BLACKWATER WANTS TO PROFIT OFF OF DISASTER RELIEF, TOO

||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

SHARON WEINBERGER, WIRED - Blackwater, the notorious merc outfit
stability operations contractor, seems to be striking off in a new area
with a warm, fuzzy sounding "Blackwater Peace and Stability Operations
Institute."

Never heard of it? Me neither. But as I watched Blackwater CEO Erik
Prince work the floor at the Association of the U.S. Army trade show, I
became entranced with a video loop at their booth depicting the company
as the new savior for disaster-stricken countries. No black-clad men in
wraparound shades in sight. No way -- the video instead depicted happy
Third Worlders welcoming Angelina Jolie Blackwater to their
disaster-stricken countries.

I could almost imagine the dialog: "We're from Blackwater and we're here
to help."

It's hardly a surprise that Blackwater wants to move in this direction.
After all, it's big money. Blackwater's competitor, Dyncorp has a big
chunk of that $450 million contract for out-sourced disaster relief. . .


What's not clear, however, is what exactly Blackwater plans to offer in
this area. The video talked about Blackwater as a "turnkey solution" for
disaster relief, combining air, logistics and security capabilities. And
the brochure for Blackwater's "Global Peace and Operations Institute"
has some nice phrases about blurring private and public partnerships and
some other jargon that doesn't mean much. The website says the institute
"is dedicated to the public/private sector professional and to those
organizations willing to work with new partners toward a common goal -
solving the seemingly impossible problems that threaten global peace and
stability."

http://blog.wired.com/defense/2007/10/a-kinder-gentle.html#more

||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||