Saturday, August 27, 2005
The Gladiators
Richard McCartan has an excellent piece on mercenaries serving in Iraq
Excerpts:
* one rough estimate is that 60 to 80 companies, operating under DOD contract, have provided at least 25,000 armed soldiers to assist the U.S. military in Iraq.
*pay their American employees $400 to $700 per day. Many of the soldiers hail from third-world countries (and are paid considerably less).
* While no officials figure exists, about 160 to 200 of them are believed to have died fighting
*the private security companies, while receiving boatloads of U.S. cash, operate independently; for example, the U.S. does not prescribe training standards or rules of engagement, or require background checks
*the high pay scale for mercenaries' pay in Iraq has bred intense resentment within the low-paid military
Anyone who knows their history knows that mercenaries are what failing empires use, because they can't get their own citizens to fight for causes that are innately wrong.
More blogs about politics.
