Eye in the Sky presents a bleak portrait of drone technology and calls into question the norms of global counterterrorism and warfare. Technological tools of surveillance allow for targeted operations, aimed at known terrorists. These tools entrench existing hegemonies of power. However much drones are celebrated for reducing the numbers of casualties in counterterrorism units while simultaneously targeting top terrorism suspects, the effects of the drone strikes can be devastating on the local innocents, the civilians caught in the drone fire, and may even have some detrimental long-term effects such as increased acts of terror or reduction of the credibility of counterterrorism.
Public attitudes towards the use of drones vary considerably. In the United States, attitudes toward the use of drone strikes as a counterterrorism tactic "is moved more by legal principles than by military effectiveness," (Kreps and Wallace). Given the ways drones can be reframed as legally problematic, and given…...
Terrorist Targets and DronesDrone strikes have often resulted in civilian casualties, which raises questions about the legality of such actions under international lawbut there is also the risk that the United States will become too reliant on drones and other forms of military force, rather than addressing the root causes of terrorism. For both of these reasons, I believe that the killing of terrorist targets using drones by the US is not a justified legal and/or moral tactic to combat terrorism in the world.From a legal standpoint, the US governments authority to kill terrorist targets using drones is far from clear. The US Constitution does not explicitly grant the president the power to order such strikes, and international law is similarly vague on the issue, other there may be valid occasions for drone strike usagesuch as when the US is invited by a country to intervene for the sake of…...
mlaReferencesBreau, S., & Aronsson, M. (2012). Drone attacks, international law, and the recording of civilian casualties of armed conflict. Suffolk Transnat\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'l L. Rev., 35, 255.Delahunty, R. J., & Yoo, J. C. (2001). The President\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s Constitutional Authority to Conduct Military Operations Against Terrorist Organizations and the Nations that Harbor or Support Them. Harv. JL & Pub. Pol\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'y, 25, 487.Democracy Now! (2013). Why Did the United States Kill a Denver-Born Teenager with a Drone Strike in Yemen? YouTube. Retrieved from C., Akande, D., Hill-Cawthorne, L., & Chengeta, T. (2016). The international law framework regulating the use of armed drones. International & Comparative Law Quarterly, 65(4), 791-827.New American Foundation. (2015). Drone strikes: cause or effect. Retrieved from https://www.newamerica.org/international-security/in-the-news/drone-strikes-cause-or-effect/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21XhdpHOjRY Heyns,
Robotic drones have been in use by the United States as a strategy of attack against terrorist groups for several years now, beginning in the administration of George . Bush. They have been effective and yet there is and has been controversy with the use of these robotic technologies. This paper will point to the criticisms and the supportive positions as well. In this paper the writer uses opinion articles by Daniel Byman and Kenneth Anderson to point to how drones actually work and to arguments against the continued use of drones as well as arguments in support of the policy of using drones.
This paper supports the use of drones as a very successful way to combat and kill certain key terrorist leaders who use violence to kill innocent people as they push their twisted Islamic ideologies on society. There is no doubt that innocent people have been killed during…...
mlaWorks Cited
Anderson, Kenneth. "The Case for Drones." Commentary. Retrieved February 23, 2015,
From 2013.http://www.commentarymagazine.com .
Byman, Daniel. "Why Drones Work." Foreign Affairs, 92.4 (2013): 32-43.
Title: Methodology and deployment of Iranian drones by the Russian military in the war on UkraineSummary: After underestimating the capabilities and unilateral support given to the Ukrainian government, Russia, is now facing a supply shortage and has turned to their short list of allies for supply assistance in their war on Ukraine. Drone attacks on Ukraine have recently increased as Russia has renewed its attacks throughout western regions of Ukraine. The introduction of these new drones needs to be investigated to ensure that counter measures are in place to assist the Ukrainian army with defense weapons and protect other U.S. interests abroad..Body of Report: Source A provides a basic explanation of how Russia has procured drones from Iran for attack against enemy targets. It describes the deal between the two states and how it is likely to make Russia an even bigger threat to Western interests. The source notes that…...
U.S. intelligence refers to some of the most formidable and top intelligence available in the world. The United States has long led the way in the practice of gathering the most up-to -- the minute and esoteric intelligence regarding the actions of other countries, other armies and the other enemies. The current modern age has demonstrated the steady advancement in this regard of a range of sound technological tools which America has harnessed consistently for the effective pursuit of the most current and hard to gather intelligence.
Drones
The use of combat drones has been something that America has long used to gather intelligence and to engage in warfare with enemies or suspected enemies. However, in the last 12 months, the usage of drones has steadily decreased. "The number of drone strikes approved by the Obama administration on suspected terrorists has fallen dramatically this year, as the war with al Qaeda increasingly…...
mlaReferences
Aljazeera.com. (2013, October). U.S. 'drone strike' kills senior Shabab members. Retrieved from aljazeera.com: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2013/10/drone-strike-kills-senior-shabab-members-20131028184651994308.html
BBC. (2013, October). Pakistan says drones killed 67 civilians since 2008. Retrieved from BBC.co.uk: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-24742037
FAS.org. (n.d.). Military Intelligence Satellites. Retrieved from Fas.org: https://www.fas.org/irp/imint/docs/rst/Intro/Part2_26e.html
Galbraith, P. (2013, October). NSA spying on Europe gives the U.S. more intelligence, but not better. Retrieved from Theguardian.com: http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/oct/29/nsa-spying-europe-us-intelligence
Political Issues Based on the Film "Eye in The Sky" In Which Government Attitude, Which Decides Who Lives and Who Dies for The Cause of The Nation Is Examined
The film "Eye in the Sky" is somewhat a literal depiction of war fare between the drones. This is a flagrantly contrived film that examines the ethics of using remote control to kill. The subject was dramatized a year ago in Andrew Niccol's film "Good Kill." In this film, there is a simplistic device of the little girl in which it is made clear that the new ones have no chance of winning hearts. The debate is getting awful to change any mind; even though, there is no attempt to try and change the mind. That is where its strength lies. In the film "Eye in the Sky" the case is argued on all fronts: the merits and the perils of the…...
President's Address
The counter-terrorism speech given by president Obama came with a couple of messages. His first address touched on the restrictive policy strikes using drones; of course this was not new or restrictive according to prior experience. His second focus was directed at the need to close down Guantanamo Bay detention center. The latter was also not a new stand taken by the president but it surely opposed a long standing position by the powers that be. Here are the major highlights of President Obama's speech.
esponding to the Threat: Leveraging Effective Partnerships and Targeting Terrorists
Effective response to terrorism needs a lot more than just military response and law enforcement. There is need for a concerted effort to be directed towards winning the war of ideology and the battle of will. The first item should be to complete the task of defeating the Al Qaeda forces.
Standards for Taking Lethal Action
Although…...
mlaReferences
Hudson, J. (2013, May 23). The 4 key points of Barack Obama's counterterrorism speech. Retrieved from Foreign Policy: http://foreignpolicy.com/2013/05/23/the-4-key-points-of-barack-obamas-counterterrorism-speech/
O'Connell, M. E. (2013, May 24). Obama's Speech May Have Made His Drone Problem Worse. Retrieved from New Republic: https://newrepublic.com/article/113297/president-obama-and-drone-warfare-his-speech-wasnt-good-enough
The White House. (2013, May 23). Facts on President Obama's Speech on Counterterrorism. Retrieved from Office of the Press Secretary: http://iipdigital.usembassy.gov/st/english/texttrans/2013/05/20130523147928.html#axzz49PJsZCMv
ar in Afghanistan
After the terrorist group al Qaeda attacked the United States on September 11, 2001, the American military was sent to Afghanistan to attack the Taliban, and destroy their governing position. The Taliban became the target of the U.S. because they had allowed Osama bin Laden to use their country as a training ground for terrorist activities directed against the United States. However, the U.S. is now bogged down in what seems to be an unwinnable war against Taliban insurgents that cross the border from Pakistan. Moreover, there are militants in Afghanistan who object to foreign troops being in their country, and they have apparently joined with the insurgents and continue fighting the American and NATO forces in Afghanistan. This paper reviews the historical and contemporary causes of the war in Afghanistan, and critiques the positive outcomes as well as the negative outcomes of the U.S. engagement in Afghanistan.
How…...
mlaWorks Cited
Associated Press. (2011). Suicide Bombers Kill Worshippers In Afghanistan. Retrieved November, 2011, from http://www.npr.com .
This is an article that brought to light the ongoing violence in Afghanistan, in specifics the proverbial suicide bomber situation, where an radical Islamic terrorist is willing to blow himself up in order to kill others. In this case the people killed with fellow Muslims -- worse yet, he killed people exiting a mosque following their worship services -- but clearly the message to the world was this: the NATO and U.S. presence in Afghanistan will never stop terrorists from doing whatever they want to do whenever they wish to do it.
Baktash, Hashmat, and Magnier, Mark. (2011). Suicide bombing in Kabul kills as many as 13
Americans. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 19, 2011, from http://www.latimes.com
Predators has led to Decrease in Road-Side ombings in Afghanistan
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) started firing drones missiles in Afghanistan in order to reduce civilian casualties and reduce roadside bombings. These missiles known as Predators incorporate accuracy, wide efficient surveillance and precision target meant to reduce roadside bombings. To minimize civilian casualties, the Predator targets mobile insurgents as opposed to focusing on residential areas. The use of Predator has minimized roadside bombings and civilian as a result of increased surveillance.
Roadside bombing casualties represent a reduction from a 10% casualty level in 2009, 7% in 2011 to almost 3% in 2012. In line with this, rook (2012 ), adds that improvised explosive devices were a major cause of troop deaths untill the introduction of the Predator.
The most important feature of the predator is the detection of all types of improvised explosive devices. Data indicate that from January through March; the…...
mlaBibliography
Abbot, S. Study: Militants, not Civilians, are Primary Victims of Drone Attacks. Associated Press, 2012.
Brook, Tom Vanden. "Drones detection cutting into IEDs in Afghanistan."
www.theleafchronicle.com. July 16, 2012 . (accessed July 22, 2012).
Drew, C. "Drones Are Playing a Growing Role in Afghanistan ." The New York Times, February
Or, as Saletan points out, those three elements "by deduction, are the due process test" (2011).
But this ought to leave a bad taste in one's mouth because all three of these elements can be manipulated to violate one's due process right.
"hich leaves us with an awkward bottom line. If the target is a suspected terrorist, "imminence" can be redefined to justify killing him. If the weapon is a drone, feasibility of arrest has already been ruled out -- that's why the drone has been sent to do the job. So in any drone strike on a U.S. citizen suspected of terrorism, only one of the three questions we supposedly apply to such cases is really open: Has he been fighting alongside al-Qaida? If he has, we can kill him. That's the same rule we apply to foreigners. In effect, citizenship doesn't matter. The "due process" test is empty" (Saletan…...
mlaWorks Cited
Cornell University Law School. (n.d). Bill of Rights from Cornell University Law
School. Retrieved from:
http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.billofrights.html#amendmentv .
Lithwick, D. (2011, July 14). Murder Conviction Most Foul: What Justin Wolfe's case in Virginia tells us about death row cases everywhere. Slate.com. Retrieved from http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2011/07/murder_c
Counter Terrorism
Describe the strategy, tactics, and tools that are available to agencies within the U.S. To perform counter-terrorism operations
The basic strategy for agencies within the U.S. is to focus on coordinating with states and local officials. This means that between the different levels of government, there will be increased amounts of intelligence sharing. At the same time, there is a concentrated effort in working with first responders to effectively prevent and mitigate the effects of a terrorist attack. This is accomplished by having threat level alerts that will let everyone know when to be vigilant. (Alexander, 2007, pp. 559 -- 597)
Some of the tools that are utilized during this process include: facial recognition technology, bomb / explosive detectors, dogs, surveillance cameras and laws that give officials greater powers. A good example of this can be seen with the passage and renewal of the U.S.A. Patriot Act. After September 11th, these…...
mlaReferences
Alexander, Y. (2007). Evolution of U.S. Counterterrorism Policy. Westport, CT: Prager.
Kagely, C. (2011). The Global Future. Boston, MA: Wadsworth.
Mickoulus, E. (2011). The Terror List. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger.
Finally, torture is the best means to try to get this information from the suspect (McCoy, 2006). Taken as a whole, these circumstances are so unlikely to occur that, even if the ticking bomb scenario would justify the use of torture, it has not ever occurred and, therefore, cannot be used to justify torture.
In fact, what many people who advocate in favor of torture fail to acknowledge is that while torture may be guaranteed to elicit information from even the most reticent of subjects, there is no reason to believe that torture will elicit truthful information. The theory behind torture is that, with the application of sufficient pain and fear, people will talk, and that does appear to be true in the vast majority of cases. However, it is more important to wonder what they will say than whether they will talk. In the non-terrorist scenario, "About 25% of…...
mlaReferences
Armbruster, B. (2011, October 3). Obama's successful counterterror strategy. Retrieved March 21, 2012 from Think Progress website: -successful-counterterror-strategy/http://thinkprogress.org/progress-report/obamas
Bufacchi, V., & Arrigo, J.M. (2006). Torture, terrorism, and the state: A refutation of the Ticking-Bomb argument. Journal of Applied Philosophy, 23(3), 355-373.
Gathii, J. (2004). Torture, extra-territoriality, terrorism, and international law. Albany Law
Review, 67, 101-138. Retrieved March 19, 2012 from:
shift of terrorism to the international level. It defines terrorism, the reasons it is carried out, and the parties involved in terrorist acts. It also discusses the reasons due to which, certain states are covertly sponsoring terrorism to fight against their rival states without starting a conventional full scale war, and saving huge costs. It highlights how the military actions involved in the global war against terrorism are fuelling the terrorist movements and strengthening their numbers.
War and Terrorism
War can be defined as an armed conflict between two states, where both the states' main focus is to impose their own will on the rival state. During the last two centuries, the conventional ways of fighting a war have changed immensely due to technological advancements, but the reasons to initiate and fight a war remains the same. A war is fought in order to occupy and control a piece of foreign…...
mlaReferences
Hudson, R.A. (1999) The Sociology and Psychology of Terrorism: Who Become a Terrorist And Why?. The Library of Congress. Retrieved on February 2nd, 2013 from http://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/pdf-files/Soc_Psych_of_Terrorism.pdf
Payne, J.L. (2008). What Do the Terrorists Want?. The Independent Review, 13. Retrieved from http://www.independent.org/pdf/tir/tir_13_01_2_payne.pdf
Morgan, M.J. (2004) The Origins of the New Terrorism. Parameters. Retrieved on February 2nd, 2013 from http://www.carlisle.army.mil/usawc/parameters/Articles/04spring/morgan.pdf
S. interests. What is different is that we have names and faces to go with that warning."3 This emphasis on recognizing the adaptability
3 Dennis C. Blair, Annual Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community for the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, (U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, 2010).
of the terrorist is central to the government's overall response, in terms of both planning and execution, as evidenced by findings presented in the wealth of threat assessment material released to the public each year.
With the oft mentioned terrorist training camps and secret underground bases littered throughout the Middle East long since located and reduced to rubble, jihadists the world over have increasingly turned to the internet to lure potential borrowers and launder funds on a global scale.4 the last Homeland Security Threat Assessment, delivered to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence in 2008 and covering the period from that date through 2013, stated…...
mlaReferenced
Bennetch, Paul. 2012. "Terrorism expert: al-Qaida's 9/11 tactics an 'abject failure'." Cornell Chronicle [Ithaca, NY] 13 Mar 2012. Retrieved from http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/March12/BergenCover.html
Blair, Dennis C. 2010. United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. Annual Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community for the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, Retrieved from http://intelligence.senate.gov/100202/blair.pdf
Esposito, Richard, Matthew Cole, and Brian Ross. 2009. Officials: U.S. Army Told of Hasan. ABC World News. Retrieved from contact-al-qaeda-terrorists-officials/story?id=9030873http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/fort-hood-shooter -
Holt, B. 2010. Islamic wealth management. Unpublished raw data, Thomas Jefferson School of Law, San Diego, CA.
Comparative Analysis of Counter-Terrorism Strategies: USA and IsraelIntroductionThe United States and Israel are two prominent global actors that have had to combat domestic and international terrorism throughout their histories, which has resulted in the development of counter-terrorism strategies. Due to their differences, the two nations approaches are unique. The U.S. is a large, multicultural federation with global interests and military involvement around the world; Israel is a small, somewhat homogeneous nation-state with distinct regional concerns. Yet, both nations share a strategic partnership, collaborating on security, defense, and intelligence matters. This paper provides a comparative analysis of the two states counter-terrorism strategies.Threat EnvironmentThe United States is a global superpower with wide-ranging interests and influence, faces a diverse set of threats from extremist groups around the world. International terrorist organizations such as ISIS and Al-Qaeda have targeted the U.S. as a symbol of Western power and influence that they oppose. ISIS emerged…...
mlaReferencesFarag, W. Z. (2020). American security strategy towards terrorism after September 11 attacks. Review of Economics and Political Science, 5(4), 323-333.Ganor, B. (2021). Israel\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s Counterterrorism Strategy: Origins to the Present. Columbia University Press.Okeke, F. O., & Chendo, I. G. (2019, November). Resilient architecture; a design approach to counter terrorism in building for safety of occupants. In IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering (Vol. 640, No. 1, p. 012003). IOP Publishing.Romaniuk, P. (2010). Multilateral counter-terrorism: the global politics of cooperation and contestation. Routledge.
Certainly! Here are some essay topic ideas related to Barack Obama:
1. Analyzing the major accomplishments and legacy of Barack Obama as President of the United States.
2. Exploring the challenges and obstacles faced by Obama during his presidency and evaluating his responses.
3. Investigating the impact of Obama's healthcare reform, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), on the American healthcare system.
4. Discussing Obama's approach to foreign policy, focusing on significant events such as the Iran nuclear deal or the Paris Climate Agreement.
5. Examining the Obama administration's efforts to address climate change and promote clean energy.
6. Assessing the economic policies and strategies implemented by....
1. The Authorization for Use of Military Force (2001) granted President Obama the authority to use necessary and appropriate force against al-Qaeda and associated forces, which included Osama bin Laden, the target of Operation Geronimo.
2. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 (2011) specifically authorized the use of force against high-level al-Qaeda operatives, including bin Laden, providing further legal justification for Operation Geronimo.
3. The inherent authority of the President as Commander-in-Chief granted Obama the power to authorize military action against imminent threats to the United States, such as bin Laden's potential for future attacks.
4. The principle of anticipatory....
1. The Legacy of Barack Obama: Assessing His Impact on American Society and Politics
Explore Obama's policies and accomplishments in areas such as healthcare, the economy, education, and foreign affairs.
Analyze the challenges he faced and the extent to which he achieved his goals.
Discuss the lasting impact of his presidency on American society and the political landscape.
2. Obama's Leadership Style: A Case Study in Transformational Leadership
Examine Obama's unique leadership qualities and strategies.
Analyze his use of charisma, persuasion, and collaboration to inspire and motivate others.
Discuss the lessons that can be learned from his leadership style for future....
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