Drones

[Izeroth]

 I think nuclear weapons are probably the worst invention mankind has ever made. They are capable of vast damage, and it chills me to think of what a war where nuclear weapons are used would be like. Modern nuclear bombs and missiles, after all, are far more powerful than what was used on Hiroshima an Nagasaki. If I was the ruler of the world, my first order would be to have all nuclear weapons and nuclear weapon production facilities destroyed. They're simply too powerful for their own good.

Back on subject, I think that drones need to be heavily regulated. People are going to complain about drone regulation, but I think it's necessary if we are to maintain privacy and security.

[Søren]

But how would one be regulated is the problem. Yeah, a drivers license should probably be required. Yeah, there should be age limits and area limits. But it's hard to set boundrys in the air. It's hard for people to realize: "Oh, I've gone 400 feet, time to come down!". There are just so many variables.

[James Gryphon]

In the case of military drones, my problem isn't so much with the technology itself as with how it's managed by the armed forces. There was an incident a few years back where a drone strike killed the son of some terrorist leader. The kid wasn't doing anything hostile or involved with any terrorist activities, but he got killed because his dad was a terrorist. The government's take on it: "he should've had a more responsible father". Furthermore, his dad wasn't even alive at the time of the strike. To top it all off, both father and son were actually American citizens, so the son, at least, was executed without due process.

The US military and their friends in the CIA have proven themselves incapable of managing remote firepower without collateral damage. They do this kind of thing all the time, usually against people that we're not officially at war with, in countries where we shouldn't be operating (in the example above, the guy was in Yemen -- show me Congress' declaration of war against that country).

If they restricted drone use to the same kinds of situations where they conceivably could use aircraft, or on defensive patrols, like in the scenario you provided, I wouldn't have as much of a problem. It's when we start getting into black op adventures and remote assassinations where I have a big problem with what they're doing.

[Izeroth]

 You should have to have a special drone license, I think. After all, flying a drone is very different from driving a car. If you crash a drone, or if you use it to spy on people, your license can be removed permanently. There should also be speed limits on drones. Not exact speed limits, but general speed limits. As in, don't push the joystick you're controlling the drone with down all the way.

As far as secret drone operations go, I think the public has a right to know how the army is using their toys. The military should have strict rules regarding drone usage, and any soldier who breaks these rules should be arrested. Killing civilians should, of course, be the number 1 forbid in the list of rules. Destroying civilian property without any good reason should be number 2.

[Mhera]

In the case of military drones, my problem isn't so much with the technology itself as with how it's managed by the armed forces. There was an incident a few years back where a drone strike killed the son of some terrorist leader. The kid wasn't doing anything hostile or involved with any terrorist activities, but he got killed because his dad was a terrorist. The government's take on it: "he should've had a more responsible father". Furthermore, his dad wasn't even alive at the time of the strike. To top it all off, both father and son were actually American citizens, so the son, at least, was executed without due process.

The US military and their friends in the CIA have proven themselves incapable of managing remote firepower without collateral damage. They do this kind of thing all the time, usually against people that we're not officially at war with, in countries where we shouldn't be operating (in the example above, the guy was in Yemen -- show me Congress' declaration of war against that country).

If they restricted drone use to the same kinds of situations where they conceivably could use aircraft, or on defensive patrols, like in the scenario you provided, I wouldn't have as much of a problem. It's when we start getting into black op adventures and remote assassinations where I have a big problem with what they're doing.

Okay.

[LT Sandpaw]

Drones elsewhere in use are fine however in the military they need to go. I as a junior pilot know that drones are taking over some of the coolest jobs in the military. People join the Navy and Air Force to Fly planes not play video games. I would much rather fly a F-22 Raptor from the cockpit not from some tower. I say drones have there uses but I hate them with a passion. I don't want a machine taking all the fun out of my life. I swear if they tell me it's to risky to send up pilots when they have drones to do those jobs I will throw a fit.


Did I kill this topic with my rants?