Leaked report shows high civilian death toll from CIA drone strikes - Salon.com
Does stopping "terrorism" make it ok to kill children?
Is it legal?
Is it moral?
Is it Christian?
If it is "ok" that kids get killed during war, wouldn't that make it ok to bomb civilians?
If "they" did it first, have two wrongs ever made a right?
If it is ok to kill a Pakistani child, is it ok to kill an American child?
Food for thought.
None of this is food for thought. In fact, its something that needs to be accepted or not.
The people involved in war, whichever war it is, and whatever its objections or goals, all must accept that in war, people die. Civilians and soldiers alike. You cannot have any reservations over it. You just need to accept it, as a human being, that in war, shit happens, and there is always blowback in all sorts of ways, shapes and forms. If you cannot or refuse to accept it, you will have a moral conflict within yourself for many years to come. Accept it, and bury it.
The sole purpose of all of these weapon systems and the military too, are to kill other humans. Missiles and mines alike, call them "anti-personnel weapon systems" or A FUCKING MINE, and its objective is the same. Its meant to neutralize an enemy before they have time to kill any of our side's people. Simple. You don't call in the military and clandestine agencies to just "bomb the terrorists, but don't hurt any kids". While that's a lovely thought, its bullshit in practice. Not realistic at all. Those children, have legs, so they move, and many times, they were on the move into the kill zone area (that they were unaware of anyway) and were chalked up as "collateral damage" by the other side after the strike. Is this right? No. But its war, and people die in wars. Not all, but most. That's the fucking point of war...
We as civilians have an entirely different perspective and attitude towards this topic, and therefore, as a people, we need to decide, whether its a yes or a no, to green-light our military or clandestine agencies to be 'absolved of all risk and liability' outside the battlefield. We cannot morally justify any of this from a case by case or per person type perspective.
If the goal is to kill terrorists, then CIA will kill them, using any means necessary to get the job done. If the military and CIA together both formally agree to ROE where a kill order is issued and civilians may become collateral damage from the strike, and that the target is "worth the risk", then so be it, if they say its okay, then its okay, and that's the end of it.
I know its a very fucked up way of looking at it. But its the only way to legally, morally and ethically justify any of this. So, don't get all "but do the lil children deserve to die or get maimed by our bombs?!" No, they don't deserve it, but that's war. And drone strikes are just another application to carry out a way to somewhat covertly and strategically neutralize a target without risking any of our own citizens or soldiers.
I'm an American, so I value American and our allies lives higher than those of the enemy our agencies and military are fighting. But the same goes for those of the population in the land our boys are fucking shit up in.
This can go on forever...
:angrysoapbox_sml: