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The alternative to drones is counterinsurgency. For example, the wedding party in Yemen, if it were a target of actual importance, would have been captured and
by 1457389 13y ago
The alternative to drones is counterinsurgency. For example, the wedding party in Yemen, if it were a target of actual importance, would have been captured and interrogated, with suspected insurgents detained for further questioning. The problem is that we don't have the manpower or the political latitude to do that in all these regions, so we send in killer robots instead and hope we hit the right people. This is a recipe for high false positive rates, even with the best equipment, because the HUMINT and SIGINT that underlies target identification is shaky to say the least.
- sleepyK 13y agoWhat right does America have to kill a wedding party in Yemen? Indeed, what right does America have to kill any "suspected terrorist" in Yemen? This is just another example of how the convenience of drone strikes has led to the belittling of war.
- 1457389 13y agoJust as in the past we outsourced our repression to client states in the region, those same regimes are now outsourcing their counterterrorism to us in the form of drone strikes. We are helping to consolidate the power of creatures like Saleh, at the eventual ruinous cost of American lives and global legitimacy through the inevitable blowback.
- AndrewKemendo 13y agoIndeed, what right does America have to kill any "suspected terrorist" in Yemen? Mostly because the people in charge of approving that in the Yemeni government have approved it [1] [1] http://www.presstv.com/detail/2012/09/30/264233/yemens-hadi-approves-us-drone-strikes/ http://www.presstv.com/detail/2012/09/30/264233/yemens-hadi-...