/AKM/ - Guns, weapons and the art of war.

I've been thinking about drones, especially small FPV ones. Everyone talks about how its going to change warfare yada yada. But the really disruptive thing is that it enables individuals to target the ruling class much easier.

Think about guns for example. Before guns, you needed to have expensive armor, swords, shields, spears, bows and extensive training to be a lethal soldier. Only the elites could afford that, and that's why peasant/slave revolutions were not only few and far between, but they all were brutally put down quite easily.

Once guns came into the picture, the elites were not so safe anymore, and there came about a change in political structures to accomodate the masses more both politically and economically.

Now I think drones are another step in this direction. Indivuduals can easily build drones, and with advances in AI, then can just create a program instructing it to fly and identify a wealthy elite and kill them. With proper op-sec, someone can release a drone a mile away in a forest, set it on its kill path, and then run away.

The elites can be killed en-masse with the security forces having a very tough time trying to counter it and identify the perpetrators. Now all of this is theoretical of course, but technological acceleration is going to make this a reality much sooner than you think.

This is why I think the push for mass surveillance is happening. The elites are aware that there is a material change coming in the relative military power of organized armies and disparate dissident lone wolfs. Mass surveillance is the only way to ensure they can counter the lone wolfs.