Previously posted on the Young People For Blog.
They roam the streets of Baghdad and New Orleans without regrad to the law. They enforce and protect with impunity. They die forgotten, the live almost completely unknown, until now. I just finished reading an article on The Nation titled 'Bush's Shadow Army.' Who are they? What do they do? Where do they come from?
They are private security contractors employed by the government to carry out military operations, all the time unknown. The war industry was very pleased when former Department of Defense Director added private contractors to the defense plan. Nearly 100,000 private contractors rolled into Baghdad with US troops. Numbering one-to-one with the military. However these contractors are not counted. The article states, "Contractors have provided the Bush Administration with political cover, allowing the government to deploy private forces in a war zone free of public scrutiny, with the deaths, injuries and crimes of those forces shrouded in secrecy."
The most prominent private security contractor is Blackwater USA. I searched and visited their site only to find that their mission is to, "To support national and international security policies that protect those who are defenseless and provide a free voice for all with a dedication to providing ethical, efficient, and effective turnkey solutions that positively impact the lives of those still caught in desperate times." Blackwater was founded in 1996 by conservative Christian multimillionaire and ex-Navy SEAL Erik Prince--the scion of a wealthy Michigan family whose generous political donations helped fuel the rise of the religious right and the Republican revolution of 1994.How can we be so critical of those providing for freedom? Well to be honest it becomes alarming when Bush's private army is deployed anywhere, especially in the homeland.
Blackwater USA was seen on the ground in New Orleans. The contracts charged the government exorbitent prices and Blackwater's force roamed the streets of New Orleans operating, as it seemed, above the law. Blackwater is increasing its domestic presence. Marketing itself more and more to the Department of Homeland Security and open facilities in Ilinois and California. This to me is most frightening. How can our government employ a private army who's company supported them financially in political campaigns and then allow them to charge the government high prices for their services? This to me is unacceptable and worries me for out future. Will the government employ private forces to run America without oversight or regard to the law? Will this become a new norm where someone who wants political office is supported by private security forces and then in return gives them government contracts and is ensured a job with the security company after politics? This to me seems to be corruption at an extreme. Military supporting politics for economic and political gain.
Can we allow this to continue? There are now a number of bills in the legislature to require oversight for private contractors. I can only hope that these bills pass to allow our future freedom to live on. I recommend reading the full article and watching the clips at Bush's Shadow Army.