Last week, I wrote in my column that “So far, consensus around the FAA’s thinking indicates that…
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Some Domestic Drones May Get Rubber Bullets, Tear Gas

Last week, I wrote in my column that “So far, consensus around the FAA’s thinking indicates that domestic drones would not be approved to fly with weapons.”

That was in reference to the Federal Aviation Administration’s announcement that it will ease restrictions on civilian use of unmanned drones for use in surveillance and research.  The institutions most interested in using drones are law enforcement entities ranging from the FBI to local police departments.

Now, consider this:

Chief Deputy Randy McDaniel of the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office in Texas told The Daily that his department is considering using rubber bullets and tear gas on its drone.

“Those are things that law enforcement utilizes day in and day out and in certain situations it might be advantageous…[more]

May 23, 2012 • 03:32 pm

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Home Press Room CFIF Advises FCC Against Regulation of Wireless and Specialized Services
CFIF Advises FCC Against Regulation of Wireless and Specialized Services Print
Tuesday, October 12 2010

In an official Comment filed this week with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the Center for Individual Freedom (CFIF) unequivocally warned  against imposition of “Net Neutrality” and other unnessary and onerous regulations on wireless and “specialized services.”  The FCC had solicited comments on what it labeled “under-developed” issues in its larger effort to regulate the Internet sector. 

Specifically, CFIF warned: 

“The American public is rapidly approaching the end of its patience.  A primary basis for that disapproval is a federal government whose administrative agencies increasingly succumb to ‘the danger of dogma,’ as earnestly described by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski during his June 16, 2009 nomination hearing.  By a two-to-one margin (53% to 27%), for instance, scientific opinion polls reveal an electorate opposed to the FCC’s current effort to regulate the Internet.  Moreover, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled unanimously this year that the FCC does not possess the authority to regulate Internet service providers’ network management practices.  Furthermore, the nation’s elected Congressional representatives have also refused to enact Net Neutrality legislation.  Despite these unequivocal rejections, the FCC persists in its ironically dogmatic effort to enact the Net Neutrality agenda by any means necessary.” 

CFIF’s Comment proceeded to set forth an array of data establishing the harm that such burdensome and unnecessary regulation will cause the Internet sector by discouraging the type of innovation and massive amounts of private investment that have made the Internet what it is today. 

Read CFIF's full comment here (.pdf).

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