Um, when did we the U.S.begin outsourcing its military needs? I guess you don't need a draft when you can hire an army. Seems like you don't really need to have accountability either.

Maybe there should be a Blackwater IPO on Wall Street. Then we could really show off the benefits of war and capitalism.

Hi egoldstein,
I read an article about a couple of the founders or
managers, and they were talking about sending some
of their guys to Darfur. So far, it seems like the Security
Forces from the UN aren't capable, so maybe Blackwater
could work.
merrie

America paid for mercenaries in Vietnam. From what I saw they were Australian, and Turkish. This article is quite interesting.

http://www.lewrockwell.com/margolis/margolis88.html

Can someone explain to me where does "patriotism" stands under such conditions? How does it feel like working for a company and fighting for your country? Do you die working for a company or for your country?

Mind boggling.

There have always been, and will always be, mercenaries. War is profitable, like it or not.

Personally, I hate to see the United States compromising its ideals in such an obvious way as hiring mercenaries, but if you consider some of the atrocities (past and present) that our own American troops have committed on foreign soil, it becomes apparent that ideals sometimes (perhaps often) get discarded for reasons of expedience, or in the heat of the moment. This is true even for democratic countries.