Click here to watch a movie of the event in Manhattan. (Quicktime)

NEW YORK, NY – Today Jonathan Tasini will take a five-borough tour focused on the human and economic costs of the war in Iraq. Each stop on the tour will highlight a different sector of our society that has been impacted by the Iraq war and occupation. Tasini will visit: the VA Hospital in Manhattan, a postal service facility slated for closure in the Bronx, the Queensbridge public housing complex, Brooklyn College, and recently closed Bayley Seton Hospital in Staten Island.

As of September 7th, 2,662 U.S. military personal have been killed in Iraq, and nearly 20,000 have been injured. The number of Iraqui deaths is estimated to be over 40,000.

The economic costs of the war are also high: According to research by National Priorities Project, the Iraq war has cost $318.5 billion so far, $244 million per day. For New York State the total cost is $28.6 billion, and $10.6 billion for New York City. (See chart below for a breakdown of the economic cost by borough).

"With the money used to fund an illegal and immoral war, New York City could have instead hired 172,681 additional public school teachers for one year or provided 483,043 students with 4-year scholarships to public universities," said Tasini. "We could have built 89,718 additional housing units or insured 5,966,604 children for one year. This tour will highlight the sacrifices we have been forced to make in order to fund this immoral and illegal war."

The first stop of the tour will be the VA hospital in Manhattan on 23rd St. and 1st Ave. At this stop Tasini will focus on the increasing cost of caring for the military personnel that are returning from Iraq and the fact that President Bush has proposed cutting veterans benefits in order to compensate for increased Defense Department spending. President Bush's budget request for 2007 proposes a cut to veterans' benefits by 13% ($10 billion) over the next 5 years. The Congressional Budget Office, however, has estimated that to continue providing the same level of services as today, VA medical care would need an increase in 2009 of $4 billion, or 11.8 percent, above the 2006 funding levels.

The second stop on the tour will be the Bronx General Post Office, located on Grand Concourse and 149th St in the Bronx. Though it claims the decision is not yet final, the United States Post Office is likely to close all three mail processing facilities within the Bronx, consolidating mail processing with Manhattan. Bronx is one of 40 communities nationwide targeted for such USPS cuts is further evidence of the federal government's targeted strategy to cut spending on social programs and services so as to service a largely war-driven national debt. This consolidation and closing will not only add 1-2 days to in-Bronx mail delivery, but will result in the loss or displacement of up to 2,000 good-paying, unionized postal office worker jobs as well as negatively impact economic growth in the borough.

The third stop on the tour will be the Queensbridge Housing Project located on 21st St. and 41st. Ave in Queens. With 3,142 housing units, Queensbridge is the largest public housing development in the U.S. It was opened in 1939 and is owned by New York City Housing Authority. The New York City Housing Authority receives roughly half of its budget from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). In June, HUD contacted public housing authorities to announce a $300 million shortfall in operating subsidies for public housing in FY06. As a result, operating subsidies are only at 85.5% of the promised amount, retroactive to January 2006, and the New York City Housing Authority must find funds to make up the difference.

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The fourth stop on the tour is Brooklyn College, located on 2900 Bedford Ave. President Bush's proposed 2007 discretionary appropriations for the Department of Education calls for a decrease of $3.1-billion (5.5%) from the current level. Additionally, in President Bush's budget request for 2007, the student financial aid program budget will be cut by 2.3%. If approved, these cuts will eliminate the Perkins Loan program, hold the maximum Pell Grant award steady for the fifth year in a row, and offer no increases in funding for federal grant or work-study programs.

The final stop on the tour is the former site of the Bayley Seton Hospital on 75 Vanderbilt Ave, Staten Island. Since that hospital's closure last year, there are only two remaining hospitals on Staten Island, one of which has declared bankruptcy. The U.S. ranks near the bottom of the list among countries in public health measures such as infant mortality and life expectancy. Rather than fund the Iraq war, the U.S. could instead pay for universal single-payer health care. Because of the war, however, instead of increasing funding for public health care programs, Bush has proposed cutting Medicare funding in 2007 by 5%. According to the American Medical Association, if the President's FY07 budget is approved, NY State will lose $242 million in Medicare funding next year.

Statistics on the Economic Cost of the War

• U.S.: $318.5 billion

_ $244 million per day

_ $10 million per hour

• NY State: $28.6 billion

_ With this money we could have:

• EDUCATION: …hired 463,307 additional public school teachers for one year

• EDUCATION: …provided 1,296,017 students with 4-year scholarships to public universities

• HOUSING: …built 240,716 additional housing units

• HEALTH: …insured 16,008,531 children for one year

• NY City: $10.6 billion

_ With this money we could have:

• EDUCATION: …hired 172,681 additional public school teachers for one year

• EDUCATION: …provided 483,043 students with 4-year scholarships to public universities

• HOUSING: …built 89,718 additional housing units

• HEALTH: …insured 5,966,604 children for one year

• Local Costs: 5 Boroughs of NYC

_ Staten Island: $847.4 million

_ Bronx: $1.3 billion

_ Manhattan: $2.5 billion

_ Brooklyn: $2.7 billion

_ Queens: $3.3 billion

(from the National Priorities Project: www.nationalpriorities.org)

Human Cost of the War:

As of September 5, 2006…

• U.S.: 2,652 U.S. military deaths (September 7th: 2,662)

_ WOUNDED in action: 19,773

• NY State: 125 U.S. military deaths

• NY City: 36 military deaths

_ Staten Island: 1 military death

_ Bronx: 8 military deaths

_ Manhattan: 8 military deaths

_ Brooklyn: 14 military deaths

_ Queens: 5 military deaths

• Reported Iraqi Civilian Deaths

_ Minimum: 41,639

_ Maximum: 46,307

• Military deaths from other Iraq coalition countries: 115+

• Journalists killed in Iraq: 98+

• Independent contractors killed in Iraq: app. 349

(from the U.S. Department of Defense and Iraq Coalition Casualty Count: www.icasualties.org)