"We'd like to have some laws..."

Cthulhu couldn't script it any better. The Iraqi government throws Blackwater out of the country and then learns that it is operationally impossible to throw  Blackwater out of the country... And then complains that Blackwater is threatening its sovereignty.

"Tahseen al-Sheikhly, a spokesman for the Iraqi security forces, said that immediately removing Blackwater’s hundreds of armed guards could create a security vacuum in the capital, forcing American commanders to redeploy troops from elsewhere in the country. That, in turn, could leave other volatile areas thinly patrolled. “If Blackwater left at this moment, it might leave a security gap because most of the embassies and most of the foreign organizations that are working in Iraq” rely on Blackwater, Mr. Sheikhly said at a news conference with a spokesman for the American military in Baghdad. “This will create a security imbalance.”

“That’s why the Iraqi government preferred to be patient on activating this decision to stop them,” he said. “But the government is still serious in finding certain rules” to govern private security contractors. “We would like to have some laws,” he said."

Well, that would be nice. If only there was an organization in Iraq that could establish some laws. some certain rules. Damn...oh, yeah, they have a Parliament and a Prime Minister and a Party and all that stuff. So what's the fucking problem? There's a big Blackwater wing in the Mahdi Army?

Of course, laws aren't a lot of good if the government can't or won't enforce them. Sovereignty only works if you can enforce the laws in your sovereign area. If not, you're a stooge. Complaisant or rebellious, you're a stooge.

Well, I suppose we could arm a bunch of sailors and airmen, put them in Little Birds and replace the BW thugs. Or, they could reconfigure Saddam's army to hold the mess together in Baghdad. Or, they could sub-contract to the Chinese Army. Here's the way it works -- if you can't guarantee order in your country without the help of a superpower, and it can't protect itself without the help of a mercenary thugocracy (and I probably have friends working for Blackwater who have dropped off my radar) then you have a failed nation. Not an emerging democracy, but a total failure. Blackwater is a symptom of the problem with outsourcing our military; but, in this case, it's symptomatic of a bankrupt Defense Department. They are overdrawn on their people account, and the people flow is not sufficient to meet the obligations.

Of course, KBR has yet to offer an unsolicited bid for security forces. Maybe they could hire some Gurkhas, who are mercenaries and are really good at it. In the meantime, this is absolutely silly. Maybe the IRA has some guys interested in going back into the business. Dumbledore's Army perhaps?

Comments

[Comandante Agi]

Oh Blackwater, keep on rolling...

[Crusader AXE of the Lost Causes]

Mississippi moon won't you keep on shining on me...