There is inherent immorality in one man wielding enough coercive force to identify, target and execute any individual deemed to be a terrorist threat to the United States. That is the power possessed by Barack Obama and it is currently being expressed through the use of aerial drones in several parts of the world.

I recognize the Commander-In-Chief role held by president Obama in a state of war, but that is a purely legal argument not necessarily a moral one. The nature of the endless War on Terror is a separate topic for examination.

For now there is a curious conundrum related to the use of the drone program to eliminate those identified as terrorists. This seems like a highly inefficient not to mention costly way of killing off terrorists. And after all, the United States central government does have some serious fiscal problems.

This brings me to another whim of Mr. Obama’s: his original desire to shut down Guantanamo Bay prison, which currently houses approximately 166 suspected terrorists.

Mr. Obama could achieve two of his objectives by ordering a drone strike on Guantanamo Bay prison. He would eliminate 166 terrorists in one strike with no need to hunt them down in the backwaters of the world after releasing them.

Second, the Guantanamo Bay issue would be literally closed. The collateral damage in maimed or killed guards and attendants may be the only thing standing in the president’s way.

©Copyright 2013 Edward Podritske