Jordan Duckworth
College Comp & Research
Argumentative Essay
Nov. 22, 2016
Fighting fire with more fire
“If you threaten America you will find no safe haven” -Barack Obama. America was founded, refined, and ascended through war, our military technology surpasses other countries by years and our military spending dwarfs that of other countries. Recently America has been proving its strength without even putting soldiers in harm's way but not all people believe that it is within international rules or that it is too expensive. This strength that I am talking about is counter-terror airstrikes through planes, ships or drones. This air campaign not only has its clear physical effects but it also has added psychological effects not only on america's current aggressors but any would-be aggressors as well. These strikes can be delivered in minutes to any spot on earth and they hit with unprecedented precision and lethality. Unites states counter-terror airstrikes are crucial in supporting America’s eastern allies, reducing the cost and dangers of the war on terror, and increasing the precision and effectiveness of counter-terror operations.
Counter-terror airstrikes support america’s eastern allies by hindering terror organizations in their area before those groups can launch attacks. In the last few years many terrorist training camps have been taken out from these strikes by the US alone. Not only does this lower the numbers and resources of the group as a whole but it also lowers the morale of the group thus discouraging people from joining. If these terror groups can not even train soldiers in peace then they will have a seriously tough time formulating attacks and recruiting/training members. While america has taken out many targets on its own it has also been working with other countries to hinder their efforts. We are not only working with long-time allies but recent ones as well. These groups have given countries a common enemy and allowed the US support these other countries as well as build relations with countries we may not have the best track record with such as russia and other eastern nations. The US has also created a coalition that mostly consists of middle-eastern powers such as Jordan and Turkey to further increase its support in the area. These countries may not be the strongest in military terms but they certainly have unique benefits they give to allies, such as the Incirlik airbase in turkey which has been a vital air-base in the strikes against Isis. Some may believe that we are taking out too many civilians in these strikes but the collateral damage compared to an actual invasion campaign is far lower.
Its no secret that america spends a lot of money on its military and it's no secret that war is a dangerous thing. The drones that the united states have been using is called the Reaper from the Hunter-Killer class of drones, for four fully armed Reapers and all the equipment needed to run them it costs the US 64 million dollars. While 64 million sounds like a lot it is actually a relatively low number compared to the cost of say deploying a squad of marines from an osprey. The osprey itself costs 72 million plus ten thousand an hour in fuel costs then each marines gear costs approximately five thousand dollars. Not only is it more cost effective to use airstrikes it is also safer for troops. If using drones then no american lives are in harm's way while an bomber only puts one or two in harm's way compared to a squad. The only counter people have to this is that the air campaigns cost too much, but if the US were to actually invade to combat ISIS or another terrorist group then the cost would double or triple.
Counter-Terror airstrikes have reduced the amount of collateral damage while increasing the amount of enemy combatants killed. Modern day strikes have improved to the point of being able to level a training ground from 1,500 miles away with close to no civilian casualties. Without these strikes we would have had to send a team of men to fight through there, not only endangering the americans sent in but many more civilians due to crossfire and stray bullets. While there will always be collateral damage in war we have evolved our munition systems to a point of being nigh completely accurate. Many people think these strikes are unnecessary and we kill many civilians with them. That is simply untrue, yes the strikes do kill civilians from time to time, they have decreased the amount killed in say an artillery strike which is how many targets were killed in previous years. Guided rockets can strike within feet of its intended target even if moving while older methods would be lucky to get within 20 feet and could not hit moving targets.
These strikes have changed the way war is fought. Not only do we not have to risk soldiers, We can wipe out entire terror organizations with 40 thousand dollars and decrease the amount of civilians killed at the same time. Sun Tzu once said “All War is about Deception”. All the strikes that America has been launching has certainly deceived the enemy and made them believe that we have planes or ships ready to deliver strikes at any point at any time. These strikes not only have the clear immediate effects it has lasting demoralizing effects on the enemy and therefore must continue.
Works Cited
Dickerson, Larry. "Unmanned Ambitions." Aviation Week & Space Technology 173.4 (2011): 86. Academic Search Elite. Web. 2 Dec. 2016.
"Flight of the Drones; Unmanned Aerial Warfare." Economist 8 Oct. 2011: 31(US). Student Resources in Context. Web. 30 Nov. 2016.
"Islamic State Publication Says That 'Jihadi John' Was Killed in Drone Strike." Washingtonpost.com 19 Jan. 2016: Student Resources in Context. Web. 16 Nov. 2016.
Keller, John. "General Atomics to Provide Radar for Air Force Reaper Hunter-killer Drone." Military & Aerospace Electronics 21.6 (2015): 30. Academic Search Elite. Web. 2 Dec. 2016.
Mulrine, Anna. "Drones Fill the Troops Gap in Afghanistan." U.S. News & World Report 145.6 (2008): 30. Academic Search Elite. Web. 2 Dec. 2016.
"Pentagon - U.S Drone Strike Kills Over 150 Al-Shabab Militants." Africa News Service 8 Mar. 2016: Student Resources in Context. Web. 16 Nov. 2016.
Savage, Charlie. "U.S. Releases Drone Strike 'Playbook' for Targeting Terrorism Suspects." The New York Times 7 Aug. 2016: A10(L). Student Resources in Context. Web. 16 Nov. 2016.
"Second Wave of US F-15s Arrive at Turkey's Incirlik Air Base." Stars and Stripes 12 Nov. 2015: n. pag. Student Resources in Context. Web. 30 Nov. 2016.
College Comp & Research
Argumentative Essay
Nov. 22, 2016
Fighting fire with more fire
“If you threaten America you will find no safe haven” -Barack Obama. America was founded, refined, and ascended through war, our military technology surpasses other countries by years and our military spending dwarfs that of other countries. Recently America has been proving its strength without even putting soldiers in harm's way but not all people believe that it is within international rules or that it is too expensive. This strength that I am talking about is counter-terror airstrikes through planes, ships or drones. This air campaign not only has its clear physical effects but it also has added psychological effects not only on america's current aggressors but any would-be aggressors as well. These strikes can be delivered in minutes to any spot on earth and they hit with unprecedented precision and lethality. Unites states counter-terror airstrikes are crucial in supporting America’s eastern allies, reducing the cost and dangers of the war on terror, and increasing the precision and effectiveness of counter-terror operations.
Counter-terror airstrikes support america’s eastern allies by hindering terror organizations in their area before those groups can launch attacks. In the last few years many terrorist training camps have been taken out from these strikes by the US alone. Not only does this lower the numbers and resources of the group as a whole but it also lowers the morale of the group thus discouraging people from joining. If these terror groups can not even train soldiers in peace then they will have a seriously tough time formulating attacks and recruiting/training members. While america has taken out many targets on its own it has also been working with other countries to hinder their efforts. We are not only working with long-time allies but recent ones as well. These groups have given countries a common enemy and allowed the US support these other countries as well as build relations with countries we may not have the best track record with such as russia and other eastern nations. The US has also created a coalition that mostly consists of middle-eastern powers such as Jordan and Turkey to further increase its support in the area. These countries may not be the strongest in military terms but they certainly have unique benefits they give to allies, such as the Incirlik airbase in turkey which has been a vital air-base in the strikes against Isis. Some may believe that we are taking out too many civilians in these strikes but the collateral damage compared to an actual invasion campaign is far lower.
Its no secret that america spends a lot of money on its military and it's no secret that war is a dangerous thing. The drones that the united states have been using is called the Reaper from the Hunter-Killer class of drones, for four fully armed Reapers and all the equipment needed to run them it costs the US 64 million dollars. While 64 million sounds like a lot it is actually a relatively low number compared to the cost of say deploying a squad of marines from an osprey. The osprey itself costs 72 million plus ten thousand an hour in fuel costs then each marines gear costs approximately five thousand dollars. Not only is it more cost effective to use airstrikes it is also safer for troops. If using drones then no american lives are in harm's way while an bomber only puts one or two in harm's way compared to a squad. The only counter people have to this is that the air campaigns cost too much, but if the US were to actually invade to combat ISIS or another terrorist group then the cost would double or triple.
Counter-Terror airstrikes have reduced the amount of collateral damage while increasing the amount of enemy combatants killed. Modern day strikes have improved to the point of being able to level a training ground from 1,500 miles away with close to no civilian casualties. Without these strikes we would have had to send a team of men to fight through there, not only endangering the americans sent in but many more civilians due to crossfire and stray bullets. While there will always be collateral damage in war we have evolved our munition systems to a point of being nigh completely accurate. Many people think these strikes are unnecessary and we kill many civilians with them. That is simply untrue, yes the strikes do kill civilians from time to time, they have decreased the amount killed in say an artillery strike which is how many targets were killed in previous years. Guided rockets can strike within feet of its intended target even if moving while older methods would be lucky to get within 20 feet and could not hit moving targets.
These strikes have changed the way war is fought. Not only do we not have to risk soldiers, We can wipe out entire terror organizations with 40 thousand dollars and decrease the amount of civilians killed at the same time. Sun Tzu once said “All War is about Deception”. All the strikes that America has been launching has certainly deceived the enemy and made them believe that we have planes or ships ready to deliver strikes at any point at any time. These strikes not only have the clear immediate effects it has lasting demoralizing effects on the enemy and therefore must continue.
Works Cited
Dickerson, Larry. "Unmanned Ambitions." Aviation Week & Space Technology 173.4 (2011): 86. Academic Search Elite. Web. 2 Dec. 2016.
"Flight of the Drones; Unmanned Aerial Warfare." Economist 8 Oct. 2011: 31(US). Student Resources in Context. Web. 30 Nov. 2016.
"Islamic State Publication Says That 'Jihadi John' Was Killed in Drone Strike." Washingtonpost.com 19 Jan. 2016: Student Resources in Context. Web. 16 Nov. 2016.
Keller, John. "General Atomics to Provide Radar for Air Force Reaper Hunter-killer Drone." Military & Aerospace Electronics 21.6 (2015): 30. Academic Search Elite. Web. 2 Dec. 2016.
Mulrine, Anna. "Drones Fill the Troops Gap in Afghanistan." U.S. News & World Report 145.6 (2008): 30. Academic Search Elite. Web. 2 Dec. 2016.
"Pentagon - U.S Drone Strike Kills Over 150 Al-Shabab Militants." Africa News Service 8 Mar. 2016: Student Resources in Context. Web. 16 Nov. 2016.
Savage, Charlie. "U.S. Releases Drone Strike 'Playbook' for Targeting Terrorism Suspects." The New York Times 7 Aug. 2016: A10(L). Student Resources in Context. Web. 16 Nov. 2016.
"Second Wave of US F-15s Arrive at Turkey's Incirlik Air Base." Stars and Stripes 12 Nov. 2015: n. pag. Student Resources in Context. Web. 30 Nov. 2016.