Replies

You missed my point... widely. Once again, here it is.. why are our military warfighters’ hands tied by hyper-restrictive ROE when the use of drones, which can splash anyone at anytime with impunity, perfectly acceptable?

And don’t lecture to me about priorities.

I mentioned the ROE in a prior post. My difference with you is the use of the phrase "wholesale slaughter of families." You made it sound like we are killing indiscriminately tens of thousands of innocent women and children with drones. The fact is the numbers are really small especially compared to what the enemy is doing and the US is taking care to avoid as much collateral damage as possible whether it is thru the authorization process to conduct a drone strike or the ROE on the ground. We don't slaughter families on a "wholesale" basis.

And as far as drones making warfare "a desk-bound video game," that is a crock of sh*t usually spouted by some liberal a##hole. It suggests a lack of seriousness and responsibility on the part of our military. In fact, the Guardian article makes just the opposite case if you believe the author. The drone operators are being affected emotionally by what they are doing.

You have served as have I. I really have a hard time understanding why you believe the US is slaughtering families on a wholesale basis. We just don't operate that way, Obama or no Obama.

Being able to shwack bad guys with impunity is what it’s all about, isn’t it? Supremacy in the battle space is the objective and killing the enemy without getting killed is what we all hope for.

How is the use of the UAV any different from using strike aircraft or helicopters as CAS? The way I see it, it is safer and much more cost effective than maintaining a CAS stack.

I had buddies and acquaintances who loved having a Predator overhead because they knew the loiter time was forever and the crew provided not only real time intel, but could also provide personalized attention to the bad guys in a pinch.

Finally, an Air Force dude should love the precision that UAV provided on the battlefield. Collateral damage is held to a minimum even on tactical
strikes because of the precision that a Hellfire provides. This is a far cry from wiping cities slick ala Bomber Harris in WW II.