Former Drone Pilots Blow Whistle On Morally Outrageous ProgramBy Sophie McAdam People think its a video game. But when you fire that missile, theres no re-start, says former sensor operator Stephen Lewis, who was active in the Drone Program between 2005 and 2010. It weighs on your conscience, it weighs on your soul, it weighs on your heart. Because of your actions, some child is not going to see their mother or father. Stephen was so affected by his role in the program that he drank himself to sleep, every single night. His colleaguesdid the same, saying: It was the culture there. After every shift, youd consume a lot of alcoholto take the edge off, so you didnt have to think about what you did. Michael Haas was a technician and instructor between 2005 and 2011. These drones are very, very good at killing people, he says. We were very callous about any collateral damage. Haas revealsthey would often kill people simply because they were associated with a guilty person, and we didnt consider other people on-screen. He also spoke frankly about the de-humanization of targets: The less they can get you to think of the thing youre shooting at as human, the easier it becomes for you to just follow through. Haas reveals the use of code phrases that detract from the real cost of the Drone Program: Cutting the grass before it gets too long, for example, is a euphemism for killing people before they become a problem and the sickening part is, even children are not exempt from this philosophy. Cian Westmoreland, a technician who served the program between 2006 and 2010, seems mentally and emotionally wiped out in this interview. He says the program is politically expedient in the short-term and like the other men, hes eaten up with guilt aboutwhat he did. I started having nightmares about kids and mothers dying, and Im trying to help them, but I couldnt. I just feel helpless, I knew it was my fault. Cian, visibly upset,feels cheated by his country. People who join the militarywe join because of things we learned in school, he says. We learn about our Government, and the great things [the USA] was founded on. Cian reveals he voted for Obama, who stood for change and human rights, but now he regrets supporting the President. We learn about our Constitution, and we learn that Americans are always afforded due process. They havent honored the Constitution. They should be fighting for that more than anything. The Bureau of Investigative Journalism estimates the USA has conducted between 544 and 568 drone strikes in Yemen, Pakistan, and Somalia. The New America Foundation claims these strikes have killed between 2,736 and 4,169 militants. But how many innocent people have died as a result? The Bureau of Investigative Journalism warns the figure may be as high as 1,000. Another former drone pilot has spoken of his shame at personally killing over 1600 people. These heartbreaking testimoniescome as the Pentagonplans to increase drone strikes worldwide by over 50% in the coming years. However, official research suggests the US-led coalitions foreign policy will never stop terrorism: it simplyfuels more hatred towards the Westand encourages the radicalization of young Muslim men. Please consider sharing this video clip to raise awareness of the true cost of the Drone Program, and its devastating impact on both civilians and military personnel alike. Also See: The Innocents Killed by Obama: They Never Saw it Coming Image Credit: The Free Thought Project This article (Former Drone Pilots Blow Whistle On Morally Outrageous Program) is free and open source. You have permission to republish this article under a Creative Commons license with attribution to the author and Trueselfnews.com Yup. They killed for , like what, 5 years, and NOW feel remorse? The Song of Jesus, Son of God; My meal is fasting, Blessed is he who preferreth his brother before himself. Exodus *33: Yes I will agree that the bomb does not know who it will kill it just will do it and destroy all that is around it too and they need to ban ed from war period by Nato also I was only following orders ! Sig Heil ! 