Sometimes in a society, such as the society of bloggers, someone says something that deserves condemnation in the strongest terms. But sometimes, it is so awful that there really aren't terms that will do. Once the moral threshold has dropped far enough, to enter into the fray would be demeaning for everyone involved. On those occasions, nothing will do except to let the words stand for themselves.
Today, the Daily KOS wrote on the four American contractors killed in Fallujah. They include a former Navy SEAL and father of two, a veteran of the 82nd airborne, and a winner of the Bronze Star for Valor:
That said, I feel nothing over the death of merceneries. They aren't in Iraq because of orders, or because they are there trying to help the people make Iraq a better place. They are there to wage war for profit. Screw them.UPDATE: KOS has apparently deleted the original post, and even had the Google cache of it purged. He has replaced it with something that pretends to be an apology. The show of shame I will take for what it's worth. Having the grace to be ashamed raises him enough in my eyes that he will now get a response.
His apology takes this form: Of course, he didn't mean it when he said "screw them" and that he felt nothing. He was merely sad to see their deaths elevated in press coverage over the deaths of servicemen:
But the mercenary is a whole different deal. They willingly enter a war zone, and do so because of the paycheck. They're not there for humanitarian reasons (I doubt they'd donate half their paycheck to the Red Cross or whatever). They're there because the money is DAMN good. They answer to no one except their CEO. They are dangerous, hence international efforts (however fruitless they may be) to ban their use.Readers of Grim's Hall know that I am a military contractor, which Kos calls "mercenaries." I volunteered this year for a deployment to Iraq and a six-month contract in Kabul, the latter of which may yet come through. Over at Del Simmons' Free Speech, I answered some of the questions KOS raises about the motives of "mercenaries":
All the identified are former members of the US military. So what are they doing in Iraq?In defense of my compatriots, I should say that all my colleagues I'm aware of do donate heavily to charity, not only in money but in blood. I mean this literally--I organize the tri-monthly visits to the Red Cross donation center around here, and speaking for myself, I can honestly say that, since 9/11, I've donated blood every time I've been permitted. One young lady in my group began taking iron pills last summer so that she could maintain the iron levels in her blood the Red Cross demands--a real trick for many young women. Her case illustrates another aspect of the service: Most people in these various defense contractor, "Private Military Company" firms are former military, but there are also many who aren't, people who admire the military but who aren't made to be soldiers. They still want to do their part, and they do. Some of them have skills that are rare in the military, too--I know a lot of Arabists like that, including quite a few non-US citizens who want to be a part of what America is doing, but whose nations aren't in the Coalition--Syrians, Egyptians, and Sudanese. They can't serve in their own nation's armies, but they can still help make a stand against terrorism. A lot of them have more at stake than KOS, coming from where they do.I can answer, as I volunteered for such a deployment earlier this year--although my employer preferred to keep me working at another GWOT project in the USA. I volunteered recently for a deployment to Kabul, about which I've not yet heard.
I would be surprised to learn that these men differed very much in motives. Like them, I joined the military--the USMC--right out of high school, largely for patriotic reasons, though also out of a youth's desire for adventure. My service ended in 1994. On 9/11, I abandoned the career I'd embarked upon and started looking for ways to return to service.
The military has strict caps on how many people it can have, though, at every grade. The USMC, being the smallest, has the least room--and the wave of volunteers that came with 9/11 meant that recruitment was, and remains, topped out. There was simply no room.
There are also age limits, and in the years since 9/11, I've run afoul of them. Even if room opened up now, I couldn't return because I'm too old.
But our service is still needed. I went looking for other ways to serve, since the military was closed to me. I found it in this so-called "mercenary service," which allows me to work hand in hand with the US military. I've worked on projects for every branch of the service, and most of the global commands.
Estimates on just how many contractors work in the GWOT run wild, and no one is really sure. It seems likely to be at least one contractor to every five servicemen, but it may be as high as one to one.
Many bring skills that they've gotten later in life, which broadens the range of talent and knowledge beyond what the military itself has to offer. Deployments are not always much less gentle than the military's own, although they are softened a bit by being purely volunteer--you can leave, if you really want to. Few do.
This is what US "mercenaries" are like. They exist at all because the Congress and DOD bureaucracy aren't realistic about the force levels needed, and cling to outmoded concepts like age limits. As with anything else in a free society, where there is a demand that isn't being met, a service appears to meet it. I would rather be in uniform; but since I cannot be, I'll do this instead.
Obviously I can't tell you just what I've done, but I can tell you that I feel it makes an impact. Do I get a better deal than the serviceman does? I'd trade places with him if I could. I'd rather have the honor his service gains him than any coin. A man leaves his fame behind him when he goes. What will my son be told about me by KOS and his like, if I die in Kabul or abroad? 'He was a mercenary. What did he care for the humanitarian reasons? He was just in it for the money.'
I'd do it for nothing, if I could keep my family afloat. I'll bet you every one of those lads they hanged from the bridges felt the same. Maybe there are some people out there for whom this war could be just about money, or all about oil, but I sure don't know any of them.
