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Oct 24, 2012

Predator Military Contractors: Privatizing the Drones

Coming to a future near you!
Via: Huffingtonpost
 About three and a half years ago I wrote that "One might note that with regard to future battlefields the use of contractors is like the use of robots. They promise both greater cost-effectiveness and less loss of life of government soldiers." With the advantage of hindsight it turns out that the use of robots is heavily dependent on the use of contractors. It seems that today's Terminators, such as unmanned aerial systems (UAS) -- drones -- are heavily dependent on mere mortals.
 Perhaps that should not come as such a surprise. After all, anyone who ever saw Arnold Schwarzenegger act in the Terminator movies understands how much he depended on the abilities of others in order to produce a successful movie. Still, the extent to which today's contractors are involved in maintaining and operating the U.S. premier robot system, aerial drones, will likely come as a surprise to you. It certain did to me after reading the article, "Drone-Sourcing? United States Air Force Unmanned Aircraft Systems, Inherently Governmental Functions, and the Role of Contractors," published last month in George Washington University's Federal Circuit Bar Journal.
Human Hunting Robots?

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