PMC / Mercenaries in Iraq (catch all)

[Old Eagle]

I'm all about having somebody else clean my boots and gear -- just haven't figured out how to accomplish it. Note to Stan -- asking the wife to do it doesn't work.

I am not against hiring qualified personnel to perform noncombat functions. My point is that when you do, you hold their feet to the fire over standards.

As I mentioned earlier, the companies they work for are getting rich, even with "low bid" contracts. So scream, bitch, file reports until those guys get the message and tighten up their operations. The companies' going in position is that they will do the minimum to get by. To them, no news (no complaint) is good news. Forced into compliance, they will have to hire more first line supervisors, provide better training, etc. All that cuts into the bottom line, and they absolutely won't do it out of some goodness of their hearts syndrome.

[Penta]

I take Stan's point.

Old Eagle: It's a -shame- all of the PMCs are privately-held. It'd be...interesting to see just what the net margin is on these contracts.

[SteveO]

All PMCs are not privately held. DynCorp, which is fighting a private war for the USG/State Dept in Colombia, is traded on the NYSE. Stock has done well, even with the current downturn.

http://www.dyn-intl.com/

[Stan]

I'm all about having somebody else clean my boots and gear -- just haven't figured out how to accomplish it. Note to Stan -- asking the wife to do it doesn't work.

OMG, is that why I went through three (wives) so quickly ? Hey, it's in the contract, man