» 2011 » May Ms Sparky

What’s shakin’ at the State Department — dancing with the devil (DynCorp) that’s what

Posted on: May 17th, 2011 at 6:01 am — by Forseti

Photo by Khalid Mohammed/AP -- Blackwater security contractors are seen in a helicopter in Baghdad in 2007. The company changed its name to Xe in 2009, amid controversy surrounding the killing of 17 Iraqi civilians in 2007.

As U.S. Military Exits Iraq, Contractors To Enter

Tom Bowman – (NPR) – May 17, 2011 – A U.S. Army helicopter brigade is set to pull out of Baghdad in December, as part of an agreement with the Iraqi government to remove U.S. forces. So the armed helicopters flying over the Iraqi capital next year will have pilots and machine gunners from DynCorp International, a company based in Virginia.

On the ground, it’s the same story. American soldiers and Marines will leave. Those replacing them, right down to carrying assault weapons, will come from places with names like Aegis Defence Services and Global Strategies Group — eight companies in all.

All U.S. combat forces are scheduled to leave Iraq by year’s end, but there will still be a need for security. That means American troops will be replaced by a private army whose job will be to protect diplomats.

Already, the State Department is approving contracts, but there are questions about whether it makes sense to turn over this security job to private companies.

Security For The State Department
Overseeing the armed personnel is Patrick Kennedy, a top State Department official.

(Read the rest of the story here…)

KBR truck drivers awarded class arbitration status for unpaid overtime worked (docs)

Posted on: May 16th, 2011 at 12:58 pm — by Ms Sparky

US supply convoy in Iraq

KBR truck drivers win a major victory in the ongoing battle with KBR regarding being forced to work “off the clock”. The KBR management war cry of “84 and no more”, meaning a driver could only document 84 hours per week on their time sheet even though they were forced to work much more, meant drivers were forced to risk their lives and work for free in a profession with the highest civilian casualty rate in Iraq.

KBR truck drivers initiated class arbitration proceedings before Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services, Inc. (JAMS) on November 1, 2007, asserting that KBR breached their employment contracts with them and other employees by failing and refusing to pay them for all hours worked.

JAMS arbitrator, Michael Loeb granted class certification Thursday to KBR truck drivers who said KBR Inc. breached an employment agreement by pressuring them to under-report hours worked under the military’s Logistics Civil Augmentation Program (LOGCAP) contract in Iraq.

While most cases involving unreported overtime should be dealt with on an individual basis because they usually involve different supervisors giving different orders to different employees, the current dispute is not a “typical ‘off-the-clock’ case,” according to arbitrator Michael Loeb. (Read the rest of the story here…)

Posted in CONTRACTOR DEATHS, GOV. CONTRACTORS, LAWSUITS, Lawsuits Against KBR, LOGCAP III - KBR, LOGCAP IV - KBR, Michael Pryor vs KBR. Tags: JAMS, LOGCAP III, LOGCAP IV, Michael Loeb, Michael Pryor. 8 Comments »

Troops in Mideast Have More Respiratory Ills, Data Show

Posted on: May 16th, 2011 at 11:39 am — by Ms Sparky

SHIRLEY S. WANG – (Wall Street Journel) – May 16, 2011 – Veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan have a higher rate of debilitating respiratory illness than those deployed elsewhere, according to a new study that bolsters concerns among some medical professionals and members of Congress about the potential harm to troops from toxic chemicals and dust in the Middle East.

Soldiers who served in Iraq or Afghanistan complain of lingering coughs, shortness of breath, dizziness and other symptoms. Now, scientists say troops who served in the Middle East have higher rates of respiratory problems compared to those who served elsewhere. WSJ’s Shirley Wang reports.

The findings, which will be presented Wednesday at the International Conference of the American Thoracic Society in Denver, place renewed urgency on getting at the root of why some young, previously healthy soldiers have been returning from the Middle East complaining of symptoms including shortness of breath and dizziness. In many cases, the soldiers can no longer pass a required physical to continue with active duty.

(Read the rest of the story here…)

Mentors, mercenaries and other news

Posted on: May 15th, 2011 at 7:47 am — by Forseti

Sheikh hires mercenary force to secure Emirates
Abu Dhabi – May 15, 2011 – The billionaire founder of Blackwater Worldwide, a scandal-plagued American security firm accused of abuses in Iraq, has been hired by the crown prince of Abu Dhabi to put together an 800-member battalion of foreign troops.

Erik Prince, who came to live in the United Arab Emirates last year after his security business faced mounting legal problems in the US, is using $529 million from Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, the defacto ruler of the UAE, to complete the mission, according to corporate documents, former employees on the project and US officials.

The force is intended to conduct special operations inside and outside the country, defend oil pipelines and skyscrapers from terrorist attacks and put down internal revolts.

Such troops could be deployed if the UAE faced unrest, or was challenged by democracy protests in its crowded labour camps in the oil fields or like those sweeping the Arab world this year.

The UAE hopes the troops can also blunt the aggression of Iran, the country’s biggest foe. (Click HERE for article)

Afghan intelligence says children recruited to conduct Taliban suicide attacks
(AP) – KABUL, Afghanistan – May 15, 2011 – The orders from their religious teacher were clear: Go to Afghanistan, strap on a suicide vest and kill foreign forces.

With that, 9-year-old Ghulam Farooq left his home in Pakistan with three other would-be boy bombers and headed into eastern Afghanistan.

They were told there would be two members of the Taliban waiting for them at the Torkham border crossing in Nangarhar province. Instead, members of the Afghan intelligence service who had been tipped to the boys’ plans arrested them at the border.

“Our mullah told us that when we carried out our suicide attacks, all the people around us would die, but we would stay alive,” Farooq said Saturday, sitting inside a juvenile detention facility in the Afghan capital. (Click HERE for article)

Six Individuals Charged for Providing Material Support to the Pakistani Taliban
(DoJ) – MIAMI – May 14, 2011 – Six individuals located in South Florida and Pakistan have been indicted in the Southern District of Florida on charges of providing financing and other material support to the Pakistani Taliban, a designated foreign terrorist organization. The charges were announced today by Wifredo A. Ferrer, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida; John V. Gillies, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Miami Field Office, and the members of the South Florida Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF).

(Read the rest of the story here…)

Posted in A Soldiers Story, GOV. CONTRACTORS, Indictments, Convictions & Arrests, Politics, Reports & Investigations, Security Contractors. Tags: 1st Lt. Robert G. Moore, A.J. Hughes Co., AAFES*, Able Danger, Afghanistan, Al Jazaer Group, Alam Zeb, Ali Rehman aka Faisal Ali Rehman, Amina Khan aka Amina Bibi, Arms Dealers, AVA International Corporation, Bagram Airfield, Blackwater/Xe, Camp Fallujah, Camp Victory, DEA, Green Beans Coffee, Greg Tremaine, Hafiz Muhammed Sher Ali Khan, Irfan Khan, Izhar Khan, J.D. Smith, Jellyfish, Judge David Larimer, Keith Mahoney, Major Christopher P. West, Master Sgt. Patrick Boyd, Michael Yorio, NCIS, Noor Alam, Northern Reconstruction Organization, Northrop Grumman, Osama bin Laden, Prostitution, Rep. Robert Andrews, Retired General's Club, Richard Joseph Harrington, Robert Raymond Ruks, Secretary Robert Gates, Taliban, Thailand, The Merchant of Death*, Tony Shaffer, Total Intelligence Solutions, USAA, Victor Bout, Viktor Bout. No Comments »

Iraq KBR rape case civil trial date set

Posted on: May 12th, 2011 at 7:52 am — by Ms Sparky

Accused rapist Charles David Bortz mug shot from October 2006 arrest for Felony Battery in Okaloosa County Florida

Len Cannon – (KHOU 11 News) – HOUSTON – May 12, 2011 – A woman who said she was gang-raped in 2005 while working in Iraq for the Houston-based company KBR is finally getting her day in court.

Six years ago Jamie Leigh Jones, of Conroe, blamed the attack on KBR, but the company said those allegations are not true.

Jones said she has been waiting for years for her attackers to be punished and the civil trial begins on June 13. The trial will take place on the third floor of the federal courthouse in downtown Houston.

KHOU 11 News last talked to Jones in 2009, and that’s when she said she wanted to tell her story in front of a jury.

“I think this cause is bigger than myself; I want to have a deterrence, so this doesn’t happen to other women and other wives and daughters that go overseas,” she said.

Jones went overseas to Iraq in 2005. She was a 20-year-old information technology technician for KBR. Four days after arriving, she said she was drugged and raped by co-workers.

“When I woke up the next morning I was naked in the barrack and I was bleeding and I had bruises,” she said. “I was sore between my legs and chest, I was groggy and confused.”

Her lawyer Todd Kelly said he will show photos of those bruises in court.

“There is medical evidence that will clearly show that it was nonconsensual and that her injuries were related to trauma,” he said. (Read the rest of the story here…)

Posted in GOV. CONTRACTORS, Jamie Jones vs KBR, KBR, KBR Investigations, Lawsuits Against KBR, LOGCAP III - KBR, Rape, Hazing, Discrimination & Harassment. Tags: Charles Boartz, Charles Bortz, Employee Issues-KBR, Jamie Leigh Jones, Rape, Todd Kelly. No Comments »

Former U.S. Army Major Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering Charge Related to Contracts Supporting Iraq War

Posted on: May 11th, 2011 at 12:15 pm — by Forseti

The Justice Department quietly charged Charles J. Bowie Jr., 44, of Georgetown last month after agreeing not to seek his formal indictment. ~Guillermo Contreras – San Antonio Express News~

Defendant Accepted $400,000 Related to the Award of Bottled Water Contract in Kuwait

(DoJ) – WASHINGTON – May 11, 2011 – A retired major in the U.S. Army pleaded guilty today in San Antonio to accepting $400,000 from a contractor following his deployment to Kuwait, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

Charles Joseph Bowie Jr., 45, of Georgetown, Texas, pleaded guilty today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Nancy Stein Nowak in the Western District of Texas to a criminal information charging him with one count of engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activity. According to the court document, Bowie served in Kuwait from April 2004 to April 2005 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. While serving in Kuwait, Bowie became friends with former U.S. Army Major John Cockerham, who directed a government contractor to pay Bowie money in exchange for the award of a bottled water contract. Bowie admitted that he received four wire transfers of approximately $100,000 each from the contractor between July 2005 and February 2006. Bowie also admitted that he entered into a sham consulting agreement with the contractor to conceal the payments.

(Read the rest of the story here…)

Posted in A Soldiers Story, Indictments, Convictions & Arrests, Reports & Investigations, U.S. Army. Tags: Camp Arifjan, Carolyn Blake, Charles Joseph Bowie Jr., John Cockerham, Judge Nancy Stein Nowak, Melissa Cockerham, Nyree Pettaway, U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ). 2 Comments »

Failing those who protect our freedom…Again

Posted on: May 11th, 2011 at 11:21 am — by Forseti

Veterans’ Mental Health Services Faces Overhaul

TIM HULL - (CN) – May 11, 2011 – Delays in the treatment of veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health issues violate the constitutional rights of the nation’s soldiers, the 9th Circuit ruled, taking the rare step of ordering the Department of Veterans Affairs to implement sweeping changes in the way it handles referrals and claims that are too often “mooted by death.”

“When the government harms its veterans by the deprivation at issue here, they are entitled to turn to the courts for relief,” Judge Stephen Reinhardt wrote in a 103-page ruling Tuesday. “Indeed, our constitution established an independent judiciary precisely for situations like this, in which a vulnerable group, that is being denied its rights by an unresponsive government, has nowhere else to turn. No more critical example exists than when the government fails to afford its injured or wounded veterans their constitutional rights.

Wars, including wars of choice, have many costs. Affording our veterans their constitutional rights is a primary one.”

The advocacy groups Veterans for Common Sense and Veterans United for Truth filed a class action against the VA in California District Court in 2007, seeking redress for the “unchallengeable and interminable delays” that many veterans face when applying for mental health care.

Up to 18 veterans commit suicide everyday, many of them while awaiting a health care referral that can take months, according to the ruling.

Some 1,467 veterans died while their appeals were pending in just six months from October 2007 to April 2008.

(Read the rest of the story here…)