Type of bind: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 355.3540973
Format: Bargain Price
Label: Nation Books
Manufacturer: Nation Books
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 480
Printing Date: March 07, 2007
Publishing house: Nation Books
Sale Popularity Level: 151398
Studio: Nation Books
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Meet Blackwater USA, the powerful private army that the U.S. government has quietly hired to operate in international war zones and on American soil. With its own military base, a fleet of twenty aircraft, and twenty-thousand troops at the ready, Blackwater is the elite Praetorian Guard for the 'global war on terror'-- yet most people have never heard of it. It was the moment the war turned: On March 31, 2004, four Americans were ambushed and burned near their jeeps by an angry mob in the Sunni stronghold of Falluja. Their charred corpses were hung from a bridge over the Euphrates River. The ensuing slaughter by U.S. troops would fuel the fierce Iraqi resistance that haunts occupation forces to this day. But these men were neither American military nor civilians. They were highly trained private soldiers sent to Iraq by a secretive mercenary company based in the wilderness of North Carolina. Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army is the unauthorized story of the epic rise of one of the most powerful and secretive forces to emerge from the U.S. military-industrial complex, hailed by the Bush administration as a revolution in military affairs, but considered by others as a dire threat to American democracy.
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Rated by buyers 
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This book doesn't even pretend to be objective. Scahill obviously has a serious hate-on for all private military contractors (Blackwater especially). This is the "in" thing right now. It's cool to hate on these guys, and Scahill's looking to make his mark as the coolest. So what if his research, while thorough, is biased and guided by his own axe to grind? Blackwater employees wouldn't even have given this guy the time of day, and Blackwater's CEO flat-out refused an interview with him. I'm sure it's because they saw through him and knew he was only there for a witch hunt. I'm not saying don't read this book. What I'm saying is look at more than just his viewpoint. I doubt that this guy's ever been in a combat zone, but he wants to critique every move made by those who work in them. I'd recommend you read Robert Young Pelton's book "Licensed to Kill: Hired Guns in the War on Terror". He actually rode along with Blackwater employees and got an interview with the CEO. He's as close as you'll come to an objective viewpoint.
Rated by buyers 
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Jeremy Scahill's "Blackwater" reads more like a straightforward history book than the explosive investigation the book claims to be. His style is to report the facts and not make assumptions, giving numbers and telling narratives while none of his facts are particularly incriminating and he seems hesitant to look at the big picture. Blackwater is a huge right wing company, but Scahill doesn't really show why that should worry people (it should). If the book is written as a warning, it fails to convey the significance of Blackwater's role in the military nor does it look at the larger picture of having a for-profit private mercenary company that is shamelessly partisan doing the job of American soldiers.
Scahill's cautious reporting leaves a progressive like me not feeling any more or less strongly about mercenaries and I doubt it will change the opinions of those who support, or have no opinion on, private military contractors.
The book is just a series of facts that really prove nothing. For example, Scahill reveals that Erik Prince, owner of blackwater, is a radical right-wing evangelical, but he fails to show any tangible effect that Prince's personal views have had on Blackwater's actual operations. The sheer number of contractors in Iraq is huge, but again, the book does not show why this is a bad thing. Instead, the strongest evidence wrongdoing on Blackwater's part comes from underarming their vehicles and hiring mercenaries from cruel regime's like Pinochet's in Chile. However, the book has little description of how these Chilean mercenaries have acted in Iraq and I'm sure an opponent of the book could argue that government run operations could also be guilty of underarming troops. There is no revelation in the book that really makes you say "wow, these people must be stopped." In fact, I worry that people will have the opposite reaction, especially considering the book's branding as a political bombshell, and say "wow, if that is the worst he could find on Blackwater, they really must not be all that bad."
In the end, the problem with the book is that it assumes that the contracting of government and military operations is bad. Therefore, giving statistics on how much money and priority contractors receive proves a point only if the reader already believes private contractors are bad. In other words, the book's premise is that many operations in Iraq have been run by private contractors, but it fails to show why this is a bad thing. By targeting his book towards progressive readers who already share his views (read:the Nation's readership) Scahill missed a great opportunity to reach a broader political audience. This book really preaches to the choir and is unlikely to convince conservatives or middle-of-the-roaders that America faces any real threats from the mercenary industry. If you're looking for a well written account of the Iraq war's mismanagement, this is a solid book (though there are far better ones), but if you are looking for a scathing indictment of the mercenary industry and our current administration's love of all things private and for-profit, I suggest you look elsewhere.*
*Naomi Klein's "Shock doctrine" would be my recommendation.
Rated by buyers 
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Good job by the writer in bringing to our attention the seriousness of a growing private army, and once again, a possible crusade "under the banner of God." No doubt that the members are "tough guys" and trained and proficient, and can just about handle any emergency, but the whole concept of our government is keeping the miitary under civilian control; and once again,Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, et.al. let this organization grow beyond any one's imagination or probably it is part of their plan. This fellow Prince is not only a good businessman, but scary in his beliefs and dedication to his form of patriotism. This is a excellent book and a wake-up call that we need to throw some light on this group (what's Congress doing with their budget - money and more money to these groups), and hopefully the subsequent administration in Washington will pay closer attention. Stay alert would be my recommendaiton - make some changes when necessary. Get them back under control!
Rated by buyers 
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"I wish to alert the readers to the fact the Blackwater refused to grant me interviews with company executives...." says the author. So, how do you come up with a credible product if all you've got are possible hearsays? Others would do whatever it takes to get hold of something just to prove that what they have written are factual and true. Remember "deepthroat"?
Unfortunately, the author decided to just stick it out with whatever is available out there in the open and eventually settled with nothing but a plain and boring piece of reading material. When I reached Chapter Nine - Najaf, Iraq: 4.04.04, detailing the events that happened on that fateful day, more specifically on the sniping actions taken by Blackwater people on top of the CPA building, I, frustratingly, told myself to better watch the Youtube version of this specific event. Believe me, it's more engrossing and interesting.
Sorry, but this is just a waste of paper, a lot of paper, for me.
Rated by buyers -
This is a thought provoking book. Scahill did an illuminary job.
I was unaware on the extent of the use and role of "mercs" like Blackwater. Even the thought of their use should concern everyone regardless of political party.
For a moment, step back from your political mindsets and think through this.
Here we have a solid, professional fighting force that can be deployed without any oversight for potential conflicts anywhere (i.e.Iran, Syria, or Russia). With deep connections into the US Govt some think Blackwater's actions are sanctioned.
No matter how professional they are... they are not subject to the UCMJ, Geneva Convention or even basic laws and that is at best outrageous.
Think about those last two sentences before slipping back to your politics.
Frankly, speaking, this should concern all Americans.
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