Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current, January 19, 2011, Page 15, Image 15

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    January 19, 2011
_Çortlani» (Obstruer
Page 15
New Prices
Effective
May 1,2010
Martin
Cleaning
Service
W aziristam
QJUATE ral
D amage
C emetery
Carpet & Upholstery
Cleaning
Residential &
Commercial Services
Minimum Service CHG.
$45.00
A sm all distance/travel charge
m ay be applied
CARPET CLEANING
2 Cleaning Areas or
more $30.00 Each Area
Pre-Spray Traffic Areas
(Includes: 1 small Hallway)
1 Cleaning Area (only)
$40.00
Includes Pre-Spray Traffic Area
(Hallway Extra)
Stairs (12-16 stairs - With
O ther Services): $25.00
«NK
M W
Expanding a Covert War
Drone attacks go largely unnoticed
by J im
C ason
T he failure o f the U.S. w ar strat­
egy in A fghanistan to contain the
anti-governm ent insurgency has led
the O bam a adm inistration to expand
the un d eclared w ar in Pakistan.
A ccording to the Long W ar Jo u r­
nal, the num ber o f U.S. attacks in
Pakistan, using unm anned Predator
drones, has gone from five in 2007 to
117in2010.
G o v e rn m e n t o fficia ls h ere in
W ashington say privately that they
expect the covert w ar to expand
even further this year. Y et C ongress
and the public have undertaken no
significant exam ination o f this new
w ar's consequences.
M em bers o f C ongress have al­
m ost daily rem inders o f the cost o f
the w ars in A fghanistan and Iraq in
the form o f the dead and w ounded
U.S. soldiers that return to this c o u n ­
try. L aw m akers travel regularly to
attend funerals o f the fallen.
T he U .S. drone strikes in P ak i­
stan produce m any casualties, but
none o f those killed are citizens o f
our country. T he pilots operating
the rem ote-controlled drones used
to launch m issile attacks in Pakistan
usually sit behind com puter screens
f a r fro m th e b a ttle f ie ld . F o r
p olicym akers in W ashington, this
is a w ar w ithout cost or hom etow n
casu alties.
T he E nglish language press in
P akistan often relays reports o f ci­
vilians killed in these attacks. But
those reports rarely m ake h eadlines
in the U nited States. T he only o n g o ­
ing rem in d er o f this w ar is the occa­
sional headline that suggests the
U nited States has successfully killed
an o th er al-Q aed a m ilitant. F o r m ost
A m e ric a n s , th a t's ju s tif ic a tio n
en o u g h fo r this new w ar by assas­
sination.
H aving closely follow ed the C o n ­
gressio n al in v estig atio n s o f C IA
assassination attem p ts in the 1970s,
I find the cu rren t shift in public
attitudes alarming. Back in the 1970s,
w hen in v estig atio n s led by Sen.
Frank C hurch revealed that the C IA
had en g ag ed in targeted killings o f
foreign leaders, P resident G erald
Ford felt o b ligated to sign an execu- '
ti ve order banning intelligence agen­
cies from eng ag in g in assassin a­
tions.
I'm not naive enough to believe
that the U nited States halted its
involvem ent, but at one tim e the
public attitude w as that such assas­
sinations w ere w rong. W e are a
nation o f law s. As recently as 2001,
w hen Israel engaged in targeted
assassinations against H am as lead­
ers in G aza, the U.S. am b assad o r to
Israel w as forced to go on record
against the killings (although our
governm ent didn't cut o ff assistance
to the Israeli units involved in these
m urders).
Following the 9/11 terrorist attacks,
President G eorge W. Bush autho-
rizedU .S. intelligence agencies to kill
al-Q aeda leaders operating anywhere
in the world. In m y view, these cam ­
paigns were ineffective and violated
international law.
President O bam a's startling e x ­
pansion o f this drone assassination
cam p aig n has gone by largely u n ­
noticed. M issile attacks from drones
often target a single person fo r a s­
sassination, but end up killing d o z­
ens. N early 2,000 people have been
killed in Pakistan by drones since
2006, yet C ongress has held only
one public hearing on these w eap ­
o n s.
Instead, C ongress inserts even
m ore m oney than the President re­
quests fo r them into the Pentagon's
b u d g et—and there's even a special
cau cu s to prom ote the drones.
Area/Oriental Rugs:
$25.00 Minimum
Area/Oriental Rugs (Wool):
$40.00Minimum
Heavily Soiled Area:
Additional $10.00 each area
As the O bam a adm inistration ex­
ponentially expands the use o f re­
m ote-controlled drones for assassi­
nations, C ongress should take a sec­
ond look at this new kind o f fighting
that's done in our name. You don't
have to work for a Q uaker lobby to
question w hether rem ote control kill­
ings in Pakistan are helping to make
our country m ore secure.
W ith in P a k ista n an d Y em en
(w here the U nited States has also
used such drones), the strikes have
becom e a rallying cry for an ti-g o v ­
ernm ent political groups and a re ­
cruiting tools for the sam e violent,
extrem ist organizations that the U.S.
claim s to w ant to dam age.
T here's a bu m p er stick er that
sum s up this p roblem . It reads:
"W e're m aking enem ies faster than
w e can kill them ."
C ongress, and the nation as a
w hole, needs to d ecide if our goal is
sim ply to ki 11 m ore people or to m ake
this co u n try safer. If o ur goal is the
latter, then assassinations by drones
o r any o th er m eans doesn't belong
in o u r policy tool kit.
Jim Cason is an associate ex­
ecutive secretary at the Friends
Committee on National Legisla­
tion, a Quaker lobby in the public
interest.
(Requiring Extensive Pre-Spraying)
UPHOLSTERY
CLEANING
Sofa: $69.00
Loveseat: $49.00
Sectional: $ 109 - $ 139
Chair or Recliner
$25 - $49
Throw Pillows (With
Other Services): $5.00
%
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SERVICES
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Cleaning
• Auto/Boat/RV Cleaning
• Deodorizing & Pet
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