CAREER OPPORTUNITIES THE ONES THAT NEVER KNOCK

I was horrified by the death and defilement of the four "contractors" killed in Falluja but I wondered "What's a security contractor?" I think I finally got it worked out. Mercenaries, my friends, and they don't come cheap. The New York Times says they cost $1,500 per day. Apparently, they are supplied by Blackwater and they're hiring, with new offices now open in Baghdad and Kuwait City.

Their web page is not terribly alarming but I wondered about this testimonial: "Our group was able to learn and practice some new skills and more importantly, build some new friendships. In the not to distant future we will organize another such outing. I look forward to the next oppotunity [sic]. "

Kris Allen Mauren
Executive Director
ACTON Institute for the Study of Religon and Liberty

WTF? The webpage of the Acton Institute (named for Lord Acton, Catholic 19th Century Cambridge Professor who said "power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely) says they work internationally to "promote a free and virtuous society characterized by individual liberty and sustained by religious principles." With submachine guns? I think maybe I don't want to know more...

Anyway, I propose we consider a training vacation at their 6,000 acre facility in Moyock, North Carolina. They offer a one-week Advanced Sniper course that sounds like just the thing.


["Our $975 Week Package Also Includes a Helpful Brochure on Who to Shoot."-PWP]

["Those who think the military action in Iraq has increased the long-term risk of terrorism in the United States have increased from 40 percent in December to 54 percent now, according to the poll, conducted for the AP by Ipsos-Public Affairs." -Dr X]