Los Angeles, CA—As Crimefile
News prepares to cover the first ever Drone Expo here on Saturday, we are watching
as more corporate and business refugees are fleeing this once great nation. Americans are also renouncing their citizenship
now, more than ever before.
Currently drone hobbyists have no licensing or training requirements to fly their drones. The only FAA restrictions currently are in the
form of somewhat vague “guidelines”.
They suggest maximum altitudes of 400 feet, staying three miles or more
from airports and keeping visual contact with the drone.
Frankly the hobbyists have already proven that civilian drones really pose no threat to Americans, their safety or
privacy.
The only hard and
fast enforceable civilian drone regulation is that they can’t be used to earn
or generate money. Of course the
government can’t realize any income tax revenue from drone operators
either.
Civilian multi-rotor drones currently number well beyond one million. So far none
of them have been ever been involved in a death or reported serious
injury.
Frankly the drones are
incredibly safer than conventional aircraft, don’t emit poisons into our air
and should they crash damages are minimal and confined to the drones
themselves.
Yes, there are the “reports”
by conventional aircraft pilots of “near collisions” and dangerous
behavior. However suspiciously absent
are any collisions, photographs, or actual identifications of any of these offending
drone operators! I call them fantasy sightings.
The over-abundant reports of cowboy drone
operators ruining it for all are just more fabrications. The fact is drone operators zealously protect
their investments if for no other reason so they can continue to enjoy flying
them.
I won’t personally speak for anything more than the relatively small multi-rotor
craft carrying camera’s such as the GoPro or relatively light weight DSLR cameras
similar to the Canon 5D or the Panasonic GH4.
No matter how you feel about
your own political preferences this issue is falling hard along political Party
lines. Republicans are responding as
pro-business and commerce.
Democrats on the other hand want
to regulate, tax and punish any and all commercial productivity especially anything
drone related. That’s of course, if the
political Left can’t simply ban them altogether. United States Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA) is
leading the way for a total civilian drone ban as I write this.
Democrats like their Communist
cousins have a long history of massive overregulation, extortionate taxation and
restricting personal liberty despite our Bill of Rights.
I will again redundantly argue
that nearly all safety concerns are bogus since the multi-rotor drone record is
stellar.
Additionally, existing
privacy laws don’t insulate any drone operators from arrest or punishment
should they engage in stalking or filming anywhere people have established
rights to privacy.
The FAA’s foot-dragging and drone
related kingdom building has had expected results. American corporations, filmmakers and drone
enthusiasts are rapidly voting with their feet to exit the USA.
Helicopter operators
currently have nearly unrestricted access to our populated cities for filming
or newsgathering. However not a year
goes by with out deadly crashes costing millions in destruction. Multi-rotor drones are significantly safer,
quieter and greener
Drones are a marvelous tool
for video newsgathering, filmmaking and other creative endeavors. The First Amendment of our Bill of Rights
protects those things! Restricting these
activities without a clear thereat to public safety is un-American and
unlawful. We fought wars to protect this
important freedom!
The drone industry shows great
promise in areas of farming and cattle ranching protecting our necessary food
supply. Livestock and irrigation need
constant monitoring and drones are perfect for this role.
The necessary inspection of
ecological properties like fresh water supplies, electrical and fuel lines can
be accomplished much cheaper and certainly safer using drones.
With the drone industry exit,
America stands to lose important intellectual property, technological and other
discoveries that are vitally essential to our national defense.
Drones are the future for the
construction and insurance industry.
They also have a solid place in disaster operations to evaluate needs
and delivery of food, water and medical supplies when our roads become
impassable.
The Obama Administration and
their FAA must step aside and allow the research, development and commercial use
of drones.
Should problems be discovered
down the road, government can certainly address them.
America has up till now avoided governing by prior restraint.
The American people simply
cannot afford to allow a handful of politicians and their appointed bureaucrats
to continue their tyrannical governing direction over this vital
technology.
