Brian Bowman of Backseat Broadband is making me a better citizen — at home and abroad.
Through his well-written and always insightful posts, Bowman has enlightened me about America’s woeful broadband deployment status, the issue of net neutrality, and, in a bit of change of pace, how America’s use of drones in Pakistan is complicating what many in the U.S. may view as a cut-and-dry initiative. (Start the series here)
I figure I’m a pretty typical American – by which I mean I rarely pay much attention to anything that doesn’t directly affect me. Sad, but true. I appreciate Backseat’s recent series on the impact of drone attacks – particularly the presentation of the Pakistani perspective, which is largely absent from my standard news sources.
In his series, Bowman looks at how our communication (or lack thereof) about the use of drones colors the perception of those who are experiencing the results of the attacks.
Secretary of State Clinton’s recent response to the problem was “we are at war”. While that’s true, I can only hope she said more. The US should better explain -why- the drone attacks are needed.
The next generation of boys and girls is watching from Pakistan, India, Iraq and Iran. They need to understand why the US is using this technology. If they see us as the aggressor, all the technology in the world won’t change their minds.
Hmmmm. Once stated, this seem so obvious. Thanks to Backseat Broadband, it IS obvious for at least one more American citizen.
