I Change Shapes Just to Hide in this Place

by Eric Martin

Spencer Ackerman has been doing yeoman's work uncovering the ways by which Blackwater - despite its horrific record of law-breaking and wrongdoing - is continuing to secure significant portions of multi-billion dollar government contracts (see also):

Never mind the dead civilians. Forget about the stolen guns. Get over the murder arrests, the fraud allegations, and the accusations of guards pumping themselves up with steroids and cocaine. Through a “joint venture,” the notorious private-security firm Blackwater has won a piece of a five-year State Department contract worth up to $10 billion, Danger Room has learned.

Apparently, there is no misdeed so big that it can keep guns-for-hire from working for the government. And this is despite a 2008 campaign pledge from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to ban the company from federal contracts.

Eight private security firms have won State’s giant Worldwide Protective Services contract, the big Foggy Bottom partnership to keep embassies and their inhabitants safe. Two of those firms are longtime State contract holders DynCorp and Triple Canopy. The others are newcomers to the big security contract: EOD Technology, SOC, Aegis Defense Services, Global Strategies Group, Torres International Services and International Development Solutions LLC.

Don’t see any of Blackwater’s myriad business names on there? That’s apparently by design.

Blackwater and the State Department tried their best to obscure their renewed relationship. As Danger Room reported Wednesday, Blackwater did not appear on the vendors’ list for Worldwide Protective Services. And the State Department confirms that the company, renamed Xe Services, didn’t actually submit its own independent bid.

Instead, they used a blandly named cut-out, “International Development Solutions,” to retain a toehold into State’s lucrative security business. No one who looks at the official announcement of the contract award would have any idea that firm is connected to Blackwater.

David Neiwert recently said this in reaction to even more evidence of the unscrupulous tactics and methods of James O'Keefe - whose highly edited, deceptive videos (and accompanying misinformation) were used to make it appear that low-level ACORN representatives were engaged in unethical behavior - and it applies now more than ever:

Maybe now is the time to start asking people exactly why ACORN was killed by Congress -- and doing something about it.

Let's put it this way, even if O'Keefe's videotapes weren't doctored in any way (which of course, they were - and greatly so), and they were deemed to be 100% accurate (which, of course, they weren't - not even close), Blackwater's sins, misdeeds and illegal conduct make even the O'Keefian distortion of ACORN seem like a paragon of virtue. Yet ACORN is defunded, and Blackwater is receiving yet more mindbogglingly lucrative government contracts.

Comments

[Countme?]

The solution is to create a new ACORN under another innocuous name that is equal to Blackwater in ruthlessness, brutality, and firepower.

Rather than registering low-come people to vote and participate in the political system, though that could continue as one segment of the business, arm and train entire low-income neightborhoods throughout America to effect radical change and combat the domestic menace.

I suspect there are former Blackwater mercenaries who, given the proper incentives, would agree to work with the new ACORN had help it to achieve its redefined mission.

[Slartibartfast]

Niewert

I exist to serve man.

[Eric Martin]

Let me not then glance at your cookbook...

[wj]

ACORN doesn't need to change its business. or anything about it. All it needs is to spend some money on creating shell corporations. Just like Blackwater. (OK, maybe it needs to change its name to something hard to pronounce, too.)

[Eric Martin]

How about Xo

[El Cid]

How about making the right wing thing that Blackwater (Xe) has been given a secret contract by Obama to register black voters?

[Eric Martin]

This could work! But needs a pinch more Muslim...

[wj]

"The Xe name is clearly an example of a cross on its side. And the overthrow of Christianity is a Muslim goal...."

Would that work?

[russell]

Eric Prince: the hidden imam!

Why isn't security for US embassies and their inhabitants a military responsibility?

Why are private contractors involved *at all*?

[cleek]

the military is sacred. none shall stand in the way of what it wants.

voter outreach is a communist ploy to bring undesirables into the electoral process. it must be stopped.

plus, WRWRG: What The Republicans Want, Republicans Get.

[joel hanes]

why ACORN was killed by Congress

political cowardice

[jrudkis]

Why are private contractors involved *at all*?

Because soldiers are scary. And because of turf battles between the DOD and State. And because contractors are expendable. And because contractors really are often more capable at some missions than military units that rotate in and out every 6 to 18 months.

But it is mostly because State wants control of its missions and can't be controlled by DOD manning priorities.

[Hartmut]

The gentleman's name is David Neiwert.
---
The (allegedly*) former boss of Blackwater, Mr. Prince, is also a religious extremist, a Kristian(TM) and as such of course a darling of the GOP (and parts of the military leadership).

*I don't believe for a moment that he actually withdrew from his creation.

[russell]

But it is mostly because State wants control of its missions and can't be controlled by DOD manning priorities.

Thanks jrudkis. That actually makes sense.

For some reason I had an image in my head that security at embassies was handled by the Marines, but apparently that was incorrect.

My next question would be why we're hiring contractors rather than having a dedicated security staff of federal employees, working under the direction of State.

Private armies for hire just seems like a really, really bad idea. In any context.

Especially when the price tag is in the BILLIONS of dollars. Call me crazy, but it seems like you could whip up a pretty good dedicated State Dept security staff for a number with three commas in it.

[wj]

Security at most embassies is handled by Marines. But in war zones, Marines have better things to do.

[Slartibartfast]

The gentleman's name is David Neiwert.

That's more or less what I was getting at with my last comment. As is too often the case, I was too cryptic.

So: Niewert, not Niewart

[russell]

But in war zones, Marines have better things to do.

Fine. For billions of dollars State can stand up their own security service.

I'd like to see us get out of the private armies for hire scenario.

[Eric Martin]

Alright slarti/hartmut, fixed again. I hope. I blame the guy for not being named Smith.

[Slartibartfast]

Sure. Blame the victim.

[Slartibartfast]

Oh. Own goal. In correcting Eric, I screwed up the spelling in a different way.

Neiwert

I give up, and join the crowd blaming the victim.

[Eric Martin]

So you've seen the light.