It Takes Some Murders...

Some readers may recall the fond days at B&E when I would update this lovely site almost every day, sometimes more than once a day. But then I went and got myself a real full-time office job. (Can you believe it's been a year already?)

Anyway, Blackwater is a topic worthy of B&E, and in my old life, I would've addressed this several times over, months and months ago. Even before the Iraqi government (such as it is) banned Blackwater for unprovoked murder without taking steps to actually ban them. Also amazing about this past week is that there are allegations about Blackwater smuggling weapons into Iraq.

Jeremy Scahill is The Nation magazine's resident Blackwater expert, and has been writing actively about this privatization of the US Army since 2005 at the earliest. I can't recommend this series of articles enough (more than the ones above, which are really just for reference, in case you're not up on the events involving Blackwater):

This one offers a fantastic overview (its role in Iraq, the political connections, the lack of governmental oversight).

If you think that Kenneth Starr has been sitting tight doing nothing since he so determinedly got to the bottom of the blowjobs in the Clinton Oval Office, you'd be missing that Ken is now defending Blackwater in some wrongful death suits.

Blackwater is a "security firm." No one needed security more than New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

Here's some video! Jeremy Scahill gave testimony before Congress, as an expert on Blackwater, having researched the company for years, which culminated in his book, Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army.

And here he is on CNN after the "ban."

I implore you to take some time to get to know Blackwater. They are yet another reason to oppose BOTH the war itself and its management. The future implications of the war's management is terrifying, embodied by Blackwater.