Yesterday's headline at the top of the Arab Times (7 April 2008), i.e. the day the news of the U.S. State Department's renewal of Blackwater in Iraq, was in red large letters and stated clearly "Terrorists may target Americans in Kuwait."
The article in no way quoted any information on Blackwater, one of America's larger mercenary contract firms.
However, as no other part of that Newspaper mentioned Blackwater on that date, one is asked to read between the lines -- as most of that lengthy, multi-column article was written by someone at the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait.
Meanwhile, back in the USA, the only sustained attack on the renewal of the criminally culpable and negligent Blackwater Company came from Democracy Now.
In that piece, Jeremy Scahill's speeches in front of the Vice President of Blackwater, Martin Strong, demonstrated the character of the company and how it -- like the Bush administration which has made Blackwater investors and operators wealthy -- has operated without impunity.
Jeremy Scahill stated, "I find it very telling that nowhere on this panel do we hear a voice talking about the Iraqi victims of these companies. I find it very interesting -- the way that Mr. Strong and Mr. [Doug] Brooks talk about this -- we could be at a banking convention. The reality is that Blackwater has killed innocent civilians in Iraq. I'm not sure if you're aware of this, Mr. Strong, but the first victims in Nisour Square that day were a twenty-year-old medical student and his mother, not al-Qaeda operatives, not Iraqi insurgents. A nine-year-old boy named Ali was shot in the skull; his brains splattered in his [father's] hands. Your operatives were on the scene that day. They opened fire on these individuals."
Meanwhile, "Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said the the U.S. State Department had renewed the contract of private security company Blackwater USA without the approval of the Baghdad government."
Blackwater has been involved in many escapades of bad behavior through charges made by U.S. military personnel and other U.S. military investigators.The most notorious Blackwater attack was when 17 civilians were killed and the U.S. military investigators could find no evidence of any weapons of bullets on the scene. The U.S. Occupation forces demanded the government of Iraq provide a law to protect with impunity such mercenary operators as Blackwater in Iraq with immunity starting in 2004.
ONLY REASON TO RENEW GIVEN
Although no one in his right mind can approve of torture, my government in the USA does.
Although no one in his right mind can condone nor allow 45% of the U.S national budget to be indefinitely spent on war, past wars and war supplies, my nation's leaders do.
Although no one in his right mind would ever give carte blanch to anyone to shoot non-combatants anywhere in the world, my state department in the USA does.
Although the U.S. justice department has enough evidence provided by the U.S. military to prosecute Blackwater in court, it does not.
Why not?
The only reason given by the justice system and state department in the USA (which was once one of the better-run countries on planet Earth) is that there is a "need to protect staff in Iraq." This is the only reason given as "justification for renewing a contract with private security firm Blackwater USA without prior Iraqi government approval."
How can this nonsense be? The U.S. has had several years either to get new contractors or to assign appropriate U.S. military personnel to take over Blackwater's contracts in Iraq! This has to be the worst government decision in recent U.S. history -- that is, since the U.S invaded Iraq (2003) and began torturing people (2001) despite opposition to doing so across the entire military and humanitarian spectrum.
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