User:Lawrence Cohen/work/Blackwater USA
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Blackwater USA is a private military company[1] founded in 1997 by Erik Prince and Al Clark. It has alternatively been referred to as a security contractor or a mercenary organization by numerous reports in the international media.[2][3][4][5][6] Blackwater is based in the U.S. state of North Carolina, where it operates a tactical training facility that it claims is the world's largest. The company trains more than 40,000 people a year, from all the military services and a variety of other agencies. The company markets itself as being "the most responsive, cost-effective means of affecting the strategic balance in support of security and peace, and freedom and democracy everywhere."[7]
Blackwater is currently the largest of the U.S. State Department's three private security contractors, providing a total of 987 contractors. Of the 987 provided, 744 are American citizens.[8][9] At least 90 percent of its revenue comes from government contracts, two-thirds of which are no-bid contracts.[10] Missions conducted by Blackwater Security Consulting have raised significant controversy both through casualties suffered[11] and inflicted by their employees.[12] Blackwater USA is currently contracted by the United States government to provide security services in the Iraq War.[13] The cost for each Blackwater guard in Iraq, $445,000 per year, has also come under fire.[14]
Contents |
[edit] Corporate history (4-6 paragraphs)
Existing corporate history section is decent, needs work.
[edit] Blackwater roles in the Iraq War (6 paragraphs)
- Overview of BWUSA roles in the present Iraq War. Incidents not covered in sub-articles in lead. Wide-scope paragraph. Then, we cover (no sub-sections, all prose):
- Fallujah mission, 2004 (paragraph).
- Murder of vice-presidential guard (paragraph).
- Baghdad shooting controversy (paragraph).
- Evacuation of Polish diplomat (paragraph).
- Legal status of Blackwater USA staff (paragraph).
[edit] Other known work performed by Blackwater (3-5 paragraphs)
Section on and and all non-Iraq War operations that have been disclosed. Current post-Katrina section goes here. First half domestic, second half international?
- Overview/section lead.
- Katrina involvement.
- Domestic operations--anti-terror, War on Drugs.
- Foreign operations, non-Iraq. Japanese security.
[edit] Litigation (at least 3 paragraphs)
- See also: Helvenston et al. v. Blackwater Security
Non-list, prose breakdown of all current and former notable litigation involving BWUSA. Current live section isn't horrible. Clean up.
- Overview/section lead.
- Scott Helvenston.
- General other litigation (one liners, basically)
[edit] Controversy and criticism
Obvious. Prosify.
[edit] "Contractors" or "mercenaries"?
[edit] The crash of Blackwater 61 in Afghanistan
[edit] Arms smuggling
[edit] Congressional investigation
[edit] New rules from State Department
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
[edit] External links and references
Lots of good stuff that Cla68 gathered up; once the restructure is done we need to parse them all. Lots of possible content in there--on the scale of multiple paragraphs probably or whole sections.
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