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The Pakistani election came and went in the blink of an eye. One wonders how they did that, or rather if they really did. And now, ...

The wars are expanding into Pakistan. Drones are the modern equivalent of "advisors," the first cadres thrown into the Vietnam War before it escalated. They were present doing something presumably less than direct confrontation, but they weren't actually supposed to be seen or noticed, at least not back here at home. First a few, then more, then when we got to 50,000 it became hard to call them advisors and remain credible.

Killing innocent people upsets them and it makes no difference if the killer is sitting thousands of miles away with a joystick or standing in front of you with a machine gun.

I would suggest that the use of drones is not simply a change in technology. Rather, it is a technological response to the demographic imperative. We don't have enough 18 year olds to send them with guns into the mountains, but we still have plenty of 50 year olds who can play with a joystick while sitting in front of a computer monitor anywhere in the world - unless and until the satellite communication system is disrupted.

Begin forwarded message:

In Hunt for Bin Laden, a New Approach http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/09/ AR2008090903404.html?wpisrc=newsletter

PESHAWAR, Pakistan -- Frustrated by repeated dead ends in the search for Osama bin Laden, U.S. and Pakistani officials said they are questioning long-held assumptions about their strategy and are shifting tactics to intensify the use of the unmanned but lethal Predator drone spy plane in the moun...
(By Craig Whitlock, The Washington Post)