Privatizing the Military

[Eloriel]

Thought this was a good article on the private mercenaries we've got working for us in Iraq and elsewhere.

Eloriel


Military conflict becoming a private enterprise
The Associated Press
October 30, 2003
http://www.thedesertsun.com/news/stories2003/business/20031030040458.shtml

snip

There, a $3 million contract with Kellogg, Brown & Root paid for the tent’s construction and the Bangladeshi and Indian cooks who feed 4,000 troops daily. One soldier breakfasting inside the tent, a nine-year veteran, said she’s been sent to patrol Baghdad since contractors took her job as a cook.

With Kellogg, Brown & Root handling everything from mail delivery to bug control on U.S. bases in Iraq and around the world, plenty of other soldiers are finding themselves on the front lines.

Peter W. Singer, a Brookings Institution military analyst, estimates there is one contractor for every 10 foreign soldiers in Iraq -- 10 times the private involvement in the Gulf War.

Worldwide, private military companies earn about $100 billion in yearly government contracts, Singer believes. Ninety private military companies are listed on the Web site for the Center for Public Integrity. In comparison, the U.S. defense budget is about $380 billion this year, excluding emergency spending, and is expected to rise to more than $400 billion.

-- more--

[loudnclear]

1. Good radio show on this

Democray Now

[MercutioATC]

2. Let's hope they're doing security checks...

There have been incidents in the past of foreign contractors not being adequately checked. I haven't heard, specifically, of any major problem that have arisen from it, but I know of government computer systems that were worked on a few years ago by uncleared Eastern and Middle Eastern foreign contractors.

[michaelbmoore]

3. That's not the half of it. . .

<http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F30C16FE395E0C708DDDA90994DA404482>

Is a great article about the "combat" half of the equation. . .

Its just a review and the reference. . .

--Mike

[newyawker99]

4. Hi michaelbmoore!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[DUreader]

5. kick

[loudnclear]

6. Several programs have been on the radio about this

http://www.democracynow.org/

As soon as the 10/30 tape is available listen to it. Our soldiers don't even have KP or latreen duty anymore...taxpayers pay huge contracts for companies to cook, take out the trash, and clean the toilets...it only cost the military about 4 times as much to have contractors do the work. No wonder my sone doesn't know how to make up a bed. It really was an eye-opener to learn how much of what used make up soldiering has been contracted out. Democracy Now did a supurb job of explaining this on the 10/30 show. You should be able to listen to the tape at this site either today or tomorrow if you missed the original program.