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Strictly speaking mercenaries are illegal. But it is a very grey area. For instance hiring yourself out as a mercenary is not in and of itself an illegal act. But that of course also depends on the laws of your country.The Geneva Convention defines Mercenaries as follows:(a) is especially recruited locally or abroad in order to fight in an armed conflict;(b) does, in fact, take a direct part in the hostilities;(c) is motivated to take part in the hostilities essentially by the desire for private gain and, in fact, is promised, by or on behalf of a Party to the conflict, material compensation substantially in excess of that promised or paid to combatants of similar ranks and functions in the armed forces of that Party;(d) is neither a national of a Party to the conflict nor a resident of territory controlled by a Party to the conflict;(e) is not a member of the armed forces of a Party to the conflict; and(f) has not been sent by a State which is not a Party to the conflict on official duty as a member of its armed forces.Some countries ban their citizens from taking part, in a military manner, in foreign conflicts for profit. But not all do. And some, like the US & UK, have laws against fighting in foreign conflicts but generally turn a blind eye, especially if you fighting for a cause they agree with. During the Yugoslavian war American “Mercenaries” fought on all side for various reasons. Although the US/NATO more or less sided with the Bosnians and Croats, I’m not aware of any Americans coming under any scrutiny for fighting with the Serbians. Americans have also fought in Syria, but as far as I’m aware, none fought WITH the Assad regime. If you fought with ISIS you would be arrested at the first chance you attempted to re-enter the US. But if you fought with the Kurds or Free-Syrians they would probably turn a blind eye. I have heard of no one yet being arrested who fought with American fighters.Article 47 of the Geneva Convention states “1. A mercenary shall not have the right to be a combatant or a prisoner of war“. See, that is the gray area. It does not prohibit you from being a mercenary; it prohibits you from being a combative because, IF captured you have no rights as a POW. You can be tried as a civilian and thereby as a criminal. But, if you have taken part in non-combat support roles you are entitled to protection under the Geneva Convention.A joke among contractors is “what’s your out”, meaning what is your exit strategy once the conflict is over. Many Mercenaries generally have an assumed name and exit the country as soon as any peace accord is signed. I remember the max exodus after the Bosnian war. Although a few turned themselves in to their respective countries military bases when NATO arrived I have a sneaky suspicion those fellows were not necessarily independent actors.A well known caveat for mercenaries is the aftermath of the 1970’s Angolan war. After the war, during the Luanda Trial, an Angolan court sentenced three Britons and an American to death and nine other mercenaries to prison terms ranging from 16 to 30 years. The four mercenaries sentenced to death were shot by a firing squad.Now, if you are hired by a state actor to the conflict, given a uniform, and covered under their military code, that can be somewhat different. Think of the French Foreign Legion or British Gurkhas. These folks are technically a part of the State Actors Military establishment.This also covers American & British Private Military Contractors who were hired to support their governments who were party to the conflict. They were not technically hired for direct combat roles but rather to “protect” persons, property or equipment. A grey area of course, but since the US & UK controlled the government post-war these contractors were “protected”. It is also why the US was upset and pulled out when Iraq refused immunity under the Status of Forces (SOFA) Agreement. The US always insist that any Civilians supporting the military be granted the same immunity and why civilians carried the same SOFA Cards as the military.Last, there is the “right of self defense”. But that is a question that has been argued by tons of attorneys ( which I am not) without any real solid answers. You are presumed under international law to have a right to self defense but that also comes with its own caveats which I am not going to go into here. I bring it up because, let’s say for instance, you are hired by BP to safely extract personal from an oil rig in a country torn apart by civil war. Athough there is the “understanding” under international law that you are NOT apart of the conflict, if you engage actors in the conflict, in order to protect and defend yourself and those you have been hired to extract, you may be defenseless in a local court under that countries laws of “self-defense”. You can not call upon your country or the UN and it’s laws, for an “affirmative defense” or other protections. So…”what is your out”?There is the famous incident during the Iraq war when “legal” security contractors, while escorting VIP’s, engaged in a fire fight in an intersection with “insurgents” causing the deaths of bi-standers. Four of these men were charged and convicted of Murder and manslaughter chargers.So, in conclusion, it is, “illegal” if your home country says it is. It is “illegal”, under the strictest definition of “engaging in combat”, under the Geneva Convention if you are “caught” on the wrong side so to speak. If you “kill” someone you may not have any right of “self defense”. But it is a really grey area full of loop holes, and that can make it worth the risk. And why the joke “what is your out” is not really a joke but a very serious problem.

Unfortunately the time has passed. Reparations for slavery should have happened during Reconstruction. That promised “40 acres and a mule” was significant in its day. It would have given former slaves the same financial independence as white homesteaders. But it didn't happen and the opportunity is lost. All the former slaves and former slave owners are dead.The government did owe reparations for enabling the Jim Crow era. Those reparations happened 50 years ago and is ongoing—Affirmative Action.African Americans were given preferences or special consideration in selection processes. This was a broad federal program designed to get more black people hired by government, schools, and government contractors. It went beyond prohibiting discrimination and beyond the “level playing field” advocated by Martin Luther King. Affirmative action tilted the playing field back a bit. It allowed black people to be hired even if their qualifications were less than white applicants.There has been some controversy because of the legalized discrimination against some qualified white people, but on the whole, the program has been very successful and has lasted for three generations, far longer than had originally been anticipated. The program worked and did not impact everybody’s pocketbook.Future programs will work if they are broadly similar. The idea that white and hispanic people that never owned slaves would be taxed to provide a cash windfall for black people that were never slaves is an impossible concept to sell.But programs that give disadvantaged people a simple break to get them out of poverty, better educated, and working good jobs in the economy is a benefit to everybody and would be accepted, as affirmative action has been. Disadvantaged people just need a few advantages. Pell Grants and Equal Opportunity programs do this. Programs to help the disadvantaged is the reparations of the future.

I worked for the State of Minnesota Construction Division for 23 years and watched the Affirmative Action program for construction fall apart completely.I only knew of two really successful firms: one a telephone company owned by the father of one of my sons best friends in grade school; and Shingobee, started by an American Indian Woman. Well, these people got old, retired and sold out.A number of mainstream contractors helped some of their employees to start independent contractor firms—big mistake. These small firms went broke quickly as the margin in construction is 2–6%, averaging around 3%.The state has eliminated most employees in the construction and bidding department. Hence, now the state hires construction managers and these companies gets a percent of every contract, product or material moved or installed on a construction site. These managers limit bidding only to their friends.Most small companies do not bid on government projects because of all the requirements and paperwork. Processing paperwork on a $20,000 contract probably costs $10,000.When I retired six years ago I doubt if there were more than 100 of these certified bidders. Many times there may only be five or six bidding opportunities in a year. The paperwork and effort to become a certified Affirmative Action bidder was expensive and time consuming.Government cannot start Affirmative Action Bidding Companies and maintain their existence. I know a woman who owns a Mechanical Construction Company but rarely bids on government work. She never cared to become a certified Affirmative Action Bidder.There are many businesses with ownership by women and or minorities usually as minor partners. Most large construction companies usually have a number of owners. On average contractors last only about four years before going out of business. Less than one in perhaps 20 will last 15–20 years.Most successful owners put money into various investment accounts and then sell their equipment and materials at auctions when they retire. I have been friends with many successful contractors who said selling and closing the business was painful and frustrating. Most sold their business to find jobs for their top employees and to close out their current construction projects.Companies rarely extend past one or two generations of family ownership. I have known many successful contractors who tried to give their children the company and were turned down.No one can change construction. It has always been this way. Perhaps one in about twenty workers will open a company and about 90% will fail.I have had several part time businesses, engineering, construction management, fixing cars, and owning a retail store. I always kept my full time job; the others were mostly to help pay for all the toys I own. The retail business was the only one that failed big time. I’m still paying for it five years later—one more year before I’m finally done.Government does not have enough employees to fix even 10% of the buildings they own, sad but true. Affirmative Action cannot be made to work no matter how many democrats we elect. It is just a fact of economics. It comes up every couple of years: we write a report say we need to do better, the newspaper writes stories and we forget for a couple of years. No one is willing to face the reality that government cannot create successful Affirmative Action Companies.