Mercenary Armies: A Looming Threat to Freedom

last SG · 2009-05-13T08:38:36+00:00

If there are no wars, there wont be a demand for weapons, and if there is no demand for weapons, the arms industry might go bust.Since the end of the Vietnam...

Socialist SG

August 14, 2007
by Cliff Carson
|

Since the arrival of the Bush Administration an evil has crept upon us and we hardly noticed. But it's here now and we are going to have to deal with it. It's the new Big Business - the Mercenary Army, or if you prefer the Corporate Army for hire.

There is an incestuous relationship between the Bush Administration and these Corporate Armies (Halliburton, Blackwater, KBR, and DynaCorp, come immediately to mind among the thousand or so now ongoing), and they have become one of the strongest forces in the world. This is Big Business beholden to their Company bottom line- not the interests of the United States. They are able to act in secret outside the law of the land, and with the Bush Administration bent on ignoring Constitutional law, the danger to American freedoms is serious. And, these Corporate Armies now have their sights set on deploying troops and equipment to act as a military police force to operate within the United States. They were present in New Orleans after Katrina, and are expanding rapidly from North Carolina to California.

In New Orleans, the mercenaries were paid $350 per day. Blackwater charged homeland Security $900 per day for each mercenary. So Blackwater's profit was $550 per day per mercenary. Of course, you and I paid for that profit, because we are the taxpayers forced to feed the Corporation profits.

There are over 100,000 private contract personnel in Iraq today and most of them are replacing what in the past has been tasks handled by Army personnel. So what you ask is wrong with hiring non-military men and women to help the soldiers? You might want to consider the following:
When Regular Army soldiers are occupying a foreign country, for example Iraq, the incentive for the United States Military is to get the soldiers back home as soon as possible. But for a Corporate Army, just the opposite is true. The incentive is to stay as long as possible because that's how the profits are made. It is estimated that about 25,000 to 40,000 of these Mercenaries are acting in a total military capacity, making war on the Iraqis. Congress has estimated that about 40% of the expenditures in Iraq (Now over a Trillion dollars) has gone to these Corporations who profit from this war. A mercenary warrior in Iraq draws up to $200,000 per year and if the profit margin in Iraq is the same as in New Orleans, then those Corporations are charging you and me as forced taxpayers, to pay about $522,000 per year for each mercenary. Wouldn't our soldiers love to make half that much money while they are risking their lives in Iraq?
Another problem is that there is no oversight of their actions. I watched on C-Span a group of Generals, testifying at a Congressional hearing, state that they didn't have a clue even who hired the Corporate Armies. The Generals stated they didn't know of or have any control of their military activities. The mercenaries operate outside the conventions of warfare and they receive their orders from the Corporation officer Corps.

The number of American casualties in Iraq does not include the number of mercenaries who are killed and injured. Equally shocking is that any atrocities committed by these mercenaries is also unreported. Mercenaries were present at Abu Gahrib acting as interrogators during some of the torture that went on there. Mercenaries are heavily involved with the renditions being practiced by black box operators around the world. And there are currently soldiers of the Corporate Armies spread around the world as you read this.

Socialist SG

Blackwater has their own Helicopter gunships, armor, weapons, etc. The Blackwater war equipment was not developed by them, so it cost you and me. They have the largest military facility in the United States, excluding a few Regular Army bases, at their location in North Carolina. With their war profits, they are currently developing an armed drone robot airplane to deploy around the world. It will be flown by a joystick in a facility in the United States. The range of all the weapons it can carry is not published, but Hellfire missiles will surely be one. Our regular Army already has Predator drones in action, but the good thing about this pilot-less attack plane is that it is controlled by regular Army soldiers who are on duty for the protection of American freedoms. Corporate armies however will have a different allegiance.

War has become a profitable business for these Companies. And, as said earlier they have their sights on becoming the dominant force policing American citizens. The rise of this war monger culture was greatly encouraged by the current administration. Possibly this is why Democrats, now the majority in Washington, don't want to dismantle the business as is. There is profit and power to be realized. You will be sent the bill. Some future citizen of the United Corporations of America may wonder "How did this happen".

But because Big Brother is watching (for citizen security of course), he will know it is not safe to question.

We must recognize that the importance of the 2008 election cannot be underestimated. The groundwork for potential loss of our freedoms has been laid. Our Government is out of control. We have to use our vote wisely while we still have it. We must not give away our rights because when we do, we lose our freedom.

"As long as men are free to ask what they must, free to say what they think, free to think what they will, freedom can never be lost"
--Marcel Proust

Shotgun SG

2007 article... Obama is the new President now btw.

Doraemonboi SG

wth so long ... sian liao

gd4u SG

Lol, I am sure u havent read "Blackwater"

wonderamazement SG

those are Private Military Contractors and not Mercenaries, although the line separating them both is thin, it is still there.

Doraemonboi SG

hurh wad dis mean i don't understand lehs

Herzog_Zwei SG

Singapore should do the same and allow private military contractors to set up recruiting office here.

wonderamazement SG

Singapore should do the same and allow private military contractors to set up recruiting office here.

x2...

but got our own mini and less ballsy version. Cisco lo

Socialist SG

hurh wad dis mean i don't understand lehs

U watched Rambo 4? Stallone is a mercenary.

Mercenaries are private soldiers who get hired to do dirty job.

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.

wonderamazement SG

U watched Rambo 4? Stallone is a mercenary.

Mercenaries are private soldiers who get hired to do dirty job.

and by saying so accordingly to Protocol Additional GC 1977 (APGC77)... Blackwater and the other listed PMCs are not mercenaries.

dadeadman1337 SG

If the mercenaries are motivated by money what are the NS soldiers motivated by? Your HDB flat? Other people are paid thousands to defend Singapore, you get $400 a month

Atobe SG

Singapore should do the same and allow private military contractors to set up recruiting office here.

Halliburton is already in Singapore - just a few buildings away from Coca-Cola and Tiger Brewery along the AYE towards Tuas ICQ Second-Link Terminal, and opposite the Raffles Country Club.

What makes you think that Blackwater and the other units are not existing within the Halliburton's building in Singapore ?

For all you know, it is helping the procurement activities of the US Naval Logistics Unit stationed in Sembawang, and making some big profits that the US Tax Payers will end up having to pay.

Halliburton, Blackwater and all the other named units are linked in one way or another to the Republican Party, and all employees are the 'get-up and go, gung-ho Red Neck Rambo American Type'.

It is a sure way to undermine the economic recovery plan and cost-cutting budget reviews led by the Obama Democrat Government.

Arapahoe SG

You are worried at the wrong thing. Contracted companies exist only thru the profiteer of War.

At this moment you should be worried about the direction of the GOP.....or if there are any left after mid terms election.

Atobe SG

You are worried at the wrong thing. Contracted companies exist only thru the profiteer of War.

At this moment you should be worried about the direction of the GOP.....or if there are any left after mid terms election.

The problem with these "contracted companies" are that they exist to profit from wars created by the brainless politicians from the GOP.

The world will have to hold on tight to their seats each time a US President comes from the GOP - all of whom seems to play to the limelight on the stage and seek inspiration from the admiration that they get from the audience.

It is all sparks and fireworks from the GOP, and most of them are gun toting members.

If you noticed all the US Presidents from the GOP are no better then a 'liar' in Nixon, an 'actor' in Reagan, a 'follower' in Gerald Ford, a 'uninspired colorless leader' in George H Bush Sr, and followed by a 'brainless cowboy' in George Bush Jr.

The Democrat faired better in producing political leaders for the USA who are educated and have some flair of intellectual abilities in thinking through problems as seen in J.F. Kennedy, Lyndon B Johnson, Clinton, and now B. Obama.

Can the World afford another brainless cowboy in the hot seat at Washington D.C. and controlling the push button to a huge nuclear arsenal as the only military super-power on this globe ?

Arapahoe SG

The problem with these "contracted companies" are that they exist to profit from wars created by the brainless politicians from the GOP.

It is all sparks and fireworks from the GOP, and most of them are gun toting members.

Can the World afford another brainless cowboy in the hot seat at Washington D.C. and controlling the push button to a huge nuclear arsenal as the only military super-power on this globe ?

Well i think you have to look at it in 2 areas.

1st the support and funding base of GOP has changed it has moved extreme right. Particularly southern baptised, land owner, Older higher income. Who are over the years disconnected with the changing demographics and market place within the United States.

Their ideology and value are disconnected and strangely enough even after this economics downfall during this last election they maintain at : Less Govt intervention, fiscal conservative. Lower Tax. Even at current market failure, and oversight failure.

The 2nd areas really credited to the huge land mass in North America and its diverse values. (It is really still "Federation of states") Hard to imagine. Go to Texas. You can still find folks who believe it is still GUNS and NO Feds. The creation of these contracted companies are really in my view reflecting the institutionalised of Patriots. I think this really stand from the fear of Consipracy theories that is going on for years. Globalists theory, and New World Order theory.

Some of our forumners would alway jump the gun on this topics.

The Democrats are more social friendly but in the past they were not extremely well supported by S&P 500 companies but that seemed to change during the current melt down. But i see once economies pick up it will shift back to GOP for less intervention.

Atobe SG

Well i think you have to look at it in 2 areas.

Some of our forumners would alway jump the gun on this topics.

Your views has put the issues into a neat nutshell.

The frightening part of the attitude of the "extreme far right" can be observed from watching the programs, critical comments, and projected ideals that are broadcasted 24 hours on FOX Channel.

It is wholly unreal the tremendous efforts to undermine the Obama Administration with the disconnected views and comments that are simply self-serving to their own extreme right wing agenda.

The most scary and notable part of the program is that the majority of commentators and those invited to offer their views are "Whites" - with an emphasized capital 'W'.

The USA is a large expanse of land and stretched from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and the values of those living in the urban centers along the coast are quite different from those living in the wide expanse of the suburbs and inland states.

Those living in the coastal urban centers are largely immigrants, and or naturalized migrants from at least two or three generations; and most are well connected to the globalized economy compared to those living inland.

The folks living in the open country of the inland states that stretch from the mid-west to the states adjacent to the eastern seaboard, and towards the south are largely white folks from several generations of migrants that cross over from before the world wars.

These folks are simple, hardworking, creative, and industrious but not as sophisticated as the city-folks in the urban centers.

These are the folks who watch FOX Channel and are mostly GOP members.

These are the folks who will be charmed by Sarah Pallin without any second thought.

It is scary that a 'cowboy' can be pushed forward by the GOP to be a candidate for the US Presidency and be supported into office by such like like minded grass-root members.

MINIGUN2000 SG

funny......to think i rejected a job with the mercs to lead a peaceful life.

naybe they dont wear a nice uniform....puttin me off.

i very the vain one....

angel7030 SG

funny......to think i rejected a job with the mercs to lead a peaceful life.

naybe they dont wear a nice uniform....puttin me off.

i very the vain one....

So you dun like the uniform they give u as a toilet attendent to take care of the toilets of their office.

Aiya, Singaporeans nowaday very choosing, no wonder many complained no jobs

MINIGUN2000 SG

eh????wat toilet attendant job????u mean thats the only job they offered u???

fer me they gimme a great decent job......something even u cannot gimme!

singaporeans not choosy.........even foreigners dare not even go into the mercs job.they can go but like u they all end up in toilet or die without grave.

its not choosy.....can anytime make phone call n im in afghanistan or hot spots doing werk that will scare all yer foreigners in singapore and even army generals in singapore will step back and shiver.....

u want that job or do u prefer to be toilet cleaner?