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Originally Posted by CaptainHaplo
War does create a lot of dead bodies. No doubt about it. But where do you get that "merc companies" are the cause of it? First of all, despotic dictators create a lot of dead bodies when they gas their own citizenry, or kill political prisoners, or just condone the raping and killing of women by the secret police "just because". So let's not act like there was not a rather large body count, ever increasing, before the "war in Iraq". Also, your inferring that somehow the war in Iraq is responsible for all the death. Who is it that is killing the vast majority of the Iraqi civilians, and law enforcement / army personnel? Could it be the extremists who want to take over and rule? Oh, but that little tidbit of fact doesn't fit well the "blame Blackwater, America and the mercenaries" does it, so you left it out.
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Imagine a world with really powerful merc companies. I mean, merc companies with their own navy with all the trimmings. And huge tank armies. It could happen today. And all one had to do was walk up to one of those companies with a big enough check that doesn't bounce and you'd have yourself a military at your disposal. A lot of people with checks that don't bounce in the Middle East if you catch my drift.
If the US wants to give birth to these merc companies they'd better be sure they know what they are doing.
So what you're saying is that it's ok to engage in offensive warfare against any nation of your choosing? It would be ok for Finland to attack, say, Estonia and then blame the Estonians for the war?
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If you don't want to speculate - then don't speculate. What you just did was say you didn't want to do something, and then you did it anyway, as if you had some knowledge that you "can't" or "won't" share.... In other words, your trying to create the image of something without there being any facts to back it up. If you have fairly numerous instances where mercenaries were the cause of unprovoked and innocent civilian death, put forth the info so it can be evaluated fairly.
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Freedom of speech buddy. I can tell you don't really like it. And it's not like I'm even engaging in any racist hate speech as is common here in SS Radioroom.
The merc companies are operating more and more in the States as well, only a matter of time before they engage in some civilian shooting there as well, or maybe that's already happened. You reap what you sow.
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Your hypothosis of "there must be more or else they wouldn't press this so much" is flawed because there is a much more rational and obvious reason why this is a big matter to the Iraqi government. One huge claim the insurgents make is that the existent Iraqi government is simply a pawn and extension of the US government. If they were able to hold up American citizens that were punished for something that the common Iraqi person thinks was wrong (regardless of whether they had reason or not for their actions) - then the claim of the Iraqi government being a pawn is severely weakened. No "pawn" can force its master to sacrifice its own citizenry.
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That really bothers you doesn't it? Ok I tell you what, when I find some free time I'll look into the matter. Also because I'm interested in the subject. I'll get you (and Lance) some info with a source.
I don't think the Americans really put that much value on their own soldiers. They are expendable so it doesn't take much wrangling from the Iraq puppet government to get US troops.
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Ok, so in one sentence you demean the average Iraqi as being so simple that they use camels for transportation, and so dense they can't understand - on pain of possible (and likely) death - not to act like a suicide bomber when approaching an armed column. This alone tells me you have never been in the region for any length of time, or had much dealings with Iraqi nationals. Just because they live in a country that the "first world" deems arse backward does not mean they are stupid. Far from it. They may be a "simple" people compared to first world nations, but they are far from intellectually void. In fact, the average civilian has a very good level of common sense that lends itself to preservation - of person, family and tribe. These are a people that have survived brutal dictatorship, extremely violent wars with their neighbors, and now move forward while a foe that hides within their own populace lashes out and kills them. You so severely underestimate and stereotype them its unbelievable.
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I didn't say the Iraqis are stupid, they are very wise people. Unfortunately no amount (and I guess in this case there hasn't even been much) preparation can truly prepare an entire nation for the full scale occupation by not just by a regular military that adheres to the rules of war (something the US military doesn't do) but by several merc companies with their own set of rules. As exactly why the Iraqis hate the mercs I'm sure we'll find out more later on, they are however entitled to their opinion and will enforce the ban mentioned in the link in the OP.
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Oh - you were there? You have already convicted these people without a trial, based purely on your own biases against them, their nationality, and your views on their activities. Not to mention apparently you have become a psychoanalyst capable of mind reading across both time and space - because you have deduced without a doubt (in your own mind at least) why they did it.
You were not there, so you don't know the whole and true story. Yet you want to condemn these people based on what you THINK happened, based of whatever media reports you can find that lays the blame all on Americans. It is this kind of thing that makes your biases blatently clear.
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The mercs mentioned in the link in OP will most likely go to retrial with a more resounding result then before. We'll see what happens. In any case it doesn't strike me that the relationship between the Iraq puppet government and it's 'creator and master' the US is particularily warm at the moment. Doesn't look like a successful ending to a war no matter how you look at it.
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Apparently we aren't done with your expertise are we? Officers in the US military just "luurve" to give unpleasant orders? And where does this expertise come from? Or is it once again just another way to simply find ways to slam the American military? Thats a rhetorical question, by the way. I can tell you this, I don't know of many men, be they warrants, officers or enlisted, who had to give orders or make decisions that took lives that did so lightly. In fact, I don't know a single one. Those that have no moral compass are (or were I should say) weeded out before ever entering into a conflict theatre. I have no reason to think that has changed.
You can continue with your despising America, but don't be suprised when folks like me - who still have a moral compass and don't hate others blindly - point out the flaws in your hate mongering.
Have a nice day 
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I wonder if the guys who are actually ordered to the potentially life threatening tasks by the officers agree with you on that or are you just like, taking the officers words on that. Cause you know, that would be kinda, one sided and all. Which I'm sure you understand when you think about it for awhile.