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> can claim the protection of that citizenship while waging war against the U.S. I want to make sure we're on the same page here. A child who is not on any kil

by maratd 13y ago

> can claim the protection of that citizenship while waging war against the U.S. I want to make sure we're on the same page here. A child who is not on any kill lists, a boy who according to the laws of our land does not have the capacity to make rational decisions when it comes to having sex, looking at people have sex, drink alcohol, vote, smoke tobacco, rent a car, drive a car, I can go on but it's getting boring? A child who isn't able to do any of those things ... can nevertheless wage war against the US and be executed for treason without due process or even a sham trial? You even get those in Russia, of all places. Oh wait. They didn't accuse him of treason. Collateral damage then? I guess that's OK. I would say something offensive that might be construed as treasonous at this point, but the NSA is reading.

rayiner 13y ago
I was referring to Al Awalki, not his son. The article makes a soup out of the situation, but his son was killed in a different drone strike a month later that took out an Al Qaeda official: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/16/world/middleeast/yemeni-security-forces-fire-on-protesters-in-sana.html?_r=0 http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/16/world/middleeast/yemeni-se.... There was no indication that Al Awalki's son was the target.
- maratd 13y ago
  > There was no indication that Al Awalki's son was the target. No, there was no indication. There was also no acknowledgement, apology, or explanation either. That's what the article is about. What's done is done. The child is dead. What the government owes every citizen at this point is an explanation of what happened and a clear process to make sure it never happens again. Instead, there's just silence. Apparently you can just be killed by the US government for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, even though you're a citizen and deserve proper due process? That's my take at this point. I wonder at what point the US government will start targeting individuals on US soil? We already have drones flying above our heads here at home. How soon until you're the collateral damage?
  - rayiner 13y ago
    > Apparently you can just be killed by the US government for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, even though you're a citizen and deserve proper due process? You can't blame the government for not giving due process to someone killed in a military strike where the government didn't even know he was going to be there. > I wonder at what point the US government will start targeting individuals on US soil? The slippery slope argument here just doesn't hold up. It's not the first time in history an American has been killed collaterally in a military strike targeted at a foreign enemy. Thousands of American citizens, including POW's, were killed in Hiroshima: http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20118397,00.html http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20118397,00..... It's regrettable and unfortunate, but not a sign of some slippery slope leading to drone strikes on U.S. soil. The fact is that the rules are different for engagements abroad versus engagements at home and always has been. Not just for the U.S., but for every country in the history of the world.

by maratd 13y ago

rayiner 13y ago

I was referring to Al Awalki, not his son. The article makes a soup out of the situation, but his son was killed in a different drone strike a month later that took out an Al Qaeda official: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/16/world/middleeast/yemeni-security-forces-fire-on-protesters-in-sana.html?_r=0 http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/16/world/middleeast/yemeni-se.... There was no indication that Al Awalki's son was the target.

maratd 13y ago
> There was no indication that Al Awalki's son was the target. No, there was no indication. There was also no acknowledgement, apology, or explanation either. That's what the article is about. What's done is done. The child is dead. What the government owes every citizen at this point is an explanation of what happened and a clear process to make sure it never happens again. Instead, there's just silence. Apparently you can just be killed by the US government for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, even though you're a citizen and deserve proper due process? That's my take at this point. I wonder at what point the US government will start targeting individuals on US soil? We already have drones flying above our heads here at home. How soon until you're the collateral damage?
- rayiner 13y ago
  > Apparently you can just be killed by the US government for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, even though you're a citizen and deserve proper due process? You can't blame the government for not giving due process to someone killed in a military strike where the government didn't even know he was going to be there. > I wonder at what point the US government will start targeting individuals on US soil? The slippery slope argument here just doesn't hold up. It's not the first time in history an American has been killed collaterally in a military strike targeted at a foreign enemy. Thousands of American citizens, including POW's, were killed in Hiroshima: http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20118397,00.html http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20118397,00..... It's regrettable and unfortunate, but not a sign of some slippery slope leading to drone strikes on U.S. soil. The fact is that the rules are different for engagements abroad versus engagements at home and always has been. Not just for the U.S., but for every country in the history of the world.