Who Gets Billed for a New Baghdad?

Construction takes place in central Baghdad.

From Time Magazine:

On any given day in Baghdad it's hard to envision a city on the rise amid the shattered buildings, fields of trash and pools of smelly greenish waste water baking under the sun in many neighborhoods. But a few urban planners in the Iraqi government are dreaming big nonetheless. On the drawing board are plans for overhaul and expansion of Baghdad's bridges, roads and sewage systems, plus ambitious commercial development. Planners are scouting sites around Baghdad to build a five-star hotel, an international fairground, a cultural center, a library, a park with a lake and fountains and an aquarium. "Everybody is really serious about this," says Tahseen al-Sheikhly, civilian spokesman for the Iraqi government. The Iraqi government has allocated $3 billion to rebuild Baghdad's infrastructure in a plan spanning three years.

Read more ....

More News On Iraq's Budget Surplus And Reconstruction

Iraqi official defends spending, surplus -- AP
US Senators Want Iraq to Spend Oil Revenue on Reconstruction -- Voice Of America
U.S. diplomat rejects criticism of Iraqi spending -- Reuters
U.S. Officials Defend Iraq's Oil Surplus -- CBS News
Iraq spends little on rebuilding despite huge surplus: US report -- Yahoo News/AFP
Iraqi lawmaker: We are doing our share of reconstruction -- CNN
Iraq Isn't Spending Oil Windfall On Infrastructure -- Wall Street Journal

My Comment: It is amazing that a disorganized and fractured bureaucracy responsible for 25 million people can produce a budget surplus of $80 billion for their government, and the U.S. bureaucracy with their political masters in Congress runs up deficits in the hundreds of billions of dollars each year.

I propose that the U.S. bureaucracy be moved to Baghdad, and the Iraqi bureaucracy be moved to Washington. While this is being done, I also proposed that the political establishment in Washington be moved to Baghdad, and the political establishment in Iraq (that the present U.S. Congress has labeled as being disorganized and incompetent) be moved to Washington.

I am sure that the U.S. Congress can teach the Iraqis on good governess and budget controls. While for us in America, I know that with Congress in Baghdad we will get the best of this deal.

OK .... I am dreaming .... but thinking about it makes me happy.