Forget the end of history; it’s the beginning of hysteria
As ever the Guardian has it pegged pretty much right, it is the beginning of hysteria. The signing of HR 658 has started the ball rolling in America and all of a sudden sUAS have been invented. Most pundits ignore that several countries have had legal use of small systems for several years and they have not collapsed under the perceived threat. America has been moving at a glacial pace, but it seems for now the UAS lobby has beaten the manned lobby. As someone that has been following this for several years, I don’t think its over yet.
From The Guardian
End of History author Francis Fukuyama has been predicting the future again: this time by buying his own drone ‘before the government makes them illegal’
Why now? Paranoia. “I want to have my drone before the government makes them illegal. The US has been fighting such low-tech enemies lately that we haven’t thought through the nature of a world in which lots of people have sophisticated drones, not just other countries but private individuals.”
I’d better get building. What does he recommend? The DJI F450 quadcopter – cheap, stable and easy to fly.
Sounds OK. It’s a fancy model helicopter, basically, with four rotor blades and a camera attached. Fine for California parks, not much cop in Helmand province. The website DIY Drones is pretty snooty about it: “No doubt now he’s got the bug, he’ll be shooting for more real drone things soon.”
DIY Drones website? It was new to me too, but it’s got 22,000 members and is growing fast.
Do say: “Wow! Have you seen the ArduCopter 2.3? Look at those control loops!”
Don’t say: “Forget the end of history; it’s the beginning of hysteria.”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/feb/20/francis-fukuyama-has-own-drone?newsfeed=true
