Friday, July 27, 2007

Paper Cuts

SLASHED!
From the Guardian:
George Bush's plans to establish a European missile defence system suffered a big setback today when a Congressional committee slashed most of the funding.
[...]
The budget cuts are part of $3.5bn that the committee has slashed from the overall defence budget, which now stands at $459bn. (emphasis mine).

As well as reducing the budget, Congress is shifting priorities from futuristic programmes to more immediate concerns, such as improved healthcare for soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, pay rises for soldiers and marines, and much-needed weaponry for Iraq such as the heavily-armoured Stryker vehicles.


Now don't get me wrong; I heartily approve. But slashed? Try mildly nicked. 3.5 out of 459 BILLION does not a slashing make - its about 3/4 of a percent. I hate grandstanding politicians. I hate hyperbolising reporters. The Guardian is better than most, but still...

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