[Pecos]

Perhaps it hasn't been used in the field because focusing the beam on an individual target would be hard. Just like you usually aren't successful when duck hunting if you just spray rounds at the flock, you would have to concentrate the beam on an individual target for some length of time to have any meaningful effect.

That is totally aside from the fact that providing non-lethal weapons to the military is a bad idea. Too many people would then second guess the troops as to why they ever have to fire a lethal shot. Non-lethal weapons also put the troops in the position of being policemen. For their safety alone, you can't cross-train a person's reactions to operate cleanly in both lethal and non-lethal tactics.

[elcid1970]

Excellent point. Crowd & riot control are a police function, not a military one. Hence, we have Posse Commitatus and other restrictions.

Plus, that Toast-a-Mob machine is pretty expensive. Maybe the manufacturer could rent it out to police departments whenever the Occupy crowd needs to be dispersed.