That link lists a copyright date of 2009, so I'm pretty sure that the 2010 and 2011 figures are estimates which predate the changes in strategy that the Obama Administration started that year.
Also, from today's news:
BAGHDAD (AP) – The U.S. is abandoning plans to keep U.S. troops in Iraq past a year-end withdrawal deadline, The Associated Press has learned.
The decision to pull out fully by January will effectively end more than eight years of U.S. involvement in the Iraq war, despite ongoing concerns about its security forces and the potential for instability.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/militar...ops/50786604/1
Most of my unit just got back from a deployment to Iraq. They report that their base was pretty much a ghost town by the end of their tour. And the drawdown (in terms of troop strength, at least) in Afghanistan is actually underway, though it's almost imperceptible and there's no actual end to the war in sight.
I don't know if the cost is actually going down, but the degree of military involvement is clearly being lowered dramatically in Iraq and much less dramatically in Afghanistan.
Last edited by Mayo; 10-15-2011 at 06:38 PM.
Reason: Disclaimer: These are my personal opinions, not representative of the Air Force/DoD/anyone else.