A Time To Kill? More Than A Movie... ~by Legal Pub

The issue of flying unmanned drones to kill enemies is controversial but flying manned air planes to kill is not? Sometimes the whole rhetorical debates lack the insight of commons sense.  Killing is killing.  It is either justified or it is not! Fast forward to the latest dilemma. An American is overseas.  He is an active card carrying member of al-Qaida. This individual is openly planning attacks against Americans overseas.  Yet the Obama administration is wrestling with whether to kill him with a drone or with armed soldiers.  (Photo Courtesy of AP)

Drones seem more efficient; however, under its new stricter targeting policy issued last year, is it legal?
The CIA drones can monitor him but as he laughs at the cameras they can do nothing because he is a U.S. citizen.   The Justice Department is trying to build a case against him while he plans to kill others. The American citizen turned terrorist is allegedly in a country that refuses U.S. military action on its soil.  That particular country has made no effort to go after the suspect. President Barack Obama's new policy mandates that suspected terrorists overseas can only be killed by the military. That means no CIA intervention.  It also probably means no punishing the terrorist.

The suspect is an al-Qaida facilitator.  He has been associated with deadly attacks against U.S. citizens overseas.  He continues to openly plan attacks against citizens overseas using explosive devices as a means of terror.  Yet the Defense Department debates whether the man is dangerous enough to merit the bad publicity of  killing an American without due process of law and the potential international fallout.  At least one member of the Pentagon recommend lethal action; however, one is not enough. The suspected terrorist is well-guarded and in a fairly remote location.  Any half ass attempt by our military would b dangerous and not likely successful. Consequently, the suspect smiles at the unarmed CIA drones as they fly by and defiantly communicates non-verbally with the middle digit of his left hand. The suspect is a little bit too comfortable under the current policy against drone strikes.  Perhaps it's time to use an unbanned technique of law enforcement like the smart bullet that travels around obstacles. Perhaps the bullet could be rhetrofitted with a powerful sedative that could induce a Rip Van Winkle sleep instead of death. Then in 20 years when he awakes he can plead the statute of limitations defense in court.