Why the U.S. military decided to let this happen is mind-boggling.
In an attempt to kill one al-Qaida member, 18 Pakistani civilians are dead. We don't even know if the target, Ayman al-Zawahiri, the second in command of al-Qaida, was killed along with them.
When the United States decides to lead an airstrike, officials should be 100 percent sure their tactic is going to succeed and not result in haphazardly bombing a village.
Not only does this attack intensify anti-American sentiment around the world, but it continues the vicious cycle of terrorism.
By responding to al-Qaida attacks with American attacks, al-Qaida becomes angry. Then they respond by attacking. The United States gets angrier with each attack and retaliates.
See where this is going?
Maybe U.S. officials feel that if the whole al-Qaida group is killed, terrorism and all its fundamental beliefs will die right along with it. Not only is this mission practically impossible, ideologies don't just die with a group of people.
With their beliefs as strong as they are, it's unlikely they will ever completely disappear.
Even if the United States did succeed in killing al-Zawahiri, there would surely be more than one al-Qaida member willing to take his place. It's unrealistic to think that once al-Zawahiri is killed — or even 10 members of al-Qaida are killed — that their establishment will become significantly weaker or extinct.
If the United States insist on continuing to kill off al-Qaida, they need to spend taxpayers' money wisely and achieve their objective and not continually hit-and-miss.
If they do make a mistake — which they clearly did — they need to recognize it. Publicly.
Learn from it, too. Don't let 18 people die in vain. Make sure these sorts of blunders that infuriate terrorists to commit acts of violence don't happen.
But it is a rare occurrence when United States officials own up to anything less than perfection. This self-glorification must end — it's pertinent that they be willing to admit wrongdoing, analyze the situation and find a better alternative in order to succeed in this formidable mission.
Yes, al-Qaida is dangerous and needs to be stopped. But the military should aim for them and not villagers.
People's lives are at stake.
