Bush's private army to the rescue!

Yeah, it's Wiki but it is still relevant (new window)

PoopStain: Al Gore isn't running a company called Liberal Approved Security Forces, Inc. Someone has to step in and help after a disaster hits. Who else could do it?

Um... The national guard?

Oh, wait, they're all over in Iraq. So let's hire mercenaries.

AND they're pretty much shielded from criminal liability by their coporate-personhood, so if their mercernary force farks up, they have no worries.

What a country! Pesky Constitution preventing you from implementing your police state utopia? Never fear, we at Police State, Inc. are here to help you!

johnny_vegas: Yeah, it's Wiki but it is still relevant (new window)

So, simply stated....The Kennebunkport Cowboy can do whatever he wants by declaring an emergency? That's pretty scary ESPECIALLY when he's using his mercenaries who, it would seem, don't answer to anybody.

PoopStain: Where are they supposed to get them?

82nd Airborne, 2 & 3 ACR, 1st Cavalry, 4th ID....

There are tens of thousands of soldiers within driving distance.

NewportBarGuy: There are tens of thousands of soldiers within driving distance.

A quick insertion and occupation/police action of a largely unarmed populace in extreme conditions? I don't really think that the 82nd and 1st Cavalry are experienced and trained enough to handle this operation.

SockMonkeyHolocaust: I don't really think that the 82nd and 1st Cavalry are experienced and trained enough to handle this operation.

And Blackwater is?

They're not protecting the Viceroy or anything.

submitter: Blackwater stands ready to defend your city from yourselves

But can they swim in body armor?

Dufus: submitter: Blackwater stands ready to defend your city from yourselves

But can they swim in body armor?

The ones I saw in Iraq were pretty farking fat, so I'm sure they have plenty of buoyancy.

/"Minimum eight-years experience in either SOCCOM/JSOC/Intelligence field(s)" my farking ass.

Never fear, New Orleans. Blackwater stands ready



/ approve
// gonna make everything alright

PoopStain: Absent some help, it's just going to be the same shiatstorm that happened last time. Is that what you want?

From what I saw on the news, it was the lack of help to those in need that caused the shiatstorm in the first place, not the lack of private mercenaries.

last hurricane that hit NOLA, the bill of rights was repeatedly gang raped by just about everyone with any sort of official title. I'm looking forward to watching NOLA burn the constitution again this time around.

Anybody that stays this time DESERVES whatever happens to them.

veedeevadeevoodee: Never fear, New Orleans. Blackwater stands ready

/ approve
// gonna make everything alright

Well I built me a raft and she's ready for floatin'
Ol' Mississippi she's callin' my name.

sarcastrophe: AND they're pretty much shielded from criminal liability by their coporate-personhood, so if their mercernary force farks up, they have no worries.

I don't know if they'd rely on that. That might put it in jeopardy, so I'd guess they have it written into the contract.

Do they know that they have to obey the law as well? Cause' they don't in other parts of the world.

This should end well.

BlackWater is the perfect example on how a private company does a more efficient and effective job than the government. They use less soldiers and cost less money to get the job done whereas the military soldiers feel they are entitled to a 4-year college education among other perks and benefits after their service is up while biatching at citizens for not being manly like them.

Y'all show me where else the Mississippi and the Gulf meet, and then suggest another location for New Orleans. The fact remains that a day in New Orleans is worth a week in Idaho.

Commie Nazi Terrorist: BlackWater is the perfect example on how a private company does a more efficient and effective job than the government.

The SS were efficient and effective...

/yes, I did
//now tell me it's not relevant

Pvt. Party: Do they know that they have to obey the law as well? Cause' they don't in other parts of the world.

anyone causes shiat, they get a 9mm Miranda reading followed by a quick and dirty body dump. By the time anyone figures out what happened, the storm and swamp will have washed away the evidence. Just ditch the gun after the storm is over.

Ah NOLA, that tiny bit of third world graft and corruption, right here in the US of A.

Commie Nazi Terrorist: BlackWater is the perfect example on how a private company does a more efficient and effective job than the government. They use less soldiers and cost less money to get the job done whereas the military soldiers feel they are entitled to a 4-year college education among other perks and benefits after their service is up while biatching at citizens for not being manly like them.

a HUGE portion of what the national guard is trained to do in situations like hurricane relief is transport and deliver logistics. blackwater employees are trained in security techniques. only on fark would people demand that those trained in logistics should be assigned to provide security and those trained to provide security should be kept out of disaster zones.

god knows what we needed in new orleans last time was a bunch of truck mechanics providing security for the city.

/here is a news flash, subby...not all of the national guard troops are combat specialists.

Well I'd say the citizens of NO are in good hands as long as they don't do anything stupid.

Blackwater punks are a little worse then the Bloods or the Crips, etc., but not that bad.

In general they fight like Police, not like soldiers; they will leave their flank open every time, and in a real battle they move forward blithley oblivious to anyone sneaking up from behind.

That means you can pick them off easily one by one in a series of hit-and-run operations.

They also tend to bunch up together for safety, it gives them a secure feeling. The biggest bunch is the base camp, where there are so many, they figure an enemy would never dare attack.

Bad mistake; the more goons, the more targets.

Blackwater has immunity from the law written into its contracts, so they can kill anyone they want, and it is legal. They can also rape, steal and commit lesser crimes.

Nice guys.

Never fear seems a strange way to say "Everybody panic!"

Is there enough Heineken in NO this time?

Commie Nazi Terrorist: BlackWater is the perfect example on how a private company does a more efficient and effective job than the government. They use less soldiers and cost less money to get the job done whereas the military soldiers feel they are entitled to a 4-year college education among other perks and benefits after their service is up while biatching at citizens for not being manly like them.

I award this 4 out of 4 toasted bridge-hung mercenaries.

I am an RN and a reserve deputy. I have volunteered to go to Louisiana as a volunteer with the Red Cross, DMAT (new window), and the law enforcement agency for which I am a reserve deputy.

If Blackwater or other security contractors are called in to help it will be nice to have qualified people in the boots on the ground.

What are you people doing?
Complaining on Fark.

friendscallmelenny: Is there enough Heineken in NO this time?

Every third bottle has been spiked with cyanide. Only the bartender knows for sure....

The 82nd (among other active duty Army units) was there after Katrina.


//hotlinked

feckingmorons: What are you people doing?
Complaining on Fark.

Not true - I plan on watching the raping, looting and pillaging live on CNN. I understand that Blackwater will charge extra to watch their Constitutional law abuses, but I hear they do gang rape better than anyone else right now.

why all the rage directed at mercenaries? they're just doing the jobs americans don't want to do. see also: illegal aliens

"But, but, but... Bush!"

Ok I don't know what that guy in the video was complaining about. He said black water was collecting $240k on some days, and said that the red cross was no where to be seen, but then blackwater donated $130k to the red cross anyway.

Who would have imagined that paying people to help with disaster recovery is an effective means of getting the job done? I say let the Merc's handle the gang-bangers and let the Feds concentrate on the food, shealter, and sandbags.

PoopStain: benlonghair: Um... The national guard?
The National Guard would still need bodies for a large magnitude storm. Where are they supposed to get them?
Absent some help, it's just going to be the same shiatstorm that happened last time. Is that what you want?

The point he was trying to make is that you don't send the National Guard out of country to fight some war, and this is why.

This time we'll get a whole new kind of shiatstorm instead. Who do you think has more motivation to look out for fellow citizens... a National Guardsman or a mercenary?

Is this really what we do now? Hire professional killers to police our own cities? Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

sarcastrophe: AND they're pretty much shielded from criminal liability by their coporate-personhood, so if their mercernary force farks up, they have no worries.

What a country! Pesky Constitution preventing you from implementing your police state utopia? Never fear, we at Police State, Inc. are here to help you!

See, I can imagine a scenario where a temporary police state would be necessary. BUT THESE AREN'T POLICE. They are mercenaries with their own codes of justice and widely varied training and experience. They don't work for the people, which means they don't have to serve and protect if they don't feel like it.


Hell, half of them probably cut their teeth in Iraq or Afghanistan where they could literally do anything they wanted. I wouldn't be surprised if the White House tries to argue that Louisiana state law doesn't apply to them, especially if something goes bad. Holy Christ, I'm 2,000 miles away and I'm scared.

If we are all lucky the National Guard will detain all the Blackwater employees for violating the mandatory evacuation. In a perfect world they will shoot them all for looting.

They have no legal standing to be there. They are technically armed citizens, not law enforcement.

The use of mercenary armies to fight wars has been a double-edged sword throughout history. They have tended to write their own laws and act on their own authority.

Mr. Gunn: Y'all show me where else the Mississippi and the Gulf meet, and then suggest another location for New Orleans. The fact remains that a day in New Orleans is worth a week in Idaho.

This made me think of a quote by Blanche Dubois in "Streetcar Named Desire." Something about time in NO.Does anyone have that? Love that place!

stpickrell: The use of mercenary armies to fight wars has been a double-edged sword throughout history. They have tended to write their own laws and act on their own authority.

But they make perfect sense for US leaders. They can commit any atrocity and be disavowed by the very people who hired them to commit those atrocities and nobody gets the blame.

Weaver95: friendscallmelenny: Is there enough Heineken in NO this time?

Every third bottle has been spiked with cyanide. Only the bartender knows for sure....

In that case, I think I'll have a Holy Bartender.

Commie Nazi Terrorist: BlackWater is the perfect example on how a private company does a more efficient and effective job than the government. They use less soldiers and cost less money to get the job done whereas the military soldiers feel they are entitled to a 4-year college education among other perks and benefits after their service is up while biatching at citizens for not being manly like them.

Wrong, wrong, wrong. Blackwater does not do the same stuff the army does. Blackwater does private security, such as convoy operations and VIP protection. They don't actually do raids or anything of that nature. Also, Blackwater pays their men a LOT more than the army does, benefits and all. It's not unusual to be able to make 6 figures working for them.

24-Bit Voxel: PoopStain: benlonghair: Um... The national guard?
The National Guard would still need bodies for a large magnitude storm. Where are they supposed to get them?
Absent some help, it's just going to be the same shiatstorm that happened last time. Is that what you want?

The point he was trying to make is that you don't send the National Guard out of country to fight some war, and this is why.

This time we'll get a whole new kind of shiatstorm instead. Who do you think has more motivation to look out for fellow citizens... a National Guardsman or a mercenary?

Is this really what we do now? Hire professional killers to police our own cities? Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

Given the needed skills after major military operations were completed a "disaster recovery" force was the right tool for the job. Since the UN didn't do much to help we had to send the National Gaurd since they were better trained to handle those responsibilities than our offensive forces. Maybe the people that LIVE THERE should have helped with the clean up instead of infesting neighboring states.

PoopStain 2008-08-31 04:01:55 PM
Well, who the hell else is going to do it? The NOPD farking LEFT last time!

As I recall, TV cameras captured some of them who stayed. To loot. In uniform.

Commie Nazi Terrorist: BlackWater is the perfect example on how a private company does a more efficient and effective job than the government. They use less soldiers and cost less money to get the job done whereas the military soldiers feel they are entitled to a 4-year college education among other perks and benefits after their service is up while biatching at citizens for not being manly like them.

Cost less? How do you figure? If anything they can (and do) charge out the asshole because help is in short supply and the demand is high. Plus, you have an organization with a history of very questionable violence against individuals and not being beholden to any law. Any private organization operating outside the parameters of the law cannot lead to goood things.

Sgt Otter: Minimum eight-years experience in either SOCCOM/JSOC/Intelligence field(s) my farking ass.

They just LOVE to get SF or Rangers, but the problem is, a lot of those guys can get re-hired into gubmint civilian contract jobs other than BW that pay real well but you don't get shot at so much.

When BW was recruiting around here they were taking highway patrol and EMS guys with any former service for astounding bucks. I know a freshly retired 160th pilot that went BW and got megapay, right at $300K to open.

PoopStain: Well, who the hell else is going to do it? The NOPD farking LEFT last time!

I understand the ZOMG! Blackwater! fear-mongering from the truly retarded, but what other company can even gin up a private security force on that scale in a short period of time? Is there some other organization I don't know about filling these contracts?

They assemble, restore order, and then they are disbanded when they aren't needed anymore. Who is going to pay for a standing military force for New Orleans "just in case"? Even the National Guard needs help when storms like this come along.

Al Gore isn't running a company called Liberal Approved Security Forces, Inc. Someone has to step in and help after a disaster hits. Who else could do it?

The point is that this is not a responsibility that is supposed to be filled by private companies with little oversight and rules of engagement, but by federal agencies who the GOP have devolved to next-to-nothing.

I'm going to guess they fark it up, even if they don't fark it up.

If you're engorged on 9/11 "truth" films, switch to Blackwater for a little tinfoil-hat self-pleasuring! Nevermind how little sense it makes.