Recent comments from Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) officials talking about “crucifying” business owners as a way of sending a message, as well as the news that EPA has been performing flyovers over feedlots, doesn’t come as any surprise to anyone who’s dealt with the agency in recent years. After all, EPA views business in the same light that the U.S. Department of Justice’s Drug Enforcement Administration sees drug smugglers. As a result, EPA seems to believe its use of the same types of tactics is more than justified.
...But it’s sad that the fact that we have nothing to hide and are obeying the laws of the land doesn’t mean that the next time we see a plane or unmanned drone fly overhead, that it could be our own government spying on us. I remember years ago reading George Orwell’s “1984” and Ayn Rand’s “Atlas Shrugged” and thinking how scary it would be to live in such societies. I was convinced back then that it could never happen here. Today, however, we all should reread those books just to gain a better understanding of the world in which we now live.
And what precisely is the author complaining about? That would be the EPA's alleged use of drones to secretly spy on ranches: EPA Aerial Surveillance Under Fire:
Brownfield Ag News recently reported that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had come under scrutiny for conducting aerial surveillance over Midwestern concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs)... The problem with this ... is that the EPA has delegated to the states the right to permit CAFOs and enforce the Clean Water Act... It gave Indiana, Illinois, Nebraska, etc., the right and obligation to do these inspections...
...At a seminar a couple years ago, I saw photos taken by EPA inspectors during these flights. The pictures did paint a clear picture of feedlot run-off into creeks and streams. Still, I was left with a disturbing feeling that these overflights are wrong. It is one thing for an inspector to show up on a farm, meet the operator, and receive a farm tour. It is an entirely different type of inspection that occurs by air, without the farmer's knowledge or opportunity to explain matters. Aerial surveillance is also overinclusive in that it includes a clear view of a farmer's home, backyard, swimming pool, etc.
But more than anything, aerial surveillance violates privacy. The US Constitution does not contain an express "Right of Privacy," but the Supreme Court has numerous times interpreted The Fourth Amendment as protecting one's home from unreasonable government surveillance... My guess is that most people have no idea that the EPA condones aerial flyovers. If, upon learning this you are troubled, you are not alone.
The EPA -- now in the hands of far left eco-Marxists -- needs to be completely de-funded and rebuilt from scratch as an organization accountable to those who pay its bills, not a tiny fringe group of anti-American, extremists.
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