THIS CRUSADER FOR HIRE

As Bush pushes his disastrous doctrine of surge and sacrifice, aeswiren sent over this chilling piece from Alternet that reveals just how many private security mercs and hired guns are on the loose in Iraq and, spookier still, their close ties with the religious right and how they might me used domestically if the circumstances could be created. Here’s a sample…

“If the United States falls into a period of instability caused by another catastrophic terrorist attack, an economic meltdown or a series of environmental disasters, these paramilitary forces, protected and assisted by fellow ideologues in the police and military, could swiftly abolish what is left of our eroding democracy. War, with the huge profits it hands to businesses and right-wing interests that often help bankroll the Christian right, could become a permanent condition. And the thugs with automatic weapons, black uniforms and wraparound sunglasses who appeared on street corners in Baghdad and New Orleans could appear on streets across the U.S. Such a presence could paralyze us with fear, leaving us unable to question or protest the closed system and secrecy of an emergent totalitarian state and unable to voice dissent.”

And hit Alternet for the rest of the story...

The secret word is Wackenhut

CRYPTIQUE -- Thank god for Ted Kennedy