While use of drones has been going on for a while, there seems to be
more discussion of the topic recently, which is definitely a good thing.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/jan/30/deadly-drones-us-cowards-war?mobile-redirect=false
For
me the biggest concern is the potential disconnect between the
aggressor and his/her victim...the more removed and unreal the target,
the less emotionally involved the attacker, surely the greater the risk
of inhuman attitudes. Of course it could be argued that it is precisely
human weakness, fear, overreaction etc that leads to some of the
unnecessary brutality in war, and the collateral damage, since a
panicked soldier is an unstable one, but I think the following quote
from the article is more pressing :
"Citing the Germanmilitary theorist Carl von Clausewitz, it [UK Ministry of Defence]
warns that the brutality of war seldom escalates to its absolute form,
partly because of the risk faced by one's own forces. Without risk,
there's less restraint. With these unmanned craft, governments can fight
a coward's war, a god's war, harming only the unnamed..... The danger is likely to escalate as drone warfare becomes more automated and the lines of accountability less clear. "
The
dogs of war are bad enough, but at least if kept on a leash they drag
their owners with them and make them part of it. The drones of war fly a
bit too freely...
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