"The world associates the U.S. with drone attacks"

The (Grim) Reaper Drone. Public domain.

I've posted many times here at Katalusis protesting the Obama Administration's love affair with drones. The real danger as pointed out by John Sifton at the Nation is the detachment of humanity from acts of violence made possible with the use of these deadly unmanned weapons.

Obviously recognizing the futility of trying to persuade Barack Obama to abandon his weapon of choice, the editorial board at the Christian Science Monitor urges the administration to at least develop "a clear policy on the use or sale of drones."

The Monitor's board begins with an update:

After several months of hiatus the United States is back raining down drone strikes in Pakistan – three so far this month. Another US drone recently attacked alleged terrorists in Yemen. And Secretary of State John Kerry has said drone attacks won’t be ruled out as the US plans how it will aid Iraq in its battle with insurgents from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.

The world associates the US with drone attacks. They can strike targets that would be hard to reach by any other means. These unmanned vehicles don’t put the lives of US military personnel at risk. Much of the time drones make “precision” attacks that avoid civilian casualties. And they introduce a certain fear in opponents – who knows when a drone is nearby and about to strike?

 No wonder other countries are eager to develop their own drone programs. According to a new report from the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), four other countries already possess military drones: Britain, Israel, China, and Iran. Others are moving forward with programs, including India and Pakistan. And a stealth drone called Neuron is being jointly developed by Switzerland, France, Italy, Spain, Greece, and Sweden.

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