The Argument Against Banning Chinese Drones (Part 1)

[gogorokokoko]

if the us will ban dji drones nothing will help you, hacks, older drones or prayers
most likely everyone will get a forced update and that will be all
but you should be happy, cause some of ccp claws on us land finally will be cutted
its a win win situation, no ban, you can still fly, ban and one of the ccp tools will be removed from the us
enjoy

 

[Donnie Frank]

Part one introduced it's own FUD and didn't really contribute to the overall discussion.
Part two has the most useful stuff "Other Potential Actions Besides Bans and Lobbyists".
Part three points out some of the reality - America (other than in raw computers) has dropped the ball on electronics, manufacturing, and pushing the envelope - letting the Asian companies leap far ahead (look back at part two).

BUT, I work for a group that I can't divulge and the reality is that ANY Chinese company is effectively an arm of the CCP. If the CCP wants access, they have access. It's an unfortunate reality that most Americans don't know this, and so many American companies choose to be in bed with Chinese companies. Because of this reality, for the last few years that US Military, security services, etc have had to take the stance that electronics coming from China that have the capability to store and transmit data can very likely be used to send data back to the PRC to be mined. They have entire organizations that do nothing but that. And it has been proven that even basic computer chips produced there have had code embedded into them to do that very thing. So unless someone has actually reverse engineered the code in a DJI drone and understand every line of it and what it does, who knows what they might be able to do?

There is also a reason that China can undercut anything made in this country - they can effectively limit wages however they want to, by guidance from the CCP, when they want to control a market. I learned this years ago when I worked for the Navy and visited a commercial shipyard where they showed us their newest giant crane for moving ship sections. Historically those had all come from Germany, but this new crane was "as good as" the older cranes, but cost a fraction of them. Due to corporate espionage, and effectively forced labor, the Chinese can decide to enter a market and ultimately dominate it if they want to - pushing all others out. And of course unions in this country have driven wages for manufacturing far beyond what those jobs are truly valued at, thus passing along the cost to the customer. It's the reason why entire industries no longer exist in this country and have moved overseas or into South American markets. Americans, because of cheap overseas (or south of the border) labor, have become accustom to certain price points for products. That's a negative side effect of globalization - certain products will always be cheaper when produced in certain places. And unfortunately, many times those places aren't our friends, or allies.

This situation has a lot more variables than many drone flyers seem to want to acknowledge. I'm not saying an outright ban on the sell of DJI drones is the answer, and like I said, Part two gets closest to suggesting some alternatives.

Nicely said.

While I would concede that some or most UAV pilots are oblivious to some of the under-the-hood politics that keep us (U.S.) dead last, I would like to add that our own regulatory agencies are also to blame. This is why all the kewl, phun stuff happens overseas. Jet suits in Dubia. Casey Niestat snowboarding behind and under a heavy lifter in Finland. Passenger drones in China. Any and all of this could have been invented, tested, demo'd here in the U.S. But not under the watchful eye of the FAA and FCC...not to mention any other TLA's (Three-Letter Acronyms) getting their fingers into the research and development pie...not to mention Unions and lawyers, lawyers, lawyers.

I have no doubt in my mind that the U.S. COULD be a leader in the drone game. But our own government has their foot on the neck of U.S. drone companies. It's a real shame because I would LOVE to buy American. Unfortunately, the Chinese offerings are ahead of the game. I still fly my Inspire 1 every week and have for years and the beast is as reliable as any piece of equipment I have ever owned. Too bad.

D

 

[ericole]

Nicely said.

While I would concede that some or most UAV pilots are oblivious to some of the under-the-hood politics that keep us (U.S.) dead last, I would like to add that our own regulatory agencies are also to blame. This is why all the kewl, phun stuff happens overseas. Jet suits in Dubia. Casey Niestat snowboarding behind and under a heavy lifter in Finland. Passenger drones in China. Any and all of this could have been invented, tested, demo'd here in the U.S. But not under the watchful eye of the FAA and FCC...not to mention any other TLA's (Three-Letter Acronyms) getting their fingers into the research and development pie...not to mention Unions and lawyers, lawyers, lawyers.

I have no doubt in my mind that the U.S. COULD be a leader in the drone game. But our own government has their foot on the neck of U.S. drone companies. It's a real shame because I would LOVE to buy American. Unfortunately, the Chinese offerings are ahead of the game. I still fly my Inspire 1 every week and have for years and the beast is as reliable as any piece of equipment I have ever owned. Too bad.

D

Totally agree with what you said - all good adds. The US govt ,and all of its agencies, and many unions are literally the death knell for advancement in this country. Whether it be because of the asinine govt regulations, or because the political climate forces companies to waste valuable resources on "green" tech (or other dead-end things), the end result is the same. It's a frustrating place for us - and still some of the most advanced stuff starts here...

 

[Donnie Frank]

Totally agree with what you said - all good adds. The US govt ,and all of its agencies, and many unions are literally the death knell for advancement in this country. Whether it be because of the asinine govt regulations, or because the political climate forces companies to waste valuable resources on "green" tech (or other dead-end things), the end result is the same. It's a frustrating place for us - and still some of the most advanced stuff starts here...

<rant>

As long as we're opening Pandora's Box (and rightfully so), where is all the "green new deal" money for Nuclear Fusion? Or graphene batteries?? Or enough hydrogen produced via electrolysis to power a car in real-time?? Which was supposedly achieved in the SEVENTIES by Stan Meyer!! When I think of the billions flushed down the toilet in the name of solar or wind (Solyndra anybody?) when several solutions are right there on the horizon, it kills me. Why are fusion and graphene privately funded??? Where's the grant money or the BILLIONS in "green new deal" assistance? And don't even get me started on cars that run on water. Where's the research money for that?? Imagine the progress we might have made over the past FIFTY YEARS with even a modicum of government support and/or funding??? Maddening.

</rant>

D

 

[ericole]

<rant>

As long as we're opening Pandora's Box (and rightfully so), where is all the "green new deal" money for Nuclear Fusion? Or graphene batteries?? Or enough hydrogen produced via electrolysis to power a car in real-time?? Which was supposedly achieved in the SEVENTIES by Stan Meyer!! When I think of the billions flushed down the toilet in the name of solar or wind (Solyndra anybody?) when several solutions are right there on the horizon, it kills me. Why are fusion and graphene privately funded??? Where's the grant money or the BILLIONS in "green new deal" assistance? And don't even get me started on cars that run on water. Where's the research money for that?? Imagine the progress we might have made over the past FIFTY YEARS with even a modicum of government support and/or funding??? Maddening.

</rant>

D

exactly right. it is maddening and extremely frustrating. This is another reason why China is beating the western nations. They will make token statements about carbon neutrality, emissions, etc, but they will do NONE of that if it hurts them economically or technologically. But in the U.S. (and many western countries), we have politics and back-room deals driving where our money is spent (aka "wasted) - and it is rarely in areas that will actually move us forward. China's CCP leadership can say "spend whatever it takes to make this happen" but in the U.S. Congress can't even produce a budget by Oct 1 (like law requires), and when they finally do it is filled with nonsense, waste, etc. So China will constantly outspend us on tech development until something drastically changes. And, sadly, on the right side of this website is an ad for TEMU - a Chinese company that has been proven to make cheap knockoffs of American products (thus undercutting the development and sales of those companies), as well as use shady labor practices. Just another way they funnel billions into their economy from Western consumers.