I wish you could have linked us to a creditable source.    But I doubt the government of Iraq will ever feel too sorry for us.  After all, we're only 10 TRILLION DOLLARS in debt!   

Here are some other sources:

MSNBC

CNN

CHRON

FOXNEWS

Why should they pay? Its not like Germany or Japan who went out and attacked other nations.

$79B is really not a whole of money in the large scheme of things, if anything I would want them to keep it to help keep some leverage.

Yes, it is a lot of money and they should rebuild their own country.  You must be loaded.  When does "a lot of money", start? 

Trillion?

Drummer,

What if Iraq agreed to do that?  Would it be fair to stop there? Or should we go after other countries for money for families of the 55,000 who lost their lives in Viet Nam and the families of the hundreds of thousands who lost their lives in the Korean, World Wars 1 & 2 and other wars?    Where would we draw the line?

All nations have ,in the past ,and always will in the future, acted in there own perceived self interest. No matter what some would claim, the US is, in this respect, like every other nation. Arguments can, and have, been made both for and against our involvement in Iraqi, but it was decided by the President that a democratic Iraqi would advance American interest in an oil rich area (yes it was all about oil - so what - our economy depends on it). We spent all that money to fight that war because we hope to gain influence and power in the area, not because we love the Iraqi people. In other words, we spent it to advance our own interest. There is nothing wrong with that, it's the way the world works. Every country looks out for it's own interest. We forget that to our peril.

I am always amused at Americans who say that the French and British should be thankful to us for going to war to save them from Hitler. Ridiculous, war against Germany and Japan was inevitable. our leaders knew that we could not survive in a world dominated by Fascist Germany and Japan. We got involved because it was in our interest to do so, not to help fellow democracies. Just look at the aid we gave the USSR at the same time.

You got it!  But I pray that in the future we'll have a lot more love for one another and NO MORE wars! 

Over 2,300 years ago, the Greek philosopher Plato wrote that, "Only the dead have seen the end of war." In the ensuing years, nothing has changed.

I didn't know that Plato had said that, but now that I do I'll still pray for peace.     

Prayer is fine - but keep your powder dry.

LOL!  Who coined that phrase or a variation of it?

No idea, but it was used in the 1800s, when wet gunpowder could cost you your life, as a way of saying be careful. Still a good idea in national relations today.