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unhappycamper
unhappycamper's Journal
unhappycamper's Journal
June 22, 2014
The Return of Sixties Values
by Bob Burnett | June 21, 2014 - 9:05am
The level of U.S. political rancor has reached an intensity not seen since the '60s with its battles over civil rights and the Vietnam War. On the one hand, we have Republicans advocating a new Iraq war and more tax breaks for the rich. On the other hand, we have Democrats saying no to war and standing up for working families. For populists, it's the return of the '60s theme, "peace and justice."
~snip~
There are a lot of trends in the 2014 midterm election but for populists the most encouraging is the return of the '60s theme, "peace and justice."
In terms of foreign policy, this means reducing the Defense budget and limiting our engagement in Afghanistan and Iraq.
In terms of domestic policy, the new populism means changing policies that benefit the rich and powerful -- reforming the tax code, ending corporate welfare, breaking up the big banks, and resurrecting the Glass-Steagall Act. And the new populism means instituting new policies that benefit working families -- making the minimum wage a living wage, guaranteeing a minimum standard of living (in effect, enforcing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights), and protecting the right of workers to organize.
The Return of Sixties Values
http://smirkingchimp.com/thread/bob-burnett/56518/the-return-of-sixties-valuesThe Return of Sixties Values
by Bob Burnett | June 21, 2014 - 9:05am
The level of U.S. political rancor has reached an intensity not seen since the '60s with its battles over civil rights and the Vietnam War. On the one hand, we have Republicans advocating a new Iraq war and more tax breaks for the rich. On the other hand, we have Democrats saying no to war and standing up for working families. For populists, it's the return of the '60s theme, "peace and justice."
~snip~
There are a lot of trends in the 2014 midterm election but for populists the most encouraging is the return of the '60s theme, "peace and justice."
In terms of foreign policy, this means reducing the Defense budget and limiting our engagement in Afghanistan and Iraq.
In terms of domestic policy, the new populism means changing policies that benefit the rich and powerful -- reforming the tax code, ending corporate welfare, breaking up the big banks, and resurrecting the Glass-Steagall Act. And the new populism means instituting new policies that benefit working families -- making the minimum wage a living wage, guaranteeing a minimum standard of living (in effect, enforcing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights), and protecting the right of workers to organize.
June 22, 2014
When drones fall from the sky
Written by Craig Whitlock
Published on June 20, 2014
More than 400 large U.S. military drones have crashed in major accidents around the world since 2001, a record of calamity that exposes the potential dangers of throwing open American skies to drone traffic, according to a year-long Washington Post investigation.
Since the outbreak of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, military drones have malfunctioned in myriad ways, plummeting from the sky because of mechanical breakdowns, human error, bad weather and other reasons, according to more than 50,000 pages of accident investigation reports and other records obtained by The Post under the Freedom of Information Act.
Commercial drone flights are set to become a widespread reality in the United States, starting next year, under a 2012 law passed by Congress. Drone flights by law enforcement agencies and the military, which already occur on a limited basis, are projected to surge.
The documents obtained by The Post detail scores of previously unreported crashes involving remotely controlled aircraft, challenging the federal government’s assurances that drones will be able to fly safely over populated areas and in the same airspace as passenger planes.
When drones fall from the sky
http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/investigative/2014/06/20/when-drones-fall-from-the-sky/When drones fall from the sky
Written by Craig Whitlock
Published on June 20, 2014
More than 400 large U.S. military drones have crashed in major accidents around the world since 2001, a record of calamity that exposes the potential dangers of throwing open American skies to drone traffic, according to a year-long Washington Post investigation.
Since the outbreak of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, military drones have malfunctioned in myriad ways, plummeting from the sky because of mechanical breakdowns, human error, bad weather and other reasons, according to more than 50,000 pages of accident investigation reports and other records obtained by The Post under the Freedom of Information Act.
Commercial drone flights are set to become a widespread reality in the United States, starting next year, under a 2012 law passed by Congress. Drone flights by law enforcement agencies and the military, which already occur on a limited basis, are projected to surge.
The documents obtained by The Post detail scores of previously unreported crashes involving remotely controlled aircraft, challenging the federal government’s assurances that drones will be able to fly safely over populated areas and in the same airspace as passenger planes.
June 22, 2014
GOP: Show Me the Money!
By Richmond Shreve
OpEdNews Op Eds 6/21/2014 at 11:10:54
~snip~
It is high time that this obscene tradition end. I propose a COMBAT TAX. This tax would be an amount initially estimated by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office to cover any proposed action involving armed government personnel. The estimate would be updated quarterly to reflect actual incurred costs. It would be added as a percentage, a surtax on all US Federal taxes across the board. Income tax, excise tax, gas tax -- every tax paid to the US Treasury. Each of us would feel the bite in the taxes withheld from out paychecks. We'd see it immediately in the cost of gas and luxury items we buy. We would all have skin in the game, every single one of us. Rich or poor, each of us would pay. (We might consider exempting income for the veterans who had seen combat.)
At the same time, the Combat Tax legislation would provide for universal service -- yes, I mean conscription. Every adult man or woman would be required to serve the nation in some capacity. Service could be in qualifying occupations like Teach America, Peace Corps, Volunteer Firefighter, Volunteer EMT, and the like. To provide more opportunity we could resurrect the Civilian Conservation Corps to help rebuild our rotting infrastructure. The idea would be that in addition to the monetary hit of the Combat Tax, there would be a universal investment of time and energy for the national good that was in some small way on a par with that made by our military personnel.
The end result of the Combat Tax would be total accountability. Each and every one of us would have a personal stake in assuring that the US never initiate combat unless a truly vital national interest were at risk. Moreover, all of us would have a stake in limiting the conflict and making sure there was an exit strategy.
I'd bet that none of the US wars of the last fifty years would have happened were a Combat Tax the law and the tradition of American democracy. My challenge to the GOP hawks is this: You want more war? Then declare it, and along with it enact the Combat Tax. GOP: Show me the money!
GOP: Show Me the Money!
http://www.opednews.com/articles/GOP-Show-Me-the-Money-by-Richmond-Shreve-Activism-Anti-War_Conflict_Conflict_Congress-140621-766.htmlGOP: Show Me the Money!
By Richmond Shreve
OpEdNews Op Eds 6/21/2014 at 11:10:54
~snip~
It is high time that this obscene tradition end. I propose a COMBAT TAX. This tax would be an amount initially estimated by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office to cover any proposed action involving armed government personnel. The estimate would be updated quarterly to reflect actual incurred costs. It would be added as a percentage, a surtax on all US Federal taxes across the board. Income tax, excise tax, gas tax -- every tax paid to the US Treasury. Each of us would feel the bite in the taxes withheld from out paychecks. We'd see it immediately in the cost of gas and luxury items we buy. We would all have skin in the game, every single one of us. Rich or poor, each of us would pay. (We might consider exempting income for the veterans who had seen combat.)
At the same time, the Combat Tax legislation would provide for universal service -- yes, I mean conscription. Every adult man or woman would be required to serve the nation in some capacity. Service could be in qualifying occupations like Teach America, Peace Corps, Volunteer Firefighter, Volunteer EMT, and the like. To provide more opportunity we could resurrect the Civilian Conservation Corps to help rebuild our rotting infrastructure. The idea would be that in addition to the monetary hit of the Combat Tax, there would be a universal investment of time and energy for the national good that was in some small way on a par with that made by our military personnel.
The end result of the Combat Tax would be total accountability. Each and every one of us would have a personal stake in assuring that the US never initiate combat unless a truly vital national interest were at risk. Moreover, all of us would have a stake in limiting the conflict and making sure there was an exit strategy.
I'd bet that none of the US wars of the last fifty years would have happened were a Combat Tax the law and the tradition of American democracy. My challenge to the GOP hawks is this: You want more war? Then declare it, and along with it enact the Combat Tax. GOP: Show me the money!
June 22, 2014
After countless delays, technical problems and cost overruns, the German capital's troubled new airport faces another obstacle: It is running out of money. With the current CEO refusing to give detailed plans, it seems likely taxpayers will have to foot the bill.
Mayday: Berlin's Ill-Fated Airport Faces Insolvency
By Christoph Pauly and Andreas Wassermann
June 20, 2014 – 03:40 PM
Hartmut Mehdorn, CEO of Berlin's still unfinished new airport, isn't one for transparency. "This isn't a sandbox where everyone can just snoop around," he said in March. In other words, comptrollers looking into his project's finances are decidedly unwelcome, and indeed, when federal auditors from the Bundesrechnungshof, Germany's Federal Court of Auditors, recommended an independent audit, Mehdorn wanted none of it, and the public officials backed down.
~snip~
But the situation cannot continue for much longer. In 2012, Berlin, Brandenburg and the German federal government budgeted an additional €1.2 billion for the completion of the airport. By the end of this year, that money will likely be used up -- primarily to cover existing expenses and to resolve construction debts. But getting the airport up and running -- and certified -- will require much more money, and taxpayers will likely be the ones to supply it.
How much the airport will ultimately end up costing remains Mehdorn's secret, if he even knows himself. In the spring, he mentioned an additional €1.1 billion in a presentation to parliamentarians, which would bring the total cost of Berlin's new airport to €5.5 billion. He didn't say how he arrived at that sum.
The more expensive the project becomes, the less likely it is that it will ever turn a profit. Officials in both Berlin and Brandenburg have thus begun trying to figure out how to limit the project's collateral damage. In Wowereit's city-state government in Berlin, one proposal under consideration involves removing the airport from the Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg GmbH consortium, which also runs Tegel and Schönefeld airports, and placing the project's bank debts of €2.4 billion in a separate state-owned company.
Mayday: Berlin's Ill-Fated Airport Faces Insolvency
http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/new-berlin-airport-faces-major-funding-difficulties-a-975863.htmlAfter countless delays, technical problems and cost overruns, the German capital's troubled new airport faces another obstacle: It is running out of money. With the current CEO refusing to give detailed plans, it seems likely taxpayers will have to foot the bill.
Mayday: Berlin's Ill-Fated Airport Faces Insolvency
By Christoph Pauly and Andreas Wassermann
June 20, 2014 – 03:40 PM
Hartmut Mehdorn, CEO of Berlin's still unfinished new airport, isn't one for transparency. "This isn't a sandbox where everyone can just snoop around," he said in March. In other words, comptrollers looking into his project's finances are decidedly unwelcome, and indeed, when federal auditors from the Bundesrechnungshof, Germany's Federal Court of Auditors, recommended an independent audit, Mehdorn wanted none of it, and the public officials backed down.
~snip~
But the situation cannot continue for much longer. In 2012, Berlin, Brandenburg and the German federal government budgeted an additional €1.2 billion for the completion of the airport. By the end of this year, that money will likely be used up -- primarily to cover existing expenses and to resolve construction debts. But getting the airport up and running -- and certified -- will require much more money, and taxpayers will likely be the ones to supply it.
How much the airport will ultimately end up costing remains Mehdorn's secret, if he even knows himself. In the spring, he mentioned an additional €1.1 billion in a presentation to parliamentarians, which would bring the total cost of Berlin's new airport to €5.5 billion. He didn't say how he arrived at that sum.
The more expensive the project becomes, the less likely it is that it will ever turn a profit. Officials in both Berlin and Brandenburg have thus begun trying to figure out how to limit the project's collateral damage. In Wowereit's city-state government in Berlin, one proposal under consideration involves removing the airport from the Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg GmbH consortium, which also runs Tegel and Schönefeld airports, and placing the project's bank debts of €2.4 billion in a separate state-owned company.
June 22, 2014
Neo-Zangid State erases Syria-Iraq Border, cuts Hizbullah off from Iran
By Juan Cole | Jun. 22, 2014
With the alleged fall to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria of Qa’im on Saturday, and of Talafar a few days ago, the border between Iraq and Syria has now been effectively erased. A new country exists, stretching from the outskirts of Baghdad all the way to Aleppo. In history, it uncannily resembles the state ruled by Imad ad-Din Zangi (AD 1085 – 1146), a Turkish notable who came to power in 1128 after a Shiite Assassin killed his father. His realms lay between the Abbasid Caliphate on the one hand and the Atabegs of Damascus on the other. Like ISIS, he was not able to take and keep Homs. He also was not able to take Palestine away from the Crusaders, despite a brief alliance for that purpose with Buri of Damascus. ISIS also so far lacks Baghdad or Damascus but like Zangi does have much in between.
~snip~
This is a notional map (don’t hold me to its exact details) of Zangi’s domain at its greatest extent.
ISIS now holds almost all of Ninevah and al-Anbar Provinces, and has a strong position in Salahuddin Province just north of Baghdad. (The Zangid state was a launching pad for Saladin Ayyubi, in Arabic Salahuddin, for whom this province is named). It also has a position in Diyala Province, which stretches between Baghdad and the Iranian border to its east. Diyala is the most mixed of the military fronts, having many Shiites and Kurds (in the north around Khaniqin).
The first thing that occurred to me on the fall of Qa’im is that Iran no longer has its land bridge to Lebanon. I suppose it could get much of the way there through Kurdish territory, but ISIS could ambush the convoys when they came into Arab Syria. Since Iran has expended a good deal of treasure and blood to keep Bashar al-Assad in power so as to maintain that land bridge, it surely will not easily accept being blocked by ISIS. Without Iranian shipments of rockets and other munitions, Lebanon’s Hizbullah would rapidly decline in importance, and south Lebanon would be open again to potential Israeli occupation. I’d say, we can expect a Shiite counter-strike to maintain the truck routes to Damascus.
Neo-Zangid State erases Syria-Iraq Border, cuts Hizbullah off from Iran
http://www.juancole.com/2014/06/erases-border-hizbullah.htmlNeo-Zangid State erases Syria-Iraq Border, cuts Hizbullah off from Iran
By Juan Cole | Jun. 22, 2014
With the alleged fall to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria of Qa’im on Saturday, and of Talafar a few days ago, the border between Iraq and Syria has now been effectively erased. A new country exists, stretching from the outskirts of Baghdad all the way to Aleppo. In history, it uncannily resembles the state ruled by Imad ad-Din Zangi (AD 1085 – 1146), a Turkish notable who came to power in 1128 after a Shiite Assassin killed his father. His realms lay between the Abbasid Caliphate on the one hand and the Atabegs of Damascus on the other. Like ISIS, he was not able to take and keep Homs. He also was not able to take Palestine away from the Crusaders, despite a brief alliance for that purpose with Buri of Damascus. ISIS also so far lacks Baghdad or Damascus but like Zangi does have much in between.
~snip~
This is a notional map (don’t hold me to its exact details) of Zangi’s domain at its greatest extent.
ISIS now holds almost all of Ninevah and al-Anbar Provinces, and has a strong position in Salahuddin Province just north of Baghdad. (The Zangid state was a launching pad for Saladin Ayyubi, in Arabic Salahuddin, for whom this province is named). It also has a position in Diyala Province, which stretches between Baghdad and the Iranian border to its east. Diyala is the most mixed of the military fronts, having many Shiites and Kurds (in the north around Khaniqin).
The first thing that occurred to me on the fall of Qa’im is that Iran no longer has its land bridge to Lebanon. I suppose it could get much of the way there through Kurdish territory, but ISIS could ambush the convoys when they came into Arab Syria. Since Iran has expended a good deal of treasure and blood to keep Bashar al-Assad in power so as to maintain that land bridge, it surely will not easily accept being blocked by ISIS. Without Iranian shipments of rockets and other munitions, Lebanon’s Hizbullah would rapidly decline in importance, and south Lebanon would be open again to potential Israeli occupation. I’d say, we can expect a Shiite counter-strike to maintain the truck routes to Damascus.
June 22, 2014
Army veteran: Key to getting benefits is persistence
Dennis Proulx says it’s not always easy for a returning war veteran to convince the Department of Veterans Affairs that he or she has a medical disability deserving of monetary compensation.
~snip~
The 64-year-old Vietnam-era Army veteran said he initially sought help for hearing loss in 1971, after spending 14 months in South Vietnam, but was told his problem was not combat related.
He says he eventually filed for compensation in 2001 after other medical problems began to manifest themselves.
Proulx, who is vice president of the Tautnon Area Vietnam Veterans Association, says it took more than two years, but eventually he was declared 60-percent disabled. It took another couple years, he said, before he began collecting disability checks from the VA.
Army veteran: Key to getting benefits is persistence
http://www.tauntongazette.com/article/20140621/NEWS/140629179/1994/NEWSArmy veteran: Key to getting benefits is persistence
Dennis Proulx says it’s not always easy for a returning war veteran to convince the Department of Veterans Affairs that he or she has a medical disability deserving of monetary compensation.
~snip~
The 64-year-old Vietnam-era Army veteran said he initially sought help for hearing loss in 1971, after spending 14 months in South Vietnam, but was told his problem was not combat related.
He says he eventually filed for compensation in 2001 after other medical problems began to manifest themselves.
Proulx, who is vice president of the Tautnon Area Vietnam Veterans Association, says it took more than two years, but eventually he was declared 60-percent disabled. It took another couple years, he said, before he began collecting disability checks from the VA.
June 22, 2014
Veterans face long waits for care, services
~snip~
More than 56,000 veterans have been waiting longer than 90 days for a VA medical appointment, and an additional 63,869 never had an appointment after enrolling in the VA health system over the past decade, according the June 9 audit. VA officials say they have since reached out to 70,000 veterans stranded on waiting lists.
The audits revealed the situation is generally better in Massachusetts than in many other states.
Federal investigators have uncovered potential evidence of fraudulent scheduling records at dozens of VA hospitals across the country, with 13 percent of schedulers interviewed in the audit reporting that they had been instructed to enter false scheduling data to make wait times look shorter than they really were.
Auditors flagged 81 sites, including the Brockton division of the VA Boston Healthcare System and the Leeds-based VA Central Western Massachusetts Healthcare System, for further review regarding scheduling and access management, although the report doesn’t indicate fraudulent practices in those facilities.
--
As far as I can tell, those are the only two VA locations flagged in MA.
New Brockton / Western Mass VA Investigations
http://www.tauntongazette.com/article/20140621/NEWS/140629177/1994/NEWSVeterans face long waits for care, services
~snip~
More than 56,000 veterans have been waiting longer than 90 days for a VA medical appointment, and an additional 63,869 never had an appointment after enrolling in the VA health system over the past decade, according the June 9 audit. VA officials say they have since reached out to 70,000 veterans stranded on waiting lists.
The audits revealed the situation is generally better in Massachusetts than in many other states.
Federal investigators have uncovered potential evidence of fraudulent scheduling records at dozens of VA hospitals across the country, with 13 percent of schedulers interviewed in the audit reporting that they had been instructed to enter false scheduling data to make wait times look shorter than they really were.
Auditors flagged 81 sites, including the Brockton division of the VA Boston Healthcare System and the Leeds-based VA Central Western Massachusetts Healthcare System, for further review regarding scheduling and access management, although the report doesn’t indicate fraudulent practices in those facilities.
--
As far as I can tell, those are the only two VA locations flagged in MA.
June 21, 2014
NASSCO competing to build huge warship
By Gary Robbins4:14 p.m.June 15, 2014
The competition to build the Navy's second largest type of warship is heating up.
The Defense Department is giving General Dynamics-NASSCO $23.5 million to see if it can come up with a better and cheaper plan than Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) to build LHA-8, an unnamed amphibious assault ship that's expected to cost at least $3.5 billion.
The 844-foot vessel is one of the new America-class assault ships. HII's Mississippi-based shipbuilding division constructed the first -- America -- which will be homeported in San Diego, starting this fall. And the company won the contract to build the second, Tripoli.
But the Defense Department decided to open the competition for the third ship after NASSCO expressed interest in the contract, which could generate hundreds of jobs. The government says that NASSCO is the only company other than HII that has experience building and repairing ships roughly the size of America and Tripoli. Earlier this year, NASSCO finished a $150 million overhaul on Essex, a different class of amphibious assault ship.
NASSCO competing to build huge warship
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/jun/15/navy-NASSCO-HII/?stNASSCO competing to build huge warship
By Gary Robbins4:14 p.m.June 15, 2014
The competition to build the Navy's second largest type of warship is heating up.
The Defense Department is giving General Dynamics-NASSCO $23.5 million to see if it can come up with a better and cheaper plan than Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) to build LHA-8, an unnamed amphibious assault ship that's expected to cost at least $3.5 billion.
The 844-foot vessel is one of the new America-class assault ships. HII's Mississippi-based shipbuilding division constructed the first -- America -- which will be homeported in San Diego, starting this fall. And the company won the contract to build the second, Tripoli.
But the Defense Department decided to open the competition for the third ship after NASSCO expressed interest in the contract, which could generate hundreds of jobs. The government says that NASSCO is the only company other than HII that has experience building and repairing ships roughly the size of America and Tripoli. Earlier this year, NASSCO finished a $150 million overhaul on Essex, a different class of amphibious assault ship.
June 21, 2014
This Feb. 11, 2002 file photo shows a revolving Enron Corp. logo spinning in the lobby of the energy company's downtown Houston headquarters. The Texas State Board of Public Accountancy has revoked Arthur Andersen accountants Carl Bass and Thomas Bauer's CPA licenses for violating professional standards in their audits of Enron but the pair has pushed back with a legal challenge.
Energy-crisis restitution: $76.5M
By Morgan Lee
3:12 p.m.June 18, 2014
Customer relief continues to trickle in from California's 2000-2001 energy crisis, when market manipulation crippled the grid and sent utility bills through the roof.
A flurry of legal settlements will result in a $76.5 million credit against costs for San Diego Gas & Electric customers before the end of July, taking some pressure off rising electric rates in San Diego and southern Orange counties.
The discount for consumers won't be identified on bills.
The payments resolve claims against four power energy wholesalers accused of artificially driving up electricity prices: TransAlta, previously known as British Colombia Power Exchange; Powerex, a subsidiary of Canadian utility BC Hydro; Spokane, Wash.-based Avista; and Tulsa, Okl.-based Williams.
Energy-crisis restitution: $76.5M
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/jun/18/energy-crisis-reparations/This Feb. 11, 2002 file photo shows a revolving Enron Corp. logo spinning in the lobby of the energy company's downtown Houston headquarters. The Texas State Board of Public Accountancy has revoked Arthur Andersen accountants Carl Bass and Thomas Bauer's CPA licenses for violating professional standards in their audits of Enron but the pair has pushed back with a legal challenge.
Energy-crisis restitution: $76.5M
By Morgan Lee
3:12 p.m.June 18, 2014
Customer relief continues to trickle in from California's 2000-2001 energy crisis, when market manipulation crippled the grid and sent utility bills through the roof.
A flurry of legal settlements will result in a $76.5 million credit against costs for San Diego Gas & Electric customers before the end of July, taking some pressure off rising electric rates in San Diego and southern Orange counties.
The discount for consumers won't be identified on bills.
The payments resolve claims against four power energy wholesalers accused of artificially driving up electricity prices: TransAlta, previously known as British Colombia Power Exchange; Powerex, a subsidiary of Canadian utility BC Hydro; Spokane, Wash.-based Avista; and Tulsa, Okl.-based Williams.
June 21, 2014
Gov't moves to ban drones in 400 national parks
Associated Press Updated: June 20, 2014 at 4:46 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — The National Park Service is taking steps to ban drones from 84 million acres of public lands and waterways, saying the unmanned aircraft annoy visitors, harass wildlife and threaten safety.
Jonathan Jarvis, the park service's director, told The Associated Press he doesn't want drones flushing birds from their nests, hovering over rock climbers as they cling to the sides of cliffs or buzzing across the face of Mount Rushmore.
Jarvis said he would sign a policy memorandum on Friday directing superintendents of the service's 401 parks to write rules prohibiting the launching, landing or operation of unmanned aircraft in their parks.
Two large national parks, Grand Canyon in Arizona and Zion in Utah, have already changed their rules to ban drones. Some other parks have interpreted existing regulations to permit them to ban drone flights, but Jarvis said each park must change its "compendium" — a set of regulations unique to that park — if a ban is to be enforceable.
Gov't moves to ban drones in 400 national parks
http://gazette.com/govt-moves-to-ban-drones-in-400-national-parks/article/feed/130665Gov't moves to ban drones in 400 national parks
Associated Press Updated: June 20, 2014 at 4:46 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — The National Park Service is taking steps to ban drones from 84 million acres of public lands and waterways, saying the unmanned aircraft annoy visitors, harass wildlife and threaten safety.
Jonathan Jarvis, the park service's director, told The Associated Press he doesn't want drones flushing birds from their nests, hovering over rock climbers as they cling to the sides of cliffs or buzzing across the face of Mount Rushmore.
Jarvis said he would sign a policy memorandum on Friday directing superintendents of the service's 401 parks to write rules prohibiting the launching, landing or operation of unmanned aircraft in their parks.
Two large national parks, Grand Canyon in Arizona and Zion in Utah, have already changed their rules to ban drones. Some other parks have interpreted existing regulations to permit them to ban drone flights, but Jarvis said each park must change its "compendium" — a set of regulations unique to that park — if a ban is to be enforceable.
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