Blackwater Offers Training to 'Faith Based Organizations' (This is not a story from The Onion.)

[laststeamtrain]

Blackwater Offers Training to 'Faith Based Organizations'

This is not a story from The Onion.

By Jeremy Scahill

In its ever-evolving re-branding campaign, Blackwater has created a new alter-ego for part of the company’s business. Meet the “Personal Security Awareness” program, which appears to be an off-shoot of Erik Prince’s Greystone, Ltd., a classic mercenary operation registered offshore in Barbados. On its website, which was registered on February 20, 2009 and went live recently, the “program” is described as “a multi-phase course which is designed to assist Non-Government Organizations, Faith Based Organizations and Commercial Businesses by providing individual personal awareness and driver training for their personnel when deployed to unfamiliar environments.” It adds: “Greystone recognizes the importance of “preparation by doing” and looks forward to you joining us for this exciting training!”

Blackwater, of course, works for such organizations as the International Republican Institute, but “Faith Based Organizations?” Are they serious? I’m sure there are just scores of Islamic aid groups just lining up to take courses from Blackwater, Xe, US Training Center, Greystone, Personal Security Awareness. Moreover, any legitimate “faith based organization” that wants harmony with other faiths would be insane to work with this company. One of the courses offered is described as teaching “persons traveling to foreign environments how to remain safe during their travels in a vehicle.” This truly is surreal. What would seem more appropriate would be a company offering courses on how to “remain safe” in a vehicle when going anywhere near Blackwater forces. Remember how those unarmed Iraqi civilians were blown up in their car by Blackwater operatives at Nisour Square? Or the Afghan civilians allegedly killed in their car by Blackwater operatives in Afghanistan in May?

Also, lets remember that Blackwater—headed by a man described in a sworn statement by a former employee as “view himself as a Christian crusader tasked with eliminating Muslims and the Islamic faith from the globe”— is itself a twisted faith-based organization—and a very violent one at that.

Then there is this course in Session III: “Teaches rules of the road and includes specific driving techniques for a specific region.” I can just imagine what goes on during this course: If you are trying to convert Muslims in a Muslim country and some Muslims happen to come near you, “‘lay Hajiis out on cardboard’ as ‘payback for 9/11.’”

In Session I there is a course that purportedly “Describes the criminal mindset.” Well, that’s something Blackwater knows a lot about. I hope they assign, as part of the curriculum, the US Justice Department’s 34-count indictment of Blackwater forces for the Nisour Square massacre. ... http://rebelreports.com/post/189642197/blackwater-offers-training-to-faith-based

[LuvNewcastle]

1. The conquistadors would be proud.

Nothing helps people to find God quicker than superior Christian firepower.

[Enthusiast]

2. We are inciting a possible

terrorist act by allowing this.

[LuvNewcastle]

3. I agree.

This has all the makings of a major shitstorm.

[eppur_se_muova]

4. al-Qaeda on line 2 !

"Hey, our old driver has gone missing, could you help us train a new guy?"

[sattahipdeep]

5. Erik Prince, has faced no consequences for the actions of his forces

Two years to the day after the Nisour Square massacre, Blackwater remains in Iraq, armed and dangerous. As The Nation has reported, the Obama administration recently extended the company's contract there indefinitely. Blackwater has big-money contracts in Afghanistan as well, working for the State Department, the Defense Department and the CIA. As in Iraq, Blackwater forces are alleged to have shot and killed innocent civilians there. We now know that Blackwater was hired as part of the secret CIA assassination program that former Vice President Dick Cheney ordered concealed from Congress and that the company continues to work for the CIA as part of its drone bombing campaign in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, a new lawsuit has been filed against Prince by four Iraqis who claim they were shot by Blackwater operatives a week before Nisour Square on September 9, 2007. According to Susan Burke, the lawyer for the Iraqis who works with the Center for Constitutional Rights, Prince runs the operations of his "heavily armed private army" in Iraq and elsewhere from a twenty-four-hour command center known as the "war room." Burke also alleges that in Iraq "Prince's private army of men went 'night hunting' on more than one occasion. This 'night hunting' entailed Mr. Prince's men, armed with night goggles and riding in Mr. Prince's wholly-owned helicopters after 10 pm over the streets of Baghdad, killing at random."

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20090928/scahill3/2

Blackwater Founder Accused in Court of Intent to Kill

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=4037725&mesg_id=4037725

[Bluenorthwest]

6. But Eric Prince gets rehired by Obama 'cause they are both 'christians'

while Lt Choi and hundreds of volunteer military personnel he sees fit to fire. Prince is his 'brother in Christ' and all of that rot. Arms smuggling murderers are rehired. Gay people of honor are fired. That is the Obama policy thus far. Criminals get contracts, heros get shown the door.