The Moral of Drones
Yu Chen
Professor Gaines
ENGL 100
10/13/2014
The Moral of Drones
Bradley Jay Strawser’s "The morality of drone warfare revisited" discusses his argument in support of using drones. The audience is the government. His thesis is that drone strikes may cause less collateral damage than bombing, but that is not an argument for current US targeted killing policy. Mark LeVine’s “When philosophers join the kill chain” discusses the negative side of drones. The audience is the scholars. His thesis is that the most vehement debates on the use of force by the US surround attacks by remotely-piloted drone aircraft. These sources are arguing about should people support of using drones or should people oppose of using drones. “The morality of drone warfare revisited” begins by explaining that it is necessary to separate US government policy from the broader moral question of killing by aerial robots. “The policy question deserves vigorous debate by legal scholars, policy experts, and diplomats” (Strawser). The moral question posed by this new form of remote warfare is more abstract and has only recently begun to receive critical examination by philosophers and ethicists. Then Strawser talks about the drones can be a morally preferable weapon of war if they are capable of being more discriminate than other weapons that are less precise and expose their operators to greater risk. The best empirical evidence suggests that “drones are more precise, result in fewer unintended deaths of civilian bystanders, and better protect their operators from risk than other weapons, such as manned aircraft, carrying out similar missions” (Strawser). Strawser says that some people think war is never justified under any circumstances. But he believes in some cases and under certain conditions, war can be justified. If the conditions of just war exist, it 's worth exploring whether certain weapons pose special moral problems, or have potential moral advantages, over alternative weapons. As a
Professor Gaines
ENGL 100
10/13/2014
The Moral of Drones
Bradley Jay Strawser’s "The morality of drone warfare revisited" discusses his argument in support of using drones. The audience is the government. His thesis is that drone strikes may cause less collateral damage than bombing, but that is not an argument for current US targeted killing policy. Mark LeVine’s “When philosophers join the kill chain” discusses the negative side of drones. The audience is the scholars. His thesis is that the most vehement debates on the use of force by the US surround attacks by remotely-piloted drone aircraft. These sources are arguing about should people support of using drones or should people oppose of using drones. “The morality of drone warfare revisited” begins by explaining that it is necessary to separate US government policy from the broader moral question of killing by aerial robots. “The policy question deserves vigorous debate by legal scholars, policy experts, and diplomats” (Strawser). The moral question posed by this new form of remote warfare is more abstract and has only recently begun to receive critical examination by philosophers and ethicists. Then Strawser talks about the drones can be a morally preferable weapon of war if they are capable of being more discriminate than other weapons that are less precise and expose their operators to greater risk. The best empirical evidence suggests that “drones are more precise, result in fewer unintended deaths of civilian bystanders, and better protect their operators from risk than other weapons, such as manned aircraft, carrying out similar missions” (Strawser). Strawser says that some people think war is never justified under any circumstances. But he believes in some cases and under certain conditions, war can be justified. If the conditions of just war exist, it 's worth exploring whether certain weapons pose special moral problems, or have potential moral advantages, over alternative weapons. As a
Cited: Bradley Strawser, "The morality of drone warfare revisited" (2012) Cost of War, accessed 6 August 2012, available at: http://gu.com/p/39h47; Internet. Mark LeVine, "When philosophers join the kill chain" (2012) War, Drones, and Justice, accessed 8 August 2012, available at: http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2012/08/20128710139185997; Internet.