Walkie-talkies, pagers, radios and now — “kamikaze” suicide drones
The deadly terrorist attack in Lebanon on September 23 using walkie-talkies, pagers and radios as bombs set in motion a new wave of “asymmetric warfare” that grows by the day. To summarize:
Hezbollah terrorist organizations, lacking the sophistication of Israel’s armed militia, are choosing quantity over quality by building “cheap, powerful weapons” from “wood, plastic, Styrofoam and even parts of model aircraft hobby kits.” The supply of these low-cost arms is practically infinite, and can overwhelm an enemy’s limited defenses. From Gulf News (Sept. 30):
Explosive-packed UAVs can be launched in minutes, and tend to be harder to detect than the missiles that Israel’s Iron Dome and other aerial defence systems were designed to tackle. While they are often slow and inaccurate, when fired in great numbers they can confuse or overwhelm air defences.
A barrage of drones, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles fired by Iran in April cost more than $1 billion to intercept, according to one estimate. Iron Dome’s interceptors cost about $50,000 apiece.
The October 2024 Socionomist’s special report, “Striking from a Distance,”speaks to this kind of low-tech lethality:
Such attacks do not utilize expensive weapons such as missiles, tanks, aircraft and ships. They are what socionomists have characterized as “belligerence-on-the-cheap.”
In the February 2012 issue, the Institute’s Alan Hall said that technological advancements would contribute to the rise of individuals who are “radically empowered.” Such individuals would be able to make small, inexpensive items into “cheap” but effective weapons. As the news from Lebanon shows, such weapons are now a reality.
“As animosity rises and military budgets fall, expect even more belligerence-on-the-cheap,” said Hall. He also warned that future attacks could take the form of such activities as espionage, internal terrorism, cyberattacks and drones.
See Sept. 30 headline in The Telegraph: “US prepares for drone-on-drone battles at military bases.”
When social mood declines, tensions rise; and where money is scarce, ingenuity closes the difference.
“Striking from a Distance” is an important reminder that socionomics can anticipate the character of global events, including the types of weapons of war – and when violent conflict is most likely to occur.
Read the full, 10-page October 2024 Socionomist today with our special, single-issue offer. The fall capsule also includes part 1 of a 2-part research study into the historic correlation between falling social mood and a rise in fascination with extraterrestrial life forms – and much more.
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