Things are getting hot and heavy for Blackwater now in Iraq. It just doesn’t pay to be a mercenary for hire anymore.
A nine-minute police video made in the moments after the shooting shows helicopters similar to those used by Blackwater still hovering over the wreckage of charred, smoking and bullet-pocked cars. (For an edited clip of the video, click here.) The graphic images include footage of burned human remains and show the street littered with brass bullet casings. They also show what appears to be a police officer waving a pistol at the scene; the footage was captured by a different police officer, who had run over from the nearby Iraqi National Police headquarters. (Portions of the video have been previously broadcast; it was recorded without sound.)
Perhaps they should take some tips from the folks in Wired.com’s Danger Room on ways to strengthen their image.
1) New name, preferably with indecipherable acronym.
It took decades before anyone run an “expose” about SAIC. And most people have already forgotten about it. When was the last time you saw a major article about CSC, or Computer Sciences Corporation (hmm, never). DynCorp and prostitutes? A distant memory.
Let’s face it: Does your typical American know (or care) what ARINC stands for?
Heck no.
The point here is if you want to be a shadowy, low-profile sort of company, start acting like one.
It’s a fine balance here, so no, no, nothing like “Executive Outcomes.” That was too Bond-like. Nothin’ but trouble. Personally, I’m fond of something snooze-worthy like SMS, for “Strategic Management Solutions.” Words like “systems,” “integration,” and “analytics” all work well.
Or heck, just use the acronym.
2) New logo.
Yes, that bear paw is totally awesome cool, if you want teenage boys to love ‘ya as much as they love Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The Press just loooooves that logo (photographers, too!), it just screams “page one.” Choose something like the DARPA logo, that innocuous globe-shaped thingamajig also favored by companies of unknown acronyms. Remember how many problems DARPA had when they went with the masonic temple/eye thing for the Information Awareness Office?
Shadow companies should use forgettable logos. Anybody even know what Anteon’s logo looks like? Does your average American even know what Anteon does?! Of course not.
I dunno. That bear paw is pretty snazzy especially when the Iraqi civilians see it driving down the street running over people like the A-Team van. I’m just saying – who’s gonna be afraid of a turtle?
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