Drones

In wars up to now, to kill the enemy you had to take some risk yourself. In the last war the R.A.F. gave up precision bombing of military targets, railways etc - too dangerous in daylight, too haphazard at night. Instead Bomber Harris sent planes to bomb working-class areas - no operatives turning up at the factories meant no production, of arms or anything else.

A relative of mine (an in-law) flew on bombing raids over Germany. If you wanted to defend bombing civilians (men, women, and children - though when the other side did it, e.g. in the Spanish Civil War, it was called a war crime) you could say at least the aircrews risked their lives (continually attacked by anti-aircraft guns, and fighter planes).  You had to do thirty missions before they gave you a rest.   

The Times (18 January) said that 45% of the R.A.F. bomber aircrews didn't survive.  Now, the U.S. kills its enemies by drones, operated by people snugly at home.  Your enemy is wiped out, along with anyone else within range of the bomb, while the "bomber" goes home every night.   

To break into verse -

                This is the bravest Brave New World,
                   It's where we long to be
                All day you kill your "enemies"
                   And then you watch TV.

                It's easy now to "go to war"
                   I think that you'll agree,
                You slaughter men in far Iraq,
                   And then go home for tea.                -

 Alwyn Edgar