Hidden Iraq Killings

A recent article published in the Austin American Statesman on October 2, 2007 by John M. Broder of the New York Times was a report that officials hid Iraq killings. The state department paid 832 million plus to three companies for security services, Blackwater USA, Dyn Corp. International, and Triple Canopy. Of these three companies Blackwater USA reported more shootings and two times more troops than the other two. On Sept. 16th Blackwater employees were involved in a shooting that killed eight Iraqis considered by Iraq officials to be murder. In two of the cases the State Department approved Blackwater to pay off two of the victims families to keep the shootings quiet. Both the State Department and Blackwater declined to comment. A report by Democratic Majority staff of the House Committee gave weight to Iraqi complaints and was critical of the State Department for not restraining or supervising the private security companies 861employees. Currently the state department is conducting three investigations of the incident and the FBI plans to send a team to compile evidence. A Congressional staff report called Blackwater’s use of force as frequent and extensive. Blackwater has a history of corruption. In the last three years it dismissed 122 of its employees for weapons offences, drug use, lewd conduct, and also terminated workers for failure to report incidents. One of the employees was dismissed for posttraumatic stress disorder. This is an important article to me for several reasons. I may be ignorant but I never imagined the government had hired corporations to deal with the war in Iraq instead of using our own troops. It is shocking to hear what our State Department is doing and that it approved the payments to victims of shootings in Iraq. It makes me wonder what is really going on over there. Also the question is raised of what is to be done to the shooters. I think our government needs to be more involved and is doing a terrible job of listening to the people here and those in Iraq and if we are ever going to reach peace this needs to be done. This is a very important article to me. If we in America were to lose eight citizens to a corporate planned shooting we would call it terrorism and probably go to war, but because the shooting was in Iraq officials there can really do nothing about it and that is unfair. Here we are fighting to give them a democratic form of government but doing nothing the give the people their rights as democratic citizens or even as just plain humans.

Bush Asks Congress To Extend NSA Prgram

A recent article in the Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dun/content/article/2007/09/19/AR2007091901111.html) describing a proposal that would make the Warrentless Wiretapping Law, set to expire in February, permanent.
The Warentless Wiretapping Law was passed in August when the Bush administration pointed to intelligence reports that that the US was in a “heightened threat environment”. This law gave the government complete authority to eavesdrop without a proper warrant, on phone calls, e-mails, and other forms of communication, between US. Citizens and “suspected” terrorists abroad.
President Bush recently called on Congress to extent the law on the grounds that “it is the job of Congress to give the professionals the tools they need to do their work as effectively as possible”. After harsh criticism the program received the Bush administration launched an attempt to sway Democratic lawmakers into believing the law would not cause domestic surveillance on physical home searches, domestic mail, or computers. Even after, Democratic leaders still wanted to rework the law to limit the president’s authority and provide more oversight. President Bush obviously did not at all agree.
To me this article is very significant. I strongly believe it abuses our rights as citizens to due process of law, free speech, and equality. President Bush has misled the public many times throughout the mess of his eight year term. We are in a war with an unknown terrorist enemy, who many just call Muslims. This puts a terrible situation at home for US citizens who are Islamic especially those who still have family members in their home countries. Who are these “suspected terrorists” abroad anyway? When I call my grandmother in England as a Caucasian female I probably won’t be tapped. So is it fair that a US citizen just like me who has a higher chance of be tapped just because they call a place where the “suspected Islamic terrorists must live”. I think this article should definitely be read especially with an upcoming election. It is our responsibility to look in to all the candidates to make sure we end up with a new president that has a real plan to end this mess before we lose more of our rights.