MovieChat Forums > Iraq for Sale: The War Profiteers (2006) Discussion > Am I supposed to feel sympathy?

Am I supposed to feel sympathy?

posted 17 years ago by vindo310
18 replies | jump to latest

They start out with some stories of people who worked for blackwater and how they died while working for a private contractor. They then show truckers working for Haliburton and KBR who died.

My question is am I supposed to feel sympathy for these people? They are there because of their greed of money. They are there to further the war on Iraqi's. They are there to bring more supplies to keep the war going. This movie should have spent less time on the guilty people who worked for these companies and more time on what these companies are about.

[–] 17 years ago

[deleted]

[–] swborderer 17 years ago

I am currently reading a book which is scarier than anything Stephen King could come up with - called "Blackwater: The Rise Of The World's Biggest Mercenary Army," by Jeremy Scahill.

A few of the points he raises in the book:

- There is now almost a 50-50 ratio of "independent security consultants" (i.e. mercenaries) to actual U.S. Service personnel in Iraq right now (about 150,000 mercs to about 180,000 U.S. military, if memory serves me correctly.)

- By 2004 (yes - three years ago now), fully 30-percent of the U.S. monetary support going to Iraq (ostensibly for things such as rebuilding infrastructure, supporting human services, etc.) was being used to pay for these "private security consultants." (Who knows how much is being spent on these yahoos now - and at U.S. taxpayer expense.)

- The Blackwater firm is now so powerful that *it alone* could take out governments of many 3rd world countries. Among its resources are APCs, tactical support helicopters, a fleet of SUVs, a huge stockpile of weapons, explosives and small arms - and a fully-deployable force of almost 3,000 troops - with as many as 20,000 on call at a moment's notice. In fact, Blackwater has proposed to the U.S. Department of Defense that it could deploy an entire brigade of troops to Iraq as its own independent fighting force! Yikes!

- Now, Blackwater says this force - which, remember, is available to the highest bidder - is available to go anywhwere in the world at any time. Most recently, it has received inquiries from several U.S. states for potential duty here in America - and has ALREADY been used in the U.S. as force protection in New Orleans following Katrina.

So - just a heads up - if the proverbial sh*t ever hits the fan here in the States (from a natural disaster or otherwise), we can now look forward to dealing with these trigger-happy, roid-rage cowboys in our own backyards...

"I do not want to not live because of my fear of what could happen."
- Laird Hamilton

[–] Bonesnap 17 years ago

Ohh...Blackwater has 'a fleet of SUVs'...man, that's scary.

[–] swborderer 17 years ago

Yeah...actually, it IS scary for the poor suckers who work for Blackwater and then get sent into combat zones in these unarmored vehicles....

"I do not want to not live because of my fear of what could happen."
- Laird Hamilton

[–] cholo661 17 years ago

What a bunch of unsensetive a$$holes on this board.Could it ever occur to you many of the men went over there so they would be able to take care of thier families.Here in California the cost of living is high and most jobs dont pay sh*t if you were unlucky enough to grow up without a education or get the chance to go to college.If i was a little old truck driver and was struggling to make ends meat for me and my family I would go too!I would put my life in danger for the hopes that my family wouldn't have to stuggle anymore and could have a better life.

Atleast have some respect for the dead you jackasses.

[–] swborderer 17 years ago

Hey, pal, don't "shoot the messenger" - we are just people with opinions on the internet. The people who SHOULD be held accountable are those companies who knowingly put those contractors in harm's way without so much as a how-do-you-do...

Personally, I think the families of these victims SHOULD sue the a$$es off of companies like KBR and Blackwater. Maybe then - after being hit in the wallet - they will think twice about providing only bare bones security and training for their employees in combat zones...

"I do not want to not live because of my fear of what could happen."
- Laird Hamilton

[–] Ironman54 12 years ago

" Maybe then - after being hit in the wallet - they will think twice about providing only bare bones security and training for their employees in combat zones... "

Now here we are 5 years after you posted the above. In the news is the terrorist attack of 9/11/12 on our embassy in Libya - an embassy with no protection, an Ambassador who was beaten, sodomized, murdered and dragged through the streets (much like the contractors where in Fallujah several years before) and what do Hillary & 'The One' have to say about it ? They stand before the coffins of these murdered Americans and say they were killed all because of some dumb asses youtube video ! Right, sure. The BS, the cover ups, the lies and distortions never seems to end.
I know this film is biased. But I also know that if only 1/3rd of it is accurate, we the people, have been, and are being, hosed.
I usually have nothing in common, politically speaking, with the esteemed Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders but in this instance, I couldn't agree with him more. And folks, this isn't a Rep/Dem, Cons/Lib thing... it happens anywhere the Govt has money to spend. I worked for my state in a civil service job for some time and trust me, the waste, and, in many cases, the out right fraud, would make the average tax payers head explode if they only knew. And I'm quite sure that its no different in the state of Vermont than in my own home state. I'm sure ol' Bernie isn't aware of it either ... just sayin'.
The bottom line is that the 'individual' is the problem. And put a bunch of 'like minded' (corrupt) individuals together - no matter their party affiliation, if they have no moral compass, this is going to happen. And we, the American tax payer, can do what about it ? I shake my head, feel disgusted and helpless to affect change. Both parties have let us down time and time again. It may just be that to live in a country such as ours, arguably the greatest most prosperous in history, its the cost we have to bear. The only way to live otherwise is to be totally self sufficient. If you can pull it off, more power to ya !! No easy life there either.
If we ever get to the point when we hear both parties each cheering on the other ... complimenting the other for every move they make, then we are in real trouble !! As long as both are willing to 'rat' on the other, for whatever the motive, we might survive. In 2012 I can say that our 'main stream media' can no longer be depended on to hold both sides 'feet to the fire' and frankly, this is scaring the sh*t out of me - especially in these last few months/weeks leading up to our next presidential election. Orwells '1984' might not be found in the 'Fiction' isle for much longer ...
(*see Principles of IngSoc)

[–] kimilseung 17 years ago

- There is now almost a 50-50 ratio of "independent security consultants" (i.e. mercenaries) to actual U.S. Service personnel in Iraq right now (about 150,000 mercs to about 180,000 U.S. military, if memory serves me correctly.)

They are all mercanaries
paid money to wage a war, without giving or considering the morality of actions, just obeying orders
The US standing army is not a militia, they are mercenaries.

The difference is that the new security consultants have less state control

[–] boomersooner1980 15 years ago

How about feeling sorry for the Marines who have to give convoys to these people who are making money for haliburton by running empy trucks from baghdad to fallujah and back? HMMMMMMM...

From this Marine who fought in Fallujah, I say blow me tool.

[–] j00ze 17 years ago

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rxx1Lo8fZwQ
Nobodies fault but his fault for not carrying a map and driving through a red zone that ended up being a dead end?

And torching a truck with a flat tire? You agree with that wasteful spending?

Judge not lest ye be judged

[–] !!!deleted!!! (5446020) 17 years ago

Of course he (the truck driver) went for the money. We live in a capitalistic country in which we HAVE to go for the high paying jobs to get ahead. Of course one could argue he should have gone to college and not become a trucker in the first place, but that is entirely circumstantial. The point is, multi-billion dollar corporations like KBR and Blackwater should be held accountable for not providing its employees the tools needed to complete their jobs in a safe manner, IE - armor on their vehicles. However, these companies will NOT be held accountable because they are in bed with high level ranking officials in the pentagon and the White House. It's truly sickening.

[–] vindo310 17 years ago

Him being a truck driver does not matter. He could have been a truck driver at home still. Yet because of his greed he went to Iraq to help supply stuff to kill more Iraqis. I can feel no sympathy for that and that was the failure of this documentary imo.

[–] nosnojsirhc 17 years ago

vindo wants, by extension of the post, all capitalists to die for their greed! communist!!!!

[–] vindo310 17 years ago

Not all

........... ok I am a lying communist.

[–] BigBirdtheBum 13 years ago

Your an idiot.

[–] panik65 17 years ago

I don't think that was the point of the documentary (to incur sympathy)

The point was exposing the outrageous corruption at all levels.

[–] AtheistRevolution 17 years ago

No, you should feel pissed. Who do you think is paying those huge salaries? All of us as tax payers. When the military says they can't even account for 100k ak-47's they ordered much less the billions in Iraq. We have a fu cking problem in this country.

Religion is regarded by the common people as true, by the wise as false, and by rulers as useful.

[–] 17 years ago

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