HR 658 Authorizes 30.000 surveillance drones over the USA - to be increased!

[Peter Lemkin]

...and then there are all the expected one million private drones to be in use in the USA in 2016. Expect both of these number to increase dramatically, and expect your personal privacy to become a thing of the past....whether it be spying from a nosy neighbor, a prank group of kids, or the NSA or police - or some such.

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Drones in the Skies Over America: A Potential Nightmare in the Making

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[TD="width: 50%, align: right"]Headlined to H2 11/12/15[/TD]
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here come the drones by americanfreepress.net

The era of drones in America has begun. And it won't be longbefore we will see the skies over America filled with various types and sizesof remote controlled drones. You'll see them hovering over your neighborhood, yourhome and almost everywhere you go.
Estimates indicate that at least one million of these dronesare expected to be purchased during this Christmas season even though the FAAis still far behind in finalizing essential regulations governing their operation.
Talk about opening a can of worms! Of all the misguidedpolicies and actions taken by this government in recent times its decision toallow the widespread use of drones across America has to be one of the veryworst. At a time when this country has a myriad of serious problems plaguing itthis government has created yet another.
Yes, without a doubt, these drones are going to be great funfor many Americans. They will be the latest technological toys, a great hobby, somethingnew and exciting to keep people occupied. Millions of dollars will be spent anda variety of new businesses will be created; we'll probably see newbillionaires emerge as the brightest techno geniuses take advantage of thegreat potential that lies with this new and exciting technology.
It won't be long before you will be able to order productsonline and then have them delivered by Amazon "Octocopter" dronesthat will fly packages directly to your doorstep in 30 minutes. Google andWal-Mart also have plans in the making to do the same by 2017. Is this going tomake things better, more efficient and contribute added value to this society?Or will it, rather, be just one more example of technology that no one reallyneeds?
There is a very dangerous aspect involved with this introductionand future proliferation of drones that could well represent a potential nightmarefor this county, one that poses a specific danger for the airline industry andthe traveling public. The airspace around airports in this country is alreadyquite congested and it takes really good coordination by air trafficcontrollers to make certain that the highest degree of safety is maintained.
Here's a formula for disaster. Take the normal commercial airlinetraffic around airports and cities, mix in drones that violate air space, thenadd in small planes and helicopters used by commercial businesses, trafficreporters, as well as those used by law enforcement and hospitals and justimagine the chaos and catastrophic events that could easily take place. How inthe world will air traffic controllers be able to manage this increasedcongestion in the skies?




This warning should not be dismissed as some kind of baseless fear because therehave already been numerous close encounters between commercial jets and drones.Here's an excerpt from the Washington Post which reports on the many nearcollisions that have already taken place: "Pilots around the United States havereported a surge in near-collisions and other dangerous encounters with smalldrones in the past six months, at a time when the Federal AviationAdministration is gradually opening the nation's skies to remotely controlledaircraft, according to FAA records."
"Since June 1, commercial airlines, private pilots and air-trafficcontrollers have alerted the FAA to at least 25 episodes in which small dronescame within a few seconds or a few feet of crashing into much larger aircraft duringtakeoffs and landings at the nation's busiest airports, presenting a new threatto threat to aviation safety after decades of steady improvement in airtravel."
The FAA is said to be in the process of approving thousands of applicationsfor the use of drones but what good is an approval process when we hear thatone million or more of them will be purchased during this Christmas season byconsumers? Here's an article fromFortune that speaks to the FAA's great concern about these purchases of dronesas Christmas gifts. This situation can be thought of as trying to close thedoor to the barn after the horse has already escaped.
A great danger exists in the fact that this technologyappears to be a Godsend for potential domestic terrorists who will be givenaccess to a perfect vehicle to use in carrying out acts of terror withinAmerica. Does anyone think that some terrorist is going to follow FAA regulations?And how in the world will anyone be able to spot a potential terrorist-controlleddrone when it's a part of many in a given area? Does anyone in this government understandthe grave consequences that could follow because of what they have just allowedto happen?
The lack of privacy of Americans, already almostnon-existent, will grow even more intrusive. We've had our communicationscollected and stored by the NSA spying agency and now we are going to see more federal,state and local law enforcement agencies utilize this sophisticated surveillancetool to more closely watch the activities of the American people.




HR 658, the FAA Air Transportation Modernization and SafetyImprovement Act was previously passed by both the House and the Senate; itauthorizes the use of 30,000 spy drones over America inthe coming years. That's evidently how this Congress intends to ramp up thespying process. Is that what this country, once based on its foundation offreedoms, really needs at this time in its history, yet more surveillance?
This has to be one of the most irresponsible, misguidedactions by the federal government in recent history; one that will,undoubtedly, substantially increase the dangers involving air space and thedaily activities of Americans.
It's not too late for this government to take immediateactions to put a complete hold on issuing any more licenses to drone operatorsand to initiate a ban on the sale of all forms of drones. It needs to studythis matter in great depth. There may be a need for an expansion of the use ofdrones in this country for specific, absolutely necessary purposes; but wecannot have a situation where there are no limits to their use and they,therefore, become a menace to the American people, bring danger to our airspace, and jeopardize our national security if terrorists get their hands onthem.
This government and the FAA, in particular, don't seem torealize that by allowing these drones to flood the skies over America that theyhave opened a door which will be almost impossible to close.