Licensed to Kill: Hired Guns in the War on Terror

The world has changed in many ways since 9/11, and Robert Young Pelton's "Licensed to Kill" provides a good background on the history,current practices and a possible future direction for the Private Security forces which blossomed in response to those attacks. First off, the book is a very enjoyable read; much of it moves like a military thriller novel, as Mr. Pelton keeps the reader's interest piqued throughout. Lots of irony and some pretty humorous observations, too. From a U.S. perspective, the history of private contractors-for-hire goes back to to the Vietnam War, and characters such as the legendary Billy Waugh are covered in great detail. As someone who has been interested in macro-scale military and intelligence matters - how pieces are moved around the global chessboard - I came away with a much better understanding of the circumstances drives companies such as Triple Canopy, Hart, Executive Outcomes and, of course, Blackwater.And that understanding is precisely which disturbs me. We all know the way the world works - large corporations and sovereign governments push towards their objectives, often bumping up against, or even crossing the line of legality. Quite often, it is with the best of intentions that a Private Security Force is employed, but the murky rules which govern these quasi-official fighting forces are often not applied and things can go sideways. One such incident involving Equatorial Guinea, is covered in great detail towards the end of the book.It's a fact that a for-profit company is more agile and efficient than a large government. Companies such as those I've listed above provide critical support and logistical services for our armed forces. But, it's evident in the book that people such as Erik Prince - the owner of Blackwater - begin to engage in mission-creep. And that's what frightens me. Read the book to learn the details, but it's evident that these for-hire security forces can be used to destabilize or topple weak governments. I can envision a time where one security force could engage in conflict with another. If dictatorial governments, or well-funded resistance movements/governments-in-exile can go shopping for an army (albeit a small army), the stability of a country or a region is threatened, and that instability could be at odds with official US policy. I do not trust Mr Prince and his connections to the Trump administration concern me; his sister is Betsy DeVos, the current Secretary of Education and advocate for the betterment of our children - Not!I understand that Special Forces members are highly-skilled in practices which do them absolutely no good in the civilian world, and, to remain gainfully employed, they frequently choose the career-path of enlisting in a (dare I say it) mercenary force. The work pays pretty well, but I worry about these men and women. Are Blackwater, Hart, et al providing psychological counseling to their employees (aka, independent contractors)? They are not. In fact, all these companies do provide is basic life insurance coverage. What happens to these contractors after they get too old (if they survive at all) to stay in the game? And what happens to their families? And, something just feels wrong about U.S. taxpayers footing the bill for the expensive training that SFOs receive, only to have those very skills sold back to the taxpayers for a 5-or-10-fold increase in cost? It's really no different than ex-Navy Seal Ryan Zinke serving on the board of an oil-pipeline company and then moving on to become Secretary of the Interior. So, from a philosophical perspective, I am somewhat opposed to the idea of Private Security forces, but I understand that they fill a need. I'm conflicted because their purpose can morph from defense, escort and security duties to become an offensive force.In reading Licensed to Kill, I am somewhat reminded of William Gibson's earlier speculative fiction, in which large multi-national corporations, known as zaibatsu, jockeyed for dominance using their own cyber- and police-forces. In this world, it seemed like governments weren't really in charge anymore, and that corporate hegemony was the new norm. By simple extrapolation, just how far are we from this happening in the real world? And what would stop a rogue President from employing such a security force to achieve a goal which might not be possible to achieve under normal circumstances?I highly recommend listening to Mr. Pelton on various podcasts, Coast to Coast AM among them; his is a unique global perspective which can inform and educate a largely insular American culture. And I highly recommend that you read, "Licensed to Kill. "

Given the growth of the private military industry, this book provides a useful snapshot of the field at this point in time - its widespread use in Afghanistan and Iraq, the positives and negatives of using private contractors vice uniformed military, the history of the smaller scale industry in Africa and places like New Guinea. So it's a worthwhile read for those interested in the history of the industry, a foreshadowing of the major issues the industry would pose for the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq.I had two slight dings against this book:1) It's bit too rock and roll bang bang for my tastes. Lots of traveling around with contractors on the ground spouting war zone cliches reminiscent of the worst scenes in Full Metal Jacket in the midst of utter chaos - just gets tiresome. I enjoyed Pelton's earlier work - The World's Most Dangerous Places guides; The Hunter, The Hammer, and Heaven; and Come Back Alive - much better, as they were the appropriate mix of travel writer and world observer on the political-military situation in these dangerous countries few could visit. Those other books are great reads for those looking for some adventure travel writing.2) I feel that P.W. Singer's Corporate Warriors - which came out about the same time - was the better take on the private military industry. It's more academically rigorous, has a well done history of the industry and the pros/cons, and largely forgoes the on the ground color commentary. Worth buying if you're interested.

In Licensed to Kill, Robert Young Pelton provides entertaining insights into the dramatic increase in America's use of private contractors in war zones. However, his treatment of this trend, based largely on his personal encounters with, or case studies of individual contractors, gives readers a "small picture" impression of the considersable risks and drawbacks of this important shift in policy.Pelton disappoints me when he contrasts the findings of a study conducted by the Government Accountability Office, which found "possible overbilling" by Brown and Root, with a study by the Logistics Management Institute, which concluded that B&R had provided services far less expensively than the military would have.Pelton provides the findings of the LMI study without explaining what LMI is. He omits the fact that the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of LMI, Charles J. DiBona, has served on the board of Halliburton. LMI is certainly not an objective source for information about the performance of B&R. Nevertheless, Pelton presents LMI's conclusions as if LMI should be regarded as impartial, disinterested or neutral evaluators.Pelton's assertion that "the dominant view in military circles is that the privatization of support services is cost-effective," cites no source, and is certainly not the impression that readers get from his account of the subcontracting that occured in the case of the Blackwater guards killed in Fallujah.In this sense, Pelton's book feels disjointed. His assertions don't jive or cohere with the facts that he presents. His book contains contradictions which he fails to examine. Sadly, Pelton cites no sources and provides no bibliography.For well-researched and thoroughly substantiated studies which provide a "big picture" impression of this issue, I strongly recommend Eina Rasor and Robert Bauman's  Betraying Our Troops: The Destructive Results of Privatizing War , or Jeremy Scahill's  Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army [Revised and Updated ]

The role of Private Security Contractors (to their friends) and mercenaries (to their enemies) in the Afghan and Iraqi operations of the 'War of terror' is a complex and controversial one, and Robert Young Pelton gives us a timely and unjudgemental piece of reportage on them in this book. Private companies such as Aegis and Blackwater contracted by governments and corporations to provide security where regular troops and armies are unavailable are having a huge influence upon modern warfare and it is often difficult to find unbiased reportage on their actions and motivations. Pelton spends the first half of this book drawing upon first-hand experience of travelling and living with the contractors in both Afghanistan and Iraq and gives an unblinking view of a world which is inhabited by everyone from honourable ex-servicemen to money-hungry mercenaries to killers and a swathe of people in between. Showing both the positive (bravery and a desire to make the world a better place) and the negative (the killing of civilians and corruption are not glossed over) this is a book which allows the reader to make up their own mind on the role of these new organisations in modern warfare. The second half of the book looks at the growth of the Private Military Company industry from the early days of Sandline and Executive Outcomes in Africa and how these companies can go wrong, as happened in Bougainville and Equatorial Ginuea.Pelton is an engaging author who must be possessed of remarkable personal charisma to get access to the places and information he does. Whilst he goes over a lot of the same territory covered in both The Worlds Most Dangerous Places and Three Worlds Gone Mad, Licensed to Kill is an excellent read and resource for anyone interested in what is happening in some of the darker corners of Modern Warfare, and a possible look into the future of global conflict.

I used this book to help me write a mini-dissertation on the use of Private Military Companies (PMCs) and the consequence of this for the foreign policies of different countries.It is written in a way that would be unpalatable for many academics, but this (for me, at least) is no shortcoming. Many academics, such as D Avant and P Singer, have written extensively on this subject but their works can be criticised for typical academic 'ivory tower' syndrome. Robert Pelton however has been out on the ground, in often dangerous environments, gaining valuable interviews from many colourful characters. Combined with a engaging writing style, this book is both readable and educating.I'd recommend this book for anyone with a passing interest in PMCs, although for students/academics I'd say it is best used alongside works such as those by Avant and Singer in order to set the context within the academic debate. Also since the publication of this book, PMCs have evolved into a very different beast from what they were at the immediate aftermath of the invasion of Iraq - therefore the picture it paints is a little out of date.

A superb account of the modern soldier for hire. This book gives a great overview of the different elements that make up the 'privateer' chain. From the highly trained frontline men to the movers and shakers of this highly profitable enterprise.Pelton gives the reader the uncommon view of the industry by actually riding alongside and embedding with a Blackwater group that runs the BIAP route (Baghdad International Air Port), commonly regarded as the most dangerous stretch of tarmac on the planet. Rather than most accounts, of this often clandestine world, which are written by people removed from the actual events Pelton speaks directly to the guys on the ground. By 'getting it from the horses mouth' we get a real sense of what these guys feel they are a part of, and what really motivates them to re-use their skills in the private arena.Although it would have been much more complete if there had been other opinions thrown in. That of the people who they are protecting 'the principle', or NGO's (Non-Governmental Organizations). Concerning the event in Equatorial Guinea I would have liked a sense of what the feeling was on the ground for the people there. Would the coup have been well recieved or would it have been a forced re-constitution, that side of the book, I felt, was lacking.One small niggle I had with his writing style is the over use of abbreviations. Its sometimes felt like reading a intelligence briefing and really destroyed the flow of reading for me. I'm quite happy to read the word in full thanks.A recommended read in general, a must for anyone interested in the unreported world of privately hired soldiers.

Nothing special about the book

Good read