Iraq War Test

Iraq War Political Testing Results

Iraq IQ Test Summary - Subtopics include the build-up to the Iraq War; The execution of the War; Political aspects and implications of the war; American and coalition forces military strategy; Media coverage and public opinion; Iraqi politics and culture.

Iraq Novice IQ Test - Our Iraq War Novice Political IQ Test is a moderately difficult 15 question multiple-choice quiz, designed to simultaneously test, inform and engage the casual user. Most test-takers will find this quiz to be somewhat challenging. It features an ample 25 minute time limit and a randomly compiled question set drawn from both our easy and moderate difficulty Iraq question databases.

Iraq Advanced IQ Test - Our Iraq War Advanced Political IQ Test is a very challenging 20 question multiple-choice quiz. It is designed to truly test the limits of the test-takers relevant knowledge and informedness on the subject. Even the most hardcore political pundits will be challenged. It features a leisurely 35 minute time limit and a randomly compiled question set drawn from both our moderate and challenging difficulty Iraq question databases.

Interesting Iraq War Links

NPR - An absolutely outstanding news, radio and podcast resource for up-to-date information on the Iraq War.

iCasualties.org - Icasualties.org features a running tally of the coalition causalities incurred in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. What we like about this site is that it presents useful information, such as statistical breakdowns of casualties by type of injury, cause of death, nationality, and date - among other criterion. At the same time, Icasualties.org does not attempt to convey a political message, and instead keeps its focus on providing accurate data to the public.

The White House - For the latest on the Obama Administration's views and intentions regarding the Iraq War.

Mywartax.org - This simple tool allows you to calculate how much of your taxable income has been spent on the Iraq War. Please click the "How was this Calculated?" button to see their methodology, which we at PunditPolitics feel is sound. While mywartax.org is obviously an anti-war website, it is nonetheless useful for getting a ballpark figure on how much you have spent on the Iraq War - that is, if you want to know.

"What the Iraq War will Cost the U.S." - This is an interesting article written by Lawrence B. Lindsey, a former White House economist who is now famous for estimating in 2002 that the War in Iraq would cost $100 billion to $200 billion. Lindsey explains and updates his estimate, but also offers useful insight into how the "costs of war" are actually calculated - and into what these costs actually mean.

Wikipedia Entry: "Iraq War" - Although often poo-pooed for its potential for inaccuracies and errors, Wikipedia's entry on the Iraq War offers an excellent review of the history and issues surrounding the War in Iraq. This entry should be viewed as a helpful primer, rather than the almighty repository of truth. Also note the immense quantity of possibly helpful citations/links at the bottom of the page.

War Cost Calculator - This tool is useful for calculating the overall cost of the Iraq War based on user-inputted assumptions (such as how long one expects U.S. forces to be in Iraq, and how many casualties per month one expects the U.S. to sustain).

Government in the Middle East, Commentary and Analysis

Iranian Election Irregularities, Impact on U.S. Relations

On June 12, 2009, Iran held a presidential “election” that saw the unabashedly anti-American incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad win an astonishing and suspicious 66% of the vote, while his only real challenger - moderate reformist Mir-Hossein Mousavi- received a mere 33%.

There have been many allegations of fraud made by Mousavi’s supporters, who have been protesting in the streets of Terhan. Nonetheless, it will be difficult to conclusively prove election fraud with the information currently being made available. Lacking concrete proof, the combination of the security council admitting the number of votes recorded in 50 cities exceeded the number of eligible voters by a combined 3 million votes, and statistical analysis indicating that there is only a 1 in 200 chance the published vote numbers were not altered make it reasonable to conclude the election was fixed. Many columnists have questioned how this ‘farce’ of an election should impact President Obama’s diplomacy with Iran. The spirit of these questions are wrongheaded; I am more curious why so many pundits think the Iranian election th should affect Obama’s diplomacy with Iran in any way.

Posted in Government in the Middle East | 7 Comments »