How long before predator drones patrol the "evironment"...?

[Dogmeat]

http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2010/11/26/south-africa-plans-to-use-drones-to-stop-poachers/?hpt=T2

November 26th, 2010
10:58 AM ET
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South Africa plans to use drones to stop poachers


In South Africa, poachers are meeting the tip of technology’s spear as the government heightens efforts to curb the killing of rhinos for their horns.

The past several months, South Africa has employed rhino GPS, police stings and more to stop rhino killings in South Africa's national parks and game preserves.

Now, the government may put unmanned drones in the sky to help hunt the poachers.

South African Defense Minister Lindiwe Sisulu said Thursday that the state hopes to deploy unmanned drone helicopters developed by national defense firm Denel in the fight against poachers, according to media reports.

“The issue of rhinos is one we recognize as particularly brutal, and we have committed ourselves to SANParks [South Africa National Parks] in dealing with this matter," Sisulu said, according to the South Africa Times Live.

“We also want to take advantage of the fact Denel has a particular UAV [unmanned aerial vehicle] that is able to assist us,” she said, according to the South Africa Times Live.

The issue has sprouted grassroots efforts to thwart poachers. On Facebook, the group Pilots to Help With Anti-rhino Poaching is enlisting volunteer pilots to serve as eyes and ears above the ground in affected areas. The group had 420 “likes” as of Friday morning.

South Africa this week launched a new wildlife crime unit especially targeting horn poachers, according to an NPR transcript.

Faan Coetzee of South Africa’s Endangered Wildlife Trust said the issue is “definitely getting worse,” according to NPR. Two years ago. “We lost 83 rhino; 2009, it went up to 122. At this moment, we’re standing at 198.”

After a plea from SANParks, Sisulu last week hinted that the military and weapons manufacturer Denel would play an increased role in the fight against poaching.

"The SANDF [South African Defense Force] has some of the best air-to-land equipment to perform this function. Denel also boasts some of the best air equipment that can help us to stop the poaching. We are working on this matter, it is urgent," Sisulu said, according to a National Geographic blog post that quotes from a statement reported by SAPA (the South African Press Association).

Sisulu on Thursday said the unmanned drones would be able to take pictures of the offenders.

"They say it is so good it is able to detect the color of the shirt of the poacher. In the long term we can build on it. We want to develop it to the point where we can target the poacher," she said, according to South Africa Times Live.

While I don't condone poaching in any way shape or form, using unmanned ariel drones is such a hot topic right now I can see this appearing in a national forest in the near future.

What do you all think?

 

[ullose272]

doubt it, poaching down there is pretty serious, i doubt we would spend the money to put them in national forests. maybe they should put a bunch on the mexico border

 

[milehighassassin]

I kind of have the I don't care attitude on this. If they use them, then that is great. If the area is closed, then you shouldn't be in it. Now lets all get to work on keeping areas from being closed.

(I assume this is where you were going with this thread, right?)

 

[Dogmeat]

I kind of have the I don't care attitude on this. If they use them, then that is great. If the area is closed, then you shouldn't be in it. Now lets all get to work on keeping areas from being closed.

(I assume this is where you were going with this thread, right?)

Not really, I was leading more into the "Police State in the name of Saving the Environment" theme ....

Sort of like how we have to have communism to save the environment, etc.

I for one really don't want the feds using hidden cameras, as we all know they're doing, essentially spying on us. And, I don't really think the thought of them using unmanned predator-type drones to spy on us is out of the question since they already do it with helicopters.

I think it's rediculous.

 

[milehighassassin]

I guess I have no idea here. How does communism save the enviroment?

You don't have a right to privacy in public places.

 

[Dogmeat]

I guess I have no idea here. How does communism save the enviroment?

You don't have a right to privacy in public places.

It doesn't, but I'll be damned if I've ever heard of a communist in the US who doesn't use that as one of its major sellings points.

And, I beg to differ. The entire reason people go into national USFS land is BECAUSE of the privacy. Its to get away from people, mainly. So I really don't feel the need to have unmanned airial drones spying on us because somone might ride a totally non-impactive machine over an immaginary boundary

 

[NorthMNSledder]

We already have the drones flying along the MN/Canada Boarder. And last winter they did get a local for speeding on a sled on the river. The drone reported it and the local police showed up to give him a ticket. I believe he got off with a warning but none the less they are already out there in some locations.

 

[Dogmeat]

We already have the drones flying along the MN/Canada Boarder. And last winter they did get a local for speeding on a sled on the river. The drone reported it and the local police showed up to give him a ticket. I believe he got off with a warning but none the less they are already out there in some locations.

See, and to me that is absolutley positivley assinine to me.

Those drones, if they are used domestically at all, should be to probe borders for drugs and terrorists, not watching people on snowmobiles ...

Thats freaking rediculous.

 

[milehighassassin]

It doesn't, but I'll be damned if I've ever heard of a communist in the US who doesn't use that as one of its major sellings points.

And, I beg to differ. The entire reason people go into national USFS land is BECAUSE of the privacy. Its to get away from people, mainly. So I really don't feel the need to have unmanned airial drones spying on us because somone might ride a totally non-impactive machine over an immaginary boundary

Your understanding is flawed. PUBLIC get it? Pretty much the EXACT opposite of Private. Private=Privacy, You do not have privacy while in the public. The meaning themselves are pretty obvious.


Sure you can get away in the forest, away from people. But it is not like you can tell someone to leave you alone in the forest. If they want to go the exact same spot of the forest as you, they have that right. If someone wants to videotape you in the forest, they have that right.

Celebrities complain about people taking their picture. They are in public space, anyone can be photographed. Same rules apply here.


You also need to learn what communist is.

 

[bigWALTON]

kinda funny i stumble across this post, this is my job. i work on the shadow 200 uav "DRONE". i agree that being watched while in public by these things will suck. but look at the possibilities that open up with these in the air. it can do everything that a helicopter can do. for longer and with less cost. there is unlimited potential for what these things can do for us in a civilian platform. and i doubt that the government is going to put one of these up in the air for the sole purpose of finding people riding where they are not supposed to. and one more thing if it really wanted to watch you, you would not even know it was there. we are sneaky like that.

 

[SLDHVN]

only ride the "no-zones" on foggy days...