Our last lecture and the reading "Drone-o-Rama" was thought provoking in the sense that its visible how vulnerable citizens are compared to the government. The fact that drones can be useful to catch criminals, deliver packages instantaneously, and keeping the casualties number low in times of war is all very important. Drones are efficient and the technology is definitely a step towards the future. I even liked the idea of these "drones" being used in warfare as machines that can carry weight and survey dangerous land before humans step into it.
But on the other hand, the technology has made citizens really vulnerable because of the fact that at any point in time, you could be the subject of the drone pilots training (from video watched in lecture) The right to privacy is something we all deserve and that people can watch us and track every move by a touch of a button is scary, especially since they don't even need to ask for permission.
Also the fact that the operation of drones dehumanizes things for the person in control, which can lead to mindless killing because said person was following orders even if there were to be collateral damage.
But, in conclusion, if it keeps people safe and save lives, I am not the one to argue, because at the end of the day these pilots get to go home and see their family and that is something most men at war don't get to do.
I agree with you that if sending out drones saves lives, then it is the appropriate thing to do. However, Drones are made mainly to recon and kill people. When a mission is made to eliminate a US target, often times civilians are hurt during the process because Drones' arsenal includes heavy machine guns, missiles, and bombs. None of these weapons are necessarily single precision striking weapons that targets a single person within a crowd. If there is a crowd near the target, the entire crowd would be wiped out as well. Anyways, your claims are correct, but you have to realize that drones will never be perfect.
ReplyDeleteI see your point, and yes it is true that drones save lives. However, they only save the lives of the American soldiers who get to act as remote pilots instead of actually going overseas into battle. But what about the lives of the civilians in the Middle East who are mistakenly killed by drone attacks? Why are the lives of these human beings valued any less than those of the American soldiers? Technology has advanced so that hand to hand combat is no longer the most common form of battle. This makes it harder to determine who is an actual threat and who is an innocent civilian, simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. I understand the advantages of drones, but it makes me wonder if the benefits outweigh the costs.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that drones are a big step towards the future, but I think there is still a large amount of work that needs to be done before we can depend on them. They are very helpful, especially at war, but we cannot trust them yet. I do not like the idea of pilots controlling the drones from their base, while innocent people are dying due to the fire of missiles by the drones. It dehumanizes the idea of war and in the future it will make war a battle of technology, rather than the face to face combat it used to be. Without this face to face combat, how can we be sure our soldiers are killing the right individuals? Drones have a great future in front of them, but I do not feel comfortable trusting them until their statistics show their kills of correct individuals has outweighed their kills of innocent civilians.
ReplyDeleteDrones are a way of keeping people safe, however I believe there should be more regulations put in place. As you stated, people should have the right to privacy, as stated in our constitution. Whoever's life is to be taken away by drones should have the right to a trial, or at least give the public an explanation prior as to who will be targeted. This will minimize the casualties of civilians and make it more acceptable to the people. It is frightening to think that someone can be watching over your every move and with the push of a button can end your life. Although the drone pilots get to go home to their families unlike other soldiers, they go home with a heavy conscious.
ReplyDeleteThere is no doubt that using drones in war could save lives and lower the risk of getting injury for soldiers.This is, in my point of view, the biggest contribution drones have made. I also like the idea when you mentioned how the way our government use drones might invade our personally privacy. Indeed we can not always know what is flying above us and watching us, especially when the flying object might be really small. I think more regulations on the use of drones are needed.
ReplyDeleteI find it difficult to disagree with the fact that drone use for military purposes saves lives for the side that is fortunate enough to utilize the technology, but drones could easily be argued to take more lives than they save. For those on the receiving end of the weaponized technology, lives are terminated in many cases where one would have been able to escape. "Enemies" can be watched often without knowing and they can be subsequently targeted and killed if they are confirmed as intended targets. The ability to always monitor areas allows for many "combatants" to be killed in civilian environments. I know that the lives of allied soldiers are saved because soldiers do not have to be physically deployed on the ground, but it must be realized that while hundreds of allied lives are saved, drones are responsible for thousands of deaths from those considered "enemy combatants," deaths which include the lives of innocent civilians taken as collateral damage.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that drones can save lives. The precision and very directed attacks executed by drones help to limit the amount of unnecessary deaths on both our side and the enemy's side. I do not think that having pilots operate drones from such a vast dehumanizes the act of killing in any way. Like mentioned in the video, the drone pilots are 18 inches away from the screen. They watch the attack before, during, and after. Drone pilots watch the targeted people die and bleed out in front of them. If anything, drones make the act of killing more clear, more harsh, and more of a crime in the military's eyes. Though innocent civilians killed by drones, innocent civilians are also killed by manned air strikes and ground attacks. Innocent civilian deaths are a part of war, as sad as that is. Drones do limit the amount of innocent death and make it easier to assess the situation from afar. The pilots are not trigger happy or caught up in the moment. They can assess the situation from a calm, removed place and execute the best attack so as to benefit our country. I appear to be in support of drones after this class and writing this comment.
ReplyDeleteI agree that while drones and their many uses are fascinating and revolutionary, it is very valid to be concerned about privacy violations of the unknowing person. I also found the video of the drone training session tracking cars on the freeway was unsettling because the people driving the vehicles had no idea they were being watch and had in no way consented to it. While it may have been a perfectly innocent training tool for those involved, it does make me worry that if we don't set a privacy precedents for drone use now, the government and military will keep pushing the boundaries of usage further without the average citizen being aware that their privacy is being violated. This reminds me very much of the NSA debate and the argument about whether it's okay or not. In some ways I can see the point that if you're doing nothing wrong then you should have nothing to worry about, but on the other hand do we really want to consent to living in a big brother society?
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