Spy in the Sky, Drones and Iran

Big spy news.

It turns out that the global spies dramatically changed the story on IRAN - that there are "No active weapons testing program in Iran since 2003."

So it seemed very surreal yesterday to see the President coming out and acting as if it were "WMD's-in-Iraq" all over again. Why hype the potential of World War III after this new report was made available to the administration stating the opinion of 16 U.S. agencies views that there was NOT a big weapons program going on. It dramatically reversed earlier intelligence reports. Are we on the same planet? Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me...

Then it turns out that Houston police have been secretly testing a flying drone over the skies of Houston. Apparently it is someone's idea of replacing helicopters flown by HPD officer-pilots to using the same type of drones flying over Afghanistan looking for Osama bin Laden. The operators don't even need to be pilots! They just sit in front of a monitor with a joystick. I wonder if they plan to attach a hellfire missile to it? Take out any speeders with the push of a button! LOL.

Private pilots are concerned about it because of the potential of a collision with the huge variety of small planes using the same airspace.

I am a pilot and share that concern. I also have reservations about the privacy issue. Exactly WHAT are these drones looking for?

What happens if a drone hits a plane and brings it down? They have cameras on board. Will a drone operator be tempted to photograph a nude sunbather in her backyard? Will it do anything in the skies over Houston that a real officer can't do in a helicopter?

It sounds like "1984" ... Fortunately Mayor White has put the plan under review. President Bush should do the same on Iran.

Our troops are tired and maxed out in Iraq and Afghanistan, facing repeated, long tours. Starting another unneeded conflict when there is no imminent threat makes no sense. It would overwhelm the American taxpayer who is already facing a $2 trillion bill on Iraq and Afghanistan.

Iran, and the rest of the global issues facing America, is a problem for the next President, whoever that is.