by Pamela Powers Hannley
Remote-controlled warfare with flying drones is the United States' new no-muss, no-fuss way to minimize US casualities and maximize remote destruction.
Although around the world the US is using drones to destroy lives and property, here at home, there is increasing concern over the use of drones to spy on US citizens.
Drones are also big business; thousands of jobs nationwide are attached to drone building, drone training, drone research and development, and drone flying.. In recent months, both Tucson and Phoenix have vied for pieces of the drone killing war machine. As cities and airforce bases compete for drone jobs, activists have been rallying against the killing machines.
To learn more about drones, drone warfare, and how this seemingly remote problem affects your life, come hear author and activist Medea Benjamin at a free event on August 2 at the Main Library downtown.
Benjamin is the co-founder of the anti-war group Code Pink, founding director of the human rights and social justice group Global Exchange, and author of Drone Warfare, Killing by Remote Control.
For background on drone-related activities at Davis Monthan Airforce Base and other bases, check out this document.
More details about Benhamin's talk after the jump.
Here is ther press release from the organizers…
Free Public Educational Forum on Drones
Drones, those unmanned remotely-controlled aerial surveillance devices, are at the center of partisan rancor with Republicans accusing President Obama of using them as an electioneering technique to win favor with voters. Technological advances have sped the development and deployment of drones into public as well as private realms, and the impacts, though far-reaching, have not been adequately explored and publicized.
Tucsonans will have the opportunity to pose questions to Medea Benjamin, an internationally renowned activist who has recently written a book on drone warfare, at a free public educational forum on Thursday, August 2, 2012, 3:30-5:30 pm, at the lower level conference room of the downtown Joel Valdez Library, 101 N. Stone Avenue.
A panel of local media and political personalities will pose questions, their own and those from the audience members, to Medea Benjamin. This non-partisan event is not hosted by any group or organization. Invitations for a representative to serve as a counterpart to Medea were issued to Davis Monthan Air Force Base and Raytheon, but both refused the offer.
This forum is intended to serve as a role model for respectful civic engagement over an issue that is of extreme importance to all of us. It is an attempt to identify objective data that will serve as a foundation for future policy decisions.
Any questions can be directed to Mary DeCamp, mdecamp@q.com.