I see a headline announcing the Pentagon is changing its policy on cluster bombs..., I'm cautiously hopeful that there's good news. Cluster bombs, as the name implies, consist of a lot of small "bomblets." The unexploded bomblets are spread over a wide area before they detonate... or not... a significant portion bomblets don't explode as intended, but remain live until jostled, then explode, often in the hands of a curious child or by a farmer tending a field.My cynical side thought, "Oh, they're probably just going to require manufacturers to ensure that more of the bomblets explode," not wanting to believe my own cynicism. The article opened:
Faced with growing international pressure, the Pentagon is changing its policy on cluster bombs and plans to reduce the danger of unexploded munitions in the deadly explosives.
I read on...
The policy shift... would require that after 2018, more than 99 percent of the bomblets in a cluster bomb must detonate.
Pathetic. The reality is that the percentage of detonations depends on how they are used. Israel, for instance, showered an estimated 1 million bomblets into areas of southern Lebanon in the last couple of days of their 2006 assault. Doing so from too close a range resulted in more unexploded bomblets, time bombs waiting for unsuspecting victims. Read more on this case in Haaretz.
Sources:
Associated Press, Pentagon aims for less deadly cluster bombs, July 7, 2008.
1 comment:
Yes. So easily quited. I sense that might be changing.
The Zinn reading was a good reminder that the typical narrative of US history is a wee bit slanted.
Thanks for dropping by.
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