Most Popular Choices
Share on Facebook 23 Printer Friendly Page More Sharing
OpEdNews Op Eds    H3'ed 1/15/13

Peace Movement Drones On and On: Wisdom From the USS Kitty Hawk

By       (Page 1 of 3 pages)   No comments
Message mike ferner

Will we ever learn?

 
by Mike Ferner

 

During the Vietnam war, there was a vibrant, courageous resistance movement within the military itself.   Young men and some women did anything they could to end the killing.   They demonstrated, sabotaged military equipment and fragged their officers.   They also published dozens of underground newspapers, one of which was put out by the crew of the carrier, USS Kitty Hawk, cheekily called Kitty Litter.  

Going through some dusty files the other day, I saw the November, 1971 issue ("Cost: $PRICELESS"), which included the article "Indochina War Is Not Over."   It examined Nixon's "Vietnamization" strategy of replacing U.S. troops with South Vietnamese.  For the same reasons as today, raining death from above was a necessary part of the process. 

The swabbie who wrote that article 42 years ago could have easily written the same thing today -- word for word -- and therein is serious food for thought for today's peace movement.   (Emphases and spelling errors in the following excerpt were in the original.)

"It's quite clear that no American government will ever again be able to put a large conscripted army in the field.  For years American troops have been in silent mutiny in Vietnam.  They are refusing to fight.  They have become aware that the government has lied to them, it has fooled them and tricked them and conscripted them to fight a war they intensely oppose.  As the soldiers saw what was happening in Vietnam, they realized that the Vietnamese were not their enemies.  They began to select enemies within their own ranks.  In 1970, 209 officers were killed by their own men.

The message became clear to the Makers-of-War.  They could not commit massive ground troops to an unpopular war.  So, if you are a Maker-of-War, what do you do?  Do you say, "this country is based on democratic ideals and since 73% of the people want out of Vietnam, we are going to end the war now?'  Not if you are a Maker-of-War.

You get other people to fight that war.  You give them the weapons and you train them and"replace the ground troops"as long as Mother's sons are not coming home in plastic bags there will be no domestic opposition to continuing that war.

In a special issue of the (Teledyne Ryan) Reporter, a trade magazine of the Teledyne Ryan Aeronautical Corp., was devoted to a discussion of the Remotely Piloted Vehicle (RPV).  Launched from an aircraft carrier, these aircraft, piloted remotely by technicians in the safty and comfort of the mother ship, can carry a variety of weapons and perform a number of functions.  Receiving data from electronic sensors dropped by other RPVs, the RPV can be guided automatically to a target.  Only the so-called enemy gets killed.  There are no POWs, and if a civilian, woman or child is its victim, there will be no warrior, conscience struck, to expose the murder to the American people.  It's a way to fight wars without having to draft Americans, or to convince folks back home that the war is just, or, for that matter, even having to tell them much about what is going on.

The advantage of this weapons system to the Makers-of-War is that a handfull of specially trained, highly paid technocrats can rain death on millions of people from sanctuaries 50 miles off shore.

Teledyne Ryan is bold enough to say almost this very thing.  "In summary, the future of Remotely Piloted Vehicles is as bright as it has ever been.  The lower cost, political acceptability, low risk of life and versatile mission capabilities of RPVs make them very attractive candidates in a world of shrinking budgets and unpopular military operations.'

 

Two generations later, some observations:

1)       Drones are not new.

2)       How far has the movement come in 42 years if we are once again focusing on the particular evils of drones?

3)       Does this teach us anything about our strategy or lack thereof?  

 

To be sure, drones are a malevolent manifestation of the Empire's capabilities.   We revile them for all the right reasons.   Shining a light on them can be a good tactic.   I don't argue we ignore them.  

 

But what does it say about us, about our ability to work successfully for social change, if today we think we're doing something significant by campaigning against drones, 42 years after they caught the attention of the G.I. resistance   movement?   If in the intervening decades since 1971 we had been more conscious and strategic about our organizing, might we be further down the road of social change by now?  

 

Next Page  1  |  2  |  3

(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).

Must Read 1   Supported 1  
Rate It | View Ratings

Mike Ferner Social Media Pages: Facebook page url on login Profile not filled in       Twitter page url on login Profile not filled in       Linkedin page url on login Profile not filled in       Instagram page url on login Profile not filled in

Mike Ferner is a writer from Ohio, former president of Veterans For Peace and author of "Inside the Red Zone: A Veteran For Peace Reports from Iraq." (Praeger)
Go To Commenting
The views expressed herein are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of this website or its editors.
Writers Guidelines

 
Contact AuthorContact Author Contact EditorContact Editor Author PageView Authors' Articles
Support OpEdNews

OpEdNews depends upon can't survive without your help.

If you value this article and the work of OpEdNews, please either Donate or Purchase a premium membership.

STAY IN THE KNOW
If you've enjoyed this, sign up for our daily or weekly newsletter to get lots of great progressive content.
Daily Weekly     OpEd News Newsletter
Name
Email
   (Opens new browser window)
 

Most Popular Articles by this Author:     (View All Most Popular Articles by this Author)

Robocops Come to Pittsburgh...and Bring the Latest Weaponry with Them

With Shot and Shell or "Modular Crowd Control Munitions" - We Must Bend to Empire's Will

U.S. To Become A Second Rate Power... like it is poorly rated in so many other areas

This is Not a Place for Life

"Dear Afghanistan:" A New Year's Call for Peace

Veterans' Group Says "No" to Emmy for PBS Vietnam War Series

To View Comments or Join the Conversation:

Tell A Friend