Mike Papantonio of Air America’s Ring of Fire talks about how the private mercenary firm Blackwater USA is expanding its projects to include domestic services, which could be disastrous if they act as they’ve acted in Iraq.
I thought this was really good and informative. He asks a good question of who is this army loyal to?
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Hey you shouldn’t put things on here that are fictional like the Mike papantonio article on Blackwater. Not one thing in that article is factual or true.he completely made up a fictional story in his own mind. Get your facts straight.
Mike Papantonio’s bizarre column on Blackwater (“Blackwater quietly expanding its reach,” Jan. 21) is so filled with fiction it is amazing that it made it to print.
His claims certainly make for a colorful column, but Blackwater has no “tanks, helicopter gunships, [or] amphibious assault craft.” The mysterious “domestic operations division” that may be carrying out illegal “active operations on U.S. soil” exists only in his imagination.
What the company actually does in the United States — and has been doing since it was awarded its first federal contract under the Clinton administration — is train U.S. soldiers, sailors, airmen and law enforcement personnel in protection techniques to prepare them for the threats they may face.
The dramatic column describes a “mercenary” operation and a “private army” that is “25,000 strong.”
In reality Blackwater employs approximately 700 full-time employees and currently contracts with between 1,000 and 3,000 military and law enforcement veterans who provide defensive security, training and other support functions around the world.
Military and contractor pay is actually comparable when the facts are considered.
The compensation for Blackwater’s contractors is entirely in the form of lump-sum pay — they are responsible for their own insurance, benefits, taxes and retirement.
And, contrary to Mr. Papantonio’s assertion, no Blackwater contractor makes $1,500 a day; they don’t even make half that figure.
In fact, based on an analysis of Blackwater’s contract with the Department of State, a Congressional Budget Office study conducted last year found that Blackwater’s costs are similar to or less than the costs associated with the government self-performing some functions.
Today, more than 95 percent of the company’s contracts were competitively awarded. The claim that the bulk of Blackwater’s contracts have been “no-bid” is simply false.
Mr. Papantonio encourages his readers to “follow the story” about Blackwater. While the fictional Blackwater he has created does make an interesting “story,” it has little to do with reality.
In reality Blackwater was founded in 1997 to support the training needs of the United States military and law enforcement communities, and we are proud to continue that work today.
Sorry all you liberals nutjobs. The grand government conspiracy that we have a private army of Mercenaries just isnt true. This is a true definition of Mercenary:
The international legal definition of mercenary, as defined by the Protocol to the Geneva Conventions of August 12, 1949, to which the US is a party, is as follows in Protocol I, Article 47.2:
A mercenary is any person who:
(a) is specially recruited locally or abroad in order to fight in an armed conflict;
(b) does, in fact, take a direct part in the hostilities;
(c) is motivated to take part in the hostilities essentially by the desire for private gain and, in fact, is promised, by or on behalf of a Party to the conflict, material compensation substantially in excess of that promised or paid to combatants of similar ranks and functions in the armed forces of that Party;
(d) is neither a national of a Party to the conflict nor a resident of territory controlled by a Party to the conflict;
(e) is not a member of the armed forces of a Party to the conflict; and
(f) has not been sent by a State which is not a Party to the conflict on official duty as a member of its armed forces.
Blackwater, Dyncorp, Triple Canopy, KBR, Halliburton, EODT, ECT. All these companies working over here dont even fall into the category of Mercenaries. No one is recruited for fighting the war. They are issued weapons to defend themselves and and the politicians they are hired to protect, and that is it. No conspiracy, no lies. You wackos need to quite listening to your liberal leadership.
Dear Alan,
I posted your comments. You have a right to your opinion and I have a right to my opinion.
You may not think the story has any truth to it, but I do. Since this is my blog, I will continue posting things that I think are important to know. Since I happen to like Mike’s show I will continue to post clips from his show and other shows. You might just learn something if you would listen with an open mind and not a closed mind.
I remember in studying the History of Rome, that in the final days of that Empire they hired out their army. That is what the United States is doing now. Those companies that are contracted to do the work only care about one thing making a profit. The people that they hire from other countries to do the work have no loyality to the United States. From what I have read those companies lie to people in other countries promising them a great job and other promises that are not kept.
I don’t know if you watched the other clip I posted on here about the injuries caused to the American soldiers by what was done by the companies like KBR and Halliburton? There is now a class action suit. I would encourage you to watch that clip, but then you might have to admit you are wrong and for some people that is very hard to do.
The health problems, the injuries and the deaths caused to the soldiers over there is very real and not a lie. I personally didn’t find one thing that wasn’t true in his report.
Do you really think calling people wacko helps you win the debate? Oh, but that is right you and all the other Right Wing in this country think that any one who doesn’t share your policital views is menatlly ill, evil, and is lying.
I try to keep an open mind about things. I try to listen to all sides of the story before making my mind up. I am not afraid to say I don’t know about topics that I haven’t had time to study to the point that I can make my mind up on the issue. Because of that many people take that is my being stupid. But I would rather say I don’t know about something and continue to search for answers than to pretend I know something that I don’t know.
That open mind of mine has made my life difficult, but maybe too it has saved me. And I am equally sure it will continue to make life difficult for me, but I am strong and will continue to fight the lies with the truth.
Clinton may have contracted out, but Bush took it to a whole new level. Your thought seems to be since President Clinton contracted out that it was ok for President Bush to do what he did. Do two wrongs ever make a right Alan?
LOL. I happen to know the facts because i am sitting here in Iraq and I work with these companies on a day to day basis. All of them. I spent 8 years in the army, and we relied on these companies like KBR Blackwater and so on to feed us, take care of maintenance on camp provide protection to our diplomats and so on and so on. There are no blackwater tanks, or gunships, or super secret mumbo jumbo. Bush didnt take anything to a whole new level. The only thing Blackwater was hired to do is be bodygaurds to diplomats. Thats it. Have you ever seen the secret service guys standing around the president? Thats exactly what the Blackwater guys do. They go through the same course through the government. No, what Mike P. put out was totally false, and no facts at all were in that report. Once again as I stated above, they are not mercenaries hired to fight a war. They are not a private army. If you cant take facts from someone who is actually over here instead of some radio jockey who makes stories up for ratings I dont know what to tell you.
Tell me Alan, why did the Iraq Government asked Blackwater to leave the country? The Iraq government doesn’t want Blackwater there!!! They committed crimes there Alan.
What about all the soldiers who have been injured and killed because of the shoddy work of those companies? What about all the health problems of the soldiers because of the poor job they did. I am not a lawyer but I have a nephew who graduated from Law School and they wouldn’t bring a case forward if they didn’t think the evidence was there.
I am glad you are safe. I have another nephew who I haven’t talked to in years, but he is over there in the army and I wish him well. He feels the way you do, I am sure. He is right wing Republican Conservative and well I am not. I was always the black sheep in the family.
Even though we have nothing to do with each other, I still wish him the best. Though I know he doesn’t feel the same way about me. I still remember him as a little boy who I enjoyed spending time with, but he wants nothing to do with me, because I refused to give him a car.
His name is Alan too. Tell me do you think it is right to stop talking to your aunt who loved you because she wouldn’t give in to your blackmail of if she didn’t give you the last birthday present her dad gave her before he died that you would never talk to her again and she would be dead to you? I kept the last gift my dad bought me and to him I am dead. Inspite of that I still love him and wish him the best.
I don’t know why I am telling you excpet you remind me of that nephew. You share the same name and are both in the army in Iraq. For all I know you could be my nephew. He has two kids I have never seen nor will I ever see them or be a part of their lives, because he didn’t get his way so I am dead to him.
Over the years I have tried to work it out with my brother and his family, but they don’t think anything is wrong with the way Alan treats me. Everytime I tried and open my heart to them and let them in it gets broken so I don’t know if I can try to work things out again, but I always dreamed of having a big brother and I am very forgiving of those who hurt me. But we aren’t getting any younger so I don’t count on things ever changing between us.
Tell me is this the Army way? Is this the conservative way of treating your aunt who loved you as a little boy?
I am sorry I am getting very emotional now Alan so I think it is best if you don’t leave anymore comments today. I am starting to cry and I don’t like to cry.
Blackwater, Dyncorp, etc. are indeed mercenaries, and allow the US government to have “plausible deniability” in training the armies of its client states. Hopefully in the future the employees of these companies can be dealt with. Unlike soldiers, they are private citizens, which means their home addresses can be found, as can the addresses of their family members. After applying the traditional methods, nobody will want to work for any of those companies.
Thank you Aslan for your comment. I do agree with you that they are mercenaries.
To Alan, I deleted the rest of your comments. You and my nephew Alan have a right to your opinion and have the right to treat others the way you choose to.
In a way Alan I am glad you posted here, because it open up another emotional scare that I have. I have to ask myself do I really want to have a relationship with a half nephew who is so selfish and has so little regard for someone as he has for me.
A little background: I didn’t even know I had a half brother. My dad and his son by a first marriage had no contact when I was born. He didn’t think there was any point in even telling me I had a brother as my brother had cut his dad totally out of his life. I always dreamed of having a big brother because I thought big brothers were protective of little sisters and I have always needed a protector.
One day when I was about 12 or 13, I came home from school and there was a man and his wife sitting on the coach and he was introduced as my half brother. He had two children who I was closer in age than my own brother who is 18 years older than me.
The story as I was told by my dad is that when my brother was 12 or 13 he told my dad that he was changing his name and that my father was dead to him. My father didn’t know if he should let him into our lives and trust him again. I encouraged my father to get to know his son. I think they were able to form a relationship before my dad died.
Maybe it is the fact that my brother and I are so different, but he has made it very clear that he has no real emotional ties to me. Maybe it is the fact that I am not the person he would like me to be? I guess I disappointed him. We have a totally different view of the world.
He is just another person who doesn’t know my true heart, because he has never really let me in. My mom says I should cultivate a relationship with them, but everytime I open my heart and try to work things out to achieve a better relationship I get the hurt of being rejected. I tried to tell her I don’t know if I can open my heart to only be hurt again by their rejection.
She doesn’t understand how I feel. It was my father who understood me and who I could talk to about anything under the sun and he wouldn’t get angry with me. He let be myself.
I am not sorry I encouraged my dad to get to know his son, because my dad got a chance to know his two grandchildren before he died. Even though allowing my half brother back into our lives has caused me pain, for my dad’s sake I am glad he listened to me and formed a relationship with his son and family.
I just came across this blog and read some of the comments posted. Chrisy58, why are you allowing people like Asian to put threats to other people on your blog and not reporting it?
Asian stated, “Unlike soldiers, they are private citizens, which means their home addresses can be found, as can the addresses of their family members. After applying the traditional methods, nobody will want to work for any of those companies.” Are you that naive or just didnt notice that?
Hey, Asian is using a funny cover for a name, who are you trying to kid?
Aslan (Khalid) Aliyevich Maskhadov (Chechen: Масхадан Али кант Аслан, Latin: Masxadan Ali kant Aslan, Russian: Аслан Алиевич Масхадов) (September 21, 1951 – March 8, 2005) was a leader of the separatist movement and the third President of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria.
He was credited by many with the Chechen victory in the First Chechen War, which allowed for the establishment of the de facto independent Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. Maskhadov was elected President of Chechnya in January 1997. Following the start of the Second Chechen War in August 1999, he returned to leading the guerrilla resistance against the Russian army. He was killed in Tolstoy-Yurt, a village in northern Chechnya, in March 2005.
Also Chrisy above in a comment by an earlier person they stated word for word what the definition of a Mercenary is from the Geneva Convention. This isnt the U.S. definition its the worlds definition. Thats a fact not an opinion. Yet you still insist these guys are mercenaries. Are you that out of touch with reality? Obviously you are when you cant take a fact for a fact and you thank people like Asian who are pretending to be someone who was a murderous Guerilla resistance leader. Someones needs a reality check.
Private Security Contractors and the American Tradition
By Michael Waller
In the wake of the recent shooting deaths of 11 Iraqis in Baghdad, many critics are now claiming that allowing private contractors to operate in Iraq is inconsistent with American tradition. This is demonstrably untrue.
Private security contractors, or PSCs, have been part of building the civilization that became the United States for 400 years. They are a founding part of the American entrepreneurial tradition of risk-taking and civic duty.
The first PSC on our shores was little more popular than his descendants today. Captain John Smith, a professional soldier who was paid to protect the interests of the Virginia Company of London in 1607, was accused of conspiring to subvert legal authority and locked in irons during the voyage to America, only to be exonerated and made chief of the expedition that founded the colony at Jamestown.
A few years later, English refugees seeking freedom of worship set off for America to establish their own shining city. They contracted the services of Captain Myles Standish to defend them, loaded a small arsenal of weapons in the lower hold, and sailed the Mayflower to make history at Plymouth Colony.
PSC Standish and a handful of armed men reconnoitered the new land for safety, organized and trained a militia, built a fort for the Pilgrims and even did battle to protect a neighboring settlement.
When Americans – who lacked an army – later needed protection against tyrannical British rule, a wealthy Virginia businessman offered to finance, train and equip his own force of 1,000 soldiers. His name was George Washington, and we would soon become commanding general of the new Continental Army.
Even during the Revolutionary War, George Washington recognized the value of private security contractors. With no significant navy to challenge the British, Washington relied on a fleet of private warships. Their crews, known as privateers, were among the first businesses regulated by the Continental Congress, which in the spring of 1776 authorized letters of marque to be issued to the master of any vessel seeking wartime service. Privateers had to post bond and adhere to congressional guidelines.
While patriotically motivated, the privateers fundamentally were entrepreneurs, seeking their fortunes from the prizes they would take at sea while simultaneously serving their country.
Washington himself invested in at least one wartime privateer.
Privateers were also crucial to defeating the British in the War of 1812. The great naval strategist Alfred Thayer Mahan, though not a fan of privateers, recognized that the nation’s fleet of private warships “co-operated powerfully with other motives to dispose the enemy to liberal terms of peace.”
Private military businesses are even referenced in Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution, which concerns the right of Congress to issue letters of marque and reprisal to attack enemy shipping.
During the Civil War, President Lincoln hired the private Pinkerton Detective Agency to serve as the nation’s wartime counterintelligence service. Some Union generals hired private security contractors as intelligence officers. Lincoln himself paid a private spy out of his own pocket to vet the military intelligence reports he was receiving from the field.
The most famous private military contractors of the past century were the Flying Tigers of World War II.
Organized as a private company to outfit and pilot the Free Chinese air force in the 1930s, the Flying Tigers built valuable knowledge of Japanese air power that would come in handy after Pearl Harbor in late 1941. The Flying Tigers, who received a bounty in addition to a generous salary, flew alongside the RAF against the Japanese in Burma and rushed to defend Darwin, Australia, from Japanese air attack.
The U.S. military strongly resisted authorization of a private air force, but President Franklin D. Roosevelt overruled his generals and allowed the Flying Tigers to fight.
After the post-Cold War downsizing of the U.S. military, the Clinton administration and Congress anticipated building a surge capacity through private contractors. This action led to the rise of PSCs like Blackwater USA to make up for the troop shortfall in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Now, when Blackwater does its job to protect an American diplomatic convoy from terrorist attack, critics in our own Congress demand the company’s head.
That’s no way to fight a war. Private security contractors are an important part of America’s military tradition. They have been crucial to settling the nation and defending it in wars at home and abroad for 400 years. And they will continue to be.
Sorry all you conspiracy anti-war people. This isnt the big government conspiracy you are making out to be. Its as much apart of Amercian history as anything. Get over it!
To Mark and the others I have been in Hawaii and have been offline while on vacation. That is why your comments have not been posted. I just arrived back after a long flight.
I published your post Real American.
I am decended from those who came over on the Mayflower and I find it interesting that you mentioned the Mayflower and Miles Standish. I am decended from Edward Fuller who died the first Winter and his son Samuel went to live with his uncle Samual Fuller the ship’s doctor who settled on Cape Cod. I also believe I am decended from Myles Standish.
I also had decendents who fought in the American Revolution. You mentioned George Washington and the American Revolution. Yes, the French helped us fight the British. We couldn’t have won without their support and help.
There is a difference between what Blackwater is doing and did in Iraq and what the French did who helped us fight the American Revolution.
The French soldiers who came over here to fight didn’t rape and kill innocent people did they? That is what Blackwater did in Iraq and one of the reasons why the Iraq government doesn’t want them in Iraq. Blackwater is a bunch of criminals.
You have the right to defend them. I also have the right to my opinion that they are evil scum bags.
Aw quit crying Mark. Nice detective work by the way- clearly you know how to use Wikipedia.