WCSR

Poor Erik Prince. The mean old Iraqis are refusing to give Blackwater a license to operate a mercenary army in their country.

“They presented their request, and we rejected it,” said Ala’a Al-Taia, an official with Iraq’s Interior Ministry. “There is no longer the necessity to renew their contract because our security forces can handle their mission. There are many marks against this company, specifically that they have a bad history and have been involved in the killing of so many civilians.”

Too bad our own government doesn't have the same clarity of judgment.

Joseph Neff at the News and Observer has a great round-up story on the trials, tribulations and triumphs of Erik Prince, dark lord over all things Blackwater. Mr. Prince, as you know, is the top dog among mercenary mongrels here in the states. I hope you'll go read the article and learn how the Democratic Congress is continuing to pour money into Prince's pockets.

From the New York Times, this editorial about Blackwater's tax and employment practices:

As the nonpareil war profiteer in Iraq, Blackwater Worldwide keeps outdoing its own mercenary record. Ranking Blackwater executives have used inside
influence as administration fund-raisers to multiply their no-bid war contracts a thousandfold to more than $1 billion. Armed Blackwater guards redefined Ugly American for the Iraqi people last September in fatally shooting 17 civilians with impunity in a burst of “spray and pray” panic on the streets of Baghdad.

Via Blackwater watch, this story of a country operating with integrity, honor and decency.

German weapons manufacturer Heckler & Koch said it would end its relationship with Blackwater after media reported that the controversial US-run military firm was using its guns in Iraq and Afghanistan. Blackwater, a private security company which has been contracted to protect high-profile US officials and foreign dignitaries in Iraq, had been using Heckler & Koch machine guns in both Iraq and Afghanistan.

Mother Jones this week features a story following-up coverage here and at the Dome earlier this month. When Blackwater's EVP for Stupidity tried to intimidate Marshall Adame, it looks like he bit off more than he can chew. Of course, the EVP has its own private bulldog working to stomp out dissent and drive up profits, so it's shaping up to be an epic battle.

Adame's comments about the company have enraged Blackwater employees, including executive vice president Bill Mathews. In an internal corporate email, Mathews encouraged his colleagues to barrage Adame with mail ("he was too cowardly to put a phone number on the web," Mathews noted in the message). "[H]e wants this company and all of us to cease to exist," Mathews wrote in the email, which was obtained by the Raleigh News & Observer and posted to the newspaper's web site. "Do you like your jobs? Are you sick and tired of the slanderous bullshit going on in DC? If so, would you all mind joining me in reminding Mr. Adame that he is running for office in our backyard…. Let's run this goof out of Dodge...!"