Wired for War by P. W. Singer
According to a military specialist, science fiction is rapidly becoming reality on the battlefield and is altering not only how battles are fought but also the politics, economics, laws, and morals that surround war.
The two earlier works by P. W. Singer made forecasts about the emergence of child soldiers and the rise of private military contractors that turned out to be all too true. He now examines the emergence of robotic warfare, the biggest change in military relations since the development of the atomic bomb.
Wired for War by P. W. Singer
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The Terminator and I, Robot scenarios threaten to become all too real because of a significant shift in military technology that we are only now starting to observe.
There are currently about 7,000 robotic systems in Iraq. Terrorists in Afghanistan are being remotely killed by pilots in Nevada. Scientists are arguing how intelligent and deadly their current robotic prototypes should be. And a lot of the most well-known science fiction writers are quietly providing the Pentagon with advice on the coming generation.
Singer convincingly demonstrates how the proliferation of these technologies will have a significant impact on both the front lines and domestic politics by fusing historical data with field interviews. Warfare becomes simpler to initiate but more challenging to combat when people are removed from the battlefield. The moral and psychological obstacles to killing will be lowered if men are replaced with machines, and this could save some lives. The soldier’s “warrior ethos,” has existed for a long time.
The laws of war, which have guided military confrontation for decades, will dissolve along with identity.
In a paradoxical way, these new technological advancements will also bring the war to our doorstep. The robot revolution could threaten America’s military superiority as other countries and even terrorist organizations begin to develop or purchase their own robotic weaponry. The developments Singer identifies have an enticing gee-whiz quality, despite the unsettling nature of his analysis. Wired for War travels from Iraq to the modern “skunk works” in American suburbia, where the technologies of war of the future are covertly being developed. The future of warfare is both fascinating and terrifying in Singer’s hands…
