An article in Bloombergbusinessweek (Dec 19, 2011) describes the management of the ramp down in Iraq, with 2 million items to be accounted for removal. The choices (1) donate to Iraq,(2) ship back to the US Army for use, (3) Ship back to the US for sale to state and county governments to save local costs, (4) Dispose as waste.  Given that the original cost was borne by the US taxpayer, what should be the goal in determining the optimal route for items ? Given the high shipping costs, should those cost be recovered during sale of items, or should it be considered as the logistics cost of deployment ? Should some items be dismantled and just useful parts shipped (e.g. Engines and gearboxes) ?