There is a certain integrity that identifies an American soldier. We think of our forefathers who fought tyranny in the Revolutionary War. We think of our grandfathers who fought fascism in World War II.

I think of one of my closest of friends, Pfc. Ryen King, a decorated American soldier, who was killed this year in Iraq. Whether in Georgia or Iraq, Ryen walked with integrity and valiantly represented the U.S.

As a student studying international affairs and history and as a member of the Roosevelt Institution, the University’s student think-tank organization, I think it is this integrity the current Administration undermines when it hires private mercenaries to fight alongside our respected troops in Iraq.

The audacity to further defend these hired “cowboys” by cloaking them with immunity during the ongoing investigation in the Blackwater debacle is the ultimate dishonor to our troops, our country and our mission in the Middle East.

The massacre of Nissor Square on Sept. 16 in which Blackwater employees killed 17 and wounded 24 Iraqi civilians has illuminated this problem of outsourcing a war to men who answer to no one. This unfortunate event has enraged Iraqis and increasingly so as no one is held accountable for the crimes. No witnesses corroborate Blackwater’s claim that they were provoked.

Blackwater employees are not subjected to the American Uniform Code of Military Justice and have immunity on Iraqi soil – they answer to no one. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki currently is pushing legislation to make all foreign private security contractors subject to Iraq’s criminal laws.

According to Newsweek, between 20,000 to 30,000 of these mercenaries currently roam Iraq and fill the rosters of dozens of private security firms contracted in Iraq.

They tend to be ex-soldiers or ex-intelligence operatives who seek the private company’s pay over the relatively smaller government’s pay. They have a reputation for being trigger-happy and are compared to the Wild West’s cowboys who “shoot first and never have to answer any questions.”

Former Blackwater employee Andrew Moonen enjoyed himself at a party last Christmas Eve in Baghdad’s Green Zone. He left the party drunk, armed and killed the body guard of the Iraqi vice president. Moonen was only fined and fired. Blackwater then paid the deceased’s family $20,000, according to the New York Times.

The Washington Post reported on Nov. 1 military officers serving in Iraq complain that the contractors “interfere with military operations and their aggressive behavior undermines efforts to win ‘hearts and minds’ in Iraq.”

A common Iraqi citizen who mistakes a contractor for an actual American soldier – similar uniforms, similar equipment and similar faces – will perceive them as of the same breed. After a Blackwater employee recklessly shoots his brother, for instance, it will be too late to apologize and too difficult to explain to his family the vast differences – and guaranteed for the future are unforgiving hearts and minds holding in contempt the whole American ideal.

Blackwater wrongs do not last for only a few weeks – their negative effects will fester for generations. However, President George W. Bush was quoted in Newsweek saying, “I appreciate the sacrifice and the service that the Blackwater employees have made.”

To support something that hinders the legitimate troops from doing their job, while also staining America’s reputation, is dead wrong and sends an inappropriate message to our soldiers.

Our government was founded on the principles of liberty, legitimacy, justice and accountability.

This is not the liberty for hired gunmen to shoot innocent people, and we are no longer legitimate in the eyes of those we help if we do not practice what we preach.

If we allow a few to operate outside our judicial system we will lose every bit of accountability that this nation’s past great leaders have created. It is a disgrace to our great name and our truly legitimate soldiers who wear the flag proudly. Blackwater mercenaries wear no flag.

- Alex Johnson is a junior from Royston, majoring in international affairs and history. He is a member of the Roosevelt Institution.