Sunday, August 22, 2010

The Prince of Dark Liquids takes a hike. What does he know that we don't?

A tip of the boonie hat to Stan for this heads up:

Blackwater Founder Moves to Abu Dhabi, Records Say.

A snippet from the New York Times:

WASHINGTON — Erik Prince, whose company, Blackwater Worldwide, is for sale and whose former top managers are facing criminal charges, has left the United States and moved to Abu Dhabi, according to court documents.

Mr. Prince, a former member of the Navy Seals and an heir to a Michigan auto parts fortune, left the country after a series of civil lawsuits, criminal charges and Congressional investigations singled out Blackwater or its former executives and other personnel. His company, now called Xe Services, has collected hundreds of millions of dollars from the United States government since 2001.

Current and former colleagues said Mr. Prince hoped to focus on security work from governments in Africa and the Middle East. They also said he was bitter about the legal scrutiny and negative publicity his company had received.

“He needs a break from America,” said one colleague, speaking only on the condition of anonymity about Mr. Prince’s long-rumored move.

Now that Xe is doing domestic spying on Americans, perhaps it is easier to be an agent of repression without having to look your fellow citizens in the eye.

16 comments:

Pat H. said...

I think he'd become afraid of winding up headless, burned, and hanging from a bridge across the Mississippi.

The threat of justice is a bitch, for some.

Alvie D. Zane said...

"He needs a break from America."

What a coincidence, America needs a break from Xe/Blackwater.

Alvie D. Zane said...

To Xe:
While the US troops are leaving, you're moving in. You might be more hated over there than they are. And best of luck trying to defend yourself in the court that is under sharia law.

B said...

He simply knows that he has been rail-roaded by the ignorant and his name dragged around by the political class. We think the 3% are misunderstood but none of us have been targeted for character assassination like THAT guy.

I hope he comes back, we are going to need him and people like him very soon.

B
III

MamaLiberty said...

Unfortunately, the New York site is registration only and no longer available with "bug me not" since they require answers to invasive questions. Too bad.

Anonymous said...

"Xe is doing domestic spying on Americans"

Como? Something I missed no doubt but I don't know how. Education please.

Anonymous said...

Sorry, can't see myself ever signing up to view an article from the unamerican "NY Slimes"... Should they even be considered a valid source... just sayin.

typeay said...

And the "Code Pink" crowd is involved with this circus, as well....

http://biggovernment.com/taylorking/2010/08/21/code-pinks-medea-benjamin-arrested-after-entering-home-of-xeblackwater-founder/

Anonymous said...

Or perhaps, it's just that leaving for the sandbox makes it harder for "a series of civil lawsuits, criminal charges and Congressional investigations" to continue to rain down upon him?

Allen said...

I think part of the problem people have with blackwater is that during Katrina they did OUR job. the militia's job. because most of us were incapable or unwilling to do it.

the community defense job of the militia was abandoned years ago upon the altar of Rebel Mystique. it's a hell of a lot sexier to say "we're going to shoot the bastards if they X,Y, or Z" than to plan for when the bridge goes out, or what to do when the goblins come to town. you can't ignore the mundane part of the mission. but that is exactly what we have been doing.

capitalism is like that..when you abandon a job, and suddenly it needs to be done, someone will do it. the results, due to the emergency, will not be pretty, cheap, or sometimes even legal.

we shouldn't be blaming blackwater, who stood up to do the job..we should be blaming ourselves, for not being capable of fulfilling our most basic of missions.

I'd love to have a community that after a disaster, when the FEMA and national guard trucks roll up to our roadblock, we can tell them "we've got it. thank you for your concern but we don't need your help. please move along."

I'm not there yet. I'm working on it.

Anonymous said...

Yea ... we need Blackwater like the folks who suffered the aftermath of Katrina needed them. We need them to patrol the streets when America melts down to keep us all in our government sanctioned place.

These people are MERCENARIES. Are YOU going to PAY them to FIGHT for YOU?

Reading comments from the "patriot" community only reminds what I keep on saying ... that when/if TSHTF in this country, it will not be a clean cut us and them civil war ... it will be mass chaos. Several competing interests at each others throats ... each just as deadly as the other.

Defender said...

I am no high-speed low-drag hotdog, but I went to a training class at a school that considers itself competition to Blackwater. I wasn't that impressed. Sure, they're good on their own ground, and walk away with trophies in matches, but I saw things like leaving legs and feet hanging out from behind hard cover. Considering that you fight as you train, in the real world, they are NOT invincible. They had better behave.

Anonymous said...

Has he renounced citizenship? Offshored his inheritance? Tip to IRS; this guy has left CONUS either with assets totaling over 500K, or, to avoid taxes, either of which would get you and me lifetime pursuit.

Anonymous said...

Xe will be in the background until some state department puke gets whacked in Afghanistan because they are guarded by military folks who have to follow retarded ROEs that the state department, among others, designed.

Say what you want about Blackwater - most of it steeped in ignorance, and just mindless repetition of what other equally ignorant people say - but they kept our people alive.

Did they make money? I sure as fuck hope so.

What would you charge - if you had the balls, training, skill sets and connections to do what they do?

They had this Patton and Eisenhower like mentality that considers our enemy's lives to be worth less than American lives.

Imagine that.

Kerodin said...

PMC's have a place in the world, but that place is never on American soil, except for perhaps guarding a facility from genuine bad guys. Wandering the streets is not acceptable.

When SHTF it will be very easy to draw lines between Us and Them. If you walk the streets and impose the will of Government in contravention to the Constitution: ie; disarming Americans, you are Them.

Simple.

Sam
III

rah45 said...

I think that I'll judge Xe guys individually if I can, or by their units if they are deployed to my area for a mission. They are mercs, yes, but they can make their own decisions. If they violate my or others' constitutional rights or attempt to intervene in an area where friendlies are in control then they will be considered hostile. If they keep a respectful distance and mind their own business according to the CONUS, I have no reason to consider them enemies. I'll be more wary of them, as they are mercs after all, but there's no reason to fire without provocation.