The Army of God, plus overhead and expenses

The first time any of us probably ever heard of Blackwater, the U.S. mercenary firm, was two years ago, when 4 of their employees were ambushed and torn apart on the streets of Falluja, and their burned bodies were hung from a bridge.

That was a rare public moment for a very private firm that is rapidly expanding its operations not only in Afghanistan and Iraq, but inside the United States as well. Blackwater has been awarded government contracts worth billions of dollars, all paid for by our taxes.

Did you know that Blackwater was hired by the Department of Homeland Security to patrol the streets of New Orleans after Katrina, and that they did so heavily armed, and in unmarked cars, and they were authorized to use lethal force to prevent property damage?

Did you know that the founder of Blackwater, Erik Prince, is a right-wing fundamentalist Christian with close ties to BushCo? Erik Prince worked for Bush Sr.’s administration, but found 41 too liberal on social issues. 43, Rumsfeld & Cheney are, shall we say, a little more friendly not only to his ideas about the rights of gays and women, but also to the idea of creating a private military force that is involved in the highest levels of government military operations. More than one journalist has compared Blackwater to the Praetorian Guard of ancient Rome.

Did you know that the families of those four dead men are suing the company, and that Blackwater is currently being represented by our old buddy Ken Starr? Before Starr, they were represented by Fred Fielding, who recently replaced Harriet Myers as White House Counsel. Remember when Myers resigned, and everyone wondered why, because no one resigns from BushCo without a very good reason? Maybe Fielding was the reason.

Did you know that Blackwater is currently maneuvering in order to establish that itself and its employees are not subject to the laws of the United States, because they are in the employ of the U.S. Government and are in many cases commanding U.S. troops? They are also claiming that as a private firm, they are not subject to the military code of justice, either. What laws, then, should they be subject to? Blackwater doesn’t say.

Did you know that Henry Waxman, the Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, was denied access to Blackwater contracts for services in Iraq, because they are classified? Classified from Congress.

And as a special bonus for my California friends, did you know that Blackwater has taken meetings with our very own governator, to discuss providing post-earthquake security services?

No good can come of this, my friends. Once outfits like this are created, they don’t go away overnight once the name plates on the desks in Washington are changed. Ask your favorite presidential candidate what he/she thinks of Blackwater, and pay careful attention to the answer.