On AlterNet: contractors

Stories, blog posts, and videos tagged as "contractors"

Will Obama Issue an Order Exposing Big Corporate Political Spenders in Citizens United Era?

Steven Rosenfeld, AlterNet. January 10, 2012.

Like it or not, many of America's biggest corporations may be forced to disclose their political spending.

How the Drone Warfare Industry Took Over Our Congress

Tom Barry, AlterNet. November 30, 2011.

Drones play an increasing role in foreign wars, on the border, and in Congress.

Military Subcontractors Bribing U.S. Personnel With Prostitutes? The Shady World of War Contracting in Afghanistan and Iraq

Nick Schwellenbach, Lagan Sebert, The Huffington Post Investigative Fund. August 30, 2010.

Taxpayer cash is flowing to subcontractors in Iraq and Afghanistan, who engage in shady, illegal practices with few repercussions.

Controversial Pentagon's Private Contract Killers Operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan

Rory O'Connor, MediaChannel.org. May 19, 2010.

Controversy grows over Pentagon's network of private contractors in Afghanistan and Pakistan hired to help track and kill suspected militants.

Firm Run by Ex-Israeli Special Forces Soldier Wants U.S. Security Contracts in Jerusalem, Iraq, Afghanistan

Jeremy Scahill, Rebel Reports. April 27, 2010.

As Obama continues the military privatization agenda, a CIA-connected firm and an Israeli-run company named Instinctive Shooting International are looking to cash in.

Stunning Statistics About the War in Afghanistan Every American Should Know

Jeremy Scahill, Rebel Reports. December 21, 2009.

Contrary to popular belief, the U.S. actually has 189,000 personnel on the ground in Afghanistan right now -- and that number is quickly rising.

USA Today: Defense Contractors Got H1N1 Vaccine Before Schools and Hospitals Did

Staff, AlterNet. December 8, 2009.

Among the corporations on the receiving end were Bell Helicopter and Lockheed Martin.

Former Iraq Security Contractors Say Firm Bought Black Market Weapons, Swapped Booze for Rockets

T. Christian Miller, Aram Roston, ProPublica. September 21, 2009.

Newly released documents provide a glimpse into the messy business of creating a private army on the fly in the middle of a war zone.

Can Obama Avoid Another Abu Ghraib?

Robert Greenwald, Brave New Films. July 16, 2009.

The Obama administration continues to rely upon private contractors to interrogate detainees.

U.S. Cities Increasing Use of Armed Mercenaries to Replace Police

Jeremy Scahill, Rebel Reports. April 24, 2009.

Some estimate that private security inside the US actually outnumber police 5-to-1.

Almost Half of Iraqi Adults Are Unemployed

Anna Badkhen, Truthdig. August 20, 2008.

"If you don't have money to pay bribes, you can't get a job," says one mechanical engineer. "I'd drive a garbage truck; I'd do anything,"

Can the Iraqis Save Iraq?

dday, Hullabaloo. June 3, 2008.

Iraqis oppose a long-term security agreement with the United States.

Pentagon Audit Finds $15 Billion in Iraq Funds Unaccounted For

Middle East OnlineMay 27, 2008.

In a stunning accountability failure, out of $8.2 billion in U.S. taxpayer funded defense contracts for Iraq, $7.7 billion seems to be missing.

Pentagon: Federal Spending Rules Ignored in Iraq

Jill C., Brilliant at Breakfast. May 23, 2008.

A Pentagon audit reveals how over $8 billion was misspent in Iraq.

Bloated in Baghdad

Sarah Stillman, Truthdig. May 2, 2008.

With American fast food readily available to U.S. troops, their expanding waistlines make a good metaphor for the general engorgement of the war.

Dyncorp Used Armored Car To Transport Prostitutes in Iraq

Lucinda Marshall, Feminist Peace Network. April 30, 2008.

Whistleblowers report on the outrageous misuse of resources by contractors in Iraq.

An Iraqi Contractor Gets Prosecuted While Blackwater's Contract is Renewed

Jeremy Scahill, The Nation. April 10, 2008.

As a translator who fled Saddam becomes the face of a "crackdown" on contractors, Blackwater is rewarded with another year in Iraq.

Bush Goes Private to Spy on You

Tim Shorrock, CorpWatch. December 6, 2007.

The Bush administration is launching a new government agency that will rely heavily on private security contractors to conduct surveillance in the U.S.

Tom Tancredo Hired Illegal Laborers to Renovate His McMansion

Max Blumenthal, AlterNet. December 1, 2007.

Anti-immigration zealot and GOP presidential candidate Tom Tancredo hired what he often refers to as "criminal aliens" to renovate his Colorado house.

The Pro-War Undertow of the Blackwater Scandal

Norman Solomon, AlterNet. October 16, 2007.

A real hazard of preoccupations with Blackwater is that it will become a scapegoat for what is profoundly and fundamentally wrong with the U.S. effort and mission.

Will Blackwater Be Kicked Out of Iraq After Recent Bloodbath?

Jeremy Scahill, The Nation. September 28, 2007.

So far Blackwater has only received a slap on the wrist after killing innocent civilians. Are the U.S. and Iraqi governments finally ready to send them packing?

U.S. Exacerbates Iraqi Civil War With Indiscriminate Commando Training

Pratap Chatterjee, CorpWatch. September 26, 2007.

The U.S. is indiscriminately arming Iraqis, destabilizing the country even more.

Checkbook Imperialism: The Blackwater Fiasco

Robert Scheer, Truthdig. September 19, 2007.

Why doesn't the Iraqi government have the explicit legal power to expel or adjudicate the U.S.-contracted troops that are killing its citizens?

Flush with Profits from the Iraq War, Military Contractors See a World of Business Opportunities

Jeremy Scahill, Indypendent. August 13, 2007.

Since launching the "global war on terror," the administration has funneled billions of public dollars to "private contractors" and more than doubled the size of the occupation with these hired guns.

Labor Dept: 1,001 Civilian Workers Have Died in Iraq

David Ivanovich, Houston Chronicle. August 8, 2007.

Contractors represent part of the hidden death-toll in Iraq.