weapons on their own?
A: No, the materials and technology were supplied by the US government, along with Britain and private corporations.

Send your Mom this PDF file, with my compliments:

WHO ARMED IRAQ, 1982-2001 SIPRI(liberal vermin, here's the truth)acrobat file

It's a ridiculous argument anyway. If we indeed gave Saddam weapons, and he misused them, why isn't it incumbent on US to take them away? Why aren't the peaceniks in support of that? Why aren't they CLAMORING for us to do that? Hmmm?

49. Q: Has Israel ever allowed UN weapons inspections? A: No

Israel has never agreed to inspections as part of the terms of surrender after LOSING A WAR OF AGGRESSION that they started. That is the only reason Iraq agreed to inspections, and they've been violating their agreements since they signed on the dotted line. We were stupid to even let them keep helicopters.

45. Q: How many nuclear warheads does Iraq have? A: 0

I wouldn't be so sure about that. Depleted uranium wouldn't cause a 700% increase in cancer (assuming one believes the "estimated" UN stats, which I do not). REAL radioactive material might do that, though.

41. Q: How many UN resolutions did Israel violate by 1992? A: Over 65

How many were binding resolutions and not just the usual non-binding harumphing blather from the same group of communists and Israel-hating Arab countries that wanted to turn the Durban racism conference into an anti-Israel forum?

Why so many questions about Israel, anyway? They're totally beside the point.

23. Q: Does Iraq present more of a threat to world peace now than 10 years ago? A: No

This is eerily correct. Iraq has presented a threat to world peace since the Baath party, a bastard child of the Nazi party, came to power. Iraq was also one of the first countries to attack Israel, and I don't mean in the UN.

Saddam wants a pan-Arab socialist state with himself as absolute ruler. He's been a threat to world peace for decades, not just 10 years. And getting rid of him won't end the problem. The Baath party must be destroyed as well.

[Mr. Bird]

What percent of US military spending would ensure the essentials of life to everyone in the world, according the UN?

A: 10% (that's about $40 billion, the amount of funding initially requested to fund our retaliatory attack on Afghanistan ).

That's preposterous. There are over 5 billion people in the world. Do they mean to tell me that 8 bucks will provide me the essentials of life?

[An.American.Expatriate]

How much does the UN collect in dues from various nations?

UN Claims it needed for 2001 - 2002: 2.5 Billion (Source UN Web Site)

US Contribution 2002: 300 Million = ~23-24% (Source US State Department Budget)

For Peacekeeping the UN needed 2 Billion (UN), US Contribution 844 Million = 42% (State)

And another question- how much do we spend, per year, on foreign aid? And how long have we been doing so?

Since 1962, the US has spent (in constant 1996 dollars [I dont have conversion rates to any other year!!]) $733,380,895,773 (any average of almost 2% of total revenues [$42,496,709,383,530] and approximately 16% of the total debt [4,438,262,616,470] this country has incurred since 1962) (Source State & Treasury)

So why have the essentials not been provided for these people? Maybe because the UN and all of the regimes it supports are corrupt??

The answers to those questions are the reasons why those two questions from the propagandists are gibberish.

Dittos

[gdc61]

can i sell your mom some swamp land ?

[An.American.Expatriate]

The following figures are in constant 1996 US Dollars:

Total Foreign Aid per from 1996 through 2002 (all figures in Millions):

1962 29,398
1963 11,547
1964 24,406
1965 22,561
1966 22,573
1967 22,488
1968 22,493
1969 18,970
1970 16,855
1971 15,202
1972 16,406
1973 13,497
1974 17,188
1975 19,418
1976 16,403
1977 14,977
1978 16,538
1979 15,213
1980 23,505
1981 21,967
1982 19,261
1983 17,731
1984 22,638
1985 22,304
1986 19,039
1987 15,253
1988 13,289
1989 11,214
1990 16,295
1991 17,972
1992 17,663
1993 18,450
1994 17,901
1995 16,821
1996 13,496
1997 14,978
1998 12,681
1999 14,500
2000 15,971
2001 15,784
2002 18,535
Total 733,381

Source: US Treasury Department & US State Department

[steve-b]

Q: What percent of US military spending would ensure the essentials of life to everyone in the world

The only way US military spending could have that effect is if we used it to throw out Third World kleptocrats and install functional political systems based on the principles that enabled the West to succeed. That's too big a job to do everywhere, even for the US, and in any case military intervention is only justified in the case of a clear and present threat.