War for fun and profit
The Pentagon recently announced that it was going to start drawing down troops from Iraq, but then this press release came out.
From January 2017 to January 2018 the number of Defense Department contractors in Iraq rose 34 percent, from 3,592 to 4,927, according to statistics CENTCOM released last week.
...Marine Brig. Gen. James F. Glynn, who heads special operations in Iraq for Operation Inherent Resolve, and who briefed reporters Tuesday on the state of operations in Iraq, said he was not aware of the increase in contractors.
Glynn also did not know whether the number of contractors in Iraq has increased to make up for a cut in U.S. force presence, nor did he provide how many U.S. forces are in the country now.
The Pentagon recently announced that it might start drawing down troops from Syria, but also announced this.
His comments marked the first time Mattis has indicated there would be an increase of civilians in parts of the country retaken from Islamic State militants.
“Well, when you bring in more diplomats, they are working that initial restoration of services, they bring in the contractors, that sort of thing,” he said.
Right. Diplomats. In Syria.
Allow me to recall this article from 2016.
In an investigation from The Daily Beast, the nearly 300 US troops already present in Syria would be receiving “intelligence analysis services” from Six3 Intelligence Solutions Inc., a privately held defense contractor based out of McLean, Virginia. This $10 million contract would place an unknown number of contractors in various countries, including Syria.
Erik Prince and Fox News pundits assure us that only mercenaries can save us in Afghanistan.
When I showed that to Prince, he replied, "the hardcore anti-war left went after the troops in Vietnam ... (I)n Iraq and Afghanistan they went after contractors ... contractors providing a good service to support the U.S. military -- vilified, demonized, because they were for-profit companies."
If we don't use private contractors, he added, we will fail in Afghanistan, where we've "spent close to a trillion dollars and are still losing."
So the problem is the largely invisible anti-war left.
And this is what "not using private contractors" looks like.
Back in 2016, there were roughly three mercenaries for every soldier in the region.
Under Obama, more private military contractors have died in Iraq and Afghanistan than all the U.S. troops deployed to those countries. Between Jan. 1, 2009, and March 31, 2016, 1,540 contractors were killed in Iraq and Afghanistan (176 in Iraq and 1,364 in Afghanistan). During that period, 1,301 U.S. troops were killed in Afghanistan and Iraq (289 in Iraq and 1,012 in Afghanistan). Last year was even more skewed toward contractors than the preceding six years; 58 contractors died in Afghanistan or Iraq, while less than half as many U.S. troops did (27) fighting in either country, including Syria.
When was the last time you heard a news report about a military contractor getting killed in one of our wars?
Speaking of Afghanistan...
Over the past nine months, Marine commanders have consistently said that the Marines in Helmand province do not accompany Afghan troops and police into battle, but on Monday, Watson gave a slightly different answer when asked if the Marines’ mission includes fighting alongside the Afghans.
“We have the authority to do that,” Watson told Task & Purpose. “Whether or not we exercise that authority is going to depend on how we assess the situation at the time, and obviously I’m not going to get into specifics on that.”
This Afghan build-up has Congress considering doing their jobs for a change.
But the truly scary build-up is back in Syria.
The U.S. has a military presence in several key locations, but there are two areas with heavy U.S. troop presence that are being transformed to military bases, according to a military source: The first is located in Al Tabaqah near Al Raqqa north Syria, where the U.S. special forces troops are training Kurdish groups; the other is constructed in Al-Tanf where the U.S. troops prevent Syrian and Russian armed forces from crossing.
How is that not a provocative, hostile act?
Comments
The Survey Sez . . .!!!
My answer would never. I vaguely recall isolated stories of Blackwater mercenaries in Iraq, but the focus of the story was an atrocity committed by Blackwater and one time that Blackwater mercenaries fired on American troops.
Hardcore anti-war left? I'm guessing "vilified, demonized" are Snowflake Eric's synonyms for criticized.
There seems to be an awful lot of stuff that Marine Brig. Gen. James F. Glynn, who heads special operations in Iraq for Operation Inherent Resolve does not know about what is going on under his command.
"They'll say we're disturbing the peace, but there is no peace. What really bothers them is that we are disturbing the war." Howard Zinn
2004 Fallujah
Four Blackwater contractors were killed and their bodies hung from a bridge. This was followed by an initial military stalemate which was eventually followed the virtual razing of Fallujah.
That was 14 years ago
How many thousands of mercs have died, and how many tens of thousands have they killed, since then?
"Contractors" is a mealy-mouthed propaganda rendering of
"mercenaries", which in the case of Blackwater in Iraq, the lack of oversight, control and the immunity from local and internatinal laws, is really just a super-euphemism for "brigands".
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
b on Syria
The whole thing is well worth a read.
The current working assumption appears to be that our Shroedinger's Cat system is still alive. But what if we all suspect it's not, and the real problem is we just can't bring ourselves to open the box?
Re:
I would agree. Israel and KSA has bought Washington.
One thing I've noticed but haven't written about is the frequent protests against YPG rule. People are especially unhappy about forced conscription.
Heh, seen that movie
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
Turkey Is Number Two?
This surprised me:
Does Turkey make military purchases from the U.S., Russia or both?
"They'll say we're disturbing the peace, but there is no peace. What really bothers them is that we are disturbing the war." Howard Zinn
Mostly from NATO
But the Turks just made a game changing purchase of an S400 anti-aircraft system from Russia which NATO was none too happy about.
The current working assumption appears to be that our Shroedinger's Cat system is still alive. But what if we all suspect it's not, and the real problem is we just can't bring ourselves to open the box?
Thanks, gjohnsit, great column.
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
Don't forget,
I know those of you who write and read here don't forget, but I just want to say, let us not forget that in the multiplicity of vantage points and forces and revenge and desperation here, there is the multiplicity of a granite-hardened, hydra-headed weapons bazaar.
$$$$$$$$$$$$MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOLA$$$$$$$$$$$$
I don't know if this is psycho-war for fun or for profit
but it is definitely NOT for fun.
There is another false nuclear threat alarm in Japan
frigging NYT doesn't let me read it.
Japan issues false alarm over missile launch, days after Hawaii alert gaffe That's from Reuters.
So is the false alarm over a nuclear missile attack now the new normal?
Frigging fuck that. PTSD stricken war veterans have a very difficult time right now.
https://www.euronews.com/live
Winter Olympics Start Soon
South Korea is hosting the Winter Okympics from Friday, February 9, 2018 to Sunday, February 25, 2018.
S. Korea might have to cancel them if Trump nukes or invades N. Korea.
"They'll say we're disturbing the peace, but there is no peace. What really bothers them is that we are disturbing the war." Howard Zinn
Russian drills & fall-out shelters for US PTB city nuke threats
Gawd, yeah, false alarm is bad enough for most, but for those already suffering PTSD - unimaginable!
And for the people within the lengthy list of long-targeted countries worried about the US PTB nuking them out of the blue.
Putin's apparently been running drills to try to save as many as he can of his people in any such eventuality for some time - while the US PTB consider their people just as expendable as all others and don't bother wasting public money they have plans for themselves on the Disposables forming the American public, otherwise known as The (Relative) Poors.
https://geopolitics.co/2016/10/04/russia-conducting-nuclear-drills-after...
The Russian people have been living with the threat of the US PTB nuking them for however many years, with public fall-out shelters for, once again, a more immediate threat kept in mind since at least 2015 and being ratched up now, undergoing drills intended to help save their lives in what will be a ruined country and world and I wonder what that's doing to them and to all of the other long-targeted people in so many countries... while a number of TPTB/the wealthiest actually believe that they personally can survive a 'limited' nuclear war, and perhaps even leave their luxury bunkers - if remaining intact and should they somehow reach them in time - at some point, should they survive so long.
Meanwhile, the US PTB are terrorizing its own people (who have no public health-care, never mind bomb/fall-out shelters) as well as others, currently, it seems likely, with false alarms, doubtless intended to scare up support for global destruction of planetary life and very possibly to give them an excuse for firing off nukes into multiple countries over a 'mistake' or to set off a hair-trigger reaction to 'justify' all-out nuking of multiple countries - or perhaps for a nuclear False Flag sacrifice of one US State or another as such excuse.
And the propaganda-mills grind so many minds to mush that the indoctrinated will support Mutual Assured Destruction because the leaders of other countries - especially Super-Putin The No. 1 Everywhere-At-Once-Doing-All-Wrong Enemy - mustn't murder/abuse their own people so terribly when the US PTB want to do this themselves...
Psychopathy is not a political position, whether labeled 'conservatism', 'centrism' or 'left'.
A tin labeled 'coffee' may be a can of worms or pathology identified by a lack of empathy/willingness to harm others to achieve personal desires.
Notice the date: 4 Oct 2016
Wasn't that about the time Her Heinousness was spewing threats of nuclear war over "Russia interfering in our elections?"
We must elect Congress Critters who can take back their legislative powers that Congress gave away in 2001, and when they passed the unconstitutional AUMF. No single person in the Oval Office should have war powers..., and nowhere in the Constitution does it say any branch of government can transfer its powers to another branch.
I believe in an America where the separation of church and state is absolute ..., where no church or church school is granted any public funds or political preference. — President John F. Kennedy, Houston, TX, 12 September 1960
Do believe you're right, as usual.
Why can't you be President? Oh, right, rigged elections...
Psychopathy is not a political position, whether labeled 'conservatism', 'centrism' or 'left'.
A tin labeled 'coffee' may be a can of worms or pathology identified by a lack of empathy/willingness to harm others to achieve personal desires.
Was this followed by with the standard "GBA"
Exceptional, I keep getting told how exceptional we are, must
be we're exceptional at not winning then.
Boy are we fucked with all these asshats in control.
I never knew that the term "Never Again" only pertained to
those born Jewish
"Antisemite used to be someone who didn't like Jews
now it's someone who Jews don't like"
Heard from Margaret Kimberley
"The hardcore anti-war left..........."
So the reason we are losing is because of the guys without the guns then?
Neither Russia nor China is our enemy.
Neither Iran nor Venezuela are threatening America.
Cuba is a dead horse, stop beating it.
Mercenaries
The last time I heard anything was back when Dumbya was the pretzelnitwit. DynCorp must have had some pretty heavy recruiting in MN because one at a time there was news of four of them being killed over a series of years/months (all in Iraq, IIRC). The last one was taken prisoner for about a year before he was killed.
For one of them one of the TV stations broadcast info that a fundraiser was going to be held for his family. I notified the TV station that he was a DynCorp mercenary, not regular US military, and they might not want to confuse the two or glorify mercenaries who were making considerably more money than US military troops and were only fighting for the money and adventure. They did not follow up with reporting how the fundraiser went.
I turned off my TV set permanently a few years before Obama left office, so I no longer keep up with statewide news about mercenaries, or if their deaths are reported.
I believe in an America where the separation of church and state is absolute ..., where no church or church school is granted any public funds or political preference. — President John F. Kennedy, Houston, TX, 12 September 1960