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July 19, 2007
New Web site
under development....
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July 18, 2007
Thoughts on War Contractors
The Christian Science Monitor surveys thinkers and pundits about the battlefields filled with contractors -- now estimated to be as high as 180,000 in Iraq:
Everything from who controls their activities to who cares for them when wounded remains unresolved, say experts in and out of the military. This has led to protests from families in the United States as well as concerns in military ranks about how contractors fit into the chain of command.
Peter Singer, foreign policy specialist at the Brookings Institution in Washington: "This is a very murky legal space, and simply put we haven't dealt with the fundamental issues.... What is their specific role, what is their specific status, and what is the system of accountability? We've sort of dodged these questions."
Loren Thompson, Lexington Institute in Arlington, Va.: "Every war is unique, but the heavy use of private contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan is likely to persist in future conflicts.... Relying on market sources is intrinsically more flexible than using government workers, and nobody seriously believes that the market will fail to respond to multibillion dollar opportunities even when danger is involved."
Dina Rasor, coauthor of the excellent new book, "Betraying Our Troops: The Destructive Results of Privatizing War": The "military-industrial complex" that former President Eisenhower warned of has been overshadowed by the "war-service industry," she says. The complex relied on the cold war to keep its budgets high, knowing that the weapons it produced probably would never be used. The war-service industry, by contrast, "doesn't build weapons but has to have a hot war or an occupation going on in order to keep its budgets high." Constituencies will be built within the military and in Congress to promote this growing industry, she predicts.
Lawrence Korb, former assistant secretary of Defense: Predicts that the number of contractors providing military logistics support will shrink, in part because the US effort in Iraq will wind down at some point and in part because the US plans to increase the armed forces by 92,000 soldiers and marines over the next five years. Looking ahead to the need for peacekeeping and stabilization in future conflicts, Dr. Korb says, "I can't imagine doing it again without thinking it through."
Jana Crowder, Knoxville, Tenn., a "stay-at-home mom with four kids" who runs a website for moral support during the seven months her husband was an engineering contractor in Iraq: "I had no idea what I was getting into," she says. "I found a whole different war zone out there -- contractors coming home physically and mentally damaged. I didn't even know what PTSD was, but I had guys calling me up saying they had nightmares, that they couldn't sleep, that they were hallucinating and crying.... PTSD doesn't know whether you're wearing a uniform or not."
(Speaking of PTSD among contractors, Anthony Feinstein suggests in Iraqslogger that an online evaluation developed for war journalists may be suitable for contractors as well.)
Here's The Christian Science Monitor's Silent Surge in Contractor 'Armies.
Posted by davidphinney at 12:33 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 08, 2007
New Data on Iraq Contractors
ePluribus Media posts a new spreadsheet from CentCom on contractors in Iraq. The raw data is roughly organized by Contract Number, with 1901 entries. Although not comprehensive, and nothing ever is when it comes to business in Iraq, it does appear enormously useful to those in need of data....
Crunching the Numbers:
Total employed -- 129,805
Total US employees -- 21,593
Third Country National employees -- 69,358
Iraqi employees -- 26,181
Total coalition employees -- 1689
Here's the link to ePluribus Media.
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July 05, 2007
Armed Contractors: Transparency and Accountability
The Congressional Research Service distributed its new study on private security contractors operating in Iraq to members of Congress:
The use of armed civilians to perform security tasks that were formerly performed by the military raises new transparency, accountability, legal, and symbolic issues, and practical issues regarding the possible long-term effects on the military.
Posted by davidphinney at 02:47 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Contractors Now Outnumber Military in Iraq
T. Christian Miller with The Los Angeles Times had been hard at work for months crunching the numbers: He reported yesterday that "The number of U.S.-paid private contractors in Iraq now exceeds that of American combat troops," according to US State Department figures that he, no doubt, had to tenaciously pull from unwilling sources.
More than 180,000 civilians -- including Americans, foreigners and Iraqis --are working in Iraq under U.S. contracts, according to State and Defense department figures obtained by the Los Angeles Times.
Presently there are 160,000 US troops in Iraq:
The numbers include at least 21,000 Americans, 43,000 foreign contractors and about 118,000 Iraqis -- all employed in Iraq by U.S. tax dollars, according to the most recent government data.
Breaking down the numbers after jump:
Contractors in Iraq
There are more U.S.-paid private contractors than there are American combat troops in Iraq.
Contractors: 180,000
U.S. troops: 160,000
Nationality of contractors
118,000 Iraqis
43,000 non-U.S. foreigners
21,000 Americans
Top contractors
Company: Kulak Construction Co.
Description: Based in Turkey, supplies construction workers to U.S. bases
Total employees: 30,301
Company: KBR
Description: Based in Houston, supplies logistics support to U.S. troops
Total employees: 15,336
Company: Prime Projects International
Description: Based in Dubai, supplies labor for logistics support
Total employees: 10,560
Company: L-3 Communications
Description: Based in New York, provides translators and other services
Total employees: 5,886
Company: Gulf Catering Co.
Description: Based in Saudi Arabia, provides kitchen services to U.S. troops
Total employees: 4,002
Company: 77 Construction
Description: Based in Irbil, Iraq, provides logistics support to troops
Total employees: 3,219
Company: ECC
Description: Based in Burlingame, Calif, works on reconstruction projects
Total employees: 2,390
Company: Serka Group
Description: Based in Turkey, supplies logistics support to U.S. bases
Total employees: 2,250
Company: IPBD Ltd.
Description: Based in England, supplies labor, laundry services and other support
Total employees: 2,164
Company: Daoud & Partners Co.
Description: Based in Amman, Jordan, supplies labor for logistics support
Total employees: 2,092
Company: EOD Technology Inc
Description: Based in Lenoir City, Tenn., supplies security, explosives demolition and other services
Total employees: 1,913
Note: Data are as of February, which is most current available.
Sources: U.S. Central Command, Times reporting
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July 03, 2007
Try the New Web Site
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