As to the questionable shootings involving Blackwater , I think its very important to keep a perspective on the environment : a war zone. In every war there are innocent casualties. No one condones them. But they do happen and will happen. As they teach you in the infantry, there are two kinds of people in a combat situation, the quick, and the dead. I think until one has to actually live in such an environment it is probably almost impossible to understand the situation here. Matter of life and death moments when under fire, do not allow the luxury of the time to try and decide who is shooting and who is not. When lead is coming your direction you return fire. If you do not, you are the one that is dead when its all over. So I am having difficulty leaping to conclusions that their actions were inappropriate.
Monty, I "lived" in Vietnam for nearly two years back in the 60's. I know what it is like to be in such an environment. I can tell you that if a bunch of money grubbing cowboys had been in our theater of operations fu**ing up everything we were trying to accomplish, they'd have gotten fragged toot sweet. I don't know many professional soldiers who hold mercenaries in high regard. We already know what a moral killer these jerks are. I live in a military town and most of the Iraq vets I've talked to about this absolutely hate and resent Blackwater types.
The fact is that because we do not have a draft and we do not have a larger pool of soldiers to draw upon, these mercenaries are a necessity. There is no choice.
There is always a choice, Monty. Sometimes choosing what is right is bad for the chooser. So be it.
I do not think either you or I have sufficient information on which to judge what Blackwater did or did not do and whether or not their actions were correct or wrong. Im not going to rush in and condemn them, particularly where they daily have their lives on the line.
No, Monty, I've got all the information I need. This is just another item in a long, long list of evil things surrounding Bush, this war and the people he has chosen to effect his most unrighteous ends. I am sick and tired of giving them the benefit of the doubt. Bush and his coterie of evil sycophant corporatists get no more mercy from me. They are evil, they are worse than traitors and they need to be gone from the face of this earth. | 
