As sickening as it is to accept, civilian casualties are sadly becoming a reality in today's conflicts, let alone a possibility. This is especially the case of the guerrilla warfare that is commonly taking place today. The reality appears to be that anyone is fair game in the fog of war. Where the U.S is concerned this reality hasn't proven to be any different.

The zeitgeist today is that the means, whatever they may be, are almost always justified by the end. Whether it is to fight a war on the terror, or spread American democracy, civilian safety takes a back-seat priority. Should this situation be improved? Yes. Could the situation be improved? Possibly. Will this situation improve? Almost certainly not.

One only needs to look at places like Abu-Gharaib in Iraq. Yes, you could say there are some "bag eggs" in military, but who lets these people run amok? Who in Washington insists upon the value of "enhanced interrogation techniques"? The fault lies with a severe moral bankruptcy in the current administration. Therein a rather pessimistic picture emerges. As long as there is no will there most certainly will be no way that ethical accountability can be restored to the U.S military. Especially considering they were pretty short on ethics to begin with.

Unfortunately in America, and possibly in the West in general, there is a rather disturbing cultural trend. A culture that seems to put very little value on human life. With the advent of advanced military technology and a computer game culture, the modern soldier does not face the same moral dilemmas as his forbears. He is conditioned into being more detached from who ever is unfortunate enough to be caught in his cross-hairs. Although it is unfair to suggest that soldiers today do not suffer a great deal from what they must endure, there is a still a considerable contingent of military personal who simply have an impaired code of ethics. This may be the result of mental illness or modern cultural perspective but more likely it is a result psychological conditioning, brainwashing. Whatever the cause, it cannot be denied that the soldier of the 21st century is a far more efficient and far less hesitant killer. This may be a disaster for the civilian population but I'm sure, as many generals are aware, it's an asset for the battlefield.

But this is not all, the very nature of war is very different in this post 9-11 world. The Americans and their allies have outlined for themselves a conveniently slippery enemy. A vague mish-mash of actual terrorists and unfortunate patsies. All seemingly pushed under a convenient, makeshift umbrella of loosely defined organisations such as Al-Qaida . The organisation Al- Qaida, if it ever did exist as single centralised entity, is only as such because the U.S.A named it so and gave it its renewed impetus.

The U.S.A has supplied itself with an enemy that flies no flag, claims no leader, wears no uniform and adheres to no single ideology. Instead of security we have been given an absolute certainty that civilians will always be constantly and quite permanently within the line of fire.

As long as there is humanity, as long as there are nations and cultures, there will always be wars, dissent and terrorism. These things can not be eradicated, only reduced. As long as the war on terror persists, so will the war on humanity. A war fought by those who seek to maintain power though global hegemony, be it by cultural assimilation or military force.

Learn more about this author, Andrew Woodman.
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