I have to admit to being somewhat biased about planes in the sky. I hate them. I live in the country, not by the airport, and usually the planes are so far above in the sky that they're negligible. But sometimes, when Bush goes to Crawford, or black hawk helicopters are on their way to Fort Hood (or somewhere), or private planes decide to cruise right above the tree lines, the house shakes, it's really noisy, and more than annoying.

But this is more than just annoying. Do we really want unmanned surveillance drones flying around spying on us? People may have been happy, or at least unconcerned, to have them flying around in other countries, like Iraq or Afghanistan, spying on people. Or, closer to home, the UAVs flying around on the border, or on the coast looking for people trying to cross. Or even flying around in Idaho looking for Larry Craig. It's sort of the "Well, it ain't in MY back yard" syndrome.  But Waller County? Northwest of Houston? That looks to be Hempstead and vicinity.

Houston police started testing unmanned aircraft and the event was shrouded in secrecy, but it was captured on tape by Local 2 Investigates.

But in reading the article, the people doing the test sure didn't want the media seeing it. Guess they wanted to keep people in the dark.

Neighbors in rural Waller County said they thought a top-secret military venture was under way among the farmland and ranches, some 70 miles northwest of Houston. KPRC Local 2 Investigates had four hidden cameras aimed at a row of mysterious black trucks. Satellite dishes and a swirling radar added to the neighbors' suspense

Then, cameras were rolling as an unmanned aircraft was launched into the sky and operated by remote control.

Remote Control. Get that?

Houston police cars were surrounding the land with a roadblock in place to check each of the dignitaries arriving for the invitation-only event. The invitation spelled out, "NO MEDIA ALLOWED."

God forbid that anyone that LIVES in Texas should find out what's going on with being spied on until they're actually doing it.

HPD Chief Harold Hurtt attended, along with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and dozens of officers from various police agencies in the Houston area. Few of the guests would comment as they left the test site.

In the article, the Executive Assistant Police Chief (what a title, eh?) said she wasn't ready to publicize this event. I'll bet.

Here's the company that is making the UAVs. (Insitu) I notice that the blurb says

• High Level of Stealth — Even at Low Altitudes

Oh, great. More low flying aircraft in the sky, except these will be spy planes. Spying on Americans. Welcome to Bush World.

P.S. My cousin sent me an email a month ago or so griping about red light cameras in Houston (she's Republican). I wonder, if she's so concerned with red light cameras, if she will be equally as outraged about being spied on by Homeland Security in the Good Ole State of Texas.