The Thailand expat forum for Travel, Lifestyle and Fun.

sabang

"SECURITY personnel from Blackwater USA have been involved in 56 shootings while guarding American diplomats in Iraq so far this year, the US State Department says."

"Reports on Thursday showed that Blackwater's rate of shootings was at least twice as high as those for other companies providing similar services to the State Department."

"In a separate issue a new study released on Thursday by Mr Waxman's oversight committee was highly critical of Blackwater's performance in a 2004 case in which four company contractors were killed in Fallujah in Iraq's Anbar province.
It said Blackwater had ignored "multiple warnings" of the dangers of going into Fallujah."

http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/pre...ith-blackwater-

Seems to me there is something distinctly Iffy about Blackwater.

__________________
To err is human. To blame someone else is politics.

Milkman

I'll search for the link later, but there has been some reporting the Blackwater personnel did something very bad in Fallujah and their killings were revenge. I'll go and try to confirm it and get info later today.

As for the entire concept of Blackwater and "security firms," it's a great way for the U.S. government to spend money, and perform operations, but distance themselves from responsibility.

I think we'll be hearing more about Blackwater as this investigation expands.

And point we can add to the quagmire.

__________________

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

_____________

Boon Mee

If it were not for American contractors working at Thai Military Bases in January 2005, the tsunami relief would not come off as it did.

""For all the notoriety of private military contractors like Blackwater, they represent an important aspect of the future of war. And that future is not all bad"

__________________
ผมเป็นคนบ้านนอก

attaboy

Their revenge went to far when they burned, paraded and strung up the corpses at the bridge leading into town. Oh and the dancing too. But then it does effectively generate terror.

__________________
As a kid I always thought my nickname was "attaboy" until I realized they were rooting for the dog: "Attaboy, get 'em! Get 'em!".

raycarey

i didn't realize 'shock and awe' was a one way street.

Milkman

And the Americans have do the same.

The use drops napalm on people in Iraq, and many of the victims have been civilians.

The bomb is called the Mark77 Firebomb.

And the Americans have burned and killed more civilians than the 4 Blackwater mercenaries that were killed.

raycarey

good points MM.

and in reference to going 'too far' ....how about those happy smiling photos of the US military in abu ghraib? but let's focus on the dancing of a few civilians who likely perceived it as bringing justice to an invader.

freedom's on the march!

attaboy

ray do you find their brand of justice gruesome or horrid?

Yeah and after the bombs the infantry rushes in and incinerates any survivors. Then they drag them out and string the corpses up on the bridge leading into town. Then it's the time to dance and poke the corpses. Why don't you use the old leftist blogger talking points of "dead is dead" as if it's all the same.

raycarey

yes.....but no more so than the use of cluster bombs and napalm. and had the iraqis invaded the US twice in fifteen years, i have little doubt that some yahoos in the US south would have strung up some dead iraqi soldiers (or to be more specific, war profiteers)
.hell, in jena they hang nooses if black kids sit under certain trees, imagine what they would have done to a muslim invader.


you're thinking of the US military at mai lai....but if it hasn't happened yet in this war, it's still early days.

i don't read blogs, so i can't really comment on 'leftist blogger talking points' but as far as 'dead is dead', is concerned.... 'shock and awe' comes in many forms, and it certainly seems to have the desired effect on you.

raycarey

right here....
Newsweek Video - Newsweek Video - MSNBC.com
me.
i think it's safe to say that you were wrong.....again.

Blackwater: The Confidential Iraqi Incident Report - Newsweek The War in Iraq - MSNBC.com

Boon Mee

[quote=raycarey;413301] it's still early days.
quote]
Got that right - operative statement on the entire fracas, eh?

stroller

Yep, don't underestimate the influence of the 'loving' religious right in the US for times still to come!

Boon Mee

180 out there Headmaster.
We don't underestamate the Islamofascist fanatics...

attaboy

I was prepared to thank the Iraqi govenment for providing the video showing the attack. I was expecting to much. The Iraqi govenment said they had video of the event as it happened. I don't see it. It's footage of a bullet riddled burnt vehicle . I see no event unfolding. That ain't no Zapruder Film. Why do you support their lies? I was hoping to see some evidence for myself. I really wanted there to be a video. But no. More aspersions.

Mai Lai? They tried their damnest saying it happened in Haditha.

sabang

A good Editorial from the NY Times, I agree with everything it says :-

Subcontracting the War
1st October 2007

There is, conveniently, no official count. But there are an estimated 160,000 private contractors working in Iraq, and some 50,000 of them are “private security” operatives — that is, fighters. The dangers of this privatized approach to war became frighteningly clear last month, after guards from Blackwater USA, assigned to protect American diplomats, were accused of killing at least eight Iraqis, including an infant.

Iraqis — whose hearts and minds the Bush administration insists it is finally winning — were infuriated by the killings, telling tales of arrogant and trigger-happy operatives terrorizing ordinary citizens. The incident provides an irrefutable argument for bringing these mission-critical jobs, which should be performed by soldiers, back into government hands as quickly as possible, and for placing any remaining private contractors under the jurisdiction of American military law.

Blackwater’s 850 operatives in Iraq are not the only problem. The fact that American diplomatic activity in Iraq nearly came to a halt when Blackwater was grounded for a few days shows how much American operations have come to depend on mercenaries.

The armed forces have relied on private contractors since the United States opted for an all-volunteer military after the end of the Vietnam War — mostly for noncritical tasks such as building or cooking. The Bush administration took it to a whole new level when it decided to fight a big war with a far too small force — requiring the Pentagon and other agencies to turn to private security contractors like Blackwater to help make up some of the difference.

Contractors have been in a legal limbo in Iraq since 2004, when the American authorities there granted them immunity from prosecution under Iraqi law. Some of the interrogators involved in the abuse of prisoners at the infamous Abu Ghraib prison were private contractors, yet none of them have been punished. Indeed, no private contractor has been prosecuted or convicted for any crime involving an Iraqi victim.

Last November, an amendment was included in the defense authorization bill that put private contractors under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, exposing the contractors to a court martial just like any other American soldiers. The Bush administration has been none too eager to enforce this new law, and the Pentagon has not yet issued guidelines to commanders about its application.

The lesson here is that such essential jobs cannot be outsourced. War is not a private business.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/01/op...th&oref=slogin

raycarey

without the dems controlling congress, this report about blackwater never would have come to light......
122 Blackwater employees were fired - Conflict in Iraq - MSNBC.com

and here's a little something for all you alleged conservatives...

The Associated Press: Blackwater Portrayed As Out of Control

AntRobertson

^
That alludes to something that I've been thinking about... So you've got Blackwater providing - for want of a better term - a private army. Now presumably they offer relatively better employment terms than the US Govt., particularly in payment?

So being that Blackwater hires (again presumably) mostly those with previous military experience does this not put them in a directly competing position with the US Govt. who is also drawing from that same limited pool? Just all seems a little odd to me, paying more for the resources of a private Co. that could be said to be undermining your own efforts.

chinthee