They just ran a report on the local news on blackwater. They didn't paint a nice picture of them at all. http://www.knbc.com/news/13858496/detai ... =mainclick They are saying that they are a "private army" and how would you like a "private army" running loose on the streets of the USA not having anyone to answer to, and basically they are just "guns for hire" that will do the bidding of the "rich" person that hires them and not abiding by the law. One guy said that since they train for oversees type of work and crowd control that they could use some of those same tactics for riot control here and that wouldn't be good because they might be unlawful in enforcing order. They also interviewed a guy that is mounting a campaign against them and also their plan to open a new training base in California near the Mex border just outside of San Diego. The residents near the area were saying how they love the beauty of the area and other tree hugger stuff. They also without out right saying it that it would be bad for Blackwater to get into border patrol. They say this Private army is a bad thing and that these people will be "running around the streets with guns"... I don't know enough about blackwater to say if they are good or bad but I do know a lot of good people are with them and are protecting a lot of people. I think a we need more private security and more responsible people willing to put there life on the line for others. So is Private security a bad thing???
private security is bad because they dont have to adhere to the constitution as regulars have sworn to. there are 183,000 contractors in Iraq alone per CRS reports
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsUmoS3GQHs The above video is of Jeremy Scahill("Blackwater") and Robert Greenwald ("Iraq for Sale") before the Defense Appropriations sub-com. The discussion between Jack Kingston (R-GA) and Scahill is definitely worth listening to. While his book spends WAY too much time on Eric Prince and his cronyism with the current Administration, Jeremy Scahill's "Blackwater" is a very interesting read.
I wouldnt say regulars adhere to the constitution any more than mercs. How many guns were confiscated during Katrina?
($50 sixpacks of Coke, $100/load of laundry, destroying millions of dollars worth of equipment so you can get your cut on the purchase of more, driving back and forth through hostile territory with empty trucks so you can pad your bill) interesting & disturbing, unfortunately - war profiteering is not a new phenomenon. At least Lincoln, Truman & Eisenhower tried to do something about it, unlike those who were more interested in obscuring the truth like Johnson, Nixon & Bush. It was interesting to hear the chairman of the subcommittee ask the producer why the guys on the ground destroying equipment on orders from their taxpayer funded employers weren't doing more about it, The question should be: Why aren't the congressmen who have been signing off on these appropriations for years doing more about it? If ya don't want a bunch of mercenaries running around Iraq undermining our efforts, don't pay em.
They are still subject to the laws regarding fraud, murder and assault. It is a matter of enforcement of basic laws (which is easier for the government to do against private entities as opposed to compatriots in other government agencies). Would have taken a pistol course at Blackwater this month while the family was in Europe, except the couse was filled.
Howdi Guys, Thanks QPluralisT for the vid. Very informative. This is an old issue indeed. From "Executive Action" to West Africa and Rhodesia to now the middle East. Soldiers of Fortunes are a very old trade and always view in unfavorable lights. One thing is rarely mentioned is the fact that many of the so call operators are sometimes more victims of the situation that one can imagine. Like every trade, their is a race for the lowest bidder. Private armies are subject to markets idiosyncratic and something abandoned cold in the worst of situations....no liability from the business owners. It is a buyer and operator beware world..... Cheers! West01
Didnt 50 ExOps in Africa hold where 50 thousand UN troops failed? I remember something like that. Peacekeeping or something.
And no medals waiting for them back home and much sorrows.....it is a very risky business,,,no glamor indeed... :? West01
BlackWater God thing,not a bad thing. They are acomplishing what our Congress won't let our troops in Iraq acomplish. They get the job done, period. There doing Bad things, give me a break, the extreemists aren't little old ladies planting flowers.
