Totally Wasted

waste verb
4 a : to spend or use carelessly : SQUANDER <waste valuable resources> b : to allow to be used inefficiently or become dissipated <wasting her talent>

I am sick of the flap that we've heard over politicians stating the obvious: American lives are being wasted in Iraq. First Barack Obama, now John McCain. Dear news media, this is not a controversial statement. The Bush Administration stated the value of the war before it started, and gave us a cost estimate. And we have not got what we paid for. One might even say we've been over-charged for a whole lot of nothing. So I applaud these two politicians for agreeing on this point.

Anyone who criticizes their word choice should remember that "waste" does not imply that the thing wasted has no value. Quite the contrary. And instead of wasting our time degrading our language by harping on semantics, pundits who don't like the term "waste" should explain why spending human life in Iraq was and is a good investment.