Perspectives on Social Issues
(June 2007)

New Book Focuses on Blackwater, a U.S. Mercenary Army in Iraq
"Investigative journalist Jeremy Scahill has a new book, Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army. Scahill writes, ‘Blackwater is the elite Praetorian Guard for the "global war on terror," with its own military base, a fleet of twenty aircraft, and 20,000 private contractors at the ready. Run by a multimillionaire Christian conservative [Erik Prince] who bankrolls President Bush and his allies, its forces are capable of overthrowing governments.’ Democracy Now! reported that from Iraq to New Orleans, Blackwater has continued to pull in multi-million-dollar government contracts, mostly without accountability and in near-secrecy. Blackwater is now launching a new organization, Total Intelligence Solutions. This privatization of intelligence will be headed by Cofer Black, now Vice-Chairman of Blackwater, who, according to this report, as head of the CIA's counter-terrorism division launched and ran the extraordinary rendition program for President Bush where people were picked up and flown to other countries for torture and interrogation.

The privatization of our military, and now intelligence, is of deep concern. Few realize that 40 percent of the money for the Iraq war goes to private contractors with the main recipient being Blackwater. The hiring of mercenaries, both here and in other countries, to fight our dirty wars certainly helps with our military recruitment problems. There are over 100,000 private contractors in Iraq; 48,000 work as private soldiers. There is no oversight, no legal constraints, and they are paid up to $1,000 a day. These mercenaries are also politically expedient. Their deaths go unreported."

“Blackwater: The World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army,” The Mobilizer, Peace Action, Ap 1, 2007.

Ethical Capitalism Requires Moral Compass of All Involved
"Any broad-based institution develops a culture and practices that are not overt and that often control end results. They’re usually not espoused but they are real, and they rarely put the emphasis on the individual. But I [Brother Louis DeThomasis] do, because ethical capitalism requires not only that the CEOs and other leaders are ethical, but that workers, employees, customers and shareholders are too.

We often put the spotlight on the CEOs. But unethical CEOs wouldn’t get away with half of what they do if directors were more attentive. And directors wouldn’t get away with stuff if the shareholders were there. And if customers were insistent on Wal-Mart paying fair wages and benefits, if they were willing to pay a little more, then the workers at Wal-Mart would be better off.

So my point is that ethical capitalism will work only when we understand that a healthy systemic approach happens when you involve the moral compass of every individual, every stakeholder, customer, CEO, manager and director. When all of those moral compasses are aligned in the right direction, with people wanting to do right, then we’ll have solutions that will help people. Business will profit because people are profiting."

"Doing Right in a Shrinking World: A Conversation with CBIS Co-Founder Brother Louis DeThomasis," Principles newsletter, CBIS., 4th quarter 2006.

Darfur, a Tinderbox of "Climate Change Lit by Spark of Ancient Rivalry"
"Darfur, a barren, mountainous land just below the Sahara in western Sudan, is the world's worst man-made disaster. In four years, according to the U.N., fighting has killed more than 200,000 people and made refugees of 2.5 million more. The conflict is typically characterized as genocide, waged by the Arab Janjaweed and their backers in the Sudanese government, against Darfur's black Africans.

But what is often overlooked is that the roots of the conflict may have more to do with ecology than ethnicity. To live on the poor and arid soil of the Sahel -- just south of the Sahara -- is to be mired in an eternal fight for water, food and shelter. The few pockets of good land have been the focus of intermittent conflict for decades.

The devastation of Darfur highlights the potentially catastrophic effects of climate change on societies across Africa. The U.N. estimates that the lives of as many as 90 million Africans--most of them in and around the Sahara--could be "at risk" on account of global warming. Many of Africa's armed conflicts can be explained as tinderboxes of climate change lit by the spark of ancient rivalry."

“How to Prevent the Next Darfur. Step One: Get Serious About Climate Change" by Alex Perry, TIME, May 7, 2007.

Future Peace Requires Justice Today
"A new consortium of organizations, including several with Catholic roots, has proposed a $590 million plan to bring 'proven strategies of peace-building, humanitarian relief, and responsible economic development' to Iraq. 'Two-and-a-half days worth of funding the military could get you all of this for a year. Not bad, huh?' said Simone Campbell, a member of the Sisters of Social Service who is head of NETWORK, a Catholic social-justice lobby that is one of the backers of the proposal. Other Catholic supporters are the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, the Conference of Major Superiors of Men, and Pax Christi USA.

The plan would include: $290 million to respond to the needs of an estimated 3.7 million Iraqis displaced in and outside their own country; $100 million to restore full funding of the Community Action Program, and an Iraqi war victims’ fund; $100 million to support Iraqi civil society, conflict resolution and peace-building strategies, and the advancement of human rights and the rule of law; and $100 million to rebuild 143 Iraqi state-owned industries with the potential to employ 150,000 Iraqis."

“Vatican at U.N.: Peace Tomorrow Requires Justice Today," Signs of the Times, America, Mar 26, 2007.

President Bush's Budget Supports and Cuts Programs for Native Peoples
"President Bush sent Congress his budget for fiscal year 2008 (FY08) with recommendations regarding the fate of various federal programs and agencies.... Many of the president's recommendations would affect native peoples. The president has given thumbs up to:

• funding law enforcement to stop the spread of methamphetamine in Indian Country
• raising student and BIA school performance to meet No Child Left Behind goals through more funding
• providing modest funds to deal with a growing number of Indian patients and medical inflation

The president has given thumbs down to:

• the urban health program for Native Americans (eliminated)
• the program providing extra assistance to Indian children attending public schools (eliminated)
• the housing organization that conducts training and provides advice in the field (eliminated)
• the housing improvement program (eliminated) school construction (cut back)
• health facilities construction (cut back)
• basic sanitation facilities construction (cut back)Before Congress accepts the president's proposal for less money for sanitation projects, it should consider facts about remote areas. On Native American lands, 11.7 percent of residents lack complete plumbing facilities.... Dispensing with vital programs or cutting back their scope will make daily life even harder for many First Americans."

"President's Budget Ignores Disparities in Indian Country," Indian Report, FCNL, Spring 2007.