The U.S. Special Operations Command’s Hyper-Enabled Team: Daedalus and Icarus Redux?

Abstract

This research explores implications of the interest by the U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) to create what they refer to as “Hyper-Enabled Teams.” This concept involves providing even more capability and support to the highly trained personnel tasked to perform the most challenging and dangerous missions for the nation. In addition to advanced weaponry and other tools, this concept is envisioned to include biologically and directly enhancing these personnel to provide them with superhuman capabilities. Such abilities might be compared to what Daedalus provided his son Icarus; the ability to fly. Many advancements are already technically possible, while others are expected to come to fruition in the near future. Although the U.S. military is not obligated to limit itself to a “fair fight” (it will always seek to maximize its chances of success within moral limits), enhancements made directly to the human person bring ethical and moral concerns to the fore that previous technological advancements in weapons, aircraft, and communications have not. The accelerating pace of technological advancements make bioethical decisions regarding the alteration (e.g. augmentation, enhancement) of natural human capacities very challenging. This dissertation considers some of the potential moral and ethical issues likely to be faced by U.S. decision makers as rapidly advancing technology becomes incorporated into the humans comprising special operations teams, expected by many to come at a pace that challenges thorough consideration of long-term ethical implications. This research considers four leading theories of ethics, concluding that Aristotelian virtue ethics is the most promising to guide our thinking and to head off the hubris shown in the Greek fable about Icarus.

First Advisor

Timothy Demy

Date of Award

1-1-2023

Document Type

Dissertation

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