Thursday, August 16, 2007
The privatisation of warfare and the overstreach of UK forces in Iraq and Afghanistan
The question of private contractors engaging in military actions in Afghanistan and elsewhere raises a whole barrelful of issues.
The privatisation of warfare is something that needs urgent discussion. Who for example guards the guardians?
We didn’t get this debate at the time of the strange death of Colonel Westhusing, an US expert on military ethics who was deeply unhappy about the use of ‘Security Contractor’ companies in Iraq…. Of new relevance because of Westhusing’s previous work with General Petraeous, the current US Armed Forces commander in Iraq.
And the Iraq government is certainly now unhappy about the western ‘Private Military Companies’ – calling some of them ‘more dangerous than the (Iraqi faction) Militias’
Yes there is overstreach of the UK army combat units, the people who put their boots on the ground in areas they are likely to be shot at.
Of course we could go the route of a ‘mercenary army’ under Queens Regulations… raising more troops from Commonwealth countries for example. And does the claim by an unnamed Army Officer (reported in ‘The First Post’) that ‘1.5 million able bodied males in the UK refuse to work gainfully’ show a yearning for conscription?
The privatisation of warfare is something that needs urgent discussion. Who for example guards the guardians?
We didn’t get this debate at the time of the strange death of Colonel Westhusing, an US expert on military ethics who was deeply unhappy about the use of ‘Security Contractor’ companies in Iraq…. Of new relevance because of Westhusing’s previous work with General Petraeous, the current US Armed Forces commander in Iraq.
And the Iraq government is certainly now unhappy about the western ‘Private Military Companies’ – calling some of them ‘more dangerous than the (Iraqi faction) Militias’
Yes there is overstreach of the UK army combat units, the people who put their boots on the ground in areas they are likely to be shot at.
Of course we could go the route of a ‘mercenary army’ under Queens Regulations… raising more troops from Commonwealth countries for example. And does the claim by an unnamed Army Officer (reported in ‘The First Post’) that ‘1.5 million able bodied males in the UK refuse to work gainfully’ show a yearning for conscription?
Labels: Afghanistan, Army, Iraq, Mercenaries, Private Military Contractors
Comments:
Privatisation of the war machine is a serious issue. By hiding the real number of troops, they can prolong the violence.
Would you be willing to spread the word about www.draftresistance.org? It's a site dedicated to shattering the myths surrounding the selective slavery system and building mass civil disobedience to stop the draft before it starts!
Our banner on a website, printing and posting the anti-draft flyer or just telling friends would help.
Thanks!
Scott Kohlhaas
PS. When it comes to conscription, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!
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Would you be willing to spread the word about www.draftresistance.org? It's a site dedicated to shattering the myths surrounding the selective slavery system and building mass civil disobedience to stop the draft before it starts!
Our banner on a website, printing and posting the anti-draft flyer or just telling friends would help.
Thanks!
Scott Kohlhaas
PS. When it comes to conscription, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Billions again
So Gordon ‘The Wallet’ Brown has committed 35 Thousand Million pounds extra to public expenditure since his accession to the Downing Street Throne. According to the Guardian that is, so my first reaction as an ancient Grauniad observer was to wonder about mis-prints. My second is to repeat my plea to abolish the term ‘Billion’ in spoken discourse as deaf and hard of hearing people find it almost impossible to hear or lip-read the difference between ‘Billion’ and ‘Million’.
And yes I know that the UK has officially given up on its parochial insistence that a Billion should be a ‘Million Million’ and gone over to the US mini-Billion. Whatever, the mumble from ’M’ to ‘B’ when talking about ‘illions’ rather serve to obscure for the public (including me I confess) just how huge the sums discussed actually are.
If the LibDems started talking about 'Thousands of Millions' of pounds insted of 'mumble-illions' maybe this would surprise the public into attention to economic arguments...
And yes I know that the UK has officially given up on its parochial insistence that a Billion should be a ‘Million Million’ and gone over to the US mini-Billion. Whatever, the mumble from ’M’ to ‘B’ when talking about ‘illions’ rather serve to obscure for the public (including me I confess) just how huge the sums discussed actually are.
If the LibDems started talking about 'Thousands of Millions' of pounds insted of 'mumble-illions' maybe this would surprise the public into attention to economic arguments...
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