Help regarding Obama

[judy]

I was appalled yesterday when I heard Jeremy Scahill talk about Obama's position on hiring mercenaries such as Blackwater and Co.
According to Jeremy (and Mike Malloy later on in the day) an Obama staffer said that Obama would use mercenaries if he had to, as long as they were under enough oversight.
While I kind of like Obama, this is the most absurd, misguided thing I have ever heard.
The concept of using mercenaries to fight your battles abroad or domestically, is against the Geneva Conventions and International Law, it takes away funds from the military which is an organization subject to the Military Code of Justice, and which should never be sent into battle without the approval of Congress.
Private companies will go anywhere anyone tells them, as long as they are paid enough.

Please help me dispel this, I have written to Obama's campaign, but got a robotized email with "join our campaign" in response (which is normal). I can't believe someone as intelligent as him and with his integrity would let his staffers confirm this to Jeremy.

Can someone help me with this?
I would still vote for him against McCain, but my image of him dropped 10 rungs lower on that one!

[TwilightGardener]

1. Iraq is built on private contractors--we don't have the troops. We just don't.

Eliminating firms like Blackwater will put a strain on duties like guarding other civilian contractors and diplomats, etc. They are an unfortunate reality of a mismanaged war and occupation. Oversight and accountability is what's important for these mercenaries--they need to be held to the same laws and standards as our military members. Getting rid of them is a no-go.

[judy]

6. Thank you wienerdoggie

for your answer. But the key here in my view is "guarding other civilian contractors".

I think the next president's first move should be to pull all the private contractors out of Iraq, and give the Iraqis back their jobs, and the responsibility of reconstruction (paid for by the US of course, since reconstruction prices would drop by figures like rebuilding a bridge for $100,000 vs. 5 million!).

Why is it an accepted idea that the US should take reconstruction away from the Iraqis, give it to KBR and Co, and leave the country in a state of unemployment and disaffection that leaves insurgents free to spend time building bombs and practicing mortar shooting...

[TwilightGardener]

12. I agree, I think we should work toward that goal, of getting our footprint

out of Iraq and letting Iraqis profit from assuming their own affairs and responsibilities. However, it will take a while, and in terms of American property like the embassy, I'm not sure that's likely to happen at all, in a fragile security situation--we'll have troops stationed at the embassy for some time to come, as well. And other facilities, like the oilfields, will be protected, because how else can we reap the benefits of our little war? The taxpayers' money will continue to flow into private contracting firms' hands, sadly--the big money-making adventure will go on for a while, but I'd prefer to see our actual troops not be used for that purpose--that's why the mercenaries don't upset me too much.

[MessiahRp]

14. Sorry I disagree entirely

Blackwater has fired on our troops. We should not be propping up contractor mercenaries who have no oversight and no rules and paying them more than our troops. We should be pulling out altogether, not looking for ways to prop this occupation up through contracting agencies.

Rp

[Johnny__Motown]

2. They are already there. they will be removed as the troops are. At least he is honest about it

[judy]

7. True, I'll give him a point for honesty.

But still, to be honest about something that I find abhorrent and evil is not a good campaign point :)

[Unsane]

3. Thank you, international lawyer.

:eyes:

[zulchzulu]

4. Here's info where Obama states he is against contractors who break the law

I've heard Obama mention Blackwater in speeches and did a short Google to find this:

"Most contractors act as if the law doesn't apply to them," he said. "Under my plan, if contractors break the law, they will be prosecuted."

In announcing his "Security Contractor Accountability Plan," Obama said he would like to see greater transparency on contractor hiring and costs.

"I've proposed tougher government reforms than any other candidate in this race – reforms that would eliminate the kind of no-bid contracts that this administration has given to Blackwater," he said.

http://www.swamppolitics.com/news/politics/blog/2007/10/obama_goes_after_blackwater.html

His plan:
http://obama.3cdn.net/df53e8d8441bb5673b_iaibmvp6o.pdf

[judy]

8. I think that's good, but my problem

is about the use of private contractors, period. It is incredible how we in this country have gotten used to the most outrageous acts of BushCo as if they were normal.
Using private companies for military purposes is the door to fascism: The regular army is the army of the people, the private army is the army of whomever pays them. Gangsters have private armies, not countries...

[TwilightGardener]

11. I don't think they're really being used for "military" purposes, even

if they're using military-style equipment and tactics. They're being used to guard and protect, not for combat/patrol/training missions. The DoD already makes wide use of private security firms even here, stateside--if you drive onto many military bases, the guy at the gate who checks your ID is likely to be a rent-a-cop--military police used to do this job, but because of wartime shortages, it's now fallen to these private contractors. I have mixed feelings about this outsourcing and privatization (my husband is in the military), but it's a fact of life now. Rumsfeld accelerated what was already a trend in making private contractors a big player in DoD affairs.

[tabatha]

5. I think Malloy went overboard last night.

Obama sponsored the following bill:
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:s.00674:

S.674
Title: A bill to require accountability and enhanced congressional oversight for personnel performing private security functions under Federal contracts, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 2/16/2007) Cosponsors (4)
Related Bills: H.R.369, H.R.2740
Latest Major Action: 2/16/2007 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.

It was cosponsored by:

Sen Conrad, Kent - 12/6/2007
Sen Durbin, Richard - 6/7/2007
Sen Kerry, John F. - 9/19/2007
Sen Whitehouse, Sheldon - 6/4/2007

Just think if Obama gets into office, immediately removes the contractors, and something happens to US personnel, then there will be an uproar. Also, factor in the fact that the US military is over extended, and broken. To some extent his hands are tied, until such time as they get things better organized.

[Unsane]

9. Malloy overboard? Never!

[judy]

10. I think we all need to wake up here, including Obama

Using private armies for military purposes is just plain wrong.
If I can repeat myself, the regular army is paid for by the people of the country as a whole, and its loyalty and code of honor is with the country. Private armies are loyal to whoever pays them. If the government uses public funds to pay a private army, that's more like a crime.

[MessiahRp]

13. Well compare that with Hillary

Whose top advisor does the PR for Blackwater
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/10/5/121023/721

[guidod]

16. Mark Penn is an asshole.

[guidod]

15. It seems Hillary

doesn't mind it either.

http://prince.org/msg/105/262845

I'm half way through the book "Blackwater" right now and it scares the shit out of me.

[bigbrother05]

17. GWB SR. started all of this with BRAC

Cheney and Rumsfeld, downsizing of the military, and hiring contractors, friends so they could make money.
It continued through the Clinton years, and carried over into JR's years twofold.
I don't like Blackwater, but that is what we got, and if they stay with more OVERSIGHT, I can deal with that.

[sandnsea]

20. Another area Clinton could have supported Kerry

He took hell over the military reductions under Clinton and Bill was nowhere to be found to back him up.

[MagsDem]

18. Prepare to watch Obama fall all over themselves to justify, explain, excuse....

You came to the wrong place to ask a question like that if you really expect to get a serious answer. He could stand on stage and rip the head off a baby at this point, and Obama supporters would tell you why it was the right thing to do.

[stillcool]

19. It is way bigger than Blackwater..

and I would love to see someone unravel this mess. "Security Corporations" have been waging illegal wars for a long time now, and the reason they have become so prominent is because they are not restricted by Congress, or any other government. This is a global problem, and I think it needs a global solution. Most of these companies have subsidiaries, and other ways to camouflage their operations. It is just one more result of corporate power.