Good, some justice for taxpayer-funded mercenaries acting by their own rules in a country we illegally invaded. Maybe sanity is beginning to prevail in this country.

Black water the Terrorist organisation should do time in Guantanamo along with all the other Terrorist's Their. These thugs deserve to be mistreated and abused. Black water Operatives are Terrorists for hire. our Bush Administration is in full support of Terrorisim and Black water is Proof, the U.S. sanctions Terrorist's and their activites.

Blackwater has had it's success during a Republican Admin and guards elected officials. What will Blackwater do when the next President (who will be a Democrat) shatters Blackwater into a thousand pieces and scatters them into the winds? Should para-military companies be allowed to operate in the United States AND guard our elected officials? If we do we will have another Dallas, TX on our hands.

oooh... and a Grand Jury can decide to look deeper into anything they want! I hope they have a yen to look deeper - and wider!

Blackwater has benefitted from this Republican Admin given Ken Starr is Blackwater's Chief Counsel. Blackwater currently provides security to elected/appointed Gov't officials. Now, when the next president is elected and most probably will be a Democrat it could be well expected that president will shatter Blackwater into a thousand pieces and scatter it to the wind. Should this para-military group be allowed to manifest within our borders and be detailed with providing security for our elected officials?

Blackwater has too many Rambo types in their ranks. Shoot first ask questions later. Some are military rejects with some mental issues no doubt.

I've yet to see any proof of wrongdoing by Blackwater. All I can find are MSM accusations and Democrat posturing. Iraq released a video that could support the Blackwater version of events but the MSM ignored it (at least Newsweek mentioned it in passing).

What's worse...is that now Blackwater is expanding into Intel territory..hiring ex-US CIA agents.

Private companies doing Intel?

That should be the sole ability of the United States government!

Corruption abounds....

I will always be thankful to the Blackwater personel who were on the scene right after Katrina. they saved 128 lives.

So what. They'll just lie, the panel will say 'okay' and it will be swept under the carpet like every other "investigation".

For those that dont or cant understand the objective of a PMC. These men rpovide a valuable service and deserve the respect that we are not receiveing. Its starnge how when we need them to operate in adverse conditions and things are goin badly, we love them, when things start getting under control we hate them. We do the same thing to the American Soldier, luv us then hate us. Get it right, know the facts before you make uninformed opinions.

PMCs' have operated for years and will continue to do so until we develop a military that we as tax payers dont complain that they cost too much money to maintain, this is the end result of Poor Planning, gives Poor Results by Dems and Repub... Reality is a hassle man and it is hard for some to understand that we need men and women to stand at the gates or they will be looking over the gates t what was once America....

It seems pretty clear from the previously-reported remarks of "turret gunner No. 3" that this individual was either poorly-trained to discriminate real threats from imagnined ones or else became so frightened at the moment that he lost the ability to make such discrimination. This all leads me to think that hiring armed "security guards" for diplomatic protection scenarios based on either lowest bid price or political cronyism is near the height of stupidity and recklessness. These men - or perhaps just this one man - have done immense and irreparable harm to the diplomatic interests of the United States - not merely in Iraq but indeed WORLDWIDE. The administration which hired this company bears direct responsibility for ALL of this damage, as well as for other damage caused by its adventurous policies.

Oversight is a must but subpoena's for blackwater employees based on speculation and grandeur with no concrete evidence is a joke.

This is WAR which means everyone is nervous on the job. You go to do what you got to do or die! You play by the rules? There's not rule on ground zero! Do or die brother! America use private army,which means it is private and not government. Private do not work like government,please!Government have no right to put Blackwater on trial,they can only fire them if you do not like their service. Business is business.Politic is politic.Please do not mix them up.Blackwater staff bottom like is stay alive and money not politic

Doc, That's what Grand Jurys and subpeonas are for, to find the evidence. You can't whine when you put the cart before the horse. It's reasoning like these keeps people from Impeaching Bush. The Dems won't try and Impeach him because they don't have the votes. If every jury was picked for their vote before the hearing why have a court ? They are afraid to impeach a "War President", yet Bush is the one that caused the War, Orwellian ain't ?

The republicans did not need concrete evidence too invade a sovereign nation. why now. excuse me but I think 17 dead civilians, is evidence enough

SHOOT FIRST, PLANT WEAPONS, DESTROY EVIDENCE, SWEEP QUESTIONS UNDER THE RUG LATER.

Congress should outlaw the rising, and maintaining, of private armies on U.S. soil. Period.

When do you think that Bush will issue the Pardons?

pardons for what? they are above the law so no problemo, senor y senoras...case closed...next

I find it interesting, at best, after reading most of the opinions posted from an article of which I think is still not giving the full story. Having served more than 42 months in Iraq, I can say without hesitation or regard for most of your pitiful, disdainful, judgmental souls...until you have walked a mile in our boots, don't pretend to sit in at your computer, reading your nice little blog, sipping your latte that you know for one second that you could differentiate between friend or foe. Or for that matter, withstand the average daily temperatures in August of 130+ while wearing anywhere between 60-80lbs of gear. Do the contractors get paid better? Absoulutely they do, but they are still putting thier bacon on the line just like everyone else.
Regarding some of the comments...let's set the ill informed straight shall we: OneCrankyDem...you make me laugh, evidence, how about you look into my medical record where you will find that on 28JUL2003 I was exposed to ANTHRAX while in Iraq. Nice try cranky. Next: Marinescallmedoc...I hear ya..HOORAAHH! NEXT: George Gamble, ...I am not sure if you have ever heard a shot fired in anger, or if you have seen the pictures there ...but thier vehicle was disabled due to being shot up...oh and there were the bullet holes in the vehicle! NEXT: this was by Dr. Scott

Blackwater has too many Rambo types in their ranks. Shoot first ask questions later. Some are military rejects with some mental issues no doubt. . First, Rambo was fictional.... Military rejects? Hmmmmmm....I think you should actually check your facts before you start mud-slinging, as I am under the impression there isn't a single person with less than an honorable discharge. I would love to see you walk into a recruiter's office and sign up...even for two years.

Mongo, it sure sounds tough to be living in the Green Zone making 30X more than an American soldier to make occasional security runs ... can't really tell if you are bragging or complaining...do private Rambos suffer PTD for shooting up civilians? haven't read about desertions or suicides among the upper crust of the war machine so the big bucks must make quite a difference in how one faces up to the immorality of killing innocent people.

A grand jury investigation of Blackwater sounds yummy but I wonder who will be presenting the evidence against thse killers...Scooter Libby?

I would love to know how many of these accusitory emailers have ever served their country in any form while in combat? We would probably find that less than 10% have actually served under fire. If you haven't been there you have no idea what it is like, and it is always so much easier to make a decision when you can look at video, maps of the event and talk to witnesses that all have different stories, once you have all that information you people then decide whether to fire or not. It doesn't work that way, you have less than seconds to make a decision, them or my friends and I, and sometimes you make a wrong decision. And then you have to contend with the armchair quarterbacks nice and safe in front of their computer at home with the doors locked, the windows barred, and the burgler alarm turned. I haven't served in a private military org, or the US Forces, but I did serve in the British Forces. If we relied on hindsight and armchair quarterbacking every soldier would be dead.

"Rules of Engagement" Its time we did more than punish wrongs in this Nation..We need an overhaul of many of our warlike terror that depicts wrongs on both sides of the fences...The saying has always been "two wrongs don't make a right" War is causing one to become a sceptic of who and what we engage ourselves to do by the most powerful Law Makers of this Nation for National Defense...Seperate all the Women and Children and let the men go at it...For the children are used blindly and not so blindly...the women are used the same...What is left...Apachecheynne

What amount of money is this company getting for "government contracts" & why are they better armed than our own men/women? how much kick back did the person giving them the contract get? Is Haliburton & Blackwater contracts so high that USA cannot take care of returning vets including the appalling conditions of Walter Reed? Why does the Pres & Congress try & act so patriotic when their actions speak far louder than sweet words; like the amount of suicides amongst vets & the homelessness of so many vets. Why were the military bases which closed not used for vets care & vets homes? i really & truly would like some answers!