Incredibly cheap gas (at least if you're an Iraqi...)

Does anybody remember when U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz said that the war in Iraq would pay for itself? Specifically, their argument was that oil revenues in Iraq would easily pay for the cost of reconstruction, and that the bill wouldn't be laid on the American taxpayer.

Admittedly, this was five years ago, so it's understandable if our memories might be a little fuzzy on the issue. However, this was the running argument back in 2003.

Of course, this isn't how it's worked out, a fact that becomes crystal clear when we look at how much the U.S. military is paying for gas. Currently, American forces in Iraq are paying an average of $3.23 a gallon for their gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel. The Defense Energy Support Center, essentially the fuel wing of the Department of Defense, buys gasoline on the open market at prices ranging from $1.99 a gallon to $5.38 a gallon. They then set a fixed rate for the fuel; thus, as of April 4, American forces in Iraq were paying $3.51/gallon for diesel, $3.15/gallon for gasoline, and $3.04 for jet fuel.