Mohammed Hafidh Abdul-Razzaq had been summoned by U.S. Embassy officials who wanted to make amends for the killing of his 10-year-old son. The boy died during a shooting involving employees of Blackwater Worldwide, the U.S. security firm.
Deputy Chief of Mission Patricia A. Butenis told him that she was sorry for what had happened, Abdul-Razzaq recalled. She gave him a sealed envelope. It had his name written on it. Abdul-Razzaq pushed it away.
“I told her I refuse to receive any amount,” the auto parts dealer said. “My father is a tribal sheik, and we’re not used to taking any amount unless the concerned will come and confess and apologize. Then we will talk about compensation.”
In September, Blackwater contractors protecting an embassy mission killed 17 Iraqis, including Abdul-Razzaq’s boy, and injured at least two dozen in a widely publicized incident in west Baghdad’s Nisoor Square. Blackwater officials have said their workers feared they were under attack; Iraqi officials and witnesses called it a massacre.
Read it all. The sort of cautionary tale that means nothing to sheep who willingly trot along before their political shepherds.
The United States should not be using mercs. Period. If our armed forces can’t hold it on their own we shouldn’t be there.
I agree with #1.
However, it is a tough call when you realize that youngest of the children have been taught the ways of violence for decades. Here is a Life magazine cover from June 12, 1970.
Americans are a society comprised of warriors. Not a single American generation has gone by without a war.
Is Blackwater named after a Creedance Clearwater Revival song? Just wondering.
This years marks the 50th anniversary of the publication of “The Ugly American”. Not a damned thing has been learned. Not a damned thing has changed.
The political establishment of these United States is solidly unified when it comes to foreign policy. Pity any country that gets in the way of American greed.
It amazes me that mercenaries are being used in this day and age… where did it all go wrong?
#4. I checked, that’s the Doobie Brothers. Sorry.
you know what – no iraqis or anyone else in the world will differentiate these idiots from the u.s. military/u.s. govt/u.s. citizenry. they represent the u.s. as surely as the president or the statue of liberty do
There are a lot of problems with situation, not the least of which is the pay. Blackwater security personal are making 4-5 times what a corresponding US Army soldier is making which is causing a lot of resentment.
Secondly they aren’t in any chain of command and if they make mistakes (like this story) they’ll just be shipped out of the country – nothing more. It reflects very badly on the US soldiers who are all the same thing to the average Iraqi.
Lastly US commanders have seen a lot of cowboy behavior out of these guys – especially the Blackwater contractors. No matter how well the US soldiers perform it still won’t make up for the mistakes of the contractors. The whole thing is perpetuating the occupation.
Blackwater pour planning caused the siege of Fallujah. A corporation will always go in on the cheap and a government will try the same. The problem is that Mercs were not held under the same conduct of soldiers in the US.
Blackwater, KBR, Ageis etc, are nothing more than a private army advancing the interests of Cheney/Bush et al. OH yea, almost forgot, funded at taxpayers expense. Biggest screw job ever foisted on the American public. The reason for such a large contractor presence is that the PTB new eventually the American public will become tired of the occupation and demand that troops be brought home. When that happens they will still be able to conduct military operations maintain the occupation with the private sector. The American public cant bitch to much about having people over there when they are there willingly and being paid big coin.
Okay… the spam filter ate my submission. Anyway… go to Google video and search for Shadow Company. It’s a good documentary about mercenaries.
Every Iraqi killed by Amerikan Forces – Military or Civilian – starts a BLOOD FEUD between that family and Amerika !!! There will be NO SHORTAGE OF WHAT THE “Decider” and his allies in the press call “Insurgents”, and what others outside of Amerika call Iraqi Patriots fighting to oust the INVADING AMERIKANS !!!
ToiletWater = IQ – 40
Bush Administration IQ – less than that.
They’re both a bunch of idiot thugs who deserve to be in court if there’s any backbone lying around.
Anyone got backbone? How about some guts? How about doing the right thing? How about making the rest of the world jump for joy when these Asses of Evil are brought before a tribunal?
What, no? Oh, you have more important things to do. Ah…Idol and Survivor are on. Now I see. Sorry to have bothered you.
Bush’s Legacy will be a fun thing to see as his Liebrary will be a focus of total derision for years and years to come!
I can’t hate this MisAdministration enough. Idiots, liars, cowards, killers, murderers and a dancing buffoon!
Why isn’t this talked abour more? On the news the phrase “private contractor” gets used like these people are construction workers or truck drivers. Most Americans don’t understand these contractors are mercs. The misconception by Americans is that the US military is the only military shooting people in Iraq.
>>Bush’s Legacy will be a fun thing to see
>>as his Library will be a focus of total
>>derision for years and years to come!
Aw, come on. Bush’s library is going to be the best collection of comic books in the western world. The kids will love it!!
#16 – Yeah, and Bush’s comics are the kind without those troublesom Text Balloons – Pictures without Words !!! His facility with “reading” was demonstrated on 9/11 where he was show holding “The Pet Goat” upside down !!!
>>Most Americans don’t understand these
>>contractors are mercs.
Of course they don’t. Revealing that fact to the general public would be harmful to Halliburton’s profits. And that would have a negative impact on President Cheney’s financials.
It’s a matter of national security.
Murders, all of them!!!
#17, Photoshopping is fun!
#16, Mustard,
Aw, come on. Bush’s library is going to be the best collection of comic books in the western world. The kids will love it!!
Except for the (ahem) stains on the pages of Wonder Woman.
#2, jbenson,
it is a tough call when you realize that youngest of the children have been taught the ways of violence for decades .
It becomes a lot easier when you stop to think that American foreign policy is what created those child soldiers to begin with.
Not only that, but your LIFE magazine cover refers to Palestine. That is a long way from the current crises in Iraq. But of course, simpletons can’t make the distinction unless it is the NY Yankees and the San Diego Chargers. Even then some of you morans couldn’t tell them apart on game day.
>>Except for the (ahem) stains on the
>>pages of Wonder Woman.
Mr. Almighty: Anyone who would actually go to a “Bush Library” will probably have pleny of stains of their own on Wonder Woman comics at home. Probably even more stains on “My Friend Flicka” and “Lassie Comes Home”. After all, lusting after a woman is a sin. Horses and dogs are another matter.
Which would you prefer — mercs or draftees?
>>Which would you prefer — mercs or draftees?
Draftees, no question about it. If Rush Limbaugh’s kids (can he reproduce??) and President Cheney’s lesbian daughter were being drafted to go fight Dumbya’s trophy war, maybe more people would have questioned the absurd war in the first place. If only ghetto dropouts, sex offenders, and mercenaries are fighting, who gives a fuck? Right?
I suspect that America has only begun to experience the disastrous blowback of this damn fool war.
Honestly, this may take a century or two to finally blow over.
what truly frightens me is that the american public is now inured to the fact that our president uses tax dollars to maintain a private army not beholden to the american citizenry.
when the war in iraq is over, what makes you think that this private army is going to disband?
it won’t. and who will be their master? and since blackwater has been given complete free rein, what’s to keep them from turning on us?
#23, Mustard,
DAMN YOU ALL TO HECK !!! I laughed so hard I think I pulled one of the stitches out. Now it hurts like hell.
#25, Mustard,
Very rational and true. The down side is that in every war the “privileged” have always found a way to avoid military service. WW II is perhaps the anomaly to this.