[angkor]

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki late Sunday condemned the shooting by a "foreign security company" and called it a "crime."

Of course this begs the question why Blackwater et al are needed to protect U.S. State Dept. convoys, as this incident clearly demonstrates.

Fine, replace them with official U.S. military ops teams, train them to do force protection and force protection only, pay them the private contractor rate, and see the results change. Maybe, maybe not.

[mad_as_he$$]

"Of course this begs the question why Blackwater et al are needed to protect U.S. State Dept. convoys, as this incident clearly demonstrates."

Because the military is already stretched very thin.

[Thermalseeker]

Of course this begs the question why Blackwater et al are needed to protect U.S. State Dept. convoys, as this incident clearly demonstrates.

My wife's cousin works for Blackwater and has for about 10 years now. He was in Kosovo prior to Iraq. The State Department and the military use Blackwater for a variety of things. Personal body guards for high level officials, training of Iraqi security and police forces, etc. My wife's cousin was Paul Bremmer's personal body guard.

[Little Ray]

Maybe ‘cause the military doesn’t want protect the whiny stripped pants pukes from the State Department?

[WLR]

Malaki is a front man for the Shia and Iran.

He wants the sectarian violence as long as it benefits the Shia/Iran and everyone knows that.

He is very upset at the surges effect.. Which has been to reduce sectarian violence.

I know the method used is temporary the way it has been conducted but it real.

This whole idea of massive pay increases for “Operators is occuring right now and I can thing of few things that are more morally repugnant.

It would cost 10x or more to provide the same level of security.

The State Department has their own Security Personell and they are very good they simply need to be supplemented.

BW does a darn good job for light guys and we are fortunate to have them there. For my money they have saved countless GI’s Lives.

Finally they are almost all former GI’s or Allied first person shooters who are better that the average bear at the job because of experience, aptitude and they shoot first when confronted with danger while active US Forces have to take it on the chin first.

W

[gondramB]

>>Of course this begs the question why Blackwater et al are needed to protect U.S. State Dept. convoys, as this incident clearly demonstrates.

Fine, replace them with official U.S. military ops teams, train them to do force protection and force protection only, pay them the private contractor rate, and see the results change. Maybe, maybe not.<<

If you believe the CNN “expert” the U.S. has about 180,000 mercenaries in Iraq and that not one has ever been charged with anything... The implication is that the mercs can do things that troops are not allowed to do.