Justin's Thursday Political News 11.29.07

Posted by Justin Baragona on 11.29.2007

Today's column is about a soldier's death and how it may make a change in how the U.S. does business with foreign contractors. Or, it could just be about my uncle.

Welcome to yet another edition of Justin's Thursday Political News. I hope everyone out there had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are feeling appropriately guilty about the amount of food and wine that was consumed. You may have noticed, and judging by the amount of reader feedback I get you probably didn't, that I did not post a column last week. Being that my column comes out on Thursday, it seemed pretty pointless to post anything on a major holiday. However, I am back this week. Instead of going over poll numbers or the major political stories of the past week or so, I am devoting this column to a subject that is very near and dear to my family's collective hearts. Let's just jump right into it.



"The court enters judgment in the amount of $4,907,048 to be paid by KGL in a single lump payment."


This was the ruling handed down by Judge William Duffey on November 5th in the U.S. District Court of Northern Georgia. He ruled that KGL, a Kuwaiti transport company, was negligent in the death of Lt. Col. Dominic 'Rocky' Baragona that occurred on May 19, 2003. Rocky was driving towards Camp Victory in Kuwait as he was to fly back to the States when a tractor-trailer operated by KGL jack-knifed and slammed into his Humvee, killing him instantly. Rocky's battalion, the 19th Maintenance Battalion out of Fort Sill, of which he was commander, were leaving Iraq and were headed back home. When the accident happened, Rocky's vehicle was only an hour away from the base, and he was to be back home in the U.S. within days as all that was left was for him to get on his flight.

The verdict handed down by the federal court is actually a landmark one, as the judge had to decide if a foreign company could be held accountable in a U.S. court. It was made even more difficult that the incident happened on foreign soil, and not within the United States. The judge decided he was able to make that decision and stated that KGL was negligent in that they did not provide safe passage on the road that the accident occurred. This ruling can theoretically open the door for more of this kind, especially as Congress has been very critical of contractors who are doing business with the government over in Iraq (Blackwater, anybody?) With that said, the family will probably never see a dime of this money. Even though a judgment has been awarded, they would still need to actually collect from a foreign company that is based over in Kuwait.

To be honest, though, this was never about money. Whether the judgment awarded was one dollar, the aforementioned $5 million, or all the tea in China, the real victory was that the Baragona family was able to get the answers that they were seeking from the outset and KGL was held accountable for their actions. The following was said by Dominic Baragona, Rocky's father (and my grandfather) after the verdict was handed down: "You feel good for the Rock. We're going to make KGL sweat it a little bit. I mean they're going to remember Rocky's name." Hopefully, this ruling will hold other contractors, foreign and domestic, to task. Especially as they are taking in millions of dollars in government contracts due to the war in Iraq. Even if a foreign company taking in U.S. contracts for work in Iraq (or any other war zone, for that matter) does not payout on a judgment that is entered against it by a U.S. court, the hope would be that the government will hold that against said company and perhaps limit its dealings with it. Therefore, with the issues that have been brought up against contractors hired by the U.S., this court case may very well bring about significant changes.

But enough of all of this legal talk and and what repercussions this case may have, this column is really only about one thing: Rocky. The loss of him more than four years ago devastated my family, and while it may be true that time heals all wounds, it is also true that things will never be the same. And that truly sucks, because Rocky was quite possibly the smartest, coolest person I ever knew. You could have a discussion with him about anything, and in all likelihood, you were going to learn something from that talk. He was a teacher, a motivator, a leader and a friend. I looked up to him to the point that I even followed his example and attended West Point (Rocky graduated from there in 1982.) One of the happiest moments of my life was when I was accepted to go, as it was a meticulous, grueling and sometimes maddening process, as only 10% of applicants are accepted. Despite my somewhat modest resume, I was picked, and I can't help to think that my chances were helped that I had an uncle that was an outstanding soldier who had graduated from there. One of the saddest days of my life was not long after, when I was medically discharged from the Army due to epilepsy. But never once was there a word of disappointment or anything of that nature from Rocky. He was not that kind of person. He was an encourager, not a discourager.

Rocky served his country with distinction for over 20 years. He loved his country and believed whole heartedly in what he was doing. He felt that we needed to be in Iraq and that it was the right thing to do. Therefore, he died serving his country and doing what he believed in. Thus, I will not disrespect his memory by making this an anti-war screed. Despite the difference in my political views from my uncle's, I will always respect his beliefs. Politics don't really mean anything when it comes down to family, anyway. Would the pain of his death mean anymore or less if he was a bleeding-heart liberal with an ACLU card in his wallet? No, it would not. My love for him knew no bounds, political or otherwise. For his sake, and for the sake of all those who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan, I truly, honestly hope that some good comes this conflict. However, even if this does not happen, I know that the Rock would never think that his death was in vain, because it was in service to the country he loved and served so admirably. He was a truly great man, and I'm glad that this case has kept his memory alive and allowed for others to know about him. Rocky was always about improving processes or making changes for the better. I believe that the verdict this month will bring that about.



Well, that is going to do it for me this week. I should be back next week with a more normal, political based column about Presidential campaigns or other things of that nature. If you need some news now in that regards, I would suggest checking out Jason's column this week, as it is chock full of negative Hillary news. I'll be back next week with more news in the realm of politics.