Drones at Home
Monday 28 January 2013 - Filed under Uncategorized
Those terrible flyover staters and their quest for privacy from government intrusion. The Journal Star:
At first blush, the proposal seems driven by paranoia.
But Sen. Paul Schumacher of Columbus worries that police will start using drones — small, pilotless airplanes or helicopters employed by the United States to track enemies and attack terrorists and military targets — to spy on people.
“If there’s going to be a policy decision from the legislative level on the use of drones for the surveillance of civilian populations, then now’s the time to do it — before communities begin investing in these devices,” he said.
Schumacher has introduced the Freedom from Unwarranted Surveillance Act (LB412) that says “a law enforcement agency shall not use a drone to gather evidence or other information” and that “… evidence obtained or collected in violation of the … act is not admissible as evidence in a criminal prosecution in any court of law in this state.”
Except this bill is not driven by paranoia. OpenSecrets.org:
Are unmanned aircraft, known to have difficulty avoiding collisions, safe to use in America’s crowded airspace? And would their widespread use for surveillance result in unconstitutional invasions of privacy?
Experts say neither question has been answered satisfactorily. Yet the federal government is rushing to open America’s skies to tens of thousands of the drones – pushed to do so by a law championed by manufacturers of the unmanned aircraft.
The drone makers have sought congressional help to speed their entry into a domestic market valued in the billions. The 60-member House of Representatives’ “drone caucus” _ officially, the House Unmanned Systems Caucus – has helped push that agenda. And over the last four years, caucus members have drawn nearly $8 million in drone-related campaign contributions, an investigation by Hearst Newspapers and the Center for Responsive Politics shows.
And it’s not just a “push” for more drone use. They’re already in use.
2013-01-28 » madlibertarianguy