It is difficult for those we call terrorists to assemble in large numbers in the open, even in their own countries. For obvious reasons. We are watching them continuously with satellites, global hawks and drones and listening as well. And many of those drones carry missiles, and the guy 'pulling the trigger' may be at a computer terminal in Florida. Those we are calling terrorists know this well. They often use wedding parties, which may be real but are often fake, to enable them to gather together. They know this; we know this.
We may at times get it wrong, but if those we - and apparently the Yemeni government in this instance - consider terrorists use this type of gathering then they are placing their own women and children in harm's way. Of course I do not know if this was a legitimate wedding, and neither do any of the rest of us. Is using drone strikes, in conjunction with likely very good intelligence provided by our technologies and the host government(s), acceptable even in light of collateral damage? I don't know. Obama, Bush and the regional leaders who approve these strikes do not do so without some very serious intelligence to support the decisiions. They do not make these decisions lightly or cavalierly. Do they always get it right? Of course not. But the intelligence gathering capabilities of this country would blow your minds. They probably get it 'right', if that is the adjective you wish to select to describe an attack on an actual terrorist gathering cloaked as a wedding, much more often than not.
The Pakistani government routinely 'complained' about the drone strikes in their country but they were working hand-in-hand with the U.S., providing ground intelligence, in support of the attacks. The 'complaints' were nothing more than plausible deniability for local consumption.
I have spent time in the Middle East. The people I came in contact with, for the most part, were very favorable toward Americans. A lot of times the anti-American rhetoric we hear from them doesn't run as deep as we may think. Given the opprotunity many of them would hop on the first boat/plane for the U.S.
Still, I am also troubled by the use of these drones and obviously these attacks carry considerable risk.