That memo on the use of drones

Coming into clearer focus for me is a nagging sense that it’s a bit arrogant to give special protection to an American person, who’s an avowed combatant devoted to harming US citizens, just because he’s American, while we feel freer from a moral standpoint to kill a non-American who threatens us.  What makes an American human being more special than a human being from someplace else?  And further, what makes an American?  In my opinion, someone who’s born in New Mexico and joins al Qaeda and vows to destroy the US and carries out plans to that end is an American in name only.  They have for all intents and purposes renounced his/her citizenship.  A person has a human right to declare their loyalties however they want, which should be respected, and conversely, shouldn’t their vow to renounce their loyalty be taken just as seriously?  Another side of the same coin.

I’m more hawkish than most and don’t wring my hands too much about having to thwart threats with lethal force.  Until war is no more I expect lethal force will be necessary unless we’re willing to capitulate, concede, and surrender.  It’s obvious that combat has changed with technology.  The countries and regions where terrorist plots are hatched, funded, and carried out are very dangerous places, both to civilians (especially women) and soldiers.  So assuming we are combating credible, verifiable threats against the US and our interests, is it reasonable or moral to put our soldiers at risk when we have the technology not to have to do so?  The world has changed, let’s not pretend it hasn’t.

I’m not one to trust my government and never have been, but I’m enjoying this rare moment in history when I do trust this administration, far more than I would another (depending on who it is), so the trouble to me lies in what the next president does with this power.  The courts repeatedly have said it’s up to congress to address this complex situation, and as long as we keep electing Tea Party wing nuts and bigots and obstructionists, and as long as our politicians are beholden money and special interests in order to campaign seriously, nothing will get resolved, not even this most troublesome and pressing issue of the morality or usefulness of drones. 

We need to do more than complain about what we don’t like.  We need to work to get money out of politics and overturn Citizens United.  We need to communicate with and pressure our representatives, and we need to elect pols who will do what they’re hired to do rather than just enriching themselves and feathering their own nests for the future.

I appreciate the administration not lying about or trying to hide the drone program.  With national security, I hope it’s obvious to everyone how important secrecy is and that we shouldn’t expect the whole program to be made public.  However, there could be a oversight panel consisting of administration officials, select members of congress, and federal judges that oversees the program.  But again, if congress can’t be trusted to do their jobs, where does that leave us? 

I hope the upcoming discussions will include in an honest way what we should and will do about threats, before and after they occur.  I’ll be watching the Brennan hearings.