Drones on Terror - 21st Century Warfare

President Obama gave a speech today explaining why Drone attacks are important to protect US national security.

I agree with everything President Obama said in defense of targeted Drone attacks, presented in today's speech.  American Drones are strategically attacking our terrorist enemies, those who are involved in Al Qaeda and spin off networks. We must protect our nation against these groups, attack them in their hiding places, because, given any opportunity, these radical networks will kill us.  

The Caucus blog asks:

Now that President Obama's speech is over, one of the outstanding questions is just how transparent the Obama administration will be about drone strikes in the future. Will administration officials begin to publicly confirm strikes after they happen? 

Of course. Americans must know about the frequencies and reasons for specific Drone attacks.  Transparency is essential to protect against abuse of this clandestine war technology.  Stealth Drone attacks are highly technical, but they don't happen without human control.  Americans need to know why Drone attacks are necessary so the human command and control over the "joysticks" don't somehow become overly powerful, leading to unnecessary use.

There was no mention of in the President's speech (and it's telling)  about the C.I.A., at all.  Therefore, this seemingly deliberate omission indicates that Drone operations in Pakistan, Yemen and elsewhere won't be declassified anytime soon.

Nevertheless, C.I.A. notwithstanding, the Drones are essential if America and our allies ever hope to win the international war against terrorist groups.  We can't let our guard down, because terrorists count on war fatigue to gain advantage over us.  They patiently wait their turn to kill, attacking when and where we least expect to find them.  Incredulous as it sounds, we must kill them first.  Of course, the flip side of using strategic Drone strikes can lead to the rise of zealots who, like the angry Boston terrorist Tsarnaev brothers', want to attack where they believe the U.S. will be weakened, like in New York City and Boston.  

Although the war on terror seems driven by religious fervor among some radical Muslim fringe groups, we must never allow bigotry to stereotype this enemy.  Americans must remember the name of the executed Oklahoma City bomber, Timothy McVey, who was a Christian. 

International terrorism won't be won with "boots on the ground". 20th century war strategies are already antiquated, like equipping infantry soldiers with horses.  War will never, in our lifetimes, be managed using rules of engagement. Terrorists are experts in gorilla tactics.  Consequently, Drones are essential to strategically target the "cells" that control terrorism and its deadly activities.

Unfortunately, the war on terror is a new international state of being.  I can't see a time when we'll be assured of peace.  If I'm (sadly) correct, this means Drones are essential to protect American lives, whether they're military fighters or civilians living at home. 

If it's even possible to win the fight against terrorism, the means to that end requires battles waged under the cover of darkness, with strategic Drone strikes, using night goggles worn by expert military snipers and supported by clandestine stealth technologies.  

Drones on terror are the only ways our military can protect people from terrorist networks, those that are bent on killing Americans. Drones save the lives of our military and civilians, while strategically protecting our national security.

Let's use Drones to our military strategic advantage; but always with the advantage of transparency about when and why they're deployed to attack and destroy our overt terrorist enemies.