"Following the release of a secret Department of Justice memo this week that outlines the administration’s legal justification for killing U.S. citizens, a new Pew Research Center poll has revealed that a majority of Americans are torn over whether they support the government’s right to kill them anywhere at any time without due process." Continue reading →
"If the Obama regime is on the side of the government, as in Algeria, it will kill the rebels opposing the government. If the Obama regime is on the side of the rebels, as in Libya, it will kill the government’s leaders. Whether Washington sends a drone to murder Putin and the president of China remains to be seen. The elasticity of the Kill List and its easy expansion makes it certain that Washington will be involved in extra-judicial executions of those 'associated with terrorism' over much of the world. Americans themselves should be alarmed, because the term 'association with terrorism' is very elastic." Continue reading →
"House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) thinks we’d be asking too much of Obama if we demanded the President publicly acknowledge when he targets a US citizen for assassination. If President Obama wants to drop a bomb on an American with a drone in total secrecy, he should be able to do so. This month’s leak of a Justice Department white paper describing the administration’s legal rationale for executing Americans has put extra emphasis on Obama’s drone war, with many critical commentators pointing out how he has appointed himself Judge, Jury, and Executioner in the war on terror. This is a status quo Pelosi seems eager to uphold." Continue reading →
"Even if the so-called sequestration takes place, the Pentagon will still get more money than they did in 2012! In other words, Panetta is playing sore loser because rather than getting X more dollars than last year, he is getting Y more dollars. To drive home my point, he is threatening a furlough even though he has more money in his budget in 2013 than the immediate previous year. What a loon. To the Pentagon’s melodramatic protests, I say this: '800,000 people furloughed? Awesome. That is a great first step. Just fire them. Bring all the troops home. End the wars. Follow the Constitution.'" Continue reading →
"The United States has deployed several Predator drones to Niger to fly surveillance missions in support of French forces in Mali, a US defense official said Friday. The unarmed robotic aircraft are flying out of Niamey at a base with a 100-strong contingent of Air Force personnel, the defense official told AFP on condition of anonymity. President Barack Obama announced earlier on Friday that the US troops were sent to the West African country to provide 'support for intelligence collection and will also facilitate intelligence sharing with French forces conducting operations in Mali, and with other partners in the region.'" Continue reading →
"The Pentagon's pursuit of the Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth fighter jet has been a heartbreaking one. If you're a taxpayer, the program's estimated $1 trillion price tag probably breaks your heart a little bit. If you're an aviation enthusiast, the constant whittling away of the do-it-all aircraft's features, which in many cases actually amounts to adding weight and taking away maneuverability, must hurt a little bit too. If you're just an everyday American, though, you should be downright shattered that after a decade and a fortune spent, the F-35 will actually be more vulnerable than the aircraft it's replacing." Continue reading →
"In support of Ibyan province (Yemen) Military Research Workshop. I have said in my article 'Strategies of Capabilities for Ansar al-Sharia' that the American retaliation against the Mujahideen military movements in Ibyan province will be restricted to the war of the drone. My expectations have been assured after the recent New York Times leakage that the CIA will handle the situation, and for this, it set up a secret military base for the drones in a neighboring country. It is important now that we understand this American army strategy and discuss ways to disable this strategy." Continue reading →
"'It’s pretty offensive to most of us. Most of us think if you’re going to use a drone and fly over our homes to analyze what’s going on in our backyard — not a lot of talk’s been given — but if you can fly over in the backyard, you can use all kinds of technology to see what’s happening inside the home as well. And I know there’s been a judge, and this former judge sure thinks you ought to have a warrant to do that kind of thing. But I had somebody last week in Washington that was saying, ‘Look, this goes back to we have got to have at least 50 rounds in our magazines because on average that’s about how many it takes to bring down a drone.’" Continue reading →
"The nascent drone industry is coming under threat from lawmakers on Capitol Hill and in state legislatures who are weighing restrictions on their use in the United States. Manufacturers of unmanned aerial systems say there is vast potential for police departments and law enforcement officials to use drones in their work. But eighteen states have considered bills that would limit the use of unmanned aerial systems, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, and more are likely to follow suit. Several court cases have upheld law enforcement agencies’ rights to aerially surveil citizens, but privacy advocates say drone flights will reopen the debate." Continue reading →
"Colonel Gèze set up his headquarters in a camouflage tent across from the runway. Following the airstrikes by the French Air Force, his men entered Timbuktu without meeting any resistance. The colonel still feels a little uneasy about their speedy victory. Gèze can't say how many people were killed in the air strikes. His soldiers didn't take any prisoners, either. Still, even though the jihadists have left Timbuktu, Gèze hasn't defeated them. Perhaps they have gone to Mauritania or Algeria. The officer shrugs his shoulders. 'We're keeping our eyes and ears peeled and are questioning our informants,' he says. 'The Islamists have to be hiding out somewhere.'" Continue reading →