02 November 2012 By Stephen
Lendman Perhaps one day they'll arrive
over a neighborhood near you. Drones are becoming
America's weapon of choice. Domestically so far,
they're used only for eyes in the sky spying. Big Brother wants to watch
everyone all the time. Don't bet against eyes not
being weaponized one day to punish as well as spy.
That's how rogue states operate. America is by far the worst and
most dangerous. Waging war on humanity is policy.
Imagine living in a country run by officials who think
war is good. The more the better. Permanent
ones. Wage them while pretending it's done for peace.
Few question why America is always at war somewhere.
Scant attention is paid to the trillions of dollars
spent at the expense of vital domestic needs gone
begging. Militarism is prioritized.
Budgets are virtually open-ended. America's duopoly
assures it. Imagine policy makers deciding on which
country they'll ravage next. It makes no difference whether
Obama or Romney takes charge. Both major parties are
in lockstep on all issues mattering most. Corporate empowerment, serving
America's 1%, cracking down on resisters, and imperial
dominance top their list. Hell hath no fury like an
out-of-control hegemon. If analyzed on a couch, it
would be called sociopathic or worse. A Washington Post Special Report
discussed America's permanent war agenda. A previous
article discussed Obama's Disposition Matrix. It
called it elevating Murder, Inc. to a higher level. Anyone can be targeted anywhere
in the world for any reason or none at all. Obama has
final kill list authority. John Brennan is his
counterterrorism maestro of murder. His "playbook"
makes up rules as he writes them. He designates kill targets. He
calls it a strategy to persist 'till the end of time.
Last August he said: "What we're trying to do right
now is to have a set of standards, a set of criteria,
and have a decision-making process that will govern
our counterterrorism actions - we're talking about
direct action, lethal action - so that irrespective of
the venue where they're taking place, we have a high
confidence that they're being done for the right
reasons in the right way." In other words, kill because we
say so. No further explanation. No mention of rule of
law principles. Right, of course, is might, whether or
not legal, moral and ethical. In his journey into the "Heart of
Darkness," Joseph Conrad wrote: "one comes to hate those
savages....hate them to the death....Exterminate all
the brutes!" Kill orders target anyone challenging US
hegemony. Targeted killing more than ever is US
policy. Washington Post writer Craig
Whitlock explained more. On October 25, he headlined
"Remote US base at core of secret operations,"
saying: "Around the clock, about 16 times
a day, drones take off or land at" America's
Djibouti-based Camp Lemonnier. It's "the combat hub
for the Obama administration's counterterrorism wars
in the Horn of Africa and the Middle East." France's Foreign Legion
established Lemonnier. Post-9/11 it became a US Naval
Expeditionary Base. It's located at Djibouti's
International Airport. It's home to the Pentagon's
Africa Command (USAFRICOM) Combined Joint Task Force -
Horn of Africa (CJTF/HOA). "Over the past two years, the
U.S. military has clandestinely transformed it into
the busiest Predator drone base outside the Afghan war
zone…." Extraordinary efforts are made to
conceal its lawless mission. Decisions on who lives or
dies are made secretly. Lemonnier's commander knows.
His job is execute kill orders. "Virtually the entire 500-acre
camp is dedicated to counterterrorism" killing. It's
the Pentagon's first "permanent drone war base." It
won't be the last. Perhaps many more are planned
globally. Drones, of course, operate out of
many other US facilities. Regional ones include
Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, and Seychelles-based
installations. Lemonnier so far is the only
Pentagon installation of its kind. Secrecy shrouds its
operations. Post journalists were denied permission to
visit. After one showed up unannounced, commanding
General Ralph Baker agreed to an off-base interview. He wouldn't comment on drone
missions or other issues mattering most. The Post,
however, obtained numerous unclassified military
documents. They cover construction blueprints, drone
accident reports, and internal planning memos. They show how Djibouti-based
drone wars escalated exponentially since early 2011.
They also reveal ambitious future plans. The Pentagon's Joint Special
Operations Command (JSOC) plays a central role. It's
used for top-secret counterterrorism missions. Navy
SEALs, Army Delta Force commandos, and other Special
Ops forces are involved. Operations known about include
counterterrorism missions, surveillance, intelligence
gathering, and hostage rescues. About 300 Special Ops personnel
plan, coordinate, and execute these and other
missions. Others on base aren't told what they do. In September 2011, a Lemonnier-based
drone killed Muslim cleric/US citizen Anwar Al Awlaki.
He lived in Yemen. He committed no crime. He was
assassinated for opposing US belligerency. His murder and others put all
anti-imperial opponents at risk. US citizenship
protects no one. If outspoken enough, anyone may be
next. Perhaps writers, authors, and media hosts will
be targeted. Warrior states don't tolerate
truth-tellers. Lemonnier is home to around 3,200
military, civilian and private contractor personnel.
Most know little about highly classified
counterterrorism work. The select 300 handle it. Their
mandate also includes intelligence gathering. Killing,
however, is prioritized. Obama, Brennan, and other
high-level officials decide on "disposition matrix"
targets. They function as judge, jury and executioner.
They hold the power of life and death in their hands.
Plans call for large-scale
Lemonnier expansion. Operational forces will more than
triple to around 1,100. Pentagon officials only say "a
wide variety of regional security missions" are
involved. "(S)ecurity considerations prevent us from
commenting on specific(s)." Lemonnier is America's
"centerpiece of an expanding constellation of half a
dozen" African-based US drone and surveillance
facilities. They're also home to conventional attack
aircraft. F-15E Strike Eagles fly regional combat
missions. Djibouti's location is key. It's
situated between East Africa and the Arabian
Peninsula. Somalia and Yemen can be reached in
minutes. Djibouti's port offers easy access to the
Indian Ocean and Red Sea. Deputy Assistant Secretary for
Africa, Amanda Dory, said Lemonnier isn't "an outpost
in the middle of nowhere of marginal interest. This is
a very important location in terms of US interest, in
terms of navigation, when it comes to power
projection." Three classified military
operations include Copper Dune (CD), Jupiter Garret (JG)
and Octave Shield (OS). CD conducts counterterrorism
operations in Yemen. Africa command officials refused
comment on JG and OS. Only their unclassified code
names are known. Air Force safety records provide
information on aircraft accidents. In February, a
Special Ops U-28 spy plane crashed. Four crew members
died. Since January 2011, information
on five drone crashes is known. One involved a JSOC
major identified only as "Frog." He coordinated
Predator missions. Nothing more is known. Missions are so secret even
ground crews aren't told about destinations or
targets. All they know is that drones depart. Most
return hours later. Problems beset others. They likely
crashed, split apart, or burned. Lemonnier missions are controlled
remotely from Creech and Cannon Air Force Bases in
Nevada and New Mexico respectively. Operators use
multiple keyboards and monitors. Enemies are faceless and
nameless. Killing can be controlled nearby or from
half a world away. Each drone system includes multiple
UAVs, a ground station, satellite link, and launch
site maintenance crew. Rotating ones are on standby
24-hours a day for missions on a moment's notice.
Predator drones sanitize killing on the cheap.
Disturbing questions are unanswered. Secrecy,
unaccountability, and lawlessness matter most. So is the huge number of civilian
casualties. Investigative work determined that
only 2% of victims are
high-level combatants. Ordinary people suffer most.
Official reports lie. Hard truths reveal what policy
makers want suppressed. Murder, Inc. is ugly business
anywhere for any reason. More than ever it's official
US policy. Stephen Lendman lives in
Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.
His new book is titled "How Wall Street Fleeces
America: Privatized Banking, Government Collusion and
Class War"
http://www.claritypress.com/Lendman.html Visit his
blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com and listen to
cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on
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