Tag: Security

Closing Thought–15Nov17

Only The Best!

I appears that the State Department has decided on the firm that will provide security to the Embassy in Russia……

The United States has awarded a contract to guard the U.S. embassy in Moscow to a company with KGB ties, The New York Times reports.

The State Department awarded the $2.8 million contract to Elite Security Holdings, a company co-founded by retired Russian general Viktor Budanov.

A State Department official told the Times that the company has been properly “vetted” and will only carry out security tasks previously handled by local guards hired by the embassy.

The firm will operate at the Moscow embassy, as well as U.S. consulates in three other Russian cities. U.S. Marines will still guard the grounds and high security locations of the outposts.

(thehill.com

Think about that for a moment!

Now my question is….Is a firm with links to the KGB the best firm to provide security to our Embassy in Russia?  Why not provide them with the computer codes as well…..make the whole process easier for them?

With that bit of worthless info I am out for the day…..more stuff tomorrow….TTFN…….chuq

Rise of the American Mercenary

For a decade now I have ranting about the use of mercenaries to fight wars and provide security…..groups like Blackwater et al….are nothing more than mercenaries wrapped up in political correctness…..”security consultants”……

This is an op-ed I wrote for my friends at Ace News Room…..

I have been very verbal on what I think of private “security contractors” or what they really are…mercenaries……

But first….a mercenary?

The word “mercenary” comes from the Latin “merces,” which means “wages” or “fee.” Thus, taken literally, a mercenary is any person who serves merely for wages. Although this definition could apply to many of us in the working world, it’s most closely associated with the professional soldier, or someone who is hired by a political entity to fight in a conflict. That conflict could be a war, a coup attempt or a prohibition campaign designed to reduce illegal drug trade.

Source: Rise of the American Mercenary

If you have some time please go and visit Ace news Room….they have all the news….all the time….

Europe on the Brink

Europe seems to be falling apart before the eyes of the world…..in the last year there have been attacks, riots and general unrest.

Europe is dealing with the situation in a way that will lead to further incidents……I have been reading an article (pressed below) in the World Affairs publication and thought that I would press it for my readers to see and possibly comment…..

Europe is at much greater risk of attack than the United States. The lack of civic identity precludes the assimilation necessary to forestall violence, both among Islamic radicals and the far right.

Source: Europe on the Brink | World Affairs Journal

The one thing that has been overlooked by many is that the European attacks were done by CITIZENS of the various countries…..not from some stealthy 5th column that has been infiltrated into the countries.

Side Note:  I the coming weeks, possibly months, I will be writing a series on terrorism…..it will be a rational look at the phenom without all the emotional trappings we are seeing and reading these days.

Please watch for those in the near future…..

Shredding the Fourth Amendment in Post-Constitutional America – The Unz Review

In this world where many are worried about the first and second amendment rights…………Everybody and I do mean……..EVERYBODY has an opinion on the loss of privacy and such…….but the 4th amendment is being shredded and no matter where you are on the political spectrum………you should be WORRIED!

 

Shredding the Fourth Amendment in Post-Constitutional America – The Unz Review.

Come On And Touch Me…Babe

From the VOMITORIUM

Can’t you just here the Doors singing in the background?

The newest pile of horse manure in the media is the whole TSA body scan and pat downs…..every station ….every network is going on and on about these pat downs for people who do not want the body scans….both Left leaning and Right leaning are all a twitter (not the website) about this invasion of people’s person….to me it is just amusing…..why…you would like to know?  About 2% of the people that fly actually get the pat down….while I agree that it would be a bit uncomfortable……most of the time they do have a choice…….

First, let us say if these are discontinued and then there is a breach of security……whose fault will it be?  Obama naturally….because he is a secret Muslim or he does not love the country or he is just naive…it is just laughable at all the hoopla over this…especially from the whackos on the Right….you could bet your ass they would be all over Obama if something went wrong….but now they are all over Obama because he is allowing DHS to do this outrageous tactic to the American people….here is a news fklash for you….THEY DO NOT CARE…it is all about the politics of the issue….the conservs who like the Patriot Act which is more evasive, are on track to try and privatize the TSA…..

Second, I have seen several Israeli officials on the tube telling about how they handle this sort of thing….and without being personally evasion to people….they use a combination or roadblocks and questions….not that the questions are telling but rather the person demeanor when answering….I have a slight problem with this also…..what you ask?  on any given day across the US there are more people flying than there are people in the entire country of Israel…these dipsticks are comparing apples to oranges….

As with any issue…there is a wealth of people pointing out the problem and damn few offering answers….that, IMO, makes this whole issue somewhat laughable…..

Why Is Blackwater Still Employed?

With all the crap that Blackwater has pulled in the last decade, why are they still employed by the State Dept.?

From an article by Jeremy Scahill:

As a candidate for president, Hillary Clinton pledged to ban Blackwater. In February 2008, she announced that she would sign on as the co-sponsor of a little-known bill put forward in the House by Representative Jan Schakowsky and in the Senate by Bernie Sanders. The Stop Outsourcing Security, or SOS Act, sought to end the use of armed mercenaries in US war zones. Clinton became the only other senator to sign on to the bill and the most important political figure in the US to call for such a ban on “Blackwater and other private mercenary firms in Iraq.”

As Secretary of State, Clinton now presides over a diplomatic security force in Iraq that for the “indefinite” future will include Blackwater. ABC News’s “The Blotter” is reporting that Blackwater (which now does business as Xe Services and US Training Center) will continue to be the State Department’s aviation contractor in Iraq, despite a supposed Iraqi ban on the company. “We unilaterally extended the current task order … to ensure the continued security and safety of U.S. personnel in Iraq,” a State Department official said. As I reported in The Nation weeks ago, Blackwater operatives, according to the State Department, “are permitted to continue carrying weapons” in Iraq for the foreseeable future on that contract. On July 31, the Obama administration extended Blackwater’s Iraq contract, increasing Blackwater’s payment by $20 million and bringing the total paid by the State Department to Blackwater for its “aviation services” in Iraq to $187 million.

Meanwhile, according to federal contract data, on August 13, Blackwater was paid another $23 million on a $156 million “security” contract in Afghanistan with the US State Department. That is in addition to Blackwater’s contracts with the Department of Defense and its ongoing work for the CIA as part of its drone bombing raids in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

But here are some questions for Secretary Clinton about Blackwater: Why do you continue to pay hundreds of millions of dollars to a company whose operatives have been indicted for manslaughter of Iraqi civilians; that is under investigation for arms smuggling and other possible crimes; that has been implicated in the CIA assassination program allegedly withheld from Congress; that is owned by a man, Erik Prince, whom a former employee says “views himself as a Christian crusader tasked with eliminating Muslims and the Islamic faith from the globe?” Moreover, why are you using a company you pledged to ban now that you actually have the power to ban them? If you thought in February of 2008 that the “time to show these contractors the door is long past due,” what time is it now?

I have been pretty tough on Blackwater in the past and Mr. Scahill in his new book, Blackwater, has proven all of us Blackwater critics to be right and it is time for the government to do something about this loose canon in their employ.

Your move madame Secretary…….

Inaugural Security Threat

Fifty-eight federal, state and local law enforcement agencies and tens of thousands of cops secured the inauguration of Barack Obama and parade that followed — and no one got busted.

There were no arrests or major incidents the day America’s first black president took the oath of office in front of more than a million people who witnessed the event.

The authorities stressed that the warning was posted as a precaution as part of the massive effort to monitor intelligence traffic and check out all leads in advance of Obama’s inauguration. Intelligence officials had warned that the inauguration posed an attractive target for terrorists because of the large crowds descending on the nation’s capital and the historic significance of the country swearing in its first black president.

A senior law enforcement official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the terror threat, said as of Tuesday morning, officials felt comfortable with security preparations.

Law enforcement responded to several suspicious packages and vehicles throughout the day, FBI spokesman Richard Kolko said. Many of the packages were found in trash bins near check-in points. People who were prohibited from carrying certain items onto the Capitol grounds had to throw the items away to enter.

After the swearing-in, spectators tore down some fencing along the mall instead of exiting through designated areas. No one was injured, according to U.S. Park Police, and the fencing was restored.

In addition, subway service was disrupted on one of Washington’s main Metro arteries after a woman fell on the tracks at a downtown station. She was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries and was released later in the day. The Metro subway system was running at crush capacity since 4 a.m.

Blackwater Goes Pirate Hunting

The Moyock, N.C., company has a ship in Hampton Roads ready to begin patrolling the Gulf of Aden to protect merchant vessels against pirates.

The company has spoken to about 10 shipping firms but as yet has no takers, said Bill Mathews, Blackwater Worldwide executive vice president.

“There’s definitely a need and a desire,” Mathews said during a tour of the 183-foot vessel, named McArthur, on Friday. It’s moored at a commercial pier at Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base.

Somali pirates in late September seized a Ukrainian ship loaded with military vehicles in the Gulf of Aden and still hold the ship while demanding a multimillion-dollar ransom. The standoff is being monitored by the U.S. Navy.

In the first half of this year, pirates launched two dozen attacks off the Somali coast, including 19 in the Gulf of Aden, Said the International Maritime Bureau. At least eight vessels reported attacks by grenade launchers and automatic weapons, the organization said.

For anti-piracy operations, the 14-sailor crew would be supplemented with Blackwater security guards, four rigid-hull inflatable boats and helicopters, Mathews said. Security teams could follow a merchant vessel by air and land.

Mathews said the crew and guards are qualified to provide maritime security, noting that the security teams would consist of former Navy SEALs. The force is highly trained in handling vehicle boardings and anti-terrorism missions.

The ship could be overseas within 40 days, pending approval from the State Department and roughly a month long transit across the Atlantic

The use of private companies to protect merchant ships has a long history, said Claude Berube, a former congressional staffer and professor who has written on the topic. The East India Co. employed private convoys about a century ago along the coast of Africa, he said.

The Iraq Secret Deal

A secret deal being negotiated in Baghdad would perpetuate the American military occupation of Iraq indefinitely, regardless of the outcome of the US presidential election in November.

The terms of the impending deal, details of which have been leaked to The Independent, are likely to have an explosive political effect in Iraq. Iraqi officials fear that the accord, under which US troops would occupy permanent bases, conduct military operations, arrest Iraqis and enjoy immunity from Iraqi law, will destabilise Iraq’s position in the Middle East and lay the basis for unending conflict in their country.

But the accord also threatens to provoke a political crisis in the US. President Bush wants to push it through by the end of next month so he can declare a military victory and claim his 2003 invasion has been vindicated. But by perpetuating the US presence in Iraq, the long-term settlement would undercut pledges by the Democratic presidential nominee, Barack Obama, to withdraw US troops if he is elected president in November.

The timing of the agreement would also boost the Republican candidate, John McCain, who has claimed the United States is on the verge of victory in Iraq – a victory that he says Mr Obama would throw away by a premature military withdrawal.

Mr Bush is determined to force the Iraqi government to sign the so-called “strategic alliance” without modifications, by the end of next month. But it is already being condemned by the Iranians and many Arabs as a continuing American attempt to dominate the region. Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the powerful and usually moderate Iranian leader, said yesterday that such a deal would create “a permanent occupation”. He added: “The essence of this agreement is to turn the Iraqis into slaves of the Americans.”

The US is adamantly against the new security agreement being put to a referendum in Iraq, suspecting that it would be voted down. The influential Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has called on his followers to demonstrate every Friday against the impending agreement on the grounds that it compromises Iraqi independence.

The Iraqi government wants to delay the actual signing of the agreement but the office of Vice-President Dick Cheney has been trying to force it through. The US ambassador in Baghdad, Ryan Crocker, has spent weeks trying to secure the accord.

The signature of a security agreement, and a parallel deal providing a legal basis for keeping US troops in Iraq, is unlikely to be accepted by most Iraqis. But the Kurds, who make up a fifth of the population, will probably favour a continuing American presence, as will Sunni Arab political leaders who want US forces to dilute the power of the Shia. The Sunni Arab community, which has broadly supported a guerrilla war against US occupation, is likely to be split.

Iraq: The Perfect War

WTF, Professor?  It is the perfect war, at least for al-Qaeda.  Why?

1–a poster event for recruitment into extreme Islam.

2–It is viewed as an East-west conflict feeding the flames of extremism

3–It puts non-Muslims in the heartland of Islam

4–Infidels in the Holy Cities of Islam

This war could not have done anymore to increase the influence of al-Qaeda if it had tried.   Regardless of the spin, the world is NOT safer because of the invasion of Iraq.  You know it and they know it.  It continues because it is good business.