Send an email to Steve. He's sure the ATF will be invading his house. This is how the rumor got started.
----- Original Message ----- From: "Steve-Teachers Discount Music" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Monday, March 03, 2003 10:21 PM Subject: [BRASS] Our hobby is in danger... > I just spoke to Bill Granoble... he said that a Palestinian flew an RC plane loaded with > C4 explosive into an Israeli builiding... I heard this morning.. I can't confirm this... > that all RC flyers will have to get a permit from the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco & Firearms > and that your home will need to be inspected in order to get the permit... and that they > could inspect your home at any time... > > I have not been able to confirm this, but look what happened to the model rocket hobby. > > Estes rockets has shut down and you can't get any rocket fuel... > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > > > Model rockets may be grounded > > New rules from Homeland Security Act unfair, hobbyists say > MSNBC > By Jim Banke > SPACE.COM > > HOUSTON, Feb. 25 - A provision deep within the regulations of the new Homeland Security Act is > threatening to shut down the popular hobby of model rocketry because the propellant used to make > the rocket's solid-fueled motors is now classified as explosive material. > > > THE CHANGE IN STATUS, approved in November 2002 as an update to the Safe Explosives Act > of 1970, imposes new restrictions on shipping and handling the rocket motors, which have been > safely flown by thousands of students for many years. > Under the new rules, which fully take effect May 24, shipping companies are required to > have every employee who might touch the rocket motors be certified, pass background checks and > get fingerprinted - an added expense the companies are unlikely to bear. > United Parcel Service already has stopped shipping the more powerful versions of model > rocket engines, according to Tim Van Milligan, president of Apogee Rockets in Colorado Springs, > Colo. > There also are reports that some trucking and railroad firms have stopped shipping the > motors, and Fed Ex employees have indicated to some model rocket flyers they likely will follow > suit in the coming weeks. > "It is the heart of the problem we face. Because if manufacturers like Estes can't get > rocket motors delivered to stores, the hobby is completely dead," Van Milligan said. > U.S. Senator Michael Enzi, R-Wyo., intends to introduce legislation as early as this week > to make what's being called a "technical correction" to the Safe Explosives Act so that the > material used inside the small motors is removed from the "explosives list." > > > > > > > . Apollo Moon Booster Still Flies as Detailed Model Rocket > . Astronaut Aldrin Endorses Saturn Toy Rocket > > > > > > > "Congress defined an explosive as any chemical mixture or device whose primary or common > purpose is to function by explosion," Enzi wrote to Bradley Buckles, director of the Bureau of > Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF). > "I am told that the ATF claims that the primary or common purpose of a rocket propellant > is to explode. A rocket propellant is not designed or intended to explode," Enzi said. > The model rocket scientists-turned-lobbyists are quick to point out that if model rocket > engines are designed to explode under the definition used by the ATF, no rocket would get off the > ground. It would just blow up on the pad. > SPACE.com contacted the ATF and left messages but no one returned the calls. When > informing one unnamed assistant of the topic, she said "we've been getting a lot of calls on the > subject of model rockets." > > SUPPORTERS CITE IMPACT ON SCIENCE > Model rocket hobbyists of all ages are preparing to fire off faxes, e-mails, letters and > phone calls to Capitol Hill to support Enzi's efforts. And they lined up quickly to tell > SPACE.com what they thought of the current law. > 'It makes no more sense to restrict aerospace modeling than it would have to ban rental trucks > after they were misused in Oklahoma and New York.' > - JAY APT > astronaut Jay Apt saw his first model rocket catalog at age 13 in 1962. If the name's > familiar it's because he went on to fly four shuttle missions that included two spacewalks and a > mission to the International Space Station. > "If we are to keep challenging our technology-inclined young people, we need to keep the > benefits of model rocketry in mind when we pursue a tendency, natural in troubled times, to > restrict anything which might be abused," Apt said. > "It makes no more sense to restrict aerospace modeling than it would have to ban rental > trucks after they were misused in Oklahoma and New York." > There are ways to continue flying model rockets under the current law, but they involve > applying for permits, paying a fee, undergoing a background check and getting finger printed. > "Model rocketeers are not criminals and this law treats them like one. How would you like > your kids to be finger printed just to fly rockets?" said Van Milligan, who went through what he > described as a "difficult" process. > For the space modeling enthusiasts, the actions of the government make no sense, > especially at a time when the nation is recovering from the Feb. 1 shuttle Columbia tragedy and > kids of all ages are asking questions about the value of such programs. > Advertisement > > > > > > "Because of increasing legal restrictions, a lack of understanding about model > rocketry's excellent safety record, and a general bias against hobby rocketry, it is becoming > extremely difficult to get the permits and launch sites needed to expose these young people to > the educationally stimulating and inspirational effects of rocketry," said Craig Cline, senior > adviser of the Alhambra Rocketry Club in Los Angeles. > "Our country's leadership needs to encourage and protect, not stifle, the ability of the > public and our youth to engage in the activities and pursuit of knowledge that have allowed us to > become the world leader in scientific advancement." > > © 2003 Space.com. All rights reserved. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Teachers Discount Music > www.metronomes.net > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Phone (800) 586-3876 > Fax (540) 740-3741 > > ------------------------------------------ > This is the BRASS (Blue Ridge Area Soaring > Society) mailing list. > To unsubscribe from this list, send an email > to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the single > word - unsubscribe - in the body > Visit the BRASS website at: > http://adesigner.com/brass.htm > > RCSE-List facilities provided by Model Airplane News. Send "subscribe" and "unsubscribe" requests to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Please note that subscribe and unsubscribe messages must be sent in text only format with MIME turned off.
