Have You Noticed - 2

There's been so much going on it was hard to decide what to write about.  So how about a listing of a few items which may have gone unnoticed:

1.  There was a recent drone strike by the UK that targeted UK citizens in Syria.  Turns out the UK has a "kill list" - as does the U. S..  The Guardian has an article discussing the strike and the fallout.
I find these extrajudicial killings and the very existence of these "kill lists" abominable.  I run out of words to describe my disgust.  Personally, I would love to see all drones, military, law enforcement, spy, even private and commercial drones permanently banned.  Would love to see them all scrapped.  Are there potentially good uses for them?  Maybe, but the abuses are just so horrible and so likely to keep happening if we don't get them reigned in, and soon, that I just find them too problematic to be even allowed in the air.

2.  Related to Item 1 - North Dakota has just allowed police drones to be manned with nonlethal weapons.  Of course, we must remember that these things CAN cause health problems, injury, or in some cases, even death.  Let's not even think of where this could lead.  Fargo is right now saying no. 

3.   The fantastic Meryl Streep e-mailed all 535 members of Congress to urge them to support the Equal Rights Amendment.  She received a grand total of 5, yes, 5 replies.  Read about this here.  I'm wondering who the 5 members of Congress were who actually did reply.  They should as least get some points for that!  Maybe we should all think about doing something to support reviving the ERA.

4.   In regard to stingrays:  "Finally, federal law enforcement will be required to get a judge-signed warrant before using the tool. They’ll have have to delete the data of innocent people immediately, and clearly explain to judges what they’re doing."  You can read the rest of Trevor Timm's take here.  A lot of commenters are not nearly so optimistic as Timm, who does say the battle for privacy is not nearly over.  However, we need to seize any ray of hope and keep pressing on.

So, there are a few things to think about.  Feel free to share your thoughts or to share any items we may not have noticed in comments!