drone war – Brain Bits To Go

I’ve been reading a fair bit about the ongoing drone war controversy. I don’t agree with the idea of murdering people because they might be a threat to your “interests” somewhere down the road. Let’s not kid ourselves. If you kill someone without due process of law, that’s murder. Even more so when the dead are “collateral damage” in something as vague and useless as a “War on Terror”.

So NaPoWriMo Day 12 looks at it from two different perspectives. The receiver is in a normal font. The sender in italics.

Enjoy!

Two Sided Story

I was sitting in a cafe
Somewhere that has no name
Drinking coffee with a good friend
The day the drone strike came.

I was sitting in a soft chair
Away from those I killed
I’d received a big promotion
Because I am so skilled.

Others were there with us that day
A dozen maybe more
When it was done the final count
Survivors, we are four.

It’s not my fault don’t try to blame
Me for the things I hit
I’m not the one who makes those calls
Just try to do my bit.

The smell of blood and burning flesh
Strong as the day they died
It’s never gotten easier
For all the tears I’ve cried.

They say here is your target site
Inside a terrorist
I ask if there are others there
I ask but don’t insist.

There’s some who say I should strike back
A part of me agrees
Yet then I know they’ll have their turn
Then us, like some disease.

Sometimes when I close my eyes
The mangled strangers there
Will reach for me, scream “I accuse!”
Or sometimes they just stare.

I know that some will choose revenge
That is their path to seek.
I choose to walk a different path
Some say this makes me weak.

But still I go to work each day
This is my path in life.
This pain the price I must pay to
Prevent a wider strife.

But I endure still seeking peace
Despite the odds I face.
I still believe in truth and good
And in the human race.

I hope one day that I won’t need
To do these awful things.
I hope we all can be at peace
Enjoy all that it brings.

Cheers, Winston

In a recent story by the Atlantic Wire, Adam Clark Estes raises the alarm over a clause in the drone war policy that allows the U.S. government to kill Americans too. It seems Predator attacks are only fun to watch on CNN when the person on the other end is a foreign national. So now that it’s not just for random others, concerned groups like ACLU are up in arms over it.

The short version, the government has given itself authority to murder anyone

who “presents an imminent threat to the United States.

” They also don’t have to possess evidence that a specific attack against U.S. persons or interests is going to happen in the near future. Basically, if they think you or someone you are associated might at some point take an action which the government feels may pose a threat to the U.S. or its interests, they can send in a drone and blow Uranus halfway to Pluto. Oh yeah… They can also take out anyone near you just for good measure.

Again the irony lies in the fact that the outrage is over the inclusion of American citizens. It’s fine so long as it’s the people of Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen, Afghanistan, or somewhere in Central America. Once it hits home however, it’s a different story. Then the narrative changes from “Yeah, whatever.”, to “You can’t do that to Americans!”. As though they are somehow special and should be immune to their own peculiar brand of justice.

Well, as my mother was fond of saying when we were kids, “What’s sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.”. It means if it’s okay to do it to one person, it’s okay to do it to everyone. America tends to talk to other countries about “equality under the law”. Well congrats people. You just got a little more equal. Enjoy.

Cheers, Winston

Brain Bits To Go

Tag: drone war

NaPoWriMo Day: 12 Two Sided Story

You Just Got A Little More Equal. Enjoy.