Somebody had to defend Blackwater eventually. In this country, someone would do it just to be a contrarian. Douglas MacKinnon, however, appears to be a true believer. His column, which has been circulating for just short of a week, ran today in my local paper, the Albany Times Union, under the headline above. On this evidence, if you disapprove of Blackwater or other paramilitary contractors, you're just part of the anti-American Left.
First it was Democratic Sen. John Kerry accusing our troops of terrorizing Iraqi women and children. Then, it was Democratic congressman John Murtha convicting U.S. Marines of murder in the court of public opinion. Now, predictably, the left and its allies in the media are going after the private security firm Blackwater.
That should give you some idea of what we're dealing with.
Blackwater, you will understand, is "being proclaimed guilty by self-serving politicians [both Iraqi and American] or the media." The contractor is being tried in a "kangaroo court" by a Iraqi ministry that not only "has long tried to use Blackwater as foe to distract from its numerous failings on the ground" but is not even part of the country's government. Let MacKinnon explain:
[T]he MOI is not the Iraqi government. Rather, it is an entity made up of Iraqi police and the municipal branches, an oftentimes corrupt entity that has seen some of its members work with the insurgents to murder U.S. troops.
Worse yet, MacKinnon warns us, undermining Blackwater only strengthens Iran. "No Blackwater equals greatly decreased diplomacy and intelligence gathering. Less of that means more chaos and a greater opportunity for Iran to assert more of its authority."
And you thought more Blackwater meant more chaos. That only shows that, like a liberal, you "impugn the integrity of contractors who put their lives and the futures of their families on the line." In case you're not properly chastised, here's more:
Blackwater operates in hell on Earth and should be given the benefit of the doubt. It has earned it.
By the way, MacKinnon states with confidence that "the State Department report of the Sept. 16 incident makes it very clear the convoy being protected by Blackwater at the time was indeed under attack." Well, when you consider that Blackwater wrote that report themselves, it's not surprising that it exculpates the company and has little credibility beyond Blackwater's circle of cheerleaders. Jeremy Scahill, inevitably, tells a different story.
The Times Union identifies Douglas MacKinnon as a former White House and Pentagon official. He's just written a novel called America's Last Days, which describes the rise of a "super-militia" led by military and law-enforcement types who attempt a coup d'etat to save America from a "death spiral" explained thusly:
""How did we get this way, John? Why are they forcing us to do this terrible thing?"
"Why did the Roman Empire crumble, sir? Complacency, ignorance and lack of a moral compass. They lost it all because they took the things that really count for granted. They became fat, lazy, and sinful. They were overcome by lust, greed and a gradual lowering of standards. The United States of today is exactly the same. We have lost our moral compass. Our country has become more classist, elitist and separatist. Political correctness prevents us from targeting the enemy within our own borders who harbor the very Al Qaida terrorists who attacked us. We can’t protect our own borders with Mexico and Canada. In a country that is over eighty-five percent Christian, those very same Christians can no longer say ‘Merry Christmas,’ and can barely celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. We’re on the verge of a race war, our inner-cities are on the brink of collapse, our educational system is a joke, teachers are not held accountable, affirmative action has destroyed trust and self-esteem, the growing rich are walling themselves off from the ninety-five percent of other Americans, our politicians are all corrupt, stupid, taking bribes, or shunned by the few honest ones. Our Armed Forces have been weakened by a succession of short-sighted Presidents...We’re still killing the unborn at record numbers, the nation is about to elect yet another liberal President. Liberal messages in television, the movies, the news, and on CDs are polluting the minds of our young people. So much so, that they have no respect for themselves, tradition, what’s right, or their elders. Illegal immigrants by the hundreds of thousands protest in our streets for rights they have not earned, and then boycott honest businesses...""
Not that MacKinnon himself necessarily endorses such drastic action. Here's his disclaimer from a site that has more excerpts from this certain classic.
Again, this is a work of fiction. I want the reader to decide if the members of this militia are patriots or traitors. To decide if what they are contemplating is High Treason, or saving a nation from itself. And, if such a super-militia did exist, how would the United States of today deal with it?
As an author, I am just trying to tell a story, make people think, and create conversation. In no way am I advocating a revolution from within.
That said, if the United States of our parents and grandparents is in a death spiral, how do we, in real life, reverse it before it’s too late? While in my novel, my characters have a fictional option – as crazy as it may sound – to stop the onslaught of political correctness, stem the erosion of morals, and revitalize the dream of our Founding Fathers, those of us in the real world who care about these things, seem to be running out of options.
One can only imagine where private armies of ex-military and law-enforcement types might fit in MacKinnon's imgaination, both in print and beyond. The endorsement of Blackwater and its ilk by such a person should count as a condemnation in the eyes of anyone who really cares about "the dream of our Founding Fathers."