Despite Clinton Pledge: State Dept. to Pay Out Billions More to Mercenaries!

Get ready to meet America’s new mercenaries. They could be the same as the old ones.

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/434ea01af172.jpg[/atsimg]

A new multibillion-dollar private security contract to protect U.S. diplomats is “about to drop” as early as this week, say two State Department sources, who requested anonymity because the contract is not yet finalized and they are not authorized to speak with the press.

Neither source would say which private security firms have won the four-year contract or how much it will ultimately be worth. The last Worldwide Protective Services contract, awarded in 2005, went to Blackwater, Triple Canopy and DynCorp. Rough estimates place that contract’s value at $2.2 billion. This one is likely to be even more lucrative. That’s because this time, the reduction and forthcoming withdrawal of U.S. troops in Iraq is causing the State Department to splurge on private security.

A senior department official told the congressional Wartime Contracting Commission in June that the department requires “between 6,000 and 7,000 security contractors” in Iraq, up from its current 2,700 armed guards. And that doesn’t even take into account those needed to guard the expanded U.S. civilian presence in Afghanistan.

Source:www.wired.com...

Man, things are not really happening the way they say they are (the Federal Gov't and/or the Obama administration). If this deal does happen (or anything like this), you can forget about peace with the terrorist and/or the Fun-Allah loving peeps from the mid-east.

It is hard to make peace when you are paying Private guys to come in and do the dirty work. You know, once the US Military leaves, so will most of the reporters/media. Then, even more hell will be unleashed. At this point, I would say that is not the best way to go.

Unless, of course, you want the mess to continue. To keep that part of the world in a quagmire. The problem is that they will just keep coming-here (and Europe) and attacking. They'll eventually score another 911 size of attack that will just fuel them on more..

I say it is high time we leave and don't go back. Let them live the way they want-like mid-evil savages.

(looking at that picture, I would have to say these outfits are pretty well maintained and paid)

Same crap, different day. Even though Iraq passed a law banning the use of Blackwater they are still there. This is all part of the privatization plan that enriches certain individuals and companies and circumvents troublesome laws and regulations in the name of "free market principles" - mostly a creation of Donald Rumsfeld.

Don;t think for a minute they won't hesitate to deploy these goons against US citizens, it already happened in Katrina, We are one natural disaster away from seeing it happen all over again.

Private military contracting is wrong on so many levels I won;t bother to enumerate them all.
IMO they are about as UN-AMERICAN and EVIL as you can get and if the Taliban captures and kills every one of them I won't lose a minute's sleep over it.

Don't forget toy soldiers: You are an expendable commodity, easily replaced. If the going gets tough don't call on the Marines to come save you, they don;t like you either.

reply to post by Asktheanimals


I hadn't thought about it like you stated. Interesting.

I was thinking about this since posting.

On the other hand, lots of employment opportunities for the ones out of work.?-maybe? If the money is going to be paid out, may as well line up and get sum.....

The whole motivation-it seems anymore-money.

reply to post by anon72


The diplomats need some sort of protection, the DSS isn't up to the task manpower wise and count out the military with the drawdown. So they have to get them from somewhere. They're going to have Provisional Reconstruction Teams out all over the country, they will need security.

reply to post by bg_socalif


You sound like you are in the know.

Could you please expand on the Teams and what exactly they do/task performed/authority etc. Yes, I'm interested.

Thanks in advance.

reply to post by anon72


I'm not really "in the know so to speak'. But i have worked with PRT's and Civil Affairs units on occasion while over here, in the area of communications support.

The PRT's are involved in providing assistance and expertise in agriculture, rule of law, local governance, helping with reconstruction and development. They mostly consist of civilians, usually from USAID, Justice, Agriculture and/or other govt departments and agencies. Military members of the teams are usually from Civil Affairs teams. The team lead is normally a civilian, they report to the Dept of State. The support staff for these teams can include dozens of people, including those required for security. Iraq is divided up into regions and PRT's are assigned to a specific region.

Under normal circumstances security is provided by the military. But with the drawdown here in Iraq, there just isn't enough manpower. The Diplomatic Security Service is also limited in their manpower to provide adequate security. That leaves the DoS to bring in security contractors to fill the void.