Drone warfare described from the perspectives of drone operators, victims of drone attacks, anti-drone activists, international law, military thinkers, and others.

Drones are changing the conduct of war. Deployed at presidential discretion, they can be used in regular war zones or to kill people in such countries as Yemen and Somalia, where the United States is not officially at war. Advocates say that drones are more precise than conventional bombers, allowing warfare with minimal civilian deaths while keeping American pilots out of harm's way. Critics say that drones are cowardly and that they often kill innocent civilians while terrorizing entire villages on the ground. In this book, Hugh Gusterson explores the significance of drone warfare from multiple perspectives, drawing on accounts by drone operators, victims of drone attacks, anti-drone activists, human rights activists, international lawyers, journalists, military thinkers, and academic experts.

Gusterson examines the way drone warfare has created commuter warriors and redefined the space of the battlefield. He looks at the paradoxical mix of closeness and distance involved in remote killing: is it easier than killing someone on the physical battlefield if you have to watch onscreen? He suggests a new way of understanding the debate over civilian casualties of drone attacks. He maps “ethical slippage” over time in the Obama administration's targeting practices. And he contrasts Obama administration officials' legal justification of drone attacks with arguments by international lawyers and NGOs.

从无人机操作员、无人机攻击的受害者、反无人机活动家、国际法、军事思想家等人的角度来描述无人机战争。

无人机正在改变战争的进行。由总统决定部署的无人机可以在常规战区使用，也可以在也门和索马里等美国未正式开战的国家杀人。倡导者说，无人机比常规轰炸机更精确，可以在战争中尽量减少平民死亡，同时使美国飞行员不受伤害。批评者说，无人机是懦弱的，它们经常杀害无辜的平民，同时恐吓当地的整个村庄。在这本书中，休-古斯特森从多个角度探讨了无人机战争的意义，引用了无人机操作员、无人机袭击的受害者、反无人机活动家、人权活动家、国际律师、记者、军事思想家和学术专家的叙述。

古斯特森研究了无人机战争是如何创造出通勤战士并重新定义战场空间的。他研究了远程杀戮所涉及的亲近和距离的矛盾组合：如果你必须在屏幕上观看，是否比在实际战场上杀人更容易？他建议用一种新的方式来理解关于无人机攻击的平民伤亡的辩论。他描绘了奥巴马政府在瞄准目标方面的 "道德滑坡 "的情况。他还将奥巴马政府官员对无人机袭击的法律理由与国际律师和非政府组织的论点进行了对比。