Blackwater USA is a military for-profit corporation

Blackwater USA is a military for-profit corporation that has contracts with the United States government to provide a vast array of services in Iraq and Afghanistan that range from personnel protection, transportation services, securing fix assets, interrogation
, and intelligence collection. The company was formed in 1997 and has undergone two name changes. In 2009, the company was renamed Xe Services. In 2011, the company was renamed Academi, which is its name to date. The Balckwater USA (currently Academi) provides services to the federal government on a contractual basis. The companys head offices are located in Mc Lean, Virginia. During the ongoing war on terror, the company has secured more than one billion dollars worth of contracts that range from routine operations in a war zone to assassination contracts with the CIA. Many of the private contractors do their job within the expected norms in a warzone; however, Blackwater USA is infamous for violent incidents that not only harm civilian, but also U.S. national interest.
Blackwater USA
Erik Price founded the Blackwater USA with the initial purpose of providing military training top security personnel and civilians in the United States. When the country invaded Iraq in 2003, the company positioned itself to provide security to personnel in government agencies operating in Iraq. Part of its services in Iraq is transporting government officials and other key personnel within the country. In 2007, the company was responsible for securing a diplomatic convoy that was travelling through the Iraqi city of Baghdad. As the motorcade was travelling through the city, Blackwater USA employees opened fire on a crowd in the streets without provocation killing 17 people and injuring two dozens. The Uniform Code of Military Justice holds the United States soldiers accountable, contractors under the Department of Defense (DoD) are held accountable under the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act. However, most of the contracts awarded to Blackwater USA are through the State Department, which has no mechanism of holding contractors accountable when they commit violent crimes and abuses (Dunning 10).
The inhumane use of violent force against Iraq citizens during this incident became known as the Nisour Square Incident because the events occurred in Nisour square Baghdad. This event was one of the most violent and widely reported incidents involving Blackwater USA personnel; however, the event is not isolated. Between 2005 and 2007, the companys employees fired their weapons at least 323 times, an average of twice per week. During the same period, the company inflicted 62 deaths and 86 serious injuries. A comprehensive analysis of the companys personnel tactical behavior reveals an emphasis on military behavior in which personal initiative is encouraged (Tiefer 754). These encourage the proactive use of force with tremendous violence when the personnel perceive a treat, be it real or imaginary. The employees are motivated to engage a perceived threat at greater distance, with lethal force and less certainty. These actions lead to the death and injury of innocent citizens (Ferrell, Fraedrich, & Ferrell 45).
Cultural theories of military behavior consider a forces culture as central to the outcome of an armed conflict. The culture of a force determines the weapons and strategies it decides to employ in different situations. Blackwater USA employed significantly more violence that other private contractors despite operating in the same hostile environment. The company maintained a culture of impunity throughout the period that encourages personnel to shoot first and ask questions later if ever. This was the product of a dangerous cowboy culture fostered and encouraged by the company through training and a set atmosphere in the field that not only permit such behavior, but also encourages it. The company did not have stringent disciplinary measures for lawbreakers and granted the personnel excessive autonomy during security operations. The companys personnel operated without any external control. However, given that most of the employees in the company are former military personnel in western forces, it is unlikely that the former soldiers would act with impunity without an external catalyst (Dunning 2).
The actions of Blackwater USA personnel had desired and undesired outcome for the firm. The tendency of the companys personnel to fire at perceived threat at great distances, using lethal force and a large quantity of bullets increases their success rate in their security operations. These improve the security of the security teams and the clients under their care. Whereas the manner in which the company engages perceived hostiles improves their security and success rates, they become a menace to the civilians in the society because they are more likely to engage innocent, unarmed civilians. They also contribute to decreased security for other personnel operating in the environment because the civilians are likely to engage in efforts aimed at revenging the killing of innocent citizens (Tiefer 773).
Blackwater USA encourages an exclusive approach to security. In an exclusive approach, there are two groups, the in-group, and out-group. The in-group comprises of members of the team and the client, the out-group comprises of other individuals in the environment, including other security personnel, civilians, and hostiles. The security team only cares about the security of the in-group, therefore, there place a higher value on the lives of members of the in-group. Members of the in-group harm members of the out-group in an attempt to reduce the probability of harm befalling them. The company response to the incident at Nisour square Baghdad was to withdraw the personnel implicated in the incident from Iraq. The company hired Public Relations Company and a lobby group to reduce the impact of the incident on their public image (Ferrell, Fraedrich, & Ferrell 81). Instead of accepting liability for the incident, the company asserted that the convoy received fire first despite initiating finding revealing that the marks on the firms vehicle was from one of their own weapons.
The Iraqis describe the day as Baghdad bloody Sunday. From witness accounts and video footage, a heavily armed convoy was driving along the wrong side of the road on that fateful day. The Iraqi police were trying to control traffic and allow the convoy to pass when one vehicle entered the square as the convoy approached. Without hesitation, the Blackwater USA personnel opened fire on the vehicle killing a man, his wife, and their young child. They also bombed the vehicle creating panic and chaos in the area. The personnel opened fire indiscriminately killing 17 people, including women and children on the scene. According to the companys official report, their personnel were provoked while transporting a state department employee near Nisour square. The vehicle they bombed in the square was carrying armed insurgents (Dunning 8). The Iraqi government disputed this version of the incident and the recently concluded FBI investigations confirm the Iraqi version of the incident. Despite the obvious facts, a company spokesperson claims that their personnel actions were acceptable and lawful, indeed heroic because they defended an American life in a war zone.
The United States government is increasingly outsourcing more responsibilities to private contractors, such as Blackwater USA. The intention of the government is to bring the success witnessed in the business world to the military. While the government has succeeded in reducing the cost of operations and the number of personnel employed by the military, the private contractors do not operate within the acceptable business norms. For Blackwater USA to remain competitive and enjoy public support, it must remodel its culture into one that encourages its operatives to value civilian lives (Tiefer 758). The operatives must engage possible hostiles only after giving sufficient warning and allowing adequate time for a non-hostile to indicate intent. In many of the cases that are facing the company in court, Blackwater USA operatives engaged a possible hostile first, which resulted in the death of not only the suspect, but also innocent bystanders.
The company must limit the use of lethal force to only when it is warranted. In the Nisour Square Incident, the companys operatives not only opened fire at the suspected vehicle in full automatic mode in a crowded area, but also bombed the vehicle. Such a response because a driver panicked and did not stop after the police officer indicated he should stop is unwarranted. Balckwater USA must limit personal initiative among field operatives only to situations where a senior officer is not available to give direction. The in-group psychology among the operatives increases the likelihood of a situation escalating because a wrong decision by one commits everyone in the team to the error. The company must setup a clear chain of command with officers in commanding positions screened and trained to ensure they value the lives of civilians in the future (Ferrell, Fraedrich, & Ferrell 67).
Conclusion
Blackwater USA personnel are more likely to engage a suspected threat at a greater distant with lethal force because of the companys culture that encourages an exclusive approach to security. The personnel use tremendous force in their security operations because their concern is limited only to the wellbeing of the group members and their client. The culture also encourages the companys units to abandon victims of their violence, even in instances where they have wrongfully fired upon innocent civilians. While it is risky for the state department to employ private contractors, such as Blackwater USA (current Academi) that maintain such a culture, Blackwater USA can remedy the situation by changing the culture. The current culture encourages a personal initiative and a must do spirit regardless of the odds. The company measures success by the number of missions successfully completed and the low count of personnel harmed during the missions. This indicator is one-sided. A comprehensive indicator of success must include a low number of armed engagements and a low count of civilians harmed during the missions.

 Works cited
Dunning, Rebecca. Heroes or Mercenaries? Blackwater, private security companies and the U.S. military. The Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University, 2010. Web. 6 May 2014.
Ferrell, Anonimo, O. C. & Fraedrich, John, & Ferrell, Linda. Business Ethics: Ethical decision-making and cases. Mason: Cengage Learning, 2013. Print.
Tiefer, Charles. No more Nisour Square: Legal Control of private security contractors in Iraq and after. Oregon law review. 88.1 (2008): 745-776. Print.