US Suspected Of Using 'Ninja Bomb', Rare Missile Packed With Swords, In Syria
The US is the world's premier military power, and isn't afraid to spend an absolutely obscene amount of money in order to maintain that distinction. According to the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, America spends more on military affairs than China, Saudi Arabia, India, France, Russia, United Kingdom, and Germany ... combined. Yes, in 2018 we spent around $649 billion on defense, compared to a measly $609 billion between the aforementioned countries, and that $649 billion accounted for about 15 percent of the federal budget. So, make of that what you will.
While some of that spending is absolutely necessary, there's at least one thing that we can name that seems a bit excessive — how about a missile packed with swords, called a "Ninja Bomb?"
Though it sounds more like something an elementary school child would dream up than the world's most powerful defense force, America not only built this contraption, but used it, according to Business Insider.
Ninja assassin
On Dec. 3, 2019, "one, if not two, suspected terrorists in northwestern Syria were killed in an unusual airstrike" involving what is believed to have been the Ninja Bomb." Officially, it is the "AGM-114R9X, a US-made Hellfire variant that relies on force and six extendable blades to take out targets with greater precision and reduce civilian casualties."
When describing its effect on the minivan the passengers were riding in, BI stated that the Ninja Bomb didn't explode, but "rather killed the vehicle's passengers by mashing and mincing everything in its path."
While the debate about whether the US has any business in sending dystopian death machines to foreign countries is a topic for another conversation, the missile's purpose of "reducing civilian casualties" is at least a little bit noble. And while a samurai would probably not approve of the Ninja Bomb, its use is a bit more honorable than carpet bombing the entire block.