The drones are coming to New York and perhaps to an airport near you

If war becomes unreal to the citizens of modern democracies, will they care enough to restrain and control the violence exercised in their name? Will they do so, if they and their sons and daughters are spared the hazards of combat?
- Michael Ignatieff, Virtual War (2000)

Remember the drones on the wish list of our military?

The drones are coming. Readers of the Syracuse Post-Standard know that the drones (a.k.a. Reapers) are arriving at the local New York Air National Guard Base at Hancock Airport.

These Reapers are a new level of aerial warfare. They are high-flying, sharp-shooting, 36-foot-long robots. They are crewless – remote-controlled – aircraft. Although they are unmanned, drones do have “pilots.” Those pilots operate in front of computer screens in ground control rooms far from any target.

Last year the former congressperson for the district, James Walsh (R-New York), hailed the arrival of the Reaper. Not only will it provide a few jobs, but, Walsh said, this killer allows pilots to be “literally fighting a war in Iraq and at the end of their shift be playing with their kids in Camillus” (P-S, 25 June 2008, page A1).

Drone surveillance covers the US/Mexico and US/Canada borders. In Gaza, the Israeli Air Force uses them to assassinate Palestinians. In its various overseas wars, the US military has come to depend on drones to assassinate humans while bombing vehicles and buildings. Drones preying on Iraq, Pakistan and Afghanistan are piloted from Creech Air Base in Nevada. Beginning this November, Reapers will also be piloted from Central New York.

Because drones seem – in the short term and within narrow contexts – to reduce US casualties, some cheer them on. However – and this is essential – drones make war easier to initiate and perpetuate. The folks back home wouldn’t even need to hear about the drones’ brave deeds. No thought-provoking body bags – at least not here at home.

Like many other high-tech weapons, drones are indiscriminate: they can kill offensively or defensively, invaders or resisters. They kill combatants and non-combatants, adults and children. Because most victims are civilian, drones are terrorist weapons.

Read more

10 Nuclear bombs per year for Israel and none for Iran

This video is of a three D animation of the underground nuclear facility in Dimona producing an astonishing amount of Nuclear material for a country that has not signed the non-proliferation treaty and has one of the most powerful armys in the world already.

To be honest, if I was Iran, sitting on a gazzillion tons of oil, and I was threatened with annihilation by both Israel and the US I would work my ass of to get my hands on at least one nuclear bomb just to stop them from actually attacking.

the Craftars, intensive farming and animal cruelty, I couldn’t have said it better myself

I live in an area of New Zealand surrounded by small dairy farms that still live and work in a way that allows for a humane way of treating their cattle but the pressure is on. Having a hundred cows is no longer economically viable and wool doesn’t fetch anything these days but at least they are trying to stay in the game with their cattle under bearable conditions.

The Craftars are a blemish on the dairy industry and they are playing with the livelihood of all those farmers who do work as the above mentioned hardened farmers. For the protection of those they should be investigated and punished for their callous behaviour

We have a Marcus Lush romantic rural image in our minds eye of the local hard working gruff farmer, sure he votes National, but he votes National because he’s hard, hardened by the wind and weather that batter against him, hardened by the reality of real work (not any of that faggy Uni Arts shit), hardened because you need em hard.

Idyllic images of a hamlet and tough folk doing the best for their animals however is a farce. The real face of the Dairy industry today isn’t a gruff Farmer living off the fat of the land, it’s a highly organized intensive farming industry that doesn’t give a flying fuck for the welfare of their animals, indeed the welfare of the animals is second to the profit motive.

Read more

Samoa, Indonesia and Peru all struck by earthquakes

Update: I just read in the newspapers that Mary Ann White one of Raglan’s most prominent owners has died in the tsunami while holidaying in Samoa. That makes it hit close to home since I live very close to Raglan. My condolences to her husband, children, grandchildren and her business partners.

I am from a country that has in my lifetime only had one little shake and that was a complete surprise to us. We live with the risk of one day waking up 6m. under water since that is how far Amsterdam is build unde the sea level but quakes? Neh.

The last 24 hours have seen three countries around the Pacific hurt by three massive ones.
I don’t have the connection to the Pacific Islanders that most New Zealanders have but never the less my heartfelt condolences go out to all of them who have lost loved ones in the tsunami that followed the Earthquake.

Johnie’s boys

Hat tip the Standard.

Hilarious. Written by subversive poet