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News Log 4U.S. Marines to Acquire PERMThe United States Marine Corps recently announced that they would be updating to new ammunition, the Precision Extended Range Munition (PERM). Unlike the current Excalibur rounds, PERM assaults long distance targets that cannot be seen from striking position. This allows the attacker to remain unseen during combat. The firearm will be built by Raytheon and will be a 120mm long-range weapon. The Future of Soldier SuitsArmor companies are developing exoskeletons, suits that can provide exceptional powers, which could potentially be used in U.S. army combat. The exoskeletons are “wearable robots that amplify the wearer’s strength, endurance, and stability”. These suits could improve the number of musculoskeletal injuries that soldiers acquire on a daily basis; such injuries include carrying heavy weight. Certain models would use tethers that supply energy, making it a downside for quick and relatively free battle. AnalysisIs war good, bad, or ugly? War has been a fragment of human history for thousands of years: the Crusades, civil wars, World War I and World War II, and more recently, the Iraqi war or the Syrian civil war. War is part of our past and will most definitely be part of our future. War might sometimes be forced or utterly useless (to the opinion of some) or inevitable (again, to the opinion of some). However, what most people can agree on is that it involves the loss of lives and destruction of something or another. In the presence of war there has also been advancing technology; in World War I tanks, submarines, machine guns, heavy artillery, and chemical weapons were invented and used. Presently, wartime technology is still advancing and is proving beneficial to battle. One example of this could be the upcoming military exoskeletons; Raytheon, a US defense company, has begun constructing a “wearable robot” (the XOS2). It enables the wearer to have more strength, endurance, and agility. This armor would be used broadly, however it would directly imply to reduce musculoskeletal injuries caused by activities such as lifting or carrying heavy loads. The skeleton would give the wearer the power to lift over 90kg. Though it may seem exceeding even the technology today, there are still some negative aspects. The most prominent one is that the XOS2 is attached to a tether, the source of electrical power for the suit. This also means that the suit uses massive amounts of power, leaving the question if it is energy efficient. Also, this suit is extremely expensive; therefore, it might not be the “top priority” of the U.S. military at this moment. Another developer, Darpa, is constructing a suit that would more resemble a wetsuit than a robot but acts as a similar concept. However, this suit would only allow the wearer to carry about 45kg. Nevertheless, in many ways this suit could be more efficient than the XOS2; it is lightweight and enhances the physical abilities rather than creating “super soldiers”. The general idea of both these suits is to give the soldiers an easier, everyday life by assisting their natural abilities. Both suits require excessive amounts of energy and are therefore not confirmed to become part of the U.S. military’s arsenal. Conversely in the Marine Corps, progress is underway; the new rounds to support combat operations will be accessible within the next 2 years. The PERM will assist soldiers in long-distance assaults and permit them to stay hidden from their targets. Similarly to the super-suit, Raytheon will be designing, testing, and producing the rounds and supplying them to the army. This new development will be extremely useful to the soldiers. If they remain unseen and concealed the number of casualties will almost definitely lower. “Logistical burdens” will also be reduced since fewer rounds will be needed to strike one target. This technological advance will aid greatly with protecting the soldiers who are targeting the hit and will also allow them to complete their missions faster and more effective. Though these inventions may be beneficial in assisting soldiers on the battlefield and reducing injuries and casualties, it does not mean that war itself is beneficial. In this case it is true that technology is advancing and creating easier and superior warfare, however it could have multiple facets; one the one hand, it can reduce deaths, but on the other hand, because these products are in stages of development and purchase, it means that the war will be continuing. More weapons means more war, and personally wars are indeed ugly. It may be beneficial to ‘solving’ problems, however there are very few additional worthy points. Compared to the first world war, technology has come a long way; now there are suits that could be used in Hollywood movies whereas back then the fastest speed a tank could drive was 4mph. Technology has obviously advanced, however there is still the moral issue if this advancement of warfare is human; all these new weapons are used to kill humans. To the question is war good, bad, or ugly, my personal answer would be bad and ugly; it is a waste of human life and effort. Though it might resolve conflicts and might sometimes be inevitable, it is not the only solution. These two inventions prove that war is continuous and probably will never die out. They both have interesting technological aspects and are sure to improve the life and work of soldiers; however with war in mind it does not seem like the top priority of these products is peace. One could then argue, however, that trying to create peace is with finishing the war. To that I would answer, will that cycle ever end?Works Cited Barrie, Allison. "US Marines to Get New PERMS." Fox News. FOX News Network, 25 Jan. 2013. Web. 18 Jan. 2013. <;. "The Exoskeleton's Super Technology." Raytheon Company. Raytheon Company, 05 May 2010. Web. 20 Jan. 2013. <;. Weinberger, Sharon. ?Iron Man to Batman: The Future of Soldier Suits.“ BBC News. BBC, 21 Jan. 2013. Web. 18 Jan. 2013. <;. ................
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