Blackwater is Back in California: We Can Block Them Again
By Julia Rosen Friday May 02, 2008 11:00amfull disclosure: I work for the Courage Campaign
We thought we blocked Blackwater from building a base in California, after they pulled their plans for a massive training facility in tiny Potrero, CA.
Instead they were busy using shell companies to gain permits for a "vocational training faclity" THREE blocks from the Mexican border in the city of San Diego. Meanwhile, Blackwater is looking to open up a new facility in Idaho.
Here in California, the Courage Campaign is moving out against Blackwater on two fronts:
Pressure Speaker Pelosi to support the "Stop Outsourcing Security Act", which John mentioned last week. Join 10,000 people by signing the petition to Speaker Pelosi. We need to cut off their their profits to keep them from trying to outsource our border security and other national security contracts.
Pressure San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders to investigate how Blackwater obtained its permit. Blackwater used a shell company called "Southwest Law Enforcement" to gain city permits for a "vocational trade school" a stone's throw from the Tijuana International Airport. While Blackwater denies that this deception is a trojan horse to land border security contracts from the federal government before George W. Bush leaves office, the ominous writing is on California's wall.
If you live in San Diego County, please join over 2,000 residents in signing this letter to Mayor Sanders urging him to start a full investigation into the false pretenses Blackwater used to obtain a "vocational trade school" permit for their facility near the border.
The letter was written by SD Dem Party Chair Jess Durfee. Francine Busby, a former congressional candidate in CA-50, promoted the letter to her list and Congressman Bob Filner has just sent a separate letter to Mayor Sanders, requesting an investigation as well.
Stay tuned as we continue to work with the San Diego County Democratic Party, Francine Busby and Congressman Filner to keep Blackwater out of San Diego and out of California.
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And so begins our new fight against Martial Law.
Get ready everyone, it only gets worse from here.
And I was just going to remove my STOP BLACKWATER window sticker after the residents of protrero courageously recalled the planning committee members in their town for approving these scumsucking killers, and then promptly showed Mr. Prince the door.
San Diego is the perfect local for these killers, which is why they won't give up easily. It's heavily entrenched in the MI complex, has great weather, a ready made personnel pool and has plenty of brown skinned victims trying to cross the border. I work with the North County Coalition for Peace and Justice and we have helped organize protests against these scum. Major credit should go to the Courage Campaign. These folks are organized and effective in applying the political pressure of the electorate to people like Sanders and the SD City Council.
Frank Dufek @ 1:
you cant fight matial law with a protest sighn, but its a nice thought! and marches wont get you anywhere but shackled to some dank cell floor, enjoy the ass humping , the blackwater boys love it!
RELAX ... it's only bush getting ready by getting Mercenary Forces set up for the November Election debacle where he declares Martial Law.
If you've been watching, he has put everything else in place months ago. Once you allow someone to have absolute power with no oversight they wont give that power up easily.
Blackwater scares me. I read the book and this outfit is full of failed zealots with a religious connotation. No telling what they will do if given the word. Am I paranoid, perhaps, but also realistic. This is a shadow army being formed. With no accountability.
BLACKWATER has been giving ALL of us a BLACK EYE for too long. Enough already!
Has America lost interest in it's Liberties? I can't help but notice how FEW people are now coming to this Blog.
What is going on over there?
I doubt there will be much resistance to them in Idaho. Of course, they'll have to import brown-skinned people from the CA facility to use as training tools.
♠Bangkok-Bob♠ @ 6:
Most of us are too busy working our second or third job so we can buy food.
What a great location to run drugs, money, and guns. Wonderful.
The Black Water have no allegiance to Americans, and partly because they are made of people from all over the world with one primary goal is to make money. This is war profiteering at it worse avenue.
The National Guard are taught ethics and declare allegiance to protecting Americans citizen. Our National Guard are being fetter out and abuse in Iraq, and replace with Black Water. Our National Guard was our line of defense against the Black Water radical. The kind of behavior we saw in Iraq and in New Orleans from the Black water would be the standard that we would expect to see in the coming martial law.
The possibility of Martial Law is real since congress voted against the fair election bill. McCain has no chance in hell in winning, and if he is appointed by SCOTUS or get voted by fraud scandals would be inviting massive riots.
Bill in Pittsburgh @ 10:
wont be the first time the Republican administration ran drugs and money.
Iran/contra scandals
Jeb Bush is married to sister of wife of Blackwater COO. Oh those family ties. Between the Princes and the Bin Ladens and the Lays ? The Bushes sure have some notorious friends.
Thats just scratching the surface too.
This country has been taken over by a gang of thugs who have no use for the rule of law. They are a power unto themselves. They will do whatever it takes to stay in power. I do not for one minute believe Bush will leave the White House without a fight. These Blackwater goons are his private army. They have emassed a fighting force, fully armed with the latest weaponry, and will use it against anyone who stands in their way.
signing this letter to Mayor Sanders
Done.
A new Cosa Nostra?
Smedley Butler must be break-dancing his his grave.
Unfortunately Idaho will probably welcome Blackwater with open arms and give them incentives, etc.
I'm sorry, I'm supposed to trust Nancy "Off The Table" Pelosi because of what, again? It'd be a waste of valuable keystrokes to even bother trying to communicate with her.
As for the recent lack of responses - I'd imagine that has more to do with the website being completely down half the time and all screwed up the other half. It takes a lot of time and a lot of luck to even post a comment. I assume someone's working on this, right? Right? RIGHT?!
Jo @ 14:
well ill be standing in thier way! anyone who dont deserve what they get!
The Greater issue is what about the other companies? Everyone is quick to jump on the "I hate Blackwater Bandwagon" out of the convenience of familiarity. Sure you can stop Blackwater from building a training facility in Portrero because of a happy accident. But what about Triple Canopy, Aegis and the half dozen other contractors that are operating in anonymity. As usual with Americans, we choose to fight out of convenience and not necessity. As long as we haven't heard about the others they don't matter.
fastfeat @ 9:
Many of the blogs don't have the refresh and quote buttons. I think that discourages some from commenting. Many have said they use safari and don't have a problem. I don't think that we should have to find ways to be able to comment on this blog. It should be up to C&L or word press to fix it so everyone can comment.
[It's up to Microsoft to fix their buggy IE7, which doesn't read the non-exotic script on this page, and takes down other programs just by being present on one's PC-Sitemonitor]
[Not to put words in Bangkok Bob's mouth, but I think he's referring to motivational reasons rather than technical ones. While we receive one or two queries every week or so relating to the inability to comment at the site, those problems are nearly always case specific and fixable. Site Monitor]
19 Iscrgols8
No, we just simply require the information, not self-important preaching.
20 Ron
I think a lot of people come on the blogs as true believers of their candidate and ignore the rest of the threads.
If there are no threads about the candidates they either ignore the thread or try to hijack it.
And after every primary or caucus, the Obama supporters in particular gloat excessively over a win and find conspiracies everywhere after a loss.
#14 JO , you may be right , these guys are lunatics , radicals and every bit as evil as the worst in history and that is not a stretch or exaggeration . The bigger problem is a lazy , apathetic and totally ignorant population , frankly a dumb as a box of rocks population ! Thirty years ago the people would have put an instant stop to these criminals as soon as they began but now ? It's pathetic , absolutely F'n pathetic . Think of the mercenery industry and all of the sub contractors who have been making billions of this Iraq invasion in cahootz with the Bush , Cheney criminal enterprise , do you think they are just going to close shop and disappear ? NO WAY . Curious that Clinton and Obama say they will get the troops out but I have never heard them mention or say that they will get the contractors and hired killers out who number more than our troops in Iraq and they don't mention the so called embassy and giving that up too . It doesn't smell right folks.
RAY @ 23:
The invasion and occupation of Iraq didn't smell right from the beginning. It stunk. Now even McCain says it was about oil.
RAY @ 23:
no it dont smell right! they all eat at the same trough just a bunch of glorified pigs!
25 tyree
Mayhaps it's time to do our version of the Gaderene Pigs.
Why does it seem to me that the bushies got an early copy of the original script to the game Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the patriots. For anyone not familiar with its development, Mr Kojima-san originally wanted to create a world that was in constant war for the player to play in. You would be dropped in the middle of a battlefield being fought by multiple private militaries. All the combatants would be following a certain script laid out by their corporate masters at any given time. The other interesting dynamic that was supposed to happen in game was that the militaries were supposed to change allegiances depending on who the highest bidder was at the time.
So that's basically how I see the whole private military thing ending up as. Constant war where the combatants change allegiances as soon as someone offered a dollar more. Good grief. Now why aren't the congress critters interested in that?
I signed the letter with pleasure. Blackwater is evil. They deliver acts of brutality for profit. They commit crimes in Iraq with immunity. They get in the way of the military in Iraq and sometimes put them in dangerous positions. The crimes and acts Blackwater commits in Iraq put the military in a position of being the evil enemy even when they are attempting to do good. There is nothing that I see is necessary or positive about the Blackwater company. It should be shut down altogether and I can't wait until the day when they go bankrupt.
When is Disney going to do a Pixar movie version of Animal Farm?
If you want a true picture of blackwater read Jeremy Scahill's book on the subject.
http://www.nh-tems.com/images/Blackwater5.jpg
ysbaddaden @ 26:
couldnt hoit as curley would say! ,i say if a mans to afraid to die hes to afraid to live!
32 tyree
"A coward dies a thousand times, a hero dies but once."
William Shakespeare.
32 tyree
Nyuk...nyuk...nyuk...
Oh you...
Whoop...whoop...whoop.
Curly
I'm outta here, it's hayfever season here in Texas, and I got it big time.
ysbaddaden @ 33:
really? guess he stoled that from me , never read shakespeare before !
This is a huge deal. San Diego is a big red county too. Not all, but enough of it. The investor that was looking to buy in has backed out because of the publicity.
#17 - Sorry, but that's a cop-out. Pelosi does the right thing occasionally, maybe this will indeed be one. But not if everyone took your attitude and position. Also, it's a nice existentialist moment, as Camus might say - so sign the petition, unless you have no problem with Blackwater, Inc. In which case, why not come out and say it.
33 ysbaddaden Says: 32 tyree
“A coward dies a thousand deaths, a hero dies but once.”
William Shakespeare.
Man, I am whacked
Me.
Color me paranoid, but I consider Blackwater to be an "axis of evil".
Ron @ 24:
He's already pulled his foot out of mouth about that remark.
The presumptive GOP nominee sought to clarify his remarks later Friday after his campaign plane landed in Phoenix. He said he didn't mean the U.S. went to war in Iraq five years ago over oil.
"No, no, I was talking about that we had fought the Gulf War for several reasons," McCain told reporters.
the trouble with most americans these days they use piss for blood and it shows,
Thank you for the heads up. We can't have Blackwater in my backyard.
♠Bangkok-Bob♠ @ 7:
It has become increasingly restrictive here. So I suspect many have fled to sites that are more supportive of free speech and open diaologues. The range of debate or disscussion here is ever shrinking.
The site has become so burdened down with advertisments that it loads very slow and often with errors.
The comment system here is much more combersome than it was in years past and so many may just be lurking and not participating for that reason.
And finally - How relevant is a site that mearly cuts and pastes it's material from the MAIN STREAM MEDIA? I think any one with an IQ above 15 or 16 can see there is a problem with the CORPERATE OWNED MEDIA.
Perhaps some just got board?
This should be such a no brainer - Private mercinaries?
Just say no.
What could be less democratic than killers for hire?
This should be outlawed in our land - But what would be the use? They would train in the Canary Islands, avoid taxes and thwart our will and ability to have any control of them.
Killers for profit.
Health care for profit.
Food production for profit.
Wars for profit.
We get killed, starve or go to war and in all cases THEY get the profit, the tax breaks and the NO BID CONTRACTS...
When profit is the hiest value, people get screwed.
We need CHANGE (not Bamma' republican coalition type)
We need a revolution (not a republican populist Facist Ron Paul leap backward)
Do you all expect that with all the comming crisis in the worlds economies, food supplies, political coruption and inability for our sytem to find ANY SOLUTIONS - You didn't expect them to simply walk away from world domination dod you??
Don't tell me - You though they would let themselves be subject to YOUR domination - LOL
Ya think you can vote them away??
What else can they do? Even the simplest, dumbest animal on earth will try to protect itself.
Would you expect less from this secret goverment crowd??
Leaveus @ 43:
First, if it's loading slowly there's a good chance that the problem is with your browser. Second, a big part of what's slowing things down are the digg links. Watch the bottom of your monitor to see what's loading and how quickly it's loading. It always slows down for me when digg is loading.
Next, this site made its bones on linking video. It was one of the, if not THE, first blogs to do so. The source of the links don't differ much now from four years ago. Or should every video link come from either C-Span or Democracy Now?
Lastly, I think it's less the restriction, but rather the ongoing sniping from partisans of both the Clinton and Obama supporters.
Andy K Jong Il @ 45:
I understand the videos and the subjects have not changed foe four years - I think that was my point - How many years will one point (The CORPERATE MEDIA is silly on it's face and lacks credibility) hold your interest? Perhaps for those under the age of ten this is news - But JFK, WaterGate, ContraGate, our activities in Chile, Panama, Libia, Iran - the list is too long - Should have made the point 30 years ago to those who pay ANY attention at all. And NOW it is all corperate owned propaganda and BULL SHIT. I think discussions of Democracy Now would be more relivant and FRUITFULL than discussions about the latest Shit that slipped out McCains ass.
Every link should come from where ever the editors decide - It is THEIR SPACE. If the choices they make do hold the readers attention then it will go OUT OF BUSSNESS, like the dinasors.
I never noticed your last point - The site seems so partisan for Obama that it lacks objectivity as it jumps all over the MSM bandwagon.
BlackWater is BAD.
But what is the good of kicking them out of CA if they will just go to TX, NM or AZ where the retrograde population will welcome them because they are heros and there might be some janitorial work for them in a BW faculity?
As long as a CORPERATION producing war for profit exists ANYWHERE - Are we safe??
I have signed on to the Courage Campaign's petitions. I live in New York but my mother lives in the San Diego area so these things are always a concern to me.
Leaveus @ 46:
Last first- Yeah, it goes both ways here. Like most of the prog-o-sphere it would seem that Obama supporters are slightly over-represented, but you can put that squarely on the differences in the way the support demographics of either campaign relate to the internet.
And, yes, there's a reliance on msm clips- but because C&L shows a FauxNews clip certainly doesn't mean that C&L agrees with Steve Doocy. In fact, C&L openly disagrees with the the sources much more often than not.
This video-less thread, btw, contians, after 4 hours, under 50 comments. Had there been a thread with video of Colbert making farting noises there'd be over a hundred comments inside two hours (theoretical argument, sure, but can you really disagree?). That kind of thing says a lot more about the commenters than the site.
Ron @ 20:
What's Internet Explorer?? Firefox is NOT related to Faux, folks...
Bill in Pittsburgh @ 10:
And slaves...they're right on the boarder.
Andy K Jong @ 49 Says
"This video-less thread, btw, contians, after 4 hours, under 50 comments. Had there been a thread with video of Colbert making farting noises there’d be over a hundred comments inside two hours (theoretical argument, sure, but can you really disagree?). That kind of thing says a lot more about the commenters than the site."
Yeah, I always thought it was a shame. I have seen comment postings of up over 1000 here but that was a long time ago. Perhaps the audience here is now more focused on the 'clips' than they were then..?
But the propensity to crack jokes in the face of blatent election stealing, constitution wreaking, torturing, illigal war starting, treason, lieing, secrecy (hell the best is left UNSAID!!) duplicty - I mean it is clear we don't live in an 'open society' or a 'democratic society' - WE DON'T LIVE IN A FUCKING DEMOCRACY FOLKS.
This 'Ticker Tape' cronicling that most of what is wrong, is not handled right by the corperate media - Surprize, they may be in cahoots together.
We may not have arrived here by some grand series of disconnected accidental or random actions -
I mean it is getting to be like watching reruns of Archie Bunker.
A little too predictable, a little too trite, a little too knee jerked.
And there are very real reasons to doubt the varacity of elections especially because we don't live in a democratic society.
We got our eye on the wrong balls I am afraid.
But some of the jokes are very funny none the less.
i suspect the reason for posters leaveing are thier fed up with the obamaranian mentality thats prevaliant here, most clinton supporters are discouraged from posting , because all they get is in your face insults , myself i dont like any of the candidates and find the followers of obama a bit of a pain in the ass! i dont believe any of the promesses obama makes or clinton ! and i dont blindly follow any of them, and another thing maby people see the snobs who look down thier noses at other americans you know the anuses who need you to dot all your sentences commas and capitol letters , the kind that think thier educations going to save thier ass when the day comes to get your ass in the dirt with a piece in your hands to defend your family , come the day i have to take up arms once again i sure dont want these goomers laying next to me, i fight again i fight for me not america not for the chumps that have thier degree in wtf ever, your on your own!
The reason for overwhelming Obama support, is that he is the only Democrat running for President.
Neither will be worth a shit.
Dumb
Dumber
Dumbest
it seems ive spoiled another thread with the truth , so i wont go up higher and taint another one, but talk about truth yeah lets do that! even if obama were to somehow get past this next rigged election nothings going to change!youve climed on a dead horse , obamas going to go along with the corporations programs or else, who do you think will own his body guards? the corporations! who do you thinks going to give him an offer he cant refuse? the corporations! youve seen what the corporations can do , they started a ,sorry two wars iraq and afganistan, they killed kennedy , they killed his brother bobby , they stoled this country blind , they ordered bush to do nothing dureing katrina so that the blacks lost thier property to speculaters for condameniems and hotels for pennys on the dollar, they rigged two elections , they own the law in this country , the news the radio they own it , the militarys thiers for the takeing , and you are dumb enough to believe one man can fight the corporations? face it !its over nothing short of forcefully taking back what weve lost will bring any of our constitution or laws back, go ahead ignore my rants why should i care you got the word right here,
tyree @ 56:
true
Tyree speaks truth...it rings loudly for those who listen. If November turns into "Black November" and Congress is not reposessed by the people - nothing will be "off the table".
"Give me Liberty, or give me death"! Good enough for 1776 and good enough now. Paid hacks, shills, moles, trolls, NWO stoogies, Obam-ade drinkers, or Hillary-clones beware. The S.A. army you are forming aint going to work. When people are broke, no medical care, no house, no job, with rich livin' high on the hog laughing down at us, dont expect mercy, since "real-world" justice is all that will be left.
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