Over the past 24 hours, the deaths in Iraq of five soldiers from Michigan have been announced, bringing the total number of United States soldiers killed to 2,984. Of the 2,984 soldiers killed, 115 soldiers have been killed in Michigan, with Michigan ranking sixth in the total number of soldiers killed behind Ohio (130), New York (139), Pennsylvania (143), Texas (216), and California (304). In addition to the human cost of the war, the war in Iraq has cost Michigan taxpayers $9.3 billion, with Grand Rapids taxpayers alone paying $185.1 million dollars to fund the ongoing occupation of Iraq. Overall, the war has cost the United States $353.6 billion. Despite this, the Bush administration and Michigan news outlets like the Detroit News are advocating that as many as 30,000 additional soldiers be sent to Iraq.

As the deaths approach 3,000, antiwar activists in Grand Rapids have planned a vigil marking the 3,000th death to take place at 5:30pm at Fulton and Division the day after the 3,000th death is announced. It is also imperative that we understand that the brunt of the deaths in Iraq have been Iraqi civilians, with the most recent study estimating that 600,000 Iraqi civilians have been killed since the invasion.