The friendly skies of America are about to become much less friendly. In fact a good word for it will be, much more “fascisty”. The spy drones that are known for their operations all over the world used to spy on governments and populations the US government doesn’t have good relations with are being brought home. A bill has passed in the House and Senate that will bring spy drones into American air space to spy on Americans. The Federal Aviation Administration Re-authorization Act now forces the removal of rules that previously made domestic drone use very difficult. This means that now spy drones are being used against the American public in the same airspace as commercial airliners and private aircraft. Its expected that up to 30,000 drones could be allowed in U.S. airspace by the end of the decade.

The ACLU has already come out in condemnation of the new act. Their major concern is that the drone use, by legislation, is not limited to the use of law enforcement and federal government agencies. According to them this is what they are concerned about:

+ Require the FAA to simplify and speed up the process by which it issues permission to government agencies to operate drones. It must do this within 90 days. The FAA has already been working on a set of proposed regulations to loosen the rules around drones, reportedly set for release in the spring of 2012.

+ Require the FAA to allow “a government public safety agency” to operate any drone weighing 4.4 pounds or less as long as certain conditions are met (within line of sight, during the day, below 400 feet in altitude, and only in safe categories of airspace).

+ Require the FAA to establish a pilot project within six months to create six test zones for integrating drones “into the national airspace system.”

+ Require the FAA to create a comprehensive plan “to safely accelerate the integration of civil unmanned aircraft systems into the national airspace system.” “Civil” drones means those operated by the private sector; currently it is all but impossible for any non-government entity, except for hobbyists, to get permission to fly drones (for-profit use of drones is banned). Industry groups and their congressional supporters see this as a potential area for growth. Congress specifies that the plan must provide for the integration of drones into the national airspace system “as soon as practicable, but not later than September 30, 2015.” The FAA has nine months to create the plan. The FAA is also required to create a “5-year roadmap for the introduction” of civil drones into the national airspace.

+ Require the FAA to publish a final rule within 18 months after the comprehensive plan is submitted, “that will allow” civil operation of small (under 55 pounds) drones in the national airspace, and a proposed rule for carrying out the comprehensive plan.

The social contradictions of capitalism in the US are nearing a fervour pitch. As social dissent from the ruling class increases, as with the activities of the Occupy Movements and the actions of groups such as Anonymous, greater measures of control will be sought. The ruling class and its control apparatus of the state are edging closer and closer to an open totalitarian regime. This is a clear repeat of history. As Germany suffered immensely from social and economic woes as a result of WW1, capitalism finally decayed into the Nazi regime. Which is why today we remember the words of Lenin so clearly.

“Fascism is capitalism in decay.”