A Bloody Business: America’s War Zone Contractors and the Occupation of Iraq
By Colonel Gerald Schumacher, United States Army Special Forces (ret.)
Zenith Press, $24.95, 304 pp.

In this piece at Frontpage magazine by David Forsmark, he talks about the book.

The first time I ever heard of leftist blogger Markos “Daily Kos” Moulitsas, was in 2004, when he figuratively joined in the Fallujah mob that was literally dancing in the street under the charred bodies of four American contractors hanging from a bridge. “Screw them,” he infamously wrote – though the post later vanished from his weblog.

At the time, many people bought into the stereotype of security contractors in Iraq – they were paid incredible salaries to do things off the books for the military because they were able to follow less restrictive Rules of Engagement. I had no particular problem with that and assumed that each dead man had done more for his country every day before breakfast than Moulitsas would do in his whole life.

Now here is the real story…not the story from graduates of Cambridge with a degree in Chemistry or science fiction buffs…or fake colonels…humanitarians with a chip on their shoulders, etc-He covers these myths:

Myth 1: The surviving Westmoreland notion that contractors are highly paid mercenaries.
Myth 2: Contractors operate under relaxed Rules of Engagement.
Myth 3: PMCs are a talent drain on the force.
Myth 4: Contractors are out of control.

…contractors in war zones suffer casualties at a similar rate to the military but usually don’t receive the honor of their countrymen. Their deaths are more likely to get a milder version of the DailyKos reaction than a parade down Main Street.

These deaths should not be shrugged off with a mere, “That’s the risk they take.” At least not by anyone who cares about winning the war against Islamofascism. When you get the chance, honor these heroes, too.

They not only suffer casualties, but some have made incredible personal sacrifices. He’s right, they deserve our respect, acknowledgement and support.