License to Kill: An Analysis of the Legality of Fully Autonomous Drones in the Context of International Use of Force Law

We live in a world of constant technological change; and with this change, comes unknown effects and consequences. This is even truer with weapons and warfare. Indeed, as the means and methods of warfare rapidly modify and transform, the effects and consequences on the laws of war are unknown. This Article addresses one such development in weapon and warfare technology—Fully Autonomous Weapons or “Killer Robots”—and discusses the inevitable use of these weapons within the current international law framework. Recognizing the current, inadequate legal framework, this Article proposes a regulation policy to mitigate the risks associated with Fully Autonomous Weapons. But the debate should not end here; States and the U.N. must work together to adopt a legal framework that coincides with the advancement of technology. This Article starts that discussion

Legislative Alert: 2013 National Defense Authorization Bill

[Excerpt] On behalf of the AFL-CIO, I write in opposition to provisions changing nuclear weapons worker health and safety programs that are included in the Ltouse Armed Services Committee\u27s 2013 National Defense Authorization bill. These changes would seriously weaken worker safety & health protections at Department of Energy (DOE) nuclear weapons complexes

Letter from an Australian Anti-Nuclear Weapons Activist to Geraldine Ferraro

Letter from an anti-nuclear weapons activists to Geraldine Ferraro, detailing the supposed capabilities of nuclear weapons and tactics.https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/vice_presidential_campaign_correspondence_1984_international/1015/thumbnail.jp

The use of military force and the Constitution

[Excerpt] Last week, for the second time since becoming president, President Donald Trump ordered a military strike on Syria without seeking or obtaining authorization from Congress. Both strikes were responsive to chemical-weapons attacks that, American intelligence analysts say, the Syrian government launched against its own people. Many believe that these forceful responses to horrific war crimes involving banned weapons were morally justified. But were they constitutional

Ownership-dependent mating tactics of minor males of the beetle Librodor japonicus (Nitidulidae) with intra-sexual dimorphism of mandibles

Intra-sexual dimorphism is found in the weapons of many male beetles. Different behavioral tactics to access females between major and minor males, which adopt fighting and alternative tactics, respectively, are thought to maintain the male dimorphism. In these species major males have enlarged weapons that they use in fights with rival males. Minor males also have small weapons in some of these species, and it is unclear why these males possess weapons. We examined the hypothesis that minor males might adopt a fighting tactic when their status was relatively high in comparison with that of other males (e.g., ownership of a territory). We observed the behavioral tactics of major and minor males of the beetle Librodor japonicus, whose males have a dimorphism of their mandibles. Major males fought for resources, whereas minor males adopted two status-dependent tactics, fighting and sneaking, to access females, depending on their ownership of a sap site. We suggest that ownership status-dependent mating tactics in minor males may maintain the intra-sexual dimorphism in this beetle.</p

Pakistan’s Nuclear Weapons Program and Implications for US National Security.

This article analyzes Pakistan’s nuclear weapons program and the characteristics of the environment in which the program is nested. These characteristics include Pakistan’s history of internal and external instability; nuclear saber rattling during crises; support for Islamic terrorism in order to advance state goals; indigenous production of many elements of its nuclear forces; possession of delivery and command and control systems with destabilizing characteristics; and finally, nuclear doctrine that appears to advocate first use of nuclear weapons. The article argues that the characteristics of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons program generate threats to US national security interests. The article examines six interrelated and synergistic challenges for US national security: first, Pakistan is engaged in an arms race in Southwest Asia that has negative implications for Pakistan’s stability; second, the threat of nuclear proliferation from Pakistan continues; third, Pakistan’s arsenal characteristics make accidental and/or unauthorized nuclear war more likely; fourth, there is an ongoing possibility of war with India; fifth, Islamist influence is spreading through key sectors of Pakistani society; and finally, there is an increasing danger of state failure in Pakistan

Anglo-French defence cooperation in the age of austerity

This paper seeks to assess, from a predominantly UK perspective, the potential benefits of enhanced Anglo-French defence cooperation, not only to the two countries concerned but also to Western Europe and the USA. The paper will mainly focus on defence cooperation and not the subordinate agreement regarding limited cooperation on nuclear weapons, which addressed cooperation on the safety and security of nuclear weapons, stockpile certification and countering nuclear and radiological terrorism but seemed to be driven by "acute financial pressures, symptomatic of severe structural deficiencies"