Drone hysteria is being used as a cover to pass anti-drone laws

It's never a good sign when laws are rushed through under the cover of a panic

“You never want a serious crisis to go to waste. And what I mean by that is it’s an opportunity to do things that you think you could not before.”
— Rahm Emanuel

Wrapped up in a media-driven panic about unidentified drone encounters all across the northeast is an attempt to pass HR8610, a bill that would:

Politicians such as Rep Mark Green, one of the bill’s co-sponsors, has made multiple public appearances over the last week to push the legislation. Unsurprisingly, he has also taken campaign donations from defense companies such as General Atomics, which will surely benefit from the bill.

Additionally, drone-countering authorities that already exist — first passed as part of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 — are set to expire on December 20. Green’s bill would extend prior authorities while paving the way for new ones.

The timing of these random drone sightings are almost as fascinating as to how a country with the world’s largest defense budget is somehow totally incapable of figuring out where these mysterious flying vehicles are coming from.

In any case, laws rushed through in the midst of panic deserve extra scrutiny. This wouldn’t be the first time politicians have hurried legislation under the cover of chaos, and if history is any judge, it won’t be the last.