There is an old Chinese saying; some may call it it a curse; "May you live in interesting times." Well, we sure do live in interesting times! On the Korean peninsula we have one ethnic people divided into two countries that are are still technically at a state of war. A truce was declared in 1953, back when Dwight Eisenhower was the new U.S. President. A truce or an armistice means, in essence, we will not shoot or bomb you - - - today. It does not mean peace. Hundreds of thousands of active duty servicemen and women are based on both sides of the 38th Parallel in Korea facing each other armed and ready. Private military contractors (defense contractors) from dozens of countries stand with the military rendering technical assistance, security, logistical and operational support.
In the Philippines, Japan, Okinawa, and elsewhere in Asia, there are deployments of military and defense contractors dedicated to various important missions; such as preparedness training, peacekeeping, and overall lending themselves to providing strategic and regional stability. And then, of course, there are those interesting regions; Afghanistan, North Africa, and the perennial favorite "hotspot," the Middle East.
The importance of the role of the Private Military Contractors, also known as Defense Contractors, has rarely made the front pages of the world's newspapers or the first item on television or the internet. However, the risks taken and the sacrifices made by these men and women from all over the world can not remain ignored. According investigative reporting by such internationally respected sources as the Los Angeles Times, Reuters, and the New York Times, there have frequently been many thousands more defense contractors working for the United States in Iraq than active duty military.
Because we do live in "interesting times," we need the private military contractors; we need their skills, their courage, and their dedication. The injury coverage and protection offered to defense contractors by the United States Defense Base Act is but one means of expressing the appreciation we in the U.S., and others throughout the world, have for these people and the fine work they do. More, however, can and should be done.
