I remember when the little quad copters first came out. Yes we called them quad copters back then. Quad meaning four motors and they flew like a helicopter. Unlike our model aircraft they could fly in the house and all over the place. Then they put cameras on them, better stability and up to the present day, able to fly great distances.
The turmoil all started when a lady in her fenced back yard, sun bathing nude spotted a little drone flying by. omg she said to her husband what is that? "Just a little drone my dear and they have cameras on them now I hear." That started it all.
The rumors started to fly. Drones hitting aircraft. Drones spying on their neighbors. Only sick perv people fly drones. Regulate them out of the sky!
Greedy governments around the world jumped on the wagon. They spotted a chance to make an extra buck with all kinds of fees, and tests and anything else they could think of to make money. They hired hundreds of people to police the land. Because government, unlike business people knows nothing about running a business. All government knows is politics and they usually mess that up but then they have the tax payer to bail them out.
Most hobbyists I know, like me, over the years have supported the hobby, into the thousands of dollars with some beautiful Drones as they now call them. Our hobby has inspired many businesses to start up. Starting up a business is not easy. But alas, regulators around the world, in their greed, are already killing sales, and people are now struggling to keep their businesses going. Good old DJI has made a little quad copter under this 250 gram limit which has kept the hobby going for a little bit longer, but government will soon change that for no other reason but to steal more from the people.
I see people on line trying hard to save the hobby, and praise them for the effort. But it will not work, because it is the business people and the buyers who keep the hobby going as in any venture. There is only one way to possibly save our hobby. I said hobby, because the Commercial business of drones will stay untouched because the lady knows if they fly over her back yard pool, they will be too busy to look down and too high no one will care anyway. Why don't they just ban bathing or sunning nude in your back yard? hmmmm. The inspectors would have a ball ha ha tongue in cheek.
Just don't fly your drones any more. Lets say for a year. What would happen. If you don't fly there is no reason to register. Business is going to close because of no new sales. The greedy regulators who have spent millions maybe billions in preparation, are going to have to shut down. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know the rest of the story.
Maybe after a year or so of flying your stuff in the basement. Looking at your investment every day. Hugging it a little bit maybe. Just maybe things will change. Attitudes might change. The lady in her back yard will be to old and wrinkled to bath nude any more. lol. The greedy regulators may think twice about starting up again. I know this is wish full thinking but there may be enough people who will keep the regulators going just because people are hard to convince overall. Our hobby will probably die unless they come out with a drone the size of a fly that can go miles and miles using FPV. As the old expression says, "Out of sight out of mind."
