by Paul Gessing

Let’s be clear here. I opposed the Iraq War from the very beginning and, if it were my decision, I’d bring the troops home right away. That said, I think the ongoing controversy over the presence of Blackwater and other private security firms in Iraq has been vastly overblown by the left and those who oppose the Iraq War. In fact, I believe and will argue that the so-called “contracting out” of this and future wars will actually further efforts to prevent future, large-scale military conflicts.

Yes, there is no question that Blackwater should not be exempt from the laws of engagement that govern US troops and that is now being remedied in Congress. That relatively objection to Blackwater’s mission aside, I believe that a privately-contracted military more closely adheres to the Founders’ vision for the US military than the massive, government run military establishment now in place.

In fact, the Founders explicitly allowed for private military-style efforts in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution when they provided for “letters of marque and reprisal.” This is a tool which enables the federal government the ability to reward individuals or groups to organize their own, private military expeditions to carry out the government’s interest.

Obviously, while Blackwater is a private company, at least to the extent that government contractors are really private, its employees in Iraq by and large still take their orders from the military. That said, I still think the rise of Blackwater and other private military firms is positive.

For starters, private insurance companies are not as sympathetic as traditional military. This may be a negative to some, but it would seem that too many Americans are unwilling or unable to separate “the troops” from the military’s overall mission. No group of people in this country is more sympathetic and idealized than the troops. Never is this truer than during wartime.

Unfortunately, lionization of the troops has become a means for President Bush and our nation’s military leaders to wrap both themselves and their policies – no matter how misguided – in the American flag. Contracting out more of the fighting for this and other wars would make those fighting the war far less sympathetic – more mercenary than all-American icon – thus enabling average Americans to separate “supporting the troops” from misguided foreign policies.

Of course, the pro-Blackwater argument goes far beyond sympathy. There is a genuine free-market component as well. Unlike US troops who are paid far below market wages – the average soldier makes less than the average private sector American makes, or about $39,000 annually – Blackwater employees earn market wages of $100,000 or more depending on the danger level where they are working.

Milton Friedman justifiably opposed and succeeded in ending the military draft in part because it represented an economic “taking” on the part of government from individual Americans. While today’s military are volunteers, many of them do so out of a patriotic feeling that is all-too-often taken advantage of by our political leaders. This is inevitable and is one of the reasons politicians spend so much time honoring the troops and propagandizing the public about the many accomplishments of the US military. In essence, this cheap labor is a subsidy for the military.

If private contractors operating in a free market formed a larger part of the fighting force, the government would have to pay higher wages and account for those additional costs. The end of this more-or-less voluntary transfer from the troops to the military is one of the greatest benefits of a shift to firms like Blackwater.

Certainly, Blackwater and other private contractors should be held to the same legal standards (if not stricter ones) than US troops serving in conflict zones. That said, I believe that antiwar advocates are throwing the proverbial baby out with the bathwater by opposing this type of contracting. Understanding the costs and benefits not to mention the political nature of war might give opponents of an interventionist foreign policy pause.

Bush’s war may be wrong, but some aspects are more worthy of outrage than others. Attack the policies, not the troops (or the use of contractors).

Paul Gessing is a senior editor for The Free Liberal.