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Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army
 

Blackwater: The Rise of the Most Powerful Mercenary Firm in the World

by Jeremy Scahill

Meet Blackwater USA, the powerful private army that the U.S. government has quietly hired to operate in international war zones and on American soil. With its own military base, a fleet of twenty aircraft, and twenty-thousand troops at the ready, Blackwater is the elite Praetorian Guard for the "global war on terror"-- yet most people have never heard of it. It was the moment the war... (read more)

Top tags: non-fiction,  politics,  iraq,  military privatization,  mercenaries (all tags)

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Other Reviews

Amazon Reviews (5)
 

Most Helpful Reviews

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1 of 1 members found this review helpful.
Carol C
  • Rated 5 stars

“Of any possible revelation about Blackwater, the initial, largest shock to a reasonable citizen is simply finding out that mercenary armies are being used extensively in the Iraq War. The most recent incident of innocent Iraqi citizens being killed by Blackwater guards received a lot of publicity, in large part because the government of Iraq finally lodged a protest. But it seems to be like so many other outrageous incidents of the current US administration: a flare of publicity, and...”

Carol C’s full review »
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Community:
  • Rated 4.130952 stars
Amazon:
  • Rated 3.5 stars
  

Newest Comments

  • Nik U

    nik u said:

    “I haven't finished reading this book by a long way yet and I may modify my review by the time I am finished, but I have to say that this is certainly a single-minded book. What do I mean? I am finding that whenever there is a chance that an interpretation of events could go two ways, the most unflattering view is chosen. Is this necessarily the correct way to go? I don't think so. There are indications that Blackwater is certainly in the wrong for several of the instances I have read about so far, but to damn them solely for the situation is disingenuous. The book definitely reads as an anti-Blackwater treatise so far without fully providing the evidence damning those who brought about the situation (There are far too many blanket statements I have seen used to discount people's accounts without sufficient evidence to discount their credibility or, equally, there are statements made to give credit to people's accounts without sufficient back-up evidence to give proper credence to their accounts) or even thinking properly about their motivations or reasoning. I hope that, by the time I have completed the book, I will find more reasonable coverage of what I agree is an extremely dangerous situation (The condoning of an almost uncontrolled mercenary paramilitary force by the world's largest economy and most (self-declared) powerful military force on the planet). In the meanwhile, I will continue to read with interest to find out what the author has to say and decide for myself whether I am convinced by his case. I can at least say right now that the case presented thus far cannot bring me to wholeheartedly condemn Blackwater since I am not presented with sufficient detail yet to back up the anti-Blackwater treatise I have so far read. I shall see.”

    posted Saturday, June 21 2008 ( | view 1 reply )
  • bissan t

    bissan t said:

    “it one of the most interesting book i ever read”

    posted Wednesday, November 21 2007
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