Posted on 12/26/2008 7:50:42 AM PST by BGHater
The research arm of the US Department of Justice is working on two portable non-lethal weapons that inflict pain from a distance using beams of laser light or microwaves, with the intention of putting them into the hands of police to subdue suspects.
The two devices under development by the civilian National Institute of Justice both build on knowledge gained from the Pentagon's controversial Active Denial System (ADS) - first demonstrated in public last year, which uses a 2-metre beam of short microwaves to heat up the outer layer of a person's skin and cause pain.
'Reduced injuries'
Like the ADS, the new portable devices will also heat the skin, but will have beams only a few centimetres across. They are designed to elicit what the Pentagon calls a "repel response" - a strong urge to escape from the beam.
A spokesperson for the National Institute for Justice likens the effect of the new devices to that of "blunt trauma" weapons such as rubber bullets, "But unlike blunt trauma devices, the injury should not be present. This research is looking to reduce the injuries to suspects," they say.
Existing blunt trauma weapons can break ribs or even kill, making alternatives welcome. Yet ADS has recorded problems too - out of several thousand tests on human subjects there were two cases of second-degree burns.
A modified version of this laser rifle created to dazzle enemies by the US Air Force has been adapted by the Department of Justice to inflict pain from a distance
(Excerpt) Read more at newscientist.com ...
If these symptoms continue, I'd seek treatment.
Bender already bought one on eBay to use on Deadskin fans.
“Civilian response: Bring mirrors.”
Will my silver lame’ Zoot Suit do the trick?
Actually, I could use one of these gadgets to tame some unruly teenaged boys in my neighborhood! Someone will post plans on the net. Maybe I’ll have to build my own.
What countermeasures are available or can be improvised?
While use against a crowd looting and pillaging is not necessarily a bad thing, I am reminded our big cities are only a few truckloads away from food riots, and that the 'mob' might not be composed of mere looters and the 'usual suspects'.
In a 'worst case' scenario, these could be used to herd the masses most anywhere TPTB want to.
Local police should not be armed or beholden to the Feds.
The whole idea of non-lethal weapons for police is BS. To start with all the so called non-lethal weapons can, do quite frequently, cause death. Also, a cop facing people who are trying to kill him should not be restricted to using something that might get him killed. If they are not facing a life threatening situation they shouldn't be using any weapons except maybe a billy. Police need to be trained better than they are today, they used to take people down without tasering them or using mace or pepper spray.
Now, we have the potential of burning someone up using "non-lethal" force, not to mention the possibility of blinding someone. You can't cause pain with microwaves without actually cooking part of the person.
To recap, using force unless the cops life is in danger, non-lethal or lethal, is BS.
Also, I might add, we need to dump swat teams and get rid of the unconstitutional no knock raids.
It’s the protesters who will need the treatment.
Take your meds, champ. You sound like the archetypal troll.
One may riot and burn in protest for the cause of Homosexual privilege,seizure of arms,politically correct persecution,anti-God control of our children and murder in the womb and thus suffer the pain of teargas and praise or arrest and praise—but if one demonstrates post 1/20 for the freedoms and rights put to paper by our founders in the US Constitution the Obama Gestapo will use the latest riot technology to keep one alive but wishing one were dead.
So no bad PR.
$1.00 microwave deflector shield:
I've also seen research that indicates that exposure to microwave radiation causes cataracts.
Great. And I thought these idiots abused tasers.
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