Trump, Blackwater, and private war

[backtoblue]

Excerpt:

....Fifteen years later, crucial elements of this more recent history are on repeat. A new US president is proving useful to ISIS and others thanks to his particularly close relationship to Israel, exemplified by the symbolic move of the US's embassy to Jerusalem. More broadly, the US is being further worn down by an endless cycle of war.

In this context, Trump wants to depict the planned withdrawal of 2,000 US troops from Syria as, in effect, a declaration of victory over ISIS. It's true that the movement has largely (if not wholly) gone underground after losing much (if not all) of its territory. But there is unlikely to be a single western security analyst who thinks ISIS has been defeated. An estimated 10,000-20,000 paramilitaries remain active in Iraq and Syria, while related movements are well placed across north Africa and the Sahel. From this vantage point, the US military evacuation can be seen as a humiliating American flight.

This view finds reinforcement in Afghanistan, where Trump’s order to withdraw 7,000 troops ignores the US defense department's assessment that the Taliban – having made steady gains in rural areas – will welcome such a decision.

Two elements are worth adding to this emerging picture. The first is that ISIS has but a small, if entrenched, presence in Afghanistan, and it is the more nationalist Taliban who stand to gain from a US military drawdown. That said, to the wider "anti-American world" such fine details may matter less than the broad image of a United States in retreat.

Snip

In this respect, a fascinating indicator is the notorious Blackwater company's re-emergence as a major player in the privatisation of US war. The new edition of Recoil magazine ("the ultimate firearms destination for the gun lifestyle&quot carries a full-page advertisement featuring the words “WE ARE COMING” on a black background – with nothing else but the Blackwater logo. The war's privatisation may prove to have been a subsidiary factor in James Mattis's resignation, now becoming effective from 1 January rather than the initial 28 February date.

https://www.opendemocracy.net/paul-rogers/trump-blackwater-and-privatised-war

[Liberalhammer]

1. Treason

I think there is more than enough evidence to jail Eric Prince for life or execute him for conspiracy and treason.

[kimbutgar]

2. Where is the money going to come from to pay blackwater?

And I highly doubt the US miltitary will allow funds to be allocated from their budget.

[bluecollar2]

3. I'm guessing CIA...n/t

[kimbutgar]

4. Why would the CIA outsource their operations to a private entity?

The intelligence communities patience is wearing thin with the orange maggots attacks on them.

[JustAnotherGen]

5. Erik Prince sold it years ago

Didn't know they re-branded 'back' to Blackwater.

Look out for Frontier Service Corp. Hong Kong /UAE. He was in trouble for breaking the rules with the new business last year.

[backtoblue]

7. Yep, Frontier was helping China with "security training"

China wants (may already be) to mine in Africa. Frontier Group provides training for project security details. Ya know, like training a foreign army to protect their investments...

[VOX]

6. Dictators love private armies...will Blackwater form 45's Schutzstaffel?

Schutzstaffel (SS): unit of Nazis created as bodyguard to Hitler and later expanded to take charge of intelligence, central security, policing action, and the mass extermination of those they considered inferior or undesirable.