Blackwater Guards Fired at Fleeing Cars, [U.S.] Soldiers Say; [ Incident Called 'Criminal']

Wash Post ^ | Oct 12 07 | Sudarsan Raghavan and Josh White

[stylin19a]

2 different incidents on Sept 16. This is the second one.

[freedomdefender]

I hadn’t heard that there was a second incident. I thought this was the one incident that triggered Iraqi outrage.

[EagleUSA]

It had every indication of an excessive shooting....
:::::
“Excessive shooting”...is there such a thing when someone is trying to kill you??? Only in the minds of the left, trying to politicize defending ones’ self against radical genocidal maniacs. The Washington Post....figures.

[freedomdefender]

Only in the minds of the left,

So you're calling the US Soldiers who made this report - and used the word, "excessive" - you're calling them "Leftists"? I'm sure they'll appreciate that.

[Calpernia]

The Nisoor Square incident is the new Haditha.

Blackwater USA BUMP!

[SomeReasonableDude]

I’ve been surprised to hear such negative reactions to Blackwater by men and women I work with that have served in Iraq. I mean, people inside and outside of the conflict realize that there’s a need for diplomatic security that the military just does not have the resources for, but this encroachment by contractors into the active battlespace has been going on for a while now.

There’s real frustration on the part of soldiers and commanders when these guys are outside of the military chain of command and are rarely held accountable when their actions jeopardize ongoing operations or endanger troops and civilians. Men and women of our armed forces are giving their blood and sweat to stabilize this area, only to have private cowboys come in and shoot up the place indiscriminately.

And, to add to the frustration, they’re paid exorbinant amounts of money for the same work as an E4.

[starlifter]

Am I the only one who is troubled that the US government is funding a bunch of Rambo-wannabees who apparently have no accountability for their actions?

[Calpernia]

I just sneezed. Stay tuned for Iraqi outrage.

[freedomdefender]

So you think the US Soldiers who made this report are untrustworthy? I BUMP for American values - when we see somebody doing wrong, we stand up for the right. Even if the alleged wrongdoer was a government contractor. Only in dictatorships and socialist paradises is the government and its contractors always “right” and beyond criticism.

[Hoplite]

I'm sure they'll appreciate that.

They're either with us or against us.

</sarc>

[freedomdefender]

Am I the only one who is troubled that the US government is funding a bunch of Rambo-wannabees who apparently have no accountability for their actions?

I don't know about others, but I'm with you. There are too many Bushbots on this board - they choose to ignore the voice of their own common sense when it conflicts with some policy that has Bush's name on it.

[Calpernia]

>>>but this encroachment by contractors into the active battlespace has been going on for a while now.

Encroachment? They have been there from the beginning.

Remember?

The terrorists that paid Iraqis to hang BlackWater Contractors from the Fallujah Bridge.

[Calpernia]

BlackWaterUSA has accountability. Show me who doesn’t.

[CondorFlight]

Suppose they did make a mistake and fired in error?

Did mistakes in WWII invalidate the struggle against Hitler and did we recall our army and apologize?

If there is an instance of a mistake, then fine, investigate and correct it.

But so far, Blackwater appears to have accomplished its mission; and there are those who would like to see it gone
precisely because of this.

[SomeReasonableDude]

Well said. It’s sad that the mainstream AND conservative media tend to ignore the diverse and honorable reasons many of our men and women choose to serve for. And, I’m sure many of the former special forces folks working for companies like Blackwater still carry those values with them.

It’s just sad that we have to create so many excuses for soldiers and private contractors who will break the rules, commit dishonorable acts and hide behind a media smokescreen.

It’s a slap in the face to every man and woman who has served with honor and distinction in Iraq in any capacity. Every story like this takes time away from us hearing about soldiers who are doing great work in an extremely difficult situation. We’ve replaced our heroes with some kind of morally relativistic quagmire and it’s sad as hell.

[Calpernia]

>>>So you think the US Soldiers who made this report are untrustworthy?

Copy and paste where I said that.

[freedomdefender]

"I’ve been surprised to hear such negative reactions to Blackwater by men and women I work with that have served in Iraq. I mean, people inside and outside of the conflict realize that there’s a need for diplomatic security that the military just does not have the resources for, but this encroachment by contractors into the active battlespace has been going on for a while now. There’s real frustration on the part of soldiers and commanders when these guys are outside of the military chain of command and are rarely held accountable when their actions jeopardize ongoing operations or endanger troops and civilians. Men and women of our armed forces are giving their blood and sweat to stabilize this area, only to have private cowboys come in and shoot up the place indiscriminately. And, to add to the frustration, they’re paid exorbinant amounts of money for the same work as an E4."

I'm not surprised that US soldiers are frustrated. And, unfortunately, I'm not surprised that the Bushbots won't look at this situation objectively, instead of ritually and unthinkingly defending the apparent government policy of giving contractors free rein.

[dschapin]

I would be inclined to trust the American Soldiers who wrote the report. They certainly have no interest in being politically correct - after all they get attacked by the media all the time. So, if they say that Blackwater appeared to use excessive force I will believe them untill I see information which indicates otherwise.

[Calpernia]

BTTT