Keep questioning them them, Mr. Waxman ... the rat is now quite visable!

And just where do we suspect that the largest share of the missing $20,000,000,000.00 has gone? The answer turns out to be quite simple. Thanks to less than three weeks of (admittedly vigorous) hearings and oversight that have been lacking for the past five years, Representative Henry Waxman (D. Calif.) has identified at least two of the corporate culprits during hearings of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

The two largest Iraq "rebuilding" contractors were identified as Haliburton and Blackwater, both with longstanding ties to the Administration and various Republican and Democrat members of Congress. In addition to the statements from corporate executives made during the hearings, the Army, which handles most of the Iraq contracting, said last week that it had not even reviewed the latest contract figures.

[As an aside, I should mention briefly that corporations with contracts in Iraq "earn" their stolen billions, both as hired guns and experts at spending little while earning much. Having been a contract employee of a couple of big-money contractors in the Middle East -- both in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -- for almost a decade back during and after the first Gulf War, I can surely testify to another blogger's mention of the risks and hazards of Haliburton's and Blackwater's employees in a very, very hot war zone ... and have some sympathy for them as they are suddenly exposed to televised revelations of the profits made by their employers. As the other blogger pointed out, most of these contractors are seasoned veterans of our different services (sad to say and somewhat shame-faced, I am forced to admit that I was only a civilian employee of the services--that is, I never wore a uniform nor did I ever fight in combat as did many of my braver and very patriotic colleagues), and I'm sure, combat tested or at least very well trained. That blogger reminded us all that our regular soldiers and marines there have no option or say-so in regards to their mission.

While they (our servicemen) did volunteer to join their respective service, they are required to serve and die. Now, as the hearings drag on, they are made aware of exactly why they are dying daily.

Where are their wives and mothers when we need them in the front lines opposing this ongoing carnage?]

But back to the subject at hand and lest we forget, almost half of the $20,000,000,000 (the half that isn't in the pockets of the execs at Haliburton and/or Blackwater) has not been identified, but is believed by most to have landed in the coffers of the very people who are blowing up our Humvees and sniping at our soldiers in Baghdad and elsewhere in Iraq--the various Sunni and Shiite militias who are fighting each other for ultimate control of the oil that we are attempting to steal from them both.

Yeesh!!! Can someone tell me who's on first? Where's my brother who lives in Connecticut when I need him?