Blackwater anyone?

[beranas]

I've been hearing a lot from my friend in the military (one of them just got back from Iraq about 2 months ago) about a company by the name of Blackwater. Whenever they talk about them it always has to do with co-op missions but when I ask them to go into detail all they say are that "they're one of the mercs". Anyone know anything about Blackwater or there objectives in the Middle East? I read the wikipedia and it was pretty general...

[danzig]

Basically its a security firm that hires ex military as its security force. Yeah by the definition they are a "merc" group used by Pentagon for security as well as for non government people who think they need that type of security. Obviously there has been numerous questions of just who they answer to while being hired out in Iraq especially considering one incident where they evidently opened fire and killed some Iraqi civilians.

[Carach]

Basically its a security firm that hires ex military as its security force. Yeah by the definition they are a "merc" group used by Pentagon for security as well as for non government people who think they need that type of security. Obviously there has been numerous questions of just who they answer to while being hired out in Iraq especially considering one incident where they evidently opened fire and killed some Iraqi civilians.

that wouldnt be the video of them shooting from the back of a jeep or something would it? becausethat didnt prove they were randomly opening fire on civilians at all... that was propaganda spun by the media.

[Rapax]

that wouldnt be the video of them shooting from the back of a jeep or something would it? becausethat didnt prove they were randomly opening fire on civilians at all... that was propaganda spun by the media.

You must have been living under a rock then. That one was all over the media and it wasn't some "funny" online video.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7033332.stm

EDIT: Nevermind.

[Banzai!]

Have you played SPQR: Total War or Europa Barbarorum? There are units in these mods called auxiliaries and cohors reformata -cohorts made up of men who have already done their service and are serving again.

Blackwater, KBR, etc. are these units of the Iraq War. They are the auxiliaries: tasked with the low-level security, service and bodyguard work that frees the US Army to perform offensive operations. They are the cohors reformata: former special forces especially who have found a way to get back into the fight. Like the cohors reformata of Ancient Rome, they also get better pay!

[danzig]

Yeah paid way better anywhere from 1-2k per day by some accounts. 3 months in Iraq and walk away with close to 140k.

[Banzai!]

Yeah paid way better anywhere from 1-2k per day by some accounts. 3 months in Iraq and walk away with close to 140k.

What do you expect? The US is a capitalist country.

In Rome they served Jove, Mars, Romulus and the Senate and People of Rome; in the US they serve the lord God money.

[Каие]

Yeah paid way better anywhere from 1-2k per day by some accounts. 3 months in Iraq and walk away with close to 140k.

Seriously.

They're called PMC's and they're pretty invaluable to the war effort.

They are also evil.

[MathiasOfAthens]

Well that certainly one way of looking at it banzai
________
Love Lyrics Dicussion

[MathiasOfAthens]

Jove, you mean Jupiter. Also Roman Generals and Senators enriched themselves on private wars too.
________
MEDICAL MARIJUANA

[VALIS]

They're called PMC's and they're pretty invaluable to the war effort.

[Zuwxiv]

The US Army needs more soldiers than they have. But they aren't getting enough volunteers, so they look for private contractors - mercenaries, if you will - to have well armed and trained people to do the necessary but not crucial tasks.

From what I've heard, US troops aren't too happy about it. It's basically telling US troops, "Hey, you get to do the dangerous jobs because you're in the army. But these guys make about a hundred times as much money as you doing less dangerous jobs with less authority to answer to."

Main problems: Look up videos for "Blackwater" on Liveleak.com. They're the ones driving around shooting civilian cars or sheep for target practice. It's not all of them, but they're certainly not helping the US public image in Iraq.

That said, anyone familiar with the Total War series should be familiar with the need for mercenaries. As they have been through most of time, they're well equipped and well trained soldiers, but they're expensive as hell and aren't the most obedient.

[Modestus]

The privatization of war.

look forward to the ultimate irony of one American private company fighting with another American private company somewhere, someday in the world.

A new meaning to competition where you kill your competitor.

[Каие]

The privatization of war.

Isn';t it in MGS4 that war in the future is no longer fought between countries but now fought between private enterprises.

Yes let's send the women to fight before the men. Dubya should draft in his father and his wife, as well, and any toddlers his nieces and nephews have.

If you want to talk hard then you have to walk the hard walk. You can;t force everyone else children to fight in an illegal war which they might or might not agree with, while you;re own children sit at home.

[Burnum]

that wouldnt be the video of them shooting from the back of a jeep or something would it? becausethat didnt prove they were randomly opening fire on civilians at all... that was propaganda spun by the media.

You mean the report that the FBI found that 14 Iraqis were Without Cause.

the New York Times reported that during the incident at Nisoor Square, one member of the Blackwater security team continued to fire on civilians, despite urgent cease-fire calls from colleagues. The incident was resolved after another Blackwater contractor pointed his own weapon at the man still firing and ordered him to sto

Blackwater faulted by U.S. military

It's Hypocritical, for People too condemn the mercenary activity in Africa and yet condone the behavior of Blackwater.

Also, no matter how much you pay a contractor, you will not get him to put himself in harm's way without immunity from prosecution. He's being shot at by the bad guys, and he's going to risk being hanged by the Iraqis, or thrown into Leavenworth? We need these people, because they are performing functions that the military doesn't have the manpower and funding to do.

What happen would if they say, killed fourteen innocent people?

[Carach]

You mean the report that the FBI found that 14 Iraqis were Without Cause.

the New York Times reported that during the incident at Nisoor Square, one member of the Blackwater security team continued to fire on civilians, despite urgent cease-fire calls from colleagues. The incident was resolved after another Blackwater contractor pointed his own weapon at the man still firing and ordered him to sto

Blackwater faulted by U.S. military

i never mentioned anything of other examples. Just the one that they were wrongly accused of.

[wilting]

How can someone not know about Blackwater?

[MyNameIsGreat]

Main problems: Look up videos for "Blackwater" on Liveleak.com. They're the ones driving around shooting civilian cars or sheep for target practice. It's not all of them, but they're certainly not helping the US public image in Iraq.

Don't they shoot those cars because they get too close to the vehicle? (I thought they have giant signs that tell drivers to stay a certain distance away from Blackwater vehicles, but I could be wrong)

[communist]

i had often thought of joining blackwater. they are a great alternative to the french foreign legion.

[VALIS]

i had often thought of joining blackwater. they are a great alternative to the french foreign legion.

They only accept people with a previous military backround.