Benjammin:

Okay, I know "official" policy is that most non-military individuals are forbidden to have firearms or carry fake identification that would make it appear they are authorized to carry firearms. Is there a "wink & nod" policy with accompanying "hand slapping" as a punishment for breaking those sorts of rules, or is it a full blown "out the door, you lost your contract" policy?

I know a couple of guys (Names forgotten! <img src="/images/graemlins/ooo.gif" alt="" />) working for (Organizations name forgotten <img src="/images/graemlins/ooo.gif" alt="" />) who were told to check an empty apartment at 0200 in a less than safe area of (Cities name forgotten <img src="/images/graemlins/ooo.gif" alt="" />). They met up there in seperate trucks, went to the apartment and one of them asked the other if he had a sidearm with him before entering to which the other replied; "No". The one said; "I do" as he locked & loaded a small semiautomatic pistol as they stood at the entrance to go in. The other pulled out a small semiautomatic pistol that wasn't there, locked & loaded to the shocked look of the one and they went in, checked the apartment out, and locked it up. When they got back to the trucks, the one said to the other; "I thought you said you didn't have a sidearm?", to which the other replied; "I didn't have a sidearm because that is against the rules, and I could get fired from my job". The other then said to the one; "It's a good thing you didn't have a sidearm either or I would have to report you to the boss and the Police for carrying a concealed weapon illegally". The one said; "Yeah, it's a good thing we follow the rules even in this bad part of town", and they went back to other work they had to do.

The other in the aforementioned incident was in his bosses office one day with his boss when he was told to look for some forms the other needed in the bosses desk. The other opened a drawer before his boss could elaborate on where to look and saw a .38 special snub nose revolver under some papers in the drawer. The boss saw it was too late and said; "I found that gun in the projects and was just going to take it to the police". The other looked at his boss and said; "What gun, where?". The boss looked in the drawer where the revolver lay and exclaimed; "Oh I forgot, I already took it to the police" as he closed the drawer and locked it.

The other did not like his boss who was a crook, but there exist unwritten rules that good men put above their own interests and the matter never came up even when the boss fired the other for trying to expose the bosses thievery.

"TWISTNAIL IT!, there is right and there is legal and sometimes they do not mesh in our society no matter what country we are in or what organization we belong to. Two of the criteria I follow is that it is better to be tried by twelve than carried by six and can I sleep with what I have done. My bad knees are twistnailing my ability to sleep more than anything I have done.

Good luck on your personal choices in Baghdad, I already know what I would do, no matter how much pay I would lose for doing it.

Bountyhunter