Attack of the Drones: WTF?

I’ve been waiting for some media outlet to run a story on a seemingly ignored policy shift concerning the Predator Drone attacks in Pakistan by the CIA. I’m still waiting. So, rather than continue to wait, I decided to put this out there.

We all heard about the CIA deaths in Afghanistan on December 30, 2009, along with the Xe (Blackwater) contractors, after a Jordanian double-agent blew himself up inside a gym at a US installation — because security measures weren’t followed. But what I found most interesting about this story was the comments immediately after the attack. This was widely reported at the time. According to CNN International:

“An American intelligence official vowed Thursday (December 31, 2009) that the United States would avenge a suspected terrorist attack on a U.S. base in Afghanistan that resulted in the deaths of seven CIA officers.”

So, REVENGE is now the purpose of launching Predator Drone strikes in Pakistan? Is that supposed to be the motive of our intelligence agencies in fighting counter-terrorism? WTF?

I find it interesting that, according to my research, there were 44 Predator Drone strikes in Pakistan in 2009. And since the attack on the CIA base in Afghanistan on December 30, 2009, the CIA has launched at least 11 strikes in Pakistan. In less than one month’s time. That means that in 2009, the CIA averaged 3.6 strikes per month. If we continue the uptick in attacks that we’ve seen since December 30, the total for 2010 could well exceed 132 attacks.

All based on REVENGE.

There were well over 700 civilians killed in these Drone attacks in Pakistan in 2009. In fact, for each Al Qaeda or Taliban member killed in these Drone attacks, there were 140 civilians killed. What a high price to pay for “getting” another “high value terrorist” in Pakistan! And the government always says that they managed to kill the “Number Two” or “Number Three” leader, and it has led me to think… how many Number Two or Number Three leaders of Al Qaeda or the Taliban can there possibly be? WTF?

The other disturbing thing that hasn’t been talked about much, other than Jeremy Scahill who does a phenomenal job reporting on Xe (Blackwater) and their nefarious role in the wars of the past decade, is the fact that CNN International also reported on December 30, 2009:

“Two of those killed were contractors with private security firm Xe, formerly known as Blackwater, a former intelligence official told CNN. The CIA considers contractors to be officers.”

So, not only are these growing numbers of civilians dying in Pakistan out of revenge for the deaths of CIA officers, but also for the deaths of the mercenaries Erik Prince sent to work with the CIA. WTF???

I know there are many stories in the news these days, and there are some that need to be discussed. But there are also “news” stories that are as insipid as the marriage and treatment of sexual addiction of Tiger Woods. But this story, which deserved close scrutiny, not to mention some explanation by Leon Panetta, flies under the radar.

But this is just My Three Cents…