U.S. drone policy killing hundreds of innocents, Obama says it's okay

By Catholic Online (NEWS CONSORTIUM)
3/15/2013
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)

And he wants to use drones in American skies too?

The United Nations has raised another challenge to Obama's drone policy in Pakistan, saying that it continues to kill innocent civilians because operators have difficulty discerning civilians apart from terrorists. The Obama administrations insists the practice is legal.

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LOS ANGELES, Ca (Catholic Online) - The U.N. Special Rapporteur on Counterterrorism and Human Rights, Ben Emmerson, made a statement on Friday that the strikes are killing Pakistani men who are not terrorists, as they go about their everyday chores.

The drone campaign has disrupted a way of life and may be creating more terrorists than it eliminates.

Emmerson told CNN, "I'm not aware of any state in the world that currently shares the United States' expansive legal perspective that it is engaged in a global war -- that is to say a non-international armed conflict with al Qaeda and any group associated with al Qaeda, wherever they are to be found, that would therefore lawfully entitle the United States to take action involving targeted killing wherever an individual is found."

Emmerson recently visited Pakistan and spoke with members of the Pashtun tribe who are frequent victims of the strikes. He explained that Pashtun men dress the same as the Taliban and they often carry weapons, which is part of their culture. However, this commonly causes operators to make mistakes and fire on innocents.

Now some Pashtun fear carrying weapons and congregating in groups with other men.

Part of the problem for the U.S. is that Pashtun culture requires vengeance for murder, so when innocent men are killed, it drives sons and those around them into terrorist hands in a quest for vengeance. In this way, the drone policy is creating more terrorists.

Despite these accusations, CIA Director John Brennan says that mistakes are "exceedingly rare" saying the annual number of civilian deaths has dropped to around 10 percent.

Exceedingly rare, 10 percent.

This from the Obama administration that wants to expand the use of drones over American skies and has reserved to himself the right to make lethal strikes against fellow Americans, both abroad (which has already happened) and on U.S. soil.

However, if the Obama administration cannot get drone strikes against terrorists right, whatever makes anyone think that similar operations on Americans in the United States won't fail just as tragically?

While many might dismiss such a possibility as highly unlikely and unimaginable, we need only remember that before 9/11, nobody had hardly heard of a drone, furthermore the use of drones to kill terrorists overseas. Since then, we have killed Americans overseas without due process, and drones are becoming increasingly ubiquitous in American skies.

It is a small, logical step to think that such weapons will be used here someday - it's simply a matter of time. When that time comes, what's to say the innocent won't pay alongside the guilty?

Even the death of one innocent is one too many. In Pakistan alone, anywhere from a low of 411 to a high of 884 civilians have been confirmed killed in just 365 strikes.

This is a bad policy for Pakistan and international affairs. It certainly cannot be good for domestic affairs.

� 2013, Distributed by NEWS CONSORTIUM.

- - -

Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention: The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
Missionary Intention: Middle Eastern Christians. That the Christian communities of the Middle East, often discriminated against, may receive from the Holy Spirit the strength of fidelity and perseverance.

Keywords: Holder, Obama, drone, strike, murder, kill, judicial, oversight, review

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1 - 8 of 8 Comments

Paul-Emile Leray
2 months ago
Ends and means. The means do not justify the ends. Often, the means result in creating ends that are in opposition to the initially desired ends pursued in the first place. Please let us not create hell on our way to heaven.
Paul-Emile Leray
JoAnn
2 months ago
mgm: Thank God you are a person that uses discernment before you vote. I do too, but more than half this country did not. And what is most disturbing is that 53% of Catholics did not vote a Catholic conscience. Jim Jones was not even in my mind when I referred to Kool-aid, I was thinking "youth." Sorry if you took it the wrong way, didn't mean to offend. And, I'm sorry if I sounded harsh. Unfortunately, when writing comments, the tone of the voice does not come through and people sometimes take comments the wrong way. It is sometimes hard to detect mirth and sarcasm. That's the problem with trying to communicate with some people. People need to chill out and not take everything so negatively. I'm just trying to impress on everyone that we cannot depend on government to straighten out the mess we are in. It is going to take everyone of us to get back to the teachings of Jesus. Pope Francis has a very large cross to carry and I hope God sends many angels to surround him . I think he knows it too. That's why he asks all of us to pray for him. God bless.
mgm.
3 months ago
"We put these idiots in office" I don't and never did waste my votes on Idiots so speak for yourself JoAnn. I get a kick out of you ,you call me a Kool-aid drinker with refers to the Minister Jimmy Jones poisoning his followers in mass 30 years ago with poison Kool-aid in other words I can't think for myself I follow the leader ,then you end with" God bless"of all things you really think your clever.
JoAnn
3 months ago
mgm: I can't argue with most of what you said. All I am trying to get you to do is be more opened minded and think out of the box. Ronald Reagan said "Government is not the solution, it is the problem." How can we expect people that created this mess are the people that are going to get us out of this mess? I know, we put these idiots in office. So really, who are the idiots, the people in Washington or us? God bless.
mgm.
3 months ago
JoAnn. I look up and more then once to see the Stealth Bomber itself high overhead or off on the horizon approaching you can spot military types easy the give away is at distance you'll see a contrail but with no aircraft ahead leading it, military aircraft are painted to blend into the background sky civilian types in unpainted bare metal glistens in sunlight ahead of their contrails a inspiring sight at sunrise or sunset (you can see contrails a 100 miles away on the horizon) that's how to tell if some interesting military type is or will soon be overhead .JoAnn It will be Wall Street ,industry,the odd guy or randy kid and for sure your loco TV stations that will infringe on your freedoms from the sky with drones , I can see TV stations bragging on their 24 hour a day Action News drones always overhead already.
JoAnn
3 months ago
mgm: Stop drinking the Kool-aid and think for yourself. I personally have seen a drone patrolling an area. Why don't you start looking up once in awhile. I know we are all supposed to be looking up in an anticipated watch for the Lord's return, but you better start looking up for the protection of our freedoms. God bless.
David
3 months ago
Only when Pakistan stops exporting Jihadi Terrorism and training terrorists, will we stop bombing Pakistan. Till then, game on.
mgm.
3 months ago
Did you know there's already aircraft that can carry bombs patrolling our sky now under President Obama's control ! it's called the United States Air Force ! it's got thousands of aircraft that can drop bombs I just can't understand how the President can resist using a B-52 to kill his countrymen in their home's right now ! why is he waiting on drones ? Since when do the useless drones that write this crap for News Consortium give a hoot what the U.N. thinks ? It's obvious drones are the new Black Helicopters of the loony right- wing.

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