Western Contractors kill two Women in Baghdad

In the latest of a series of tragic incidents involving security contractors in Iraq, two Christian Iraqi women were killed in their car as they drove down the streets of Baghdad. It is unclear which company the contractors were working for, but Iraqi Government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh has said that they do not believe Blackwater USA, the company allegedly responsible for the shooting deaths of as many as seventeen Iraqis on September 16, 2007. Blackwater has denied any part in this latest incident.

At the moment details are unclear as to why the guards opened fire on the women, but it is almost certain that the guards belonged to a Western security firm. According to a police officer at a nearby checkpoint, three white gray SUV ’s and one gray one were part of a convoy that had stopped about 100 yards from the Oldsmobile belonging to the women. One of the guards threw a smoke bomb at the Oldsmobile, apparently in an attempt to get the car to stop. The officer said that it looked like the driver attempted to stop, but before she could two of the guards opened fire, riddling the car with bullets and killing the two women. Then the convoy sped away, leaving the clean-up for Iraqi police.

This is yet another example of what is wrong with the unchecked aggression exhibited by security contractors in Iraq, and it only serves to enrage Iraqis: “These are innocent people killed by people who have no heart or consciousness. The Iraqi people have no value to them,” said a man who was part of a group of relatives gathered with a Christian priest at the local police station.

How can you argue with that? It is not hard to sympathize with the man, nor is it hard to see his point. At this moment in time, this act of aggression just seems like murder. It does not seem justifiable in a ny capacity, and since the alleged contractors sped off so quickly, it is unlikely that answers to who did this and why will come anytime soon.

The women were identified as Marou Awanis and Geneva Jalal. Awanis had three daughters who now face the terrible fact of living the rest of their lives without their mother. “May God take revenge on those killers,” Anahet Bougous, Awanis’s sister in law said, asking who would take care of her children.

Undoubtedly, there will be people who recognize that this incident was tragic, but will still try and defend the mission of contractors in Iraq. They will say that these people are needed and essential. Security supporters will say that the guards over there perform vital work and duties and that America will not stand a chance of winning in Iraq if contractors’ roles are reduced. There might even be some people out there who claim that this was not the work of security contractors, but insurgents dressed up as contractors.

There may be some validity to that claim (at least it is worth the proper authorities looking into) but it is too conspiracy theorist for me. In order for insurgents to pull this off they would have had to come across American made armored SUV’s somehow, and while that is possible, I find it unlikely that it would have happened without anyone knowing. Besides that, though; it would not really matter if this was the work of insurgents. Sure, the anti-American sentiment-ism aimed at contractors might be a little misplaced in this case if it was true that insurgents were responsible, but it would not change the fact that these companies need oversight. They need to be regulated. Authorities need to know who is in Iraq, and what they are doing there. Until this happens, the Iraqi people will continue to pay the price with civilian casualties, and America will continue to pay in terms of mistrust by the Iraqi people, and it is only a matter of time before that mistrust turns even more hostile.

If you’ll recall, the siege of Fallujah in 2004 was sparked by the brutal slaying of four Blackwater security contractors. Those men were killed, beheaded, and hung from bridges as a warning to other contractors. A few days later the US military moved into Falluja and began some of the most intense fighting the war had (and has still) seen.

If the US government does not do something to reign in the cowboy contractors, the insurgency will only have more fuel for its fiery rhetoric. Hopefully they will take this tragedy and implement real, purposeful legislation that will make contractors liable and accountable for their illegal actions.

New Radiohead album

I am pretty excited about the new Radiohead album that comes out tomorrow. It is titled In Rainbows, and will only initially be released on their website www.radiohead.com. It is called Rainbows, and the band has truly done something different with how they are selling the album. At its initial release, the album will only be available via download. There is no set price for the album, users who wish to download it can pay whatever they want.

This decision came as the record industry is still having difficulty dealing with the impact digital sales have had on the music industry, albums sales in particular, which have been steadily declining. Studios blame pirates, but I blame high prices. This release is going to be closely watched and scrutinized, and if it is successful look for more and more of your favorite artists to release material exclusively on-line. For those who prefer to hold a physical cd case in their hands, do not worry. Later this year, the band plans to release a special boxed set with all kinds of goodies. It is supposed to retail between thirty and forty dollars (I think) but it should be worth it. Finally, they plan to release a regular priced, standard cd early 2008, which probably means that this on-line sale thing is only, temporary–just a way to gauge how successful this kind of venture can be. For my own part, I hope that it is very successful so more ventures like this can occur.

Heroes season two, episode three: Kindred

All right, so I really liked the first season of NBC’s Heroes (even if the writing did get sloppy toward the end) but I am having a really hard time getting into this season. It seems even more scatterbrained than the first season, and is throwing characters and situations at us like wildfire. There are the South American twins Maya and Alejandro, whose powers seem to work off of each other. They have gotten significant screen time thus far, probably close to thirty minutes (at least) and yet they have gone nowhere. Trying to get to America, they are on the run from the cops and wanted for murder. Each time they get in trouble, Maya’s eyes go black and people die. I might find this story line compelling if the actors weren’t so annoying, and if I felt like they were going to play an important role in the story. I am sure they will, but for now their progress is painstakingly slow, and not very rewarding.

Peter has been hijacked into a gang of Irish thugs (in Ireland) who are interested in money. He does not remember who he is, but the leader of the group has a box, which contains Peter’s license and other personal affects. They promise the box to him if he helps out. Of course he does, even though he has discovered that he can shoot electricity (probably the low emp burst that Ted used in the first season) out of his hands. Soon, he learns that he can read minds, heal, and use the power of telekinesis. The kicker: he doesn’t open the box. Now I know this is in keeping with Peter’s character (especially since he has amnesia), but it is once again a case of the writers of this show drawing things out too much. I am sick of those Irish thugs, and I am sick of all the pouty and whiny acting–this show has always had a bit of melodrama, but this season really ups the ante in the first three episodes.

Speaking of melodrama, that stupid West guy (the one in Claire’s class who can fly) is really getting on my nerves. He is obviously an attempt to put yet another spin on the outsider with powers archetype, and in this case the spin is that this guuy may be a little weird and way creepy (he’s been hanging out at night outside Claire’s house, spying on her) but he’s really not all that bad. Really, he’s just the stereotypical high school male misanthrope, except he can fly. Oh, and he knows Claire’s secret.

The one good thing about this episode is that Sylar finally showed up. Any fan of the show has been waiting for this guy–the master villain from season one–to show up and wreak some havoc. Well, the true havoc will have to wait, but he does return to form quite quickly. It was not enough to make me say I liked this episode, but at least it was something.

Hiro’s story continues to be the only one worth really caring about, and even that one is getting a little long in the tooth. I mean really, how much time do we need to spend with Hiro trying to get his idealized hero to be the hero he idealizes? I know this is a television show and there are twenty one or so more episodes, but thus far things do not bode well for Heroes season two. I know the first season went slow, but at least it felt like things were happening, and there was a true sense of suspense and excitement. I’m still waiting for those things to happen in season two.

And the cameo by Nichelle Nichols was kind of fun too. She plays Micah’s grandmother, and he and Niki travel to New Orleans to find her. Now if they could only get William Shatner and that fat Scottish guy–then this season would truly be epic. 

Episode rating 6/10