I heard on the radio that the cost of fighting the Iraq War was actually pretty low.
The commentator said that it was about the same cost as the Whiskey Rebellion.
Is this for real?
The Answer
While the dollar costs of the Iraq War far exceed those of the Whiskey Rebellion, the commentator was on to something. The cost of sending troops to put down the Whiskey Rebellion in western Pennsylvania in 1794 was about $800,000 in an economy of about $350 million -- i.e. it cost about 0.23% of GDP. If I've read the press correctly, it's estimated that only $20 billion was spent as of the end of active fighting in Iraq (May 1, 2003). That $20 billion was about 0.18% of GDP -- not too much different than the Whiskey Rebellion's cost.
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