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In 1961 US President Eisenhower spoke of a new danger in American politics—a "conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry." He warned that, "In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist."Concern about this military-industrial complex has waxed and waned ever since Eisenhower's warning. During the height of the Iraq War, the obvious sins of politically connected contractors like Halliburton or Blackwater became a big political issue. But the turn to drones has taken the war on terror off the front pages, not least by reducing western casualties.Nevertheless, the military-industrial complex is fully exploiting the drone wars, as rich companies encourage, enable, and profit from a new wave of IT-enabled killing. This is all with a little help from their new employees, freshly recruited from the ranks of the US military top brass.Follow Solomon Hughes on Twitter.