As I was listening to the Laura Flanders show on Air America Radio this afternoon, I was absolutely sickened by live reporting from independent Journalist, Jeremy Scahill about what is actually going on in New Orleans and what the real plans for rebuilding are.
I recommend you to go to Air America Radio and play the archive for today’s program.
As much as I thought I was as sick at heart and overwhelmed by what has already happened in New Orleans, this is just too much.
While you’re at it, you may very well find this article from Common Dreams.org equally disgusting. Take a look at the future GWB Co has planned for our country.
CLICK HERE to read the full article
Deploy in New Orleans
by Jeremy Scahill and Daniela Crespo
NEW ORLEANS — Heavily armed paramilitary mercenaries from the Blackwater private security firm, infamous for their work in Iraq, are openly patrolling the streets of New Orleans. Some of the mercenaries say they have been “deputized” by the Louisiana governor; indeed some are wearing gold Louisiana state law enforcement badges on their chests and Blackwater photo identification cards on their arms.
http://www.blackwaterusa.com/
” Blackwater USA is comprised of five companies; Blackwater Training Center, Blackwater Target Systems, Blackwater Security Consulting, Blackwater Canine, and Blackwater Air (AWS). We have established a global presence and provide training and tactical solutions for the 21st century.
Our clients include federal law enforcement agencies, the Department of Defense, Department of State, and Department of Transportation, local and state entities from around the country, multi-national corporations, and friendly nations from all over the globe.
We customize and execute solutions for our clients to help keep them at the level of readiness required to meet today’s law enforcement, homeland security, and defense challenges. Any and all defense services supplied to foreign nationals will only be pursuant to proper authorization by the Department of State.
Come to Blackwater, where the professionals train.”
“This is a totally new thing to have guys like us working CONUS (Continental United States),” a heavily armed Blackwater mercenary told us as we stood on Bourbon Street in the French Quarter. “We’re much better equipped to deal with the situation in Iraq.”
What is most disturbing is the claim of several Blackwater mercenaries we spoke with that they are here under contract from the federal and Louisiana state governments.
Officially, Blackwater says it forces are in New Orleans to “join the Hurricane Relief Effort.” A statement on the company’s website, dated September 1, advertises airlift services, security services and crowd control. The company, according to news reports, has since begun taking private contracts to guard hotels, businesses and other properties. But what has not been publicly acknowledged is the claim, made to us by 2 Blackwater mercenaries, that they are actually engaged in general law enforcement activities including “securing neighborhoods” and “confronting criminals.”
That raises a key question: under what authority are Blackwater’s men operating? A spokesperson for the Homeland Security Department, Russ Knocke, told the Washington Post he knows of no federal plans to hire Blackwater or other private security. “We believe we’ve got the right mix of personnel in law enforcement for the federal government to meet the demands of public safety.” he said.
But in an hour-long conversation with several Blackwater mercenaries, we heard a different story. The men we spoke with said they are indeed on contract with the Department of Homeland Security and the Louisiana governor’s office and that some of them are sleeping in camps organized by Homeland Security in New Orleans and Baton Rouge. One of them wore a gold Louisiana state law enforcement badge and said he had been “deputized” by the governor. They told us they not only had authority to make arrests but also to use lethal force.
I hope someone can please tell us how to get these murdering criminals out of office and NOW. . .
Yes, I know we have heard about Blackwater and the private “Army”. . .but no one has brought it so clearly home to me as Mr Scahill did today on AAR. There is an absolute plan to keep Poor Blacks, and it’s okay if the rest of the poor are also kept from returning to NOLA… It is so disgusting I really don’t know what to say about any of this.
Our Country is in BIG trouble.
