1 Oct 2007
They Hate Us For Our Freedom
One doesn’t know whether to laugh or cry, readers:
The incident involving “a drunken Blackwater contractor” arose when the employee killed a bodyguard for the Iraqi vice president, Adil Abd-al-Mahdi, in December 2006. State Department officials allowed Blackwater to take the shooter out of Iraq less than 36 hours later.
Then the State Department charge d’affaires recommended that Blackwater make “a sizable payment” and an “apology” in an effort to “avoid this whole thing becoming even worse,” the report went on. The State Department official suggested a $250,000 payment to the guard’s family, but the department’s Diplomatic Security Service said that was too much and could cause Iraqis to “try to get killed.” In the end, $15,000 was agreed upon.
They hate us for our freedom, readers, and we’re fighting them over there so we don’t have to fight them here at home.
UPDATE, 2007/10/02, 19:44 EDT
A 2004 crash that killed everyone on board — three crew members and three U.S. troops — was caused by pilots from a Blackwater plane taking a low-level run through a mountain canyon in Afghanistan, testimony revealed Tuesday.
“I swear to God, they wouldn’t pay me if they knew how much fun this was,” the doomed plane’s cockpit voice recorder captured the pilot saying shortly before the November 27, 2004, crash.
Blackwater, who has received more than $832 million from taxpayers, and who ironically, have given Republicans over $2 million in campaign contributions, is untouchable.
Stram
October 2nd, 2007 at 19:50permalink
Your ‘updated’ link from CNN, says ‘more than a billion’.
Stram
October 2nd, 2007 at 19:54permalink
Stram, check out “The Bush Administration’s Ties To Blackwater” at Salon.com. You’re right, of course; Blackwater USA will prove to be untouchable. The Bush administration won’t even reprimand them, not for anything.
dumpendebat
October 2nd, 2007 at 21:22permalink
I totally want to be a Blackwater employee now.
elfasbrynja
October 2nd, 2007 at 23:03permalink