I was skeptical at first, but this does appear to be a real story.
(Reuters) – The farming and ranching town of Deer Trail, Colorado, which boasts that it held the world’s first rodeo in 1869, is now considering starting a 21st century tradition – paying bounties to anyone who shoots down an unmanned drone.
Next month, trustees of the town of 600 that lies on the high plains 55 miles east of Denver will debate an ordinance that would allow residents to purchase a $25 hunting license to shoot down “unmanned aerial vehicles.” [...]
“Yes, it is tongue-in-cheek, but I’m going to vote for it,” said Dorothy Pisel, one of the town’s trustees. “It could benefit the town with all the publicity.”
If by “publicity” you mean make you look like morons, yes.
Under the proposal, residents would be paid $100 if they produce the tail or nose of a drone to local authorities. But unmanned drones used by the government fly tens of thousands of feet in the air. You’re not going to shoot it down with a shotgun. And even if you did, you would probably be charged with the destruction of government property, among other things.
And what if said drone was being flown over your shitkicker town in Colorado to monitor wildfires? Would you shoot that down, too?
Even if this proposal is intended to be symbolic, it’s a symbol of stupidity.