Today there were a number of diaries, even a political cartoon, springing up critical of the military drone attacks that are ongoing. I won't argue with anyone that the right does not exist for someone to bring this up in political debate. On it's own as a single issue it's clear that ethically it's wrong for any nation to use such horrific devices if they are not absolutely accurate and only kill enemy combatants that are an immediate threat to kill and murder others. Obviously, this kind of firepower destroys innocent people as well and, looking long term, probably does as much harm as good.
I will however try to point out why I believe President Obama has made the choices he has on this issue. I, and nobody else posting comments on Daily Kos have the full story as to the justifications for their continued use. We cannot sit in his office, read his daily briefings, be in the room with his military commanders and advisers, hear the thoughts in his head, know what conversations he's had with the men and women in our military. What we can do though is imagine scenarios of what our world will look like with and without those drone strikes based on our knowledge of history, human nature, politics and the certainty that every human has to face those Sophie's Choice moments when there is no right answer, when someone will be hurt regardless of what we decide. For those of you unfamiliar with that movie, Meryl Streep's character was forced to decide which of her children must die, something that haunted her for life.
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