Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary
-
Anyone read the book?? Current top seller in bookstores in major cities. Does our CISCO and AETOS share similar traits here?
-
Was going to buy it. Care to share your views on it?
-
CISCO or AETOS cannot be compared to blackwater. its different. maybe the gurkhas.
-
If you're interested in the military socio-political issues, this is a good read. things that kept running thru my head after reading this are...
outsourcing
privatisation
contracts
government-link
security
reminds me very much of things being run here too...
-
u call tat powerful when its personnel was kill n burn in iraq?
-
world most powerfull merc were actualy the french 'foreign legion'... but of course its not a commercial and money making entity.
-
FFL swear loyalty to France and is a part of the French military.Originally posted by tankfanatic:world most powerfull merc were actualy the french 'foreign legion'... but of course its not a commercial and money making entity.
They are therefore not that different from any French career soldier in France's military.
The only difference is that the FFL do accept people of other nationalities and grant them citizenship after service or something etc. And they do not have a right to question where they get sent or what they have to do there.
Most former colonial masters like England and Spain also had "Legions" within their armed forces made up just like the FFL. The sole purpose of these Legions is to go far away places and fight the colonial master's dirty wars without asking questions.
They are like the Gurkhas in British or Singapore service. They swear loyalty to the country that employs them. They are not freelancers able to do anything for anyone they please.
Spain still has a Spanish Legion, which no longer take foreigners. British Legion - don't know what it was called - was disbanded long ago and left only the modern day Gurkhas. And I last heard they will be disbanded or about to be.
So while we are splitting hairs, the real mercs are those with Blackwater or Mad Mike Horace who don't belng to any army or country but private interests.
For example:
If I own a oil drilling company and I hire a 2 companies of armed men to guard and patrol the 100km of oil pipelines say, through Indian territories in the Amazon, and they are to do everything without questions to protect the pipeline... then you can call these people mercs. -
A mercenary is a person who takes part in an armed conflict who is not a national of a Party to the conflict and "is motivated to take part in the hostilities essentially by the desire for private gain and, in fact, is promised, by or on behalf of a Party to the conflict, material compensation substantially in excess of that promised or paid to combatants of similar ranks and functions in the armed forces of that Party".[1][2] When the term "mercenary" is used to refer to a soldier of a national, regular army, it is usually considered to have pejorative connotations
wikipedia
acording to law the foreign legion are not mercenary. but among soldier of fortune community they are merc, flesh and bones. -
black water and such were actualy called PMC.... but they re merc alright...just play diff rule
-
Omega is also another power player.
-
for every ex-Navy seal, ranger, delta or special forces merc being paid half a million dollars a year, there are 10 others from the developing world, eastern europeans, Fillipinos etc being paid peanuts ....
these chaps have a much lower profile ... and are much more "expendable" ...
neways ... I'm not sure what to make of those ex-operators switching to private ops working in Iraq ....
it's one thing to be fighting for the flag ... it's quite another to fight for the cash .... -
600 usd a day, you dont want?
-
it's not like selling backside you know ....Originally posted by tankfanatic:600 usd a day, you dont want?
methinks one should only fight for something larger than self .... -
they are fighting for the same "cause"
just that they are paid better doing it
ask the Filipinos or the Fijians who are there, peanuts to the western operators are attractive enough for them (plus the insurance money if anything happens to them)
BTW, Blackwater have a recruitment office in the Philippines
-
Originally posted by moca:
The English had a foreign legion made up of german soldiers or nationals from french-occupied german territories during the Napoleonic Wars. These were called the KGL ( King's German Legion ). They swore loyalty to the English Crown but they are not able to operate or set foot in England due to their mandate. They had some of the best cavalry troops during the wars.
FFL swear loyalty to France and is a part of the French military.
They are therefore not that different from any French career soldier in France's military.
The only difference is that the FFL do accept people of other nationalities and grant them citizenship after service or something etc. And they do not have a right to question where they get sent or what they have to do there.
Most former colonial masters like England and Spain also had "Legions" within their armed forces made up just like the FFL. The sole purpose of these Legions is to go far away places and fight the colonial master's dirty wars without asking questions.
They are like the Gurkhas in British or Singapore service. They swear loyalty to the country that employs them. They are not freelancers able to do anything for anyone they please.
Spain still has a Spanish Legion, which no longer take foreigners. British Legion - don't know what it was called - was disbanded long ago and left only the modern day Gurkhas. And I last heard they will be disbanded or about to be.
So while we are splitting hairs, the real mercs are those with Blackwater or Mad Mike Horace who don't belng to any army or country but private interests.
For example:
If I own a oil drilling company and I hire a 2 companies of armed men to guard and patrol the 100km of oil pipelines say, through Indian territories in the Amazon, and they are to do everything without questions to protect the pipeline... then you can call these people mercs. -
every 8 weeks work you got 3 weeks holiday
-
Ahh yes the King's Own...however i believe they were raise from Germans in England's own German lands like Hannover?Originally posted by Darkbaron:The English had a foreign legion made up of german soldiers or nationals from french-occupied german territories during the Napoleonic Wars. These were called the KGL ( King's German Legion ). They swore loyalty to the English Crown but they are not able to operate or set foot in England due to their mandate. They had some of the best cavalry troops during the wars. -
Sounds good... I'd join if i could...
Then again, i'll miss the laksa -
i'll miss the laksa
dont worry.... if you are not lucky...you probably will look like laksa when hit by IED