Gun lobbyists in North Dakota successfully pushed a bill through the legislature making it legal for cops to affix "non-lethal" weapons to drones.

Yes, that's right, according to this Daily Beast article, if you go to North Dakota, you can now be hit with everything from beanbag rounds, to pepper spray, to sound cannons, to tear gas, to a Tazer FROM THE SKY following the recent passage of House Bill 1328.

Let's think about what that means. Anyone remember Portland's May Day protests this year? They were mostly peaceful, but when the folks in the front (who were admittedly rowdy and probably a little drunk) tried to take the Burnside Bridge, the pepper spray came out. But it was administered by a cop in riot gear, not a police version of a crop dusting helicopter.

Let's also look at the term "non-lethal," shall we? According to The Guardian—which through its project, "The Counted," is tracking how many people are killed by police—in 2015 so far there have been 39 deaths by Tazer. Yikes. And according to this article, "data from Amnesty International and Inquest show police stun guns were linked to more deaths in the U.S. over the period 2001-2013 than the total number of fatal police shootings in England and Wales over the same time period."

The Beast article points out that just because the cops can use drones doesn't mean they will, but humans love their gadgets, and as this WaPo article points out, "rogue drones" have become a nuisance in places like wildfire sites, prisons and a gay pride parade in Seattle, just to name a few. We should hope the cops use their newfound toys wisely, but I guess we'll have to wait and see. I mean, what could possibly go wrong, right?

It's a brave new world out there, you guys. Duck and cover. And maybe cancel that trip to North Dakota.