The world is moving forward, and it is currently changing from the industrial age to the age of information technology. Technology is constantly changing at a fast rate. The United States of America is the leader in technological advancement in relation to military activities. The military has seen transformations in the weaponry and machinery use.
These aspects are getting sophisticated, effective and efficient through the use of microprocessors. Good examples of these advances are smart weapons, fly by wire aircraft systems and smart ships. This improvement in technology has reduced the number of deaths and destruction common in military excursions. The military aims at attacking the right targets without endangering the lives of innocent civilians. With the current advancements in technology, this has been achieved. In fact, the United States of America has achieved some of these objectives. This has ensured that ethical conduct is followed in the battle field.
War in the common society is normally associated with deaths, killings and wanton destruction. In most cultures, killing is considered unethical (Carroll, 53). However, there are exceptions in relation to this in many parts of the world. For instance, there are societies that offer human beings as sacrifice.
Besides, a person would be given a death sentence. It is sad that war is inevitable in society. It forms part of the human life in the society. A person is quick to state that justification of a war is valid when all means of diplomacy fail between warring parties. A war is considered ethical and moral when based on legal, ethical and moral gauges.
The use of guided missile has proved to be the proverbial water shade in military technology. This has seen the evolution of war machinery at a quick pace. Ancient war techniques are no longer viable because the face of war is changing and it only favors parties with modern technology.
A good example of the evolution of war machinery involves dropping of bombs. In the World War II, about 108 bomber planes would drop 650 bombs to annihilate a single target while, in the Vietnam War, the number of bombs decreased sharply to 180 for a single target. Nowadays, it requires about three laser guided missiles to destroy a single target.
The American society views the development of smart technology as unethical because it has taken away the human element in war. Lack of human judgment in the smart weapons eliminates the mercy factor. Secondly, research required for smart weapons takes a lot of money. Besides, it requires skilled personnel to successful complete War related projects. Funds used for the above project come from taxes.
At times, innocent lives of civilians are lost in the battle field. Furthermore, innocent people are subjected to suffering (Carroll, 57). In World War II, a lot of civilians died. Besides, destruction occurred in places that were not targets of the military.
This wordplay is vital in advocating for ethically right practices in relation to military activities. Virtue ethics is the trait of a moral beacon. A good example is the collateral damage reduction policies enacted by the United States of America. America has the responsibility of manufacturing precise weapons to spare civilians in the battle field. Further, this would prevent excessive use of force in the battle field.
Critics of the advanced military technology are arguing that these technologies have a dehumanizing effect in relation to war because the enemy is an image in a surveillance camera. This argument is valid, but this technology is protecting the lives of many soldiers and improving efficiency in dealing with military targets.
American military has been on the forefront in enacting the Law of Proportionality. It seeks to determine the legally acceptable level of military activity that a soldier can perform in a foreign territory. It enhances the accomplishment of military objectives. This means that, the military personnel seek to destroy strategic military targets. This legislation encompasses the ethical stand the American military is trying to adopt to make wars humane and not destructive like in the past. This also disallows inhuman practices by military personnel (Kassimeris and John, 15). Soldiers found to have violated this law are charged in a court of law.
An exception to this ethical law is when the legitimate military incursion puts the lives of civilians at risk. This situation arises due to proximity of civilians to the battle fields. In such a situation, an acceptable number of civilian casualties are tolerable. This number of casualties is to be reasonably low to check the activities of the war. This exception is the rule of double effect.
Another crucial talking point is the issue of spending large sums of money in research and acquisition of military technology while other pressing issues are ignored. This amount is exceedingly large especially when the United States of America is considered. America has been spending about $ 61.8 billion annually on research and development of military weapons and machinery.
This amount is large in relation to the money spent on developing clean energy systems. However, other sectors of the economy receive little funds for their activities. This portrays a serious fault in all the ethical arguments that the United States of America proposes.
In conclusion, governments are always finding ways of outsmarting one another. This has facilitated the shift from the era of dumb bombs to smart bombs and less human casualties in military operations. For instance, in 1945, a single target would be bombed using over 600 bombs. A reduction of this number to 180 in the Vietnam War was evident because of greater accuracy.
This trend has further been improved to a few guided missiles to destroy a similar target. Technology is still evolving, and pilotless drones have been manufactured. It aims at reducing the number of personnel involved in the battle field. It is a way of reducing human causalities in relation to wars.
All these advancements are meant to minimize risks in war. These risks encompass civilian casualties, unnecessary destruction of non-strategic targets in the war zone and injuries to the military personnel. All these advancements are good examples of the constant quest for the reduction of risks associated with war. It is hypocritical for one to create all these rules and be the largest manufacturer of weapons.
Thus, the United States needs to reduce its military activities. Besides, it should allocate a considerable amount of funds for the same. The other option is to enact regulations that would avert wars. Funds that would have been used for the same should be donated to developing countries. This would be a sign of a noble action.
Works Cited
Carroll, Archie B. Business & Society: Ethics & Stakeholder Management. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning, 2009. Print.
Kassimeris, George, and John, Buckley. The Ashgate Research Companion to Modern Warfare. Farnham, Surrey, England: Ashgate Pub, 2010. Print.