Blackwater Hearing: Waxman's Questions (Reads Army Widow's E-mail)

[Hissyspit]

Run time: 10:02 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtXqOSk66ks   Posted on YouTube: October 02, 2007 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: October 02, 2007 By DU Member: Hissyspit Views on DU: 1429

 
Chairman Henry Waxman questions Prince.

[JDPriestly]

1. Kick and recommend

[mod mom]

2. VERY DAMNING! rec'd

[iaviate1]

4. What part? n/t

[cynthia]

3. and why aren't we pulling these contracts

All along I've felt that the presence of mercenaries does more to hurt troop morale than any peace protest ever could. This is the kind of investigation that needs to be followed with exposure in the press and action by Congress. No more funding for private contractors.

[iaviate1]

5. Because we're shipping 100,000 lbs of military mail a day out of my city alone.

We'd leave the bags behind and still not have enough room for the mail headed to Afghanistan and Iraq. The military doesn't have the resources to handle the tasks such as mail delivery, catering, etc. Should they? Probably. But we don't belong there in the first place. If our cause was just, we'd have enough American volunteers for our military.

[cynthia]

6. There once was a time when

the military handled all their own needs: cooks, janitorial, shipping and receiving. Not everyone in the military shot at the enemy all day. Why should these mercenaries be paid so much more than our military men and women? Perhaps more would join if every enlistee were not send abroad as cannon fodder. Do you think that has something to do with it?

[iaviate1]

7. The question was why don't we pull the contracts?

Your argument that we don't pull them because more people would join the military if every enlistee were not sent abroad as cannon fodder. What you're saying has nothing to do with why we aren't now pulling contracts.

[candymarl]

8. Re: mail delivery etc.

The military did many of these tasks during, WWI, WWII, Korea and Vietnam. There were whole career fields in each branch just for all of those "non-combat" functions. The military had it's own postal service overseas, even in combat zones. This was done over decades. Many of those functions were "phased-out". I know. I saw it happening. It's not that the military can't do it. It's just that the military-industrial-complex saw a way to make a buck off of it (see Ike Eisenhower and Smedley Butler). General Butler was right; war is a racket.

[iaviate1]

9. Phased out...

We no longer have the capability to do it and so the contractors are called in. Even domestically we see things contracted out... chartering aircraft for troop transport, APO mail, the shipment of fallen soldiers, etc. Some of it may be a good idea, but the arming of mercenaries is where the line is crossed IMO.