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Mercenary King Eric Prince Resigns as Blackwater CEO
The company formerly known as Blackwater continues its mission to bury its tarnished reputation and soldier on. Early this morning, Blackwater founder Erik Prince released a brief statement announcing he is stepping down as CEO of the infamous mercenary firm he started in 1997. A press release from the company -- which last month renamed itself "Xe" -- said Prince "will now focus his efforts on a private equity venture unrelated to the company."
In a personal message sent to his employees and clients, Prince sought to cast his departure as a natural part of the firm's ongoing evolution. "As many of you know, because we focus on continually improving our business that Xe is in the process of a comprehensive restructuring," he wrote. "It is with pride in our many accomplishments and confidence in Xe's future that I announce my resignation as the company's Chief Executive Officer."
Prince's resignation could be seen as a public formality in what has been a dramatic attempt to scrub all public vestiges of Blackwater, given that he remains chairman and sole owner of the network of companies now operating under the Xe umbrella. But it's clear the firm has been thrown into turmoil in recent months. As the Xe statement says, "These appointments follow the addition and departures of several other key personnel. Recent departures from the company include its former Vice Chairman, Chief Operating Officer, President, and Executive Vice President." Joseph Yorio, an ex-Army Special Forces officer and former Vice President of the international shipping company DHL was announced as the new Xe president -- a somewhat humorous development, given Prince's fondness for describing Blackwater as the "FedEx of the U.S. national security apparatus." Meanwhile, Danielle Esposito, a longtime Blackwater employee, was named Xe's new Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President.
The rebranding of Blackwater and its attempts to hide its former self have been downright crude. The company's domestic training centers, which some refer to as private military bases, are now simply labeled "U.S. Training Center." Gone is the sexy black-and-red logo featuring a bear paw in a sniper-scope; it has been replaced by a nondescript, rather amateurish sketch of an American Eagle. The company website has been revamped and scaled down.
One thing that does remain is the Blackwater ProShop, where you can still purchase items ranging from all the ammunition and tactical gear you would need for your own private war, to the ever-popular Blackwater teddy bear. There is currently a blow-out sale in Blackwater baby onesies, which have been reduced from $18 to $10. Toddler polos have also had their ticket price slashed.
Blackwater's new name and Prince's resignation come following the State Department's recent announcement that it would not be renewing Blackwater's security contract in Iraq. Some have speculated that many of its operatives may be rehired by the State Department through other companies or the Department itself. Moreover, Blackwater still holds lucrative government contracts in Afghanistan and elsewhere and is marketing "CIA-type services" to Fortune 1000 companies through Prince's Total Intelligence Solutions. And a 184-foot vessel operated by the company (named the MacArthur) is reportedly heading for the Gulf of Aden to fight pirates. Nevertheless, some see the recent developments as Blackwater's funeral.
Still, the company clearly remains concerned with activist campaigns against the "new" company and is taking the necessary precautions. In April 2008, almost a year before "Xe" was officially launched, Blackwater bought the URLs xewatch.com, .org and .net. But activists who have mobilized against Blackwater have launched a rebranding campaign of their own. While Blackwater beat them in the URL game, the folks at BlackwaterWatch.net -- whose homepage currently reads: "DON'T BE FOOLED -- XE IS Blackwater!" -- recently reaffirmed their activism, sending out an e-mail saying:
"Xe Watch (formerly Blackwater Watch) was formed in 2007 as a spin-off of North Carolina Stop Torture Now. Headquartered in Blackwater's home state of North Carolina, Xe Watch seeks to shine a light on Blackwater USA specifically, and private armies/mercenaries generally, with respect to their human rights violations, absence of accountability and their profiteering at the expense of, and lobbying for, war and conflict. Xe Watch represents a growing contingent of concerned individuals and groups including, but not limited to, human rights and peace activists, people of faith, civil libertarians, and veterans. We are in solidarity with the people in San Diego, California, Mount Carroll, Illinois and Coeur d' Alene, Idaho who are fighting Xe's mercurial growth and expansion."
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12 Comments so far
Show AllJust like the shrub...creates chaos ...and walks away unscathed and seemingly oblivious to the damage he has caused and lives he has destroyed.
laughing all the way to the bank.
The rebranding of Blackwater the corporation (and Erik Prince's resignation to focus his talents upon the wonderful world of an "unrelated private equity venture" in the current economic climate) illustrates how corporatism can sometimes work its chameleon-like magic to get everybody out of town just one step ahead of the law.
And I wonder who's paying the tab for that 184 foot privateer vessel which is now "reportedly heading for the Gulf of Aden to fight pirates."
Did Congress authorize the mission? Some other federal governmental entity? A foreign government or governments? The international shipping industry? Big maritime insurance carriers or underwriters?
I mean, who actually does define the difference between a pirate vessel and a non-pirate vessel on the 21st Century's high seas anyway?
Bill from Saginaw
Good points! I was wondering if he gets off the hook in any way (as though he was on one...)
God bless Jeremy S.!!!!! He is a treasure.
It must not go unremarked upon that this is the second Prince to change his original trademark name to something unpronounceable.
· Yr Obd't Servant
http://blackwaterwatch.net/take_action.htm
Petitions and letter writing on issues pertaining to the above.
Thanks, Jeremy, for exposing these weasels for what they truly are... mercenary butchers who have no right to call themselves Americans!
Peace
Blackwater occupies the top spot in the list of the very worst things that America has to offer the world, in concept and in practice.
The Afghanistan contract is likely the most lucrative. Several years global supply of opium have been stockpiled over the last few years. One reason Obama will go into Afghanistan big time is to shut down the opium production. The stockpiled opium will increase in price dramatically, allowing huge profits from the stockpiled opium. That drug money will then be used to buy US securities and fund our bail outs to the banksters. Thats my guess anyways.
The drug trade today is likely 1 trillion dollars, and some of these drugs like Marijuana might be legalized in the not too distant future, and you know this newly legal trade will be well controlled and regulated. Cannabis cultivation in Afghanistan has risen dramatically in the last few years and could replace opium production if Marijuana becomes legal
http://www.larouchepub.com/other/2009/3608dope_inc.html
I see some fine enough posts in this CD page and it looks like Prince is just going through marketing, publicity, ..., nothing credible enough to be really significant. It's noteworthy, for it doesn't hurt to record how thieves, murderers, liars, ... operate, but that's about the only way that the present actions of Prince et alia are significant.
People among the worst enemies of humanity going after some "pirates", eh? It's a fine point for Bill of Saginaw to have mentioned from the article. After all, what Prince is again doing in this is illustrating that he's a complete hypocrite, hegemon, enemy of humanity, because between a worse and a leser pirate, I'd take the lesser, and that is just beyond his capabilities; to reduce his criminal nature is beyond him.
Good thing he isn't U.S. president!
Following is a video by BraveNewFilms.org, which is of or associated with Robert Greenwald.
"Blackwater, America's Private Army" (5:54), posted by BNF Sep. 1 2006
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJUEULWEP9c
Prince and BW aren't changing, except for purpose of apparence. People and cies this viciously wicked or evil just don't go about converting to goodness ... except when it's due to miraculous conversion and this definitely hasn't happened in his case. He's still the racist, blood-cult, ... individual he was before, when BW was called BW, and so on. Nothing's really changed; except for the apparence he wants the world to be fooled by. And based on Jeremy Scahill's article, this new apparence Prince is trying to give is only partial, instead of comprehensive, for he still remains chair of the ownership, etcetera. See the above video and realise that neither he nor his enterprises have really converted to goodness, good will, .... People of such wicked kind just don't go around becoming humane, etcetera; they will, however, use such apparence for sake of profit and strategy, but not for reasons of [good will].
focus his efforts-that would be $$$ paid to him by the US taxpayers-on a PRIVATE equity venture. Sweet.
Anything remotely bad happening to cold-hearted mass-killers such as Eric Prince, the loathsome Dimbulb, the cruel, heartless Darth Vader, the Josef Mengele-like, grandfatherly personification of evil known as Rummy-
these ruthless crooks shamelessly coddled and nurtured by a very large number of inhuman robots in this nation, and further aided by the likes of Pelosi, Feinstein and Reid- anything bad ever happening to such unrepentant criminals, would, in a sane and even partially fair world, be great cause for celebration. As would be similar accountability for the hate-parade that just unfolded under the Klan-lite disguise known as CPAC.