An article in the New York Times offers a wonderful, if not chilling, review of the war in Ukraine using drones. Here is the link: https://tinyurl.com/NY-Times-Drone-Warfare
The military approach to conflict and outright war has changed irrevocably, and much faster than the underlying questions in ethics and moral hazards have been asked and answered. Plus, we have been naive to assume our adversaries will play by the same rules we use. It is ironic that we Americans think this way given it was our renegade ragtag army using “jungle warfare” that defeated the British.
We used to think of drone warfare as high altitude unmanned vehicles dropping hellfire missiles. The movie I suggest you watch is Eye in the Sky. At first, it would appear to be just another movie about our battle with terrorists … but I see it is a much bigger set of questions it raises. Take a look for yourself and decide: Click here to view the trailer.
As in all of life today, things are complicated. Are we OK with targeted assassinations as a standard part of a mission? Are we ready to use autonomous drones with facial recognition to do that? Perhaps more importantly, will our enemies do this? And, if so, can we detect and block those attempts?
We all think of secret service agents protecting key people in dark glasses with earbuds communicating with surveillance and control centers. Why do we think this is enough today? Haven’t we learned anything from the Chinese viruses … we are all in the cross hairs of nefarious agents. It wouldn’t take much to poison us all using our water supplies.
Modern movies about existential threats focus on alien invasions, while we assume our aliens here on this planet are seeking asylum. Take a fresh look at the Middle East and tell me how we are going to bring about peace on earth. Do we really think hostage releases of 30 Hamas combatants for each Israeli citizen sends the message that either side should seek peace? Is this going to heal the wounds and millennia of hate?
Can we just stop and work through some basic questions? Are we the savior of the world or are we mostly interested in the wellbeing of our country? I hear Trump wants an “Iron Dome” like that of Israel. That assumes we are at risk with the ICBM weapon. The movie Top Gun Maverick seems to be prescient: Are we going to fund conventional warfare when drones may be better.
Watch this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-2tpwW0kmU
If we are not ready to face these questions and act it will be too late since our adversaries are eagerly seeking this type of capability … and may soon have it.
Great thoughts again Joel.
I think it’s time to discuss again the amount of hatred in people’s hearts these days, just as you did before against Jews. However, the hatred now is all about someone just having different opinions, and some of our politicians refuse to denounce hatred toward a vehicle and the owners who drive a Tesla. Plus the interesting thing is I never see ANY ideas or solutions from the people who criticize; they can only offer their hate for someone who doesn’t share their viewpoint. Wokeism is Racist as evidence from Obama and his “your not black if you don’t vote for black (Harris)” or the recent comments from congresswoman who says “we ain’t picking cotton any more, thats why the US needs illegal immigrants”
Remind me, does ‘Woke’ actually have a meaning?
That said, great comments Joel. Nano-bots, and stealth apps are the next ‘Drones.’
Yes, it all looks great to take out ‘the bad guys’ quickly and remotely from a seat 1,000’s of miles away. Now, who defines ‘bad guy?’ Maybe it’s someone you disagree with, or that filed a lawsuit against you personally? And what if me and my family just happen to be buying a donut in the same shop that you target? . . Makes you want to say, Hmmm?
Yep … Hmmm