Blackwater’s Western Expansion Runs Into Local Resistance
US Security Firm Runs Into New Trouble - And This Time It’s Closer To Home
Randel Parks pushed his hands into the pockets of his jeans and rocked back on the heels of his cowboy boots. “I’ve been here 30 years,” he said, staring at the ground, “and I’ve spent most of my adult life working on this property, turning it into my piece of paradise. I’ll be damned if I’m going to let them spoil it.”
A mile away, around a bend in the mountain road that runs past Parks’s property, his new neighbours spread a map out on the ground to discuss plans for the 325-hectare (800-acre) site they are in the process of buying. “There will be eight 100-yd carbine ranges here, and three 50-yd pistol ranges here. And we’ll have a 10,000-sq ft armoury and a bunkhouse for 360 students over here.”
Welcome to Blackwater West, the latest expansion from the company that dominates private security operations in Iraq. Last month Blackwater’s chief executive, Erik Prince, appeared before Congress to defend the company’s role in the alleged shootings of unarmed civilians. This week, reports alleged that it had turned a blind eye to the use of steroids among its employees.
Now the company is looking to expand domestically. So it has come to the border hamlet of Potrero, population 850. Eight miles from Mexico and 40 miles inland from San Diego, Potrero has found itself at the centre of a controversy.
But it is a dispute that goes beyond the rights and wrongs of a large company intent on developing farmland. Opponents fear that it will be the first step towards Blackwater moving in on the potentially lucrative and politically sensitive job of patrolling the US-Mexico border. While Congress has authorised increased recruitment for the Border Patrol, the federal agency that polices the border, many have asked how it is going to be paid for and who is going to do the training. Enter Blackwater West.
“We’re here by happenstance,” said Brian Bonfiglio, Blackwater West’s vice-president. Bonfiglio, who was previously in charge of security for Paul Bremer, the former head of the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq, was dispatched a year ago from the company’s base in North Carolina to oversee the expansion west. “We’re a training company. This site was not chosen because of its proximity to the border. The Border Patrol has not approached us and we’re not chasing Border Patrol contracts. If the government said here’s a contract we want you to bid on, I can’t say what the company would do.”
Bonfiglio may not be able to say, but the company’s president did. In his book Blackwater: The Rise of the World’s Most Powerful Mercenary Army, journalist Jeremy Scahill recounts company president Gary Jackson’s May 2005 appearance before the House homeland security committee. “Just as the private sector has responded in moving mail and packages around the world more efficiently,” Jackson told the committee, “so too can Blackwater respond to the customs’ and Border Patrol’s emerging and compelling training needs.”
The first salvo against Blackwater’s plans comes on December 11, when a recall election - called as a result of a petition by residents - will be held to replace the majority of the Potrero planning group. The group has been criticised for unanimously approving Blackwater’s application to build a training facility on a dilapidated chicken farm. Set in 824 acres, the valley that would be Blackwater West is surrounded by low brush and hills. The land includes part of the Cleveland national forest, although Blackwater says it will not use any of the forest land on its property.
Approval was given last December before all but a handful of residents were aware of the plans. Once details emerged, some locals decided to act. “A lot of my neighbours were of the opinion that you couldn’t do anything about it,” said Parks. “But as time went by I found out that we had some supporters. Now there are more people who aren’t afraid to come out and speak.”
Rather than being upset about the controversy surrounding Blackwater, most opponents are more concerned about the potential loss of their rural way of life. “When we first moved here in 1977 we didn’t have any neighbours,” said Cathey Ramsey. Sitting in the town’s only shop, the 94 Cafe and general store, she listed her objections: “My concerns are water, wildlife, traffic, noise, all the firing ranges.”
Her son, William Crawley, who is standing for election to the planning group, said: “I want to make a change. The group has been neglectful of its duties.”
Outside the landscape is charred, the result of the fires that raged across southern California in October. At Barrett lake, alongside tents set up for the 17 Potrero households who lost their homes in fires, stand three Blackwater trailers. “They were the first ones here,” said Brenda Wise. “Blackwater called up and gave us everything we needed. If their centre had been in place when the fire started maybe we wouldn’t have had fires at all.” Wise, who is standing as a pro-Blackwater candidate in the planning group election, said: “I’m sorely offended by groups hiring protesters and trying to take over the community for their own political gain.”
The protesters she referred to are the 200 or more people who attended a rally against the development held on Parks’s land. Those behind the rally deny that anybody was paid to attend.
A smaller, counter rally was held on a neighbouring property belonging to Shirley Reider and her husband. “To me it’s a matter of patriotism,” said Reider. “Blackwater has done a lot for our country. Every organisation, even the marines, gets a bad apple now and then, but you deal with that. We should be thankful that we have patriotic Americans who’ll defend us.”
Jan Hedlun, who was elected to the planning group this year and is the only current member to oppose Blackwater’s arrival in Potrero, has other concerns. “I didn’t move out here to live next to a shooting range and driving track,” she said. “I came out for peace and quiet and for my health. This facility doesn’t belong in our rural community.”
She added: “There’s a cronyistic dynasty among the current power structure and then there’s everyone else. All of a sudden this has dropped in our lap, and the power structure isn’t listening to what the people want.”
Should the planning group be replaced with officials more sympathetic to the opponents of Blackwater, it is not certain that the development would be stopped. The planning group offers advice to the county planning department. The project could still go ahead.
“I like this place so much,” said Parks, standing in his garden, which is decorated with animal skulls and cart wheels. “I don’t think I’d ever pack up and move on.”
Blackwater
Founded 1997 by former navy Seals Erik Prince and Al Clark
Mission: “To support security and peace, and freedom and democracy everywhere”
First government contract in February 2000
Trains more than 40,000 people a year at its base in North Carolina
$1bn five-year contract to protect US officials in conflict zones and US embassy in Baghdad
Four staff were lynched in Falluja in 2004
Involved in 195 shooting incidents between 2005 and September 2007, when licence to operate in Iraq was revoked by Iraq government following shooting of 17 Iraqis
In October Prince testified before congressional committee investigating Blackwater.
Company is being investigated by FBI.
© Guardian News and Media Limited 2007
If this country was what we claimed to be, we would sic our army on these nazis, and that would be that.
And just how is it that there’s a difference between a terrorist training camp and a Blackwater compound?
Fascism. Coming soon to YOUR neighborhood.
***A smaller, counter rally was held on a neighbouring property belonging to Shirley Reider and her husband. “To me it’s a matter of patriotism,” said Reider. “Blackwater has done a lot for our country. Every organisation, even the marines, gets a bad apple now and then, but you deal with that. We should be thankful that we have patriotic Americans who’ll defend us.”***
I don’t need mercanaries to protect me, thank you very much.
Regarding the Blackwater expansion in Potrero, California: it has been reported in the foreign press that the fire in Potrero, was intentionally set by Blackwater as a result of the people’s opposition for the expansion.
The citizens did not get any help from the fire department, phone lines were
cut off, and their modest homes burned off. How clever of Blackwater, to assist after the fact. People, wake up, Blackwater is the cancer running amok in the world.
Ahh…So blackwater, the Christian fundamentalist terrorist group, has another campsite to train future terrorist. next they will be bidding to do your local policework with a caveat for immunity in case they ‘accidentally’ kill a civilian…
And the lying snake Ahhhnold, the Governator, denies having any knowledge what so ever of this compound being erected in the State of California!
This is flying in under the radar for now. But it’s only a matter of time before the public reacts to this mercenary group of right-wing wackos being in Streisand’s back yard.
Like the O.J. Simpson scandal got Gil Garcetti dumped as the incompetent D.A. in Los Angeles (the criminal trial was to be held in The Peoples Republic of Santa Monica (”guilty!!!”) until Garcetti decided it should be in “downtown” L.A. because of “earthquake damage” in the S.M. Courthouse….ahhh-hem…..), the war criminal Blackwater Compound in So. Cal. may just be the political undoing of Schwarzenegger.
Between this and the Giuliani backed State Initiative for “fair elections” (translated…Republican rip-off of electoral votes to promote more fraudulent U.S. elections), it’s almost as if California is under attack. Wake up people!
The elephant in the living room is coming civil unrest in the US as conditions deteriorate here. Pinkerton with tasers, anyone?
This goes right to the heart of Naomi Kleins article “Guns beat Green”.
The National Security War Machine is preparing for a violent revolution here in the States, and this new law if past will set up a committee to go into our colleges and (Homes probably) to come up with laws to stop people from thinking about getting to be a radical force for change before they become an effective radical force for change….
Well what we need is what they are trying to prevent us from even thinkin about
A radical force for change… like using our minds to unite to save our world from the War Maniacs…
What ever happened to Whitewater anyway?
Maybe those were the Good Ol days Eh?
It would appear that the vast majority in this country are not going to wake up from this nightmare that they’ve created .
They seem to be looking forward to the blood bath.
We’ve become a nation that will except any means of securing our own “piece of paradise”
Of course if your version of paradise is decorated with skulls you’ll be very content with the future being built.
I believe I have read about similar events in history concerning politically affiliated groups and organizations recruiting, intimidating and terrorizing its own citizens all for the good of the “fatherland”.
Your either with them or ruled by them because at this point in the time line you can’t stop them.
I’ve been following this story for over 6 months. I’ve even written to the Swartzenegger to stop this horror. I’ve tried to inform what friends I have left in California to what’s happening in their state. This mercenary base in conjunction with 800 Haliburton built detention centers around the US is the end stage of America.
The problem is not that the people are not acting. The problem is that they don’t know it is happening. Notice that this article came out of the UK. The MSM has not reported anything about this.
So what do we do now? Wait for the black shirts to knock on the door?
Oh, by the way, one of the other purposes of this mercenary base is to train regular city cops. Train them to do what exactly?
Have a nice day.
Hired guns rather than responsible authorities, how is this better? Blackwater is more of the conservative ‘privatization’ of America. Did we already forget these clowns running all over New Orleans after Katrina with their guns aimed at hurricane survivors? Is this really what we want for our country. We have to oppose this movement in every way we can. America is being privatized, read sold off, at every turn. Read what our South American neighbors have been through with this same selling out. Wake up America, our future is under threat.
Hi Rebel Farmer, you have it exactly right. The difference between the US and Germany is that the Germans were listening to Hitler and the Americans aren’t paying attention, due in part to the silence of our corporate media about what is really happening.
And not only train our cops, but work along side them - you know, like in Iraq.
In corporations the direction from the top does indeed filter down…This seems like nothing more than an overextention of the so-called “executive branch”.
This is why i advocate for the elimination of the executive branch and the diffusement of enforcement so that power is not concentrated.
Simple isn’t it.
Peace,
Ken Hausle
The government should declare war on them, force them to return the more than $1 billion they have billed us for, or go wipe them out.
Shirley Reider says she’s a patriot? Lessee…. Webster’s definition of “Chauvinism” is ” Militant, unreasonable and boastful devotion to one’s country…(also known as “jingoism…)” Methinks that’s closer to what we’re seeing here.
You’d think there was a nice spot for Blackwater in Crawford Texas where they could make noise without the gun lovin neighbor complaining.
Blackwater, the future of Law enforcement in America. Is it just me, or has anyone eles noticed border patrol agents and local law enforcement becoming more and more militant? I believe we have been distracted by global events and have taken our eyes off the ball and the mercenarys such as Blackwater and others that will be coming to a local theater near you and yours soon as Law enforcement / Home land security!
“To me it’s a matter of patriotism,” said Reider. “Blackwater has done a lot for our country. Every organisation, even the marines, gets a bad apple now and then, but you deal with that. We should be thankful that we have patriotic Americans who’ll defend us.”
Wow, supporting mercenaries as patriotism! I guess she would have warned the Hessians at Trenton for Washington’s attack. If Blackwater gets used for strikebreaking like the Pinkertons of old, this woman would probably have an orgasm.
This group is and has been put into place to ensure that the corp. elite will have protection from the masses. Bushies know they would have a hard time using the army to patrol and protect the upper classes and their private interests, but how about a hundred thousand private mercenaries carrying out the needs of this oligarchy class.
Okanogan County (Washington State)rejects a proposed ‘Blackwater’ Facility and other interesting Blackwater news.
www.issuesandalibis.org/campsc.html
Notice in provided Link how some one has tried to overwrite text.
www.bcrevolution.ca/concentration_camps.htm
A KNESAL ………….’Liberal Warrrior’
What is wrong with us?What is wrong with our Congress? Are we to forget what we learned from the past? Do we think it could never happen again?
Think again!
The machine is slowly gaining control of the media, our schools is being infected and brain-washed with a twisted form of patriotism and most lethal of all, “BLACKWATER”!
40,000 trainees a year! Experience in all forms of weapons, training in Civil control and the list goes on. Is this not a threat to our Country? Soon the mind-control and the book-burning will arrive.
I’m old enough to remember how it started in the old days, Black Boots, Flashey Uniforms, an insignia to tie it all together and plenty of Rhetoric, plenty.
Remember Ex-president Nixon, McCarthy, etc. when they had newspapers “PM” and “In-Fact” banned with the excuse that they were Communistic. Now they find it easier to just control the media.
As Sir Waltere Scott wrote in “Ivanhoe”, “And none mourns for it save one solitary old man…”
If we can’t just outlaw this group completely then I think the next best suggestion is to move their compound to Crawford, TX. Bush can wake up every morrning to the sounds of evasive driving noise and the explosions from the various firing ranges. He and Eric can go clear some brush and listen to the sounds and smell the odors of war.
I don’t think the Crawford idea is workable. Didn’t Bush buy a huge ranch in Paraguey? Let’s put ALL of Blackwater and other mercenary training camps down there.
By the way, I heard that Blackwater is redesigning their logo to be kinder and gentler. The big, bad bear claw thing is scaring people.
Oh, and another thing….there are now about 800 detention camps already completed. And most of them are located at rail heads. With big huge parking lots. I guess, like the Germans figured out, you can move a lot more people in box cars.
Hi Rebel Farmer. Where is your source of information on the 800 detention camps and rail heads? Somehow or other we have to get this into Google Earth and post it on Google. That should get people’s attention.
WTF, check out A KNESAL’s post above. His second link lists the camps.
Certainly, dissent is being squelched, however, the marches in which I participated in Sept. in DC, and again in Oct. in SF proceeded with no significant interference by the police. Out of 100,000 people, there were nearly 200 arrests in DC. Don’t know how many, if any, there were in SF. Perhaps march protests are all we have left unless someone comes up with a better plan where we all don’t get arrested and sent to these camps.
By the way, the 98,000 acres Bush just purchased in Paraguay sits atop the largest aquifer in that country. Guess we’ll be hearing about Blackwater training camps down there, but who will protest them then?
That story about the land Bush has in Paraguay is a myth.
We know that is so, because Bush said it was not true.
Hi WTF___ Rebel Farmer is a most informed lady. She is also a wonderful person. Just Google FEMA Prisons and the entire truth is right there, along with the Presidential Directives Bush has now approved ready for the ‘red button’ whenever he decides to push it. ___ Scary.
We know a big guy, a wild ass gun tottin nut, who’s now a cop with Blackwater. We saw him once in town wearing a black T shirt, and the message printed in big white letters on the front of the shirt was,____Eat Shit Or Die Mother Fu##er. Scary, like insane gang members.
PROFFESOR EMERITUS PETE, you suggested the government should declare war on Blackwater.
I don’t think so, they’re the government enforcers. That would be like asking Hitler to declare war on his Brown Shirts or his infamous Gestapo.
It surprises me that nobody talks about Mr. Schmitz, Chief Operations Officer and legal counsel of the Prince Group, the parent company of Blackwater. His wife and Jeb Bush’s wife are sisters. In 1892, Congress passed legislation banning the government employ of the Pinkertons. This is a similar situation only worse. There is good reason for the military to be under the direct control of the government, directly answerable to military regulations. Turning our police forces into military teams who see the civilians they are supposed to protect increasingly as potential terrorists and the enemy is a terrible idea.
America has learned so well from Israel…
Mr. Parks, You have my sympathy. How in hell would any of your neighbors want something like this in the area. Your property value would sink to nothing. Have you tried petitioning the local zoning or other authorities? I would imagine you may have. Then again there will be those who would think what an economic boom for the area, just like so many other places that welcome and desire federal prisons or military bases. Communties have to be desparate to even consider such.
Why Blackwater is allowed to exist is the question. I remember the Davidian group in Waco, Texas who had some arms supply, and look how the US government wiped them out.
Frank Lieb: Bless your soul! (I”m not religious) George Seldes is one of my lifelong heros!
You just made my day!
What is the matter with people????? Are they so shallow that they no longer know right from wrong? The woman said it was matter of patriotism to support Blackwater???? How does she figure it is patriotic to support graft and greed? Yes these people have done a lot for this country…like loot the treasury, give us a terrible name overseas and make a lot of terrorist’s out of innocent Iraqi’s terrorized by them. I guess we should all get down on our knee’s and thank the Great George W Bush for this blight on our society! What is patriotic about a bunch of thugs running wild in the countryside and beating in heads? Unless maybe you have become a fascist! Yes there are a few bad apples in every barrel. But, there seems to be more bad apple’s in this barrel than normal. These thugs are expensive. They cost twice if not three times more than the normal person makes. Is she going to pay for their services? Is the woman ignorant enough she can’t figure out why they helped residence in a fire????? They aren’t in the business to be good guys. They are in it to make a killing financially and at the expense of you and I. The mere presence of mercenary’s has bad connotations attached to it. You are talking about a bunch of macho guys pumped up on testosterone who think all the answers to the world are in the barrel of a gun. I would not want this bunch taking up residence next door to me. I would be one of the ones out there protesting.
PEACE MAKER — I’ve got an answer, but it might be a cure that is worse than the disease (for you?).
Following this link http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/12/30/5534/?jal_edit_comments#comment-148473” target=”_blank”>here, to see my answer to another thread.
Namaste … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … Mahatma Gandhi … … … … … … … … … …
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