We're powerwalking towards regime change wars over cocaine. It strikes me as completely absurd to employ our significant military power to destroy tiny vessels at sea instead of targeting operations and finances. It seems just as amoral and egregious to make a show of such wanton and asymmetric destruction. I have a number of questions about this like:

- Is our military intelligence now being used to conduct international police work and enforce international or domestic law?

- Should we expect our police mandate to extend to foreign countries?

- Are these military operations undermining existing narcotics operations and international cooperation with DEA?

- When these civilians dissolve back into the population, will we chase them there with cruise missiles and drone strikes?

- If the cartels load a brick onto FedEx freight, will we destroy the aircraft? Why not just blow it up?

- Does it matter who is captaining the vessels, if the cartels (as ruthless as they are, and I am on board with this sentiment 100%) force/threaten/coerce a person to mule for them, how would this victim convert to a valid military target?

- This is whataboutism or close enough, but it is more than reasonable: Didn't our previous interventions in these exact regions train thousands of elite paramilitary operators who would later become the very mercenaries and thugs running the show today? (School of the Americas, Los Zetas)

- Why does it feel like we are replaying 2 or 3 of our worst policy blunders since the 1980's over the blowback from the very same?

Really? I can think of lots

That's not justice. And that attitude can easily be turned on anyone you know or care about.

Because surely the people running drugs across international water in boats are certainly hardened cartel members that make decisions and not just whatever poor saps they can find that are desperate for money?