That's their exact point, Omnutia. It removes the horrific humanity of it and lets the pilots become detached.
I really only have one comment to this: Ender's Game. Same exact principle. Same exact issues, but on a larger, more extreme scale.
Obviously right now the drones are not being used to wipe out an entire race, and the pilots are probably not being misled into thinking they really are playing a simulation. I'm going more for the conceptual issues, like the question of what kind of force and use of technology is justified and when.
I think that it is not different than the fighter pilots these days, except that the people who pull the trigger actually see exactly what they are doing, while the fighter pilot just has a little readout that shows targeting info.
Um, there would still be human loses on the other side of the conflict. What is so enjoyable about that?
I was attempting to emphasise the absurdity of the statement. We've had things like sniper rifles and long range artillery for a long time yet it is drones that they have a problem with.
Edit: The sniper rifle is probably closer to the drone than the bomber or artillery piece, as it gives immediate feedback.
That's their exact point, Omnutia. It removes the horrific humanity of it and lets the pilots become detached.
I'm actually super in favour of reinstating the draft, mostly for that very reason. I think that if we didn't have the draft for most of the Vietnam War, we'd have found ourselves in a similar situation as the Iraq/Afgani wars. Conversely, if we had the draft now, you can bet that people would get angry and try to stop these wars. The US populace is so far removed from even the most simple effects of war (emotional connection, wartime production, etc) that it seems most people simply don't care.
In other words, if all wars were fought with robots, we could more easily justify war and we might have wars more often. Thus, we don't want to use robots to fight wars, because it simply continues the dehumanizing aspects of war.
@Yosho: I think that's solving the right problem with a solution that's not practically feasible. It's the army who lose men but the government who decide when to go to war. As such, the army should be given every opportunity to preserve life and, as we become more able to detach from warfare, a greater responsibility should fall upon the government. Which brings us back to the problem of political dis-interest among the population.
I'm actually super in favour of reinstating the draft, mostly for that very reason. I think that if we didn't have the draft for most of the Vietnam War, we'd have found ourselves in a similar situation as the Iraq/Afgani wars. Conversely, if we had the draft now, you can bet that people would get angry and try to stop these wars. The US populace is so far removed from even the most simple effects of war (emotional connection, wartime production, etc) that it seems most people simply don't care.
The quality of an all volunteer military force is far superior than that of a conscripted force. People who are forced into a war zone against their will can be more emotionally scarred from their experience. Additionally they simply don't perform at the same level of professionalism that volunteers do. Not to mention that forcing people to go to war to make a political point is inhumane and a violation of human rights.
If you want people to care about the war, take a look at the media. The turning point of the Vietnam War was when Walter Cronkite said the war would be "unwinnable". Work towards reforming the news media and returning to the quality that existed during the Cronkite era.
Not fail for you, but fail in general for humanity. Involving fire. Once again.
As for my own fail, Natalie went back to Loo'siana this afternoon, and I've got two weeks of the living alone. It's not so bad, I have my pets and I'm going to see my family lots. There is just a certain place in my life that only she can fill. Makes me a lil' sad.
As for my own fail, Natalie went back to Loo'siana this afternoon, and I've got two weeks of the living alone. It's not so bad, I have my pets and I'm going to see my family lots. There is just a certain place in my life that only she can fill. Makes me a lil' sad.
Visit us Sunday! We'll be moving in over the course of the afternoon. ^_^
Holy shit. I was just cooking dinner and the burner, that was recently replaced, must have over loaded somehow and created a small fire on the stove. There was a buzzing coming from the burner along with sparks flying. I first tried removed a metal pot lid from the stove and received a small electric shock. I then removed the the wok from the stove with oven mits on. More sparks and buzzing erupted. After it stopped, I immediately turned off the burner.
Now my apartment smells a bit like an electrical fire.
Comments
I really only have one comment to this: Ender's Game. Same exact principle. Same exact issues, but on a larger, more extreme scale.
Obviously right now the drones are not being used to wipe out an entire race, and the pilots are probably not being misled into thinking they really are playing a simulation. I'm going more for the conceptual issues, like the question of what kind of force and use of technology is justified and when.
Edit: The sniper rifle is probably closer to the drone than the bomber or artillery piece, as it gives immediate feedback.
If you want people to care about the war, take a look at the media. The turning point of the Vietnam War was when Walter Cronkite said the war would be "unwinnable". Work towards reforming the news media and returning to the quality that existed during the Cronkite era.
http://busystreet.wordpress.com/2009/12/16/cookalong-burns-down-22-homes-in-the-u-s/
As for my own fail, Natalie went back to Loo'siana this afternoon, and I've got two weeks of the living alone. It's not so bad, I have my pets and I'm going to see my family lots. There is just a certain place in my life that only she can fill. Makes me a lil' sad.
Now my apartment smells a bit like an electrical fire.
At least the dinner was done cooking.