Military
Third-world workers exploited by U.S. security contractors
Matthew D. La Plante of The Salt Lake Tribune reports on workers from developing nations who are are employed by private security contractors working for the U.S. in Iraq. Federal reports suggest that four-fifths of the armed contractors come from other countries, and some earn as little as $31 per day. Human rights advocates say…
Read MoreWhistle-blowers punished by system meant to protect them
A collaborative six-month investigation by the Center for Investigative Reporting and Salon.com details the failings of whistleblower courts, which are intended to protect employees who speak out against corruption and abuses in government agencies. Instead, this forum is used to punish those who speak out for the public good. The investigation “found that federal whistle-blowers…
Read MoreEarmarks added $11.8 billion to defense bill
The Seattle Times kicked off an occasional series on Congressional earmarks, the companies that benefit and the political fundraising connected to the pork projects. David Heath and Hal Bernton report that, after months of collecting and checking data from press releases and campaign finance reports, they were able to “tie about half of the 2,700…
Read MoreBlackwater leaves dirty trail
PBS’ Bill Moyers Journal features Jeremy Scahill, author of a book about Blackwater, a private U.S.-based company that is one of the largest private security contractors in Iraq, where its assignments have included protecting individuals and guarding the U.S. embassy. Scahill’s interview comes in the wake of Congressional hearings after the company’s employees were implicated…
Read MorePentagon dismissed requests for mine-resistant vehicles
The Pentagon failed in its efforts to protect troops in Iraq, according to an investigation by Peter Eisler, Blake Morrison and Tom Vanden Brook of USA TODAY. The Pentagon has known for years that Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles could save lives for soldiers on patrol and in combat, but ignored appeals for such…
Read MoreMental health care less than adequate at Walter Reed
In their continuing coverage of the issues surrounding Walter Reed, The Washington Post‘s most recent installment deals with soldiers who are returning home with mental health issues – namely Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) – only to be met with an inadequate mental health system.
Read MoreUnexploded munitions pose danger to area residents
Land that was once an isolated bombing range has since become prime real estate, the Newport News, Va.Daily Press reports. The land is still marked with dangerous remianders of its former purpose. “As the military has shut bases, bombing ranges and ordnance depots – and as it prepares to depart Fort Monroe in Hampton –…
Read MoreCollateral Damage – Human Rights and Military Aid after 9/11
The Center for Public Integrity has published “one of the most comprehensive resources on U.S. military aid and assistance in the post-9/11 era. ‘Collateral Damage’ couples the reporting of 10 of the world’s leading investigative journalists on four continents with a powerful database combining U.S. military assistance, foreign lobbying expenditures, and human rights abuses into…
Read MoreDelays impeded implementation of air defense system prior to 9/11
Michael Fabey of Aerospace Daily and Defense Report writes that the inability of the Pentagon and Canadian defense officials to keep a lid on costs and schedules may have cost them the opportunity to modernize their radar-based air defense system in time to possibly thwart the terrorist from completing their 9/11 attacks.
Read MoreQuestions raised about Marine deaths at an-Nasiriyah
Eric Longabardi of ERSNews.com reports on exclusive photos from the battle at an-Nasiriyah in Iraq. Additional photographs used in the Pentagon’s investigation were obtained by ERSNews.com through a FOIA request. The battle, in which 18 Marines were killed, is the largest single loss of American troops since the beginning of the war in Iraq. While…
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