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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Mix saw thousands of dollars go down the drain when water didn't ... Fake grass offers real water savings ... Hosler Dam siren test due Monday ... Mix saw thousands of dollars go down the drain when water didn't ... Fake grass offers real water savings ... Hosler Dam siren test due Monday ... COMMENTARY Jeffrey Gillespie: Pax Americana? At what price? Comment DailyTidings.com Writer Posted Mar. 27, 2015 at 12:01 AM Posted Mar. 27, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Social News One of the issues that make Americans squirm in their chairs of late is the ongoing ethical debate surrounding the use of military drones. In the grand tradition of bizarre industrial naming rituals, the most popular drone in the U.S. fleet is known as the "Reaper." It has already taken its place among the Blackhawks, Comanches and Apaches when it comes to striking fear into the hearts of enemy fighters and civilians alike in war zones around the world. Drones were first put into the field in 2001. Since President Obama was elected, the number of drone strikes have increased exponentially. Our Nobel Peace Prize-winning president has launched about 400 drone strikes across Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia and Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan — an 800 percent increase since the second Bush administration. Supporters of President Obama suggest that this number is merely a symptom of the fact that new technology allows for a "cleaner and better" usage of drones in military operations, and that the president is making use of a technology that ultimately saves lives. But behind the spin, what Washington really means is the preservation of American lives, mostly due to fewer boots on the ground. The evidence of collateral damage suffered by civilian populations in areas where drones are in use is damning. Of the 2,400 people killed so far in drone strikes, statistics show that over 250 were civilians, boiling down to an average of 1.43 innocent deaths per attack. The Administration is quick to point out that this is a significant improvement on Bush's record, where the average number of non-combatants killed "per strike" was 3. In the world of statistics, those numbers make sense. But for the average American, one would hope that there is something hair-raising in hearing that our tax dollars are responsible for bumping off one and a half guiltless people every time a drone is sent in to do our dirty business. It brings to mind that old adage of "Pax Americana": the relative peace enjoyed by the Western world as a result of America's preponderance of power. But whenever that peace is threatened, we aggressively defend it with heavy weapons. After some 70-plus years of ferocious foreign policy, we are in a target-rich environment, to say the least. ISIS, Al-Qaida, the Muslim Brotherhood, Hezbollah and many Mujahedeen groups and lone-wolf jihadists worldwide are baying for our blood. As such, we have an ever-expanding need for effective and affordable self-defense options. The relative cheapness of drones ($40 million vs. a $350 million warplane that must also contain a pilot) makes them the clear strategic choice. The deeper question, however, is this: Do we want to support a policy that requires ever more effective lethal weapons as a deterrent to our enemies? Can we continue to live with the reality of anonymous machines raining fire from the sky onto innocent men, women and children? Or might we one day reach a real peace through softer power, changing posture, and an evaluation of our relationship to the world in a truly forward-thinking way? There is something ironic about the automation of murder. An up-close encounter with a commercial slaughterhouse would leave most of us feeling less than ambivalent about the fate of the animals who end their lives there. Being at a comfortable geographical distance from the theater of war keeps it homogenized for the average American. Will removing soldiers from the battlefield serve to desensitize them completely to the experience of the enemy? Should that matter? I believe it should. A relative peace cannot come as the result of a technology that sterilizes the implications of endless war. It should come as a result of real sacrifice for all involved. Otherwise, we may one day become as inhuman as the ultra-efficient hardware sent out into the world to do our bidding. Jeffrey Gillespie's writing has appeared in the Santa Fean and Art Collector magazines, the Portland Mercury and Willamette Week. He lives in Ashland. DailyTidings.com Writer Posted Mar. 27, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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