Job opportunitie$ in Iraq.

[Zoltri]

Thousands of the private-sector jobs in Iraq are for contracts to provide security, serving as bodyguards and protecting buildings. These jobs are for a limited time paying anywhere from $10000 to $25000/month all expenses paid. Many of these jobs do not require previous experience.

LINK (http://www.house.gov/schakowsky/Interview_5_3_04_NPR_Contractors.html)
Talk about danger pay...I'm not sure I could do it.

[Beerfund]

There's thousands of civilians working in Iraq, It's really not as dangerous as you might think. I would do it.......if I was poor.

[jakethebake]

[ QUOTE ]
It's really not as dangerous as you might think. I would do it.......if I was poor.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yes it is. I have a good friend that did this for a couple of years. He was a former Recon Marine and worked as a "security consultant" (euphymism). But he was probably not doing the things you're talking about. He was running guns to certain factions and other stuff we're not supposed to be doing. Dangerous as hell. And a lotta people getting killed.

He also worked as a security guard at the Bagdad Airport for awhile and said there were armed thugs wandering around raping and killing Iraqi civilians, and all they could do was watch through the fence.

[Beerfund]

[ QUOTE ]
He also worked as a security guard at the Bagdad Airport for awhile and said there were armed thugs wandering around raping and killing Iraqi civilians, and all they could do was watch through the fence.


[/ QUOTE ]

You can thank Sadams punkass for this, but it's pretty much true. The security jobs Americans have there are only to protect the people they are hired by and not Iraqi civilians. I read an article about two bodyguards working for a construction company that stopped a group of thugs from robbing 2 old men and they were fired for it, I'll try to find to it but it was along time ago.

[Shajen]

Wonder if they all still drive Chevy Caprices still.

[Zoltri]

Another perk is if you decide to stay at least one year the first $80000 is tax free.

[xadrez]

Wonderful!
So my tax dollars are being used to provide hired goons in Iraq?

Why arent soldiers doing these jobs? I dont get it.

[Beerfund]

[ QUOTE ]
Wonderful!
So my tax dollars are being used to provide hired goons in Iraq?

Why arent soldiers doing these jobs? I dont get it.

[/ QUOTE ]

First of all, they are doing these jobs but there are only so many of them and you can only ask so much of them. Second, only a small % of soldiers are trained in this specific field. Most are trained in speciality fields and allthough every soldiers' primary job is an infrantryman most wouldn't be able to perform at the level needed to provide proper security. Do you know how much soldiers make? It's nowhere near what it should be to do these jobs.

[Paluka]

Do they have wireless internet and 1600x1200 resolution?

[xadrez]

[ QUOTE ]
Many of these jobs do not require previous experience

[/ QUOTE ]

[ QUOTE ]
First of all, they are doing these jobs but there are only so many of them and you can only ask so much of them. Second, only a small % of soldiers are trained in this specific field. Most are trained in speciality fields and allthough every soldiers' primary job is an infrantryman most wouldn't be able to perform at the level needed to provide proper security. Do you know how much soldiers make? It's nowhere near what it should be to do these jobs.

[/ QUOTE ]

The OP made it clear ANYBODY off the street can get one of these jobs. I find it hard to believe me or any other moron flying over there is as good as or better at guarding things with a gun than a soldier...

Paying someone to go to Iraq who has been trained specifically for a certain duty is fine...

Paying a coach potato to go over there and guard something for 100,000 grand when soldiers get payed next to nothing is criminal.

[jakethebake]

[ QUOTE ]
The OP made it clear ANYBODY off the street can get one of these jobs... Paying a coach potato to go over there and guard something for 100,000 grand when soldiers get payed next to nothing is criminal.

[/ QUOTE ]

That's pretty much what they're doing. My buddy quit the first contractor he hired on with over there because he said a lot of the people they hired barely knew which end of the rifle was which. He said he afraid some of these idiots were going to kill each other.

He finally had some boss tell him they were with his company on Okinawa when he was there so he knew the guy was full of [censored]. That's when he hired on to do "consulting" work for a different group that was pretty much all ex-special ops guys.

He back now is doing some consulting and training stuff for the govt and contractors that are going over there.

[Guthrie]

The soldiers aren't getting paid next to nothing. I read that the female cook was was captured along with the blonde girl was making $48,000 a year, and she had been in less than three years. That's a long way from the $78 a month I got.

At any rate, they hire civilians because it's cheaper than soldiers after they factor in recruiting, training, support, benefits, etc. Just as importantly, it's easier for Congress to throw millions of tax dollars at a few thousand civilians willing to work in a war zone for big bucks than it is to authorize expansion of the Army, or reinstating the draft.

[jakethebake]

[ QUOTE ]
The soldiers aren't getting paid next to nothing. I read that the female cook was was captured along with the blonde girl was making $48,000 a year, and she had been in less than three years. That's a long way from the $78 a month I got.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm guessing that $48K included benefits. We used to get a silly statement of compensation every year that said we earned some ridiculous amount when my paycheck said like $14K a year.

[Shajen]

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That's a long way from the $78 a month I got.

[/ QUOTE ]

As Jake mentioned, that includes all the B.S. benefits they throw in, like housing, medical, etc.

It's come a decent way, but not nearly far enough.

$78 a month? You are probably the oldest poster here.

[xadrez]

Its definately not 80,000 G's Tax-free!

[lu_hawk]

a friend of mine was in iraq for a year working as a contractor and just got back last month. he is a computer engineer, i think he was basically doing IT work on a base near fallujah. i believe he cleared about 150k-180k while there, he said he would not go back if they offered him $1mm.

[housenuts]

i'm gonna look into this further

[housenuts]

that blasted link isn't working though.