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Want To Legally Shoot At Drones? Then Move To Deer Trail, Colorado
The market may still be amused by Amazon's latest forward P/E boosting gimmick in the form of its entertaining (and stock price boosting if only briefly) proposal to deliver packages (some of which haven't even been ordered) by drone, but some US towns, tired of this endless invasion of just in time violators, are already taking aim at the messenger. Case in point: Deer Trail, Colorado, a city of 563, which Bloomberg reports, may approve today a measure that allows the town to issue hunting licenses for unmanned aerial vehicles, i.e., drones.
Apparently some luddites people still place civil rights over the potential of bottom line profits achieved through increasingly more intrusive technology. People like Phillip Steel, a 49-year-old welding inspector, who wrote the proposed law as a symbolic protest after hearing a radio news report that the federal government is drafting a plan to integrate drones into civilian airspace, he said. The measure sets a bounty of as much as $100 for a drone with U.S. government markings, although anyone who shoots at one could be subject to criminal or civil liability, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
“That plan is a taking of property rights, a taking of civil rights,” said Steel, who wears a black duster coat and a cowboy hat. “According to a 1964 Supreme Court decision, a property owner owns airspace up to 1,000 feet above the ground.”
It also appears some Americans still value their privacy in an age when every US citizen is automatically expected to relinquish all private date to the NSA collective:
The Deer Trail ordinance highlights growing privacy concerns nationwide with the expanded use of camera-equipped drones, which can be as small as radio-controlled aircraft. Thirteen states enacted 16 laws addressing use of the tiny vehicles, and others are being considered in Indiana, Washington and Utah, according to the Denver-based National Conference of State Legislatures.
That said, one will hardly see the spirited approach as exhibited in libertarian Colorado towns spreading across the US:
The drone-hunting ordinance comes against a backdrop of secession votes last year in 11 rural Colorado counties seeking to form a 51st state -- with five voting in favor of studying such a plan. The move followed the enactment of the toughest gun restrictions in the state in a decade in response to a deadly shooting in an Aurora movie theater.
And why should it - people elsewhere are far more concerned with getting their fake Facebook clicks.
What is perhaps more amusing is that the FAA, instead of resisting this latest push to fill the skies with buzzing entities, has already warned the Colorado town of retaliation:
The Deer Trail proposal would allow those holding a $25 hunting license to shoot at drones within the one-square-mile town limits. Even if approved, the ordinance is illegal, federal and state officials said.
A drone “hit by gunfire could crash, causing damage to persons or property on the ground, or it could collide with other objects in the air,” the FAA said in a statement. “Shooting at an unmanned aircraft could result in criminal or civil liability, just as would firing at a manned airplane.”
Congress asked the FAA to develop a plan to integrate drones into U.S. airspace by September, 2015. The agency estimates about 7,500 commercial unmanned aircraft will be operating within five years of being allowed in U.S. airspace.
In this case Congress is merely doing the bidding of corporations which are delighted to have their "delivery objects" fill the sky, and of course the NSA. So nothing new there. Still, should Deer Trail pass the measure, it will likely incite at least some comparable moves in other smaller US cities where people still haven't completely lost their minds:
Steel was required to gather 19 signatures, or 5 percent of the registered voters in Deer Trail, to get the measure on the ballot. He turned in 23. Voter turnout is expected to be high in the town, located about 56 miles (90 kilometers) east of Denver, said Mayor Frank Fields, who is up for re-election.
“This could bring in some free money -- that’s why I’m all for it,” Fields said.
The proposal allows town officials to spend as much as $10,000 in municipal funds to “establish an unmanned aerial vehicle recognition program.” Shooters must be on private property and are limited to three shots per so-called engagement, “unless there exists an imminent threat to life and safety.”
The vote on the measure will take place today - we eagerly look forward to the outcome, and even more eagerly wait to see if in case of successful passage, the FAA will finally give the official green light to weaponize drones flying above the US. You know, for self-defense purposes...
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Pull!
I find it difficult to figure out the April 1st posts.
Good call, the only newz coming out of Colorado these days is weed related. April Fools!
A drone “hit by gunfire could crash, causing damage to persons or property on the ground...” the FAA said.
Yeah -- it's when they're shot down that they cause damage to persons on the ground. Sure -- why not.
In related news, the High Velocity Shooters Club has announced that its next annual meeting and precision shooting convention will be held in Deer Tail, CO.
The affair will be “BYOTLD” (Bring Your Own Tannerite-Laden Drone), but casual flyovers by government agencies are encouraged.
Display booths by target drone, munitions, optics and ballistics computation manufacturers will be featured.
A drone “hit by gunfire could crash, causing damage to persons or property on the ground...” the FAA said.
- Then don't fucking fly it over my property! - funny how this statement by the FAA makes it sound like it's our fault if a drone damages something if it crashes. It could crash for any number of reasons, not only that from being shot at.
Alternatively, what if we developed a nice gentle way to catch the drones and bring them safely down to the ground? I guess that would be okay, then huh?
Squirrel pilot? Like hell! That's a Pokemon. Pikachu, if I'm not mistaken.
Gonna go get me some drone.
edit: just out of curiousity- what caliber would actually reach the needed altitude? 50. cal do it?
whichever caliber, I'm sure that software could be configured to aim the sucker appropriately.
Maybe easier to just hack in to it.
Let the fun begin.
Can you say RPG?
IRPG
"Improvised Rocket Propelled Grenade"
I would imagine that the above would most likely, on average, cause more harm to the user than to the object one is trying to hit.
Do you have to admit that you shot it down to collect the reward? You could claim it was the aerial version of roadkill and force the FAA to prove you actually pulled the triggers. Use the "it just fell out of the sky in front of me" defense.
Colorado needs more people like this. Many, many more people like this.....
PLEASE tell me this is an April Fool's joke..there is advertising for this up in the mall here in Boston
http://www.ready.gov/
The healthy state being relaxed and
carefree anything control'y, judge'y
be afraid'y Trayvon episode-like
would seem to detract from that.
But if I were a billionaire with
puppets, and unscrupulous beyond
the point of hiring puppets pretending
to serve a community purpose democratically,
I'd instruct:
sell to fear, sell to Mr. Judge-head,
the real controlling kind, like Archie
Bunker. Get elected, don't represent
your state well, be my slumlord, sell out
their water, etc.
Don't forget Rifle, Colorado. (Not making this up); and Admiral Yamamoto's response to the Japanese Army high command, vis a vis a plan to invade the United States; "Don't be insane, you cannot invade the United States, there's a rifle behind every blade of grass". Let's hope, anyway.
one way to increase your real estate values I guess...
Who wouldn't want Drone Tags?
Awesome...that drone looks like a 5-pointer
How do I apply for a drone tag?
Call the city government.
This will be a big moneymaker. No residency requirement. A lot of out of staters will buy it for the novelty of framing it over their fireplace. Possibly with a fake drone head mounted on the wall above it.
Can't wait to see the pics of guys in camo, rifles in hand, holding up the wing or tail section of a dead drone.
What part do you mount above the fireplace mantle?
When they start selling permits to shoot bankers I will be in.
I'd pay top $ for a Blankfein tag!
Future news item:
WS'ers hit by more Drone crashes than nail guns.....
Rights don't require permits.
OPEN SEASON BITCHES.....
It would be awesome if the people who did this dressed in suits with Obama masks on for the cameras.
What are going to dress up as this Halloween, little Barack? I am going to dress up like a President mommy.
Indeed property owners have rights 1000 feet in the air, but what about mineral rights in the ground?
Next up: Drone taxidermists
And the first Cessna goes down in 3...2...1...
Do you get a bonus reward for capture.
So if a person has property rights up to 1000 feet, does that mean that rain which enters your space, before it hits the ground is yours? And thus you can collect it? (it's actually illegal in several states to collect rain water)
How about those who live adjacent to airports? Can they start charging aircraft to enter their "airspace"?
Sadly, the government drones fly to high to be shot at by a rifle. Wish this town all the best of luck though...
it's the thought that counts..
One of these idiots will shoot some kids RC toy quadcopter, damage the LiPo battery powering it (causing it to burst into flames), then watch the wreckage plummet to the ground and ignite a wild fire. Hope it burns their house down.
GREAT SCOTTS man, genius; What a great sport to invent.
Who wants to make the first national organization?
We can call it: National Drone Cutters Association.
Right, stop that! This is getting entirely too silly!
Caution: you are entering a NO DRONE ZONE, bitchez!
Well we trust plenty of people in the middle east enough to supply them with shoulder fired missles. Why not our own?
Drone the opposing voters!!!!
Is the Amazon drone dating anyone? my sister could use a bf with a job.
Drones don't matter because all it takes is 1. All it takes is one bored genius 14 year old to hack into the computer systems and compromise it. Isn't this essentially what happened with Snowden? A couple years ago no one knew what the NSA did...everyone was all "they're super secret black ops shit bro". Well....two years later every single secret from the NSA was distributed to journalists. The entire NSA got hacked by a 20 something year old. I'm pretty sure Russia and Iran are already hacking our drones as they seem to be making perfect landings in enemy territory.
Only thing drones are realllllly good for is ensuring that generals that are in charge of approving these projects get good paying jobs at Lockheed Martin when they retire.
Or it takes one 7.62 round through a satellite dish which links them to the ground....
Or one cut cable to that control module on the ground....
Hell yeah! http://youtu.be/SNPJMk2fgJU Boris will be proud of his fellow countryman...
we should do the same for congressmen
i forsee a day when you will have guys shooting at Federal drones from the cockpit of their Cessna 172 with 12 gauge autoloaders.
"WATCH THIS!"
Well I have been reliably informed that the American government have canceled the multi-billion dollar research and development plan on the next generation stealth fighter.
Apparantly, they have just discovered the same thing works if you just turn the transponder off.
;-)
I want one.
but here is my question since the bounty is only good on drones with us government markings, will they also make owning a shoulder launched stinger legal? I don't think your average .308 or 12 gauge is going to be of much use when hunting these particular predators...
or how about an AMR? would those be effective and are they legal to own? I ask because I live in NY where pretty much everything (including nun chucks) is illegal or priced out of all but the 1 percents range (just try getting a hand gun permit here, a buddy of mine who has a squeaky clean record is six months and thousands of dollars into the process and still no permit) . I do own a BM predator .308 (grandfathered in before the "ny safe act") and am an ok shot but I really don't see myself bringing down a drone with it.
unless we can also purchase the tools needed to hunt these drones, a 20 mill. AA gun would be nice, then I suggest we adopt the Iranian approach, hack it from your Iphone and land it in the driveway. not only would it look sweet sitting in front of the house but you also may just get a call from Obama asking for his drone back, which would present you with the once in a life time opportunity to tell the TOTUS to piss off and then hang up on him.
now that could be a very, very good day.
Chinese lanterns, tinfoil confetti, helium baloons, 1000ft lengths of copper wire and a few dozen car batteries. It's not my fault your drone flew into my art installation.
If you possess a weapon that can reach that altitude, you're already in trouble.
You really need your own drone or ability to knock it down electronically. Then again, you'd be in trouble, again.
The best way to hunt the wiley drone is to track it back to its warren. They live in groups, your hunting prospects are best when they are on the ground. You will probably find them in a most vulnerable posture before dawn.
....just 2 questions:
1). What size shot is best for drones, assuming one is using a full choke 12ga?
2). How soon will we be seeing Kevlar skinned drones?
The shot size depends on type... steel, lead, bismuth, or tungsten.
How long before these drones start falling onto houses for any one of a number of reasons?
How long before one makes it to the White House?
I know a good taxidermist. An X-47B would be a hell of a wall hanger! It kinda looks like a halibut.
A little OT but as I am a native of CO who grew up not all that far from Brush, I thought what the hell......
Has anyone theoretically contemplated how long it would take to max out their credit cards for other, ahem, investments? I have about $75K in credit and was just curious if anyone had considered how much debt they could rack up before someone caught on.
I have never carried a balance and maintain otherwise perfect payment histories (primarily for this reason). Thoughts?
Why are there are no plans going viral for building SAMs to deal with Fed drones? You'd think some freedom loving tech savvy kid would cook up an Arduino controlled SAM that can be built on a Taco Bell employee's paycheck and could take down a Predator, with downloadable plans free to anyone who wants a copy.
All you need is a C-1 tag.
You see one, you shoot it.
Can we have drone hunts like witch hunts or Gypsy hunts?
"The measure sets a bounty of as much as $100 for a drone with U.S. government markings"
How much for the head of the treasonous operators?!
ma daddy allways told me to do what der fbi man said.
raspact all arthoritys
help the police when they restraining a mexican
bee a all round good citzen
take off yer cap and bow when you sees a lady in der street.
put in a cap or use a rubber when makin love to a hooker.
be a gentlemans all ways.
the fucker was full of shit
he was a rapist and strangulled puppies for kicks
i say lets roll
lets go on a turkeys shoot.
Who will take down 5 of them and become the first Drone Ace?
Going long amateur rocketry and tracking software
What's even creepier is the Chemtrailing Jets out of Arizona.