Spy in The Sky: Is it Only a Matter of Time Before Drones Replace City Police Patrols?

 There are at least 63 active drone sites around the U.S, federal authorities have been forced to reveal following a landmark Freedom of Information lawsuit.

The Independent reports that drones in service or development today range from a giant with a 400ft wingspan, intended to cruise non-stop for five years, to tiny microdrones powered by miniature batteries; some are the size of a Boeing 727, while the Predators and Reapers in use in Afghanistan are comparable in size to model aircraft. But whatever their shape or size, all of them are designed for one of two purposes: spying or killing.

Their killing power is immense and the surveillance possibilities are endless. Perhaps it's no wonder that the awesome potential of unmanned aerial vehicles is now being so energetically explored – from the battlefields of Afghanistan to the London Olympics. More...

FAA Forced to Reveal 63 U.S. Drone Launch Sites

Globe XKD5G-1 target drone on display at Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

There are at least 63 active drone sites around the U.S, federal authorities have been forced to reveal following a landmark Freedom of Information lawsuit.

The unmanned planes – some of which may have been designed to kill terror suspects – are being launched from locations in 20 states.

Most of the active drones are deployed from military installations, enforcement agencies and border patrol teams, according to the Federal Aviation Authority.

But, astonishingly, 19 universities and colleges are also registered as owners of what are officially known as unmanned aerial vehicles. It is thought that many of institutions, which include Cornell, the University of Colorado, Georgia Tech, and Eastern Gateway Community College, are developing drone technology.

There are also 21 mainstream manufactures, such as General Atomics, who are registered to use drones domestically. More...

“Federal Reserve doesn’t know where $1.5 trillion went” - analyst

The US media’s attempts to use the Freedom of Information Act to find out which banks received financial bailouts were blocked, said legal analyst Nicole Kardell, and the Federal Reserve doesn’t know the answer itself.

At a time of financial crisis in the United States – after a nearly $800 billion stimulus package was passed this year and after nearly $700 billion in bailout money was passed in 2008 by the Bush administration – Americans are wondering where all the money has gone.

Lawmakers are trying to pass a bill which would ask for an audit of the Federal Reserve. But there are some media outlets that are taking a different route. They are filing lawsuits under the Freedom of Information Act through which they try to find out which banks received bailouts and how much money they got. Just recently one such lawsuit was rejected. The problem might be that the Federal Reserve itself doesn’t know where half a trillion dollars went, says Kardell.

Source: Russia Today