Pain Ray Headed to Iraq?

Moderators: Elvis, DrVolin, Jeff

Pain Ray Headed to Iraq?

Postby emad » Wed Dec 21, 2005 12:55 pm

<br>It's been talked about for years. But the Pentagon's microwave-like pain ray may finally be headed to Iraq, Inside the Army reports.<br><br>Developed by the Air Force, the so-called "Active Denial System" (ADS) fires out milimeter waves -- a sort of cousin of microwaves, in the 95 GHz range. The invisible beams penetrate just a 64th of inch beneath the skin. But that's deep enough to heat up the water inside a person. Which is enough to cause excruciating pain.<br><br>Seconds later, people have to run away. And that causes mobs to break up in a hurry. It's no wonder, then, why less-lethal weapon guru Charles "Sid" Heal calls the ray the "Holy Grail of crowd control."<br><br>Raytheon has been developing a Humvee-mountable ADS for the Pentagon over the last couple of years, as part of an ACTD, or "advanced concept technology demonstration."<br><br>By now, the system was supposed to be in the field. But there have been concerns that the ADS tests weren't sufficiently realistic. The Pentagon ordered additional trials. More than 2,370 ADS shots were fired during a pair of "military utility assessments" over the fall.<br><br>Now, the head of the Army's Rapid Equipping Force -- the unit in charge of getting gear to the troops in a hurry -- is saying: enough.<br><br>The system's "capabilities have, to date, been sufficiently demonstrated in the ACTD [advanced concept technology demonstration] to prove its value to the solider," Col. Robert Lovett notes in a memo, obtained by Inside the Army.<br><br>And the 18th Military Police Brigade has requested ADS "to help 'suppress' insurgent attacks and quell prison uprisings."<br><br>ADS' technical manager, Diana Loree, said the system "now meets all of the ACTD performance parameters," Inside the Army notes.<br><br>"Because the system is a hand-built, one-of-a-kind technology demonstrator, it does not meet conventional humvee curb weight requirements... However, the technology team worked closely with [Humvee manufacturer] AM General to ensure the safety of the system and its occupants."<br><br>There has also been talk, at least, of building an airborne model of ADS -- as well as putting together a Hummer with both pain rays and sonic blasters. Needless to say, neither project is as far along as the basic Active Denial System.<br><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK START--><a href="http://www.defensetech.org/archives/002035.html">www.defensetech.org/archives/002035.html</a><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK END--><br> <p></p><i></i>
emad
 
Posts: 600
Joined: Sun May 22, 2005 12:03 pm
Blog: View Blog (0)

If you put metal in your microwave...

Postby banned » Thu Dec 22, 2005 2:19 am

...doesn't it break it?<br><br>So wouldn't having a metal shield neutralize these rays, or even break what was generating them?<br><br>Tech savvy people help here?? <p></p><i></i>
banned
 
Posts: 912
Joined: Sun Oct 02, 2005 5:18 pm
Blog: View Blog (0)

I knew my tinfoil hat would come in handy.

Postby DBtv » Thu Dec 22, 2005 2:35 am

Add a tinfoil suit and you are invincible. <p></p><i></i>
DBtv
 
Posts: 118
Joined: Wed Apr 27, 2005 11:58 pm
Blog: View Blog (0)

Re: I knew my tinfoil hat would come in handy.

Postby anotherdrew » Thu Dec 22, 2005 2:56 am

I would think that having no exposed skin would protect you from it, but that's not generally going to be an option, and if they see you are protected from this and not running away... they'll just wing you with a rubber bullet, so...<br><br>It's nice to see that more testing was done, the last round of 'outcry' had some effect at least.<br><br>If this is used responsibly it should be safer than any of their other methods of crowd control. that's a big IF and of course it's not always going to be used 'correctly.' <br><br>Another possibility... they've done no experiments on how actual crowds will react when exposed to this. I think it's possible that it could have very unexpected psycological effects on populations that are exposed to it. Not sure how people will react, it might just be "too much" and push crowds into bezerker rages, if they think they've been doomed to a slow death from radiation once it's touched them, people with such beliefs might consider that they have nothing left to loose and might as well go out attacking with suicidal fury the evil demons who wield such demonic weapons.<br><br>Short of that, it will likely lead to many dead from the stampeading mob. <p></p><i></i>
anotherdrew
 
Posts: 528
Joined: Mon May 23, 2005 6:06 pm
Blog: View Blog (0)

My idea was more...

Postby banned » Thu Dec 22, 2005 3:31 am

...that when they bring out the death ray, somebody brings out a metal gadget that either reflects the rays back and incapacitates whoever is wielding it, enabling them to be disarmed and the weapons turned against them, or it just breaks the ray guns, makes them blow up or something.<br><br>I know, that sounds like a Hollywood movie, plucky band of protestors stop high tech weapons with low tech gizmos, but look, they're announcing they have these things, so why not start planning for when they turn them against crowds here? For once instead of acting like a bunch of fucking morons, why doesn't the Opposition in this country actually organize to resist? One of the reasons I don't go to many demonstrations is, I am so sick and tired of the same old crap from the 60s, same chants, same songs, same small bands of hippie losers wandering around passing out Marxist literature (hello, wake up, dead letter) or trying to convince you Mumia is innocent or some other far left fringe crapola that is not going to save us from fascism.<br><br>Think about it. Them: high tech pain weapons. Us: badly printed brochures, cheesy signs, slogans leftover from the Vietnam War. If we're that dumb and useless, maybe we deserve to lose. <p></p><i></i>
banned
 
Posts: 912
Joined: Sun Oct 02, 2005 5:18 pm
Blog: View Blog (0)

Re: My idea was more...

Postby anotherdrew » Thu Dec 22, 2005 3:52 am

carefull - that kind of talk will get your phone tapped. I don't know... there are tactics that could be used concievably, but everyone wants to go home after or the next day at least if they get arrested. Not too many are able to drop their lives and risk spending the rest of their days in federal or state prison "just to push back against the man." How this current incarnation of the eternal stuggle will be won I don't know. Maybe this really IS the last round for this age, I don't know. It's that winter feeling of hopelessness that's crept up on me too. Still, I expect things will look better soon, a path will surely reveal itself and things will get better. On the 24 hour day analogy, it's dark out, but it's a bit past midnight, and that's fine but it's still dark as heck... In a few more hours the first rays of the new sun will be visable. <p></p><i></i>
anotherdrew
 
Posts: 528
Joined: Mon May 23, 2005 6:06 pm
Blog: View Blog (0)

Been there, had that done.

Postby banned » Thu Dec 22, 2005 4:53 am

("that kind of talk will get your phone tapped")<br><br>Look, if some NWO-hired bastard is trying to boil my blood for exercising my rights to free speech and assembly as guaranteed me by the Bill of Rights, all bets are off--if I can turn their 'pain ray' around and knock them to the ground screaming in pain, or better yet fry them to a freaking crisp, AND bust their little ray guns so they can't use them on anyone else, I'll happily do it. I just need the right technology, so I don't fry myself or some innocent bystander by mistake. <p></p><i></i>
banned
 
Posts: 912
Joined: Sun Oct 02, 2005 5:18 pm
Blog: View Blog (0)

Re: Been there, had that done.

Postby Et in Arcadia ego » Thu Dec 22, 2005 6:01 am

I had a response that might have earned me my own phone tap, but in essence, someone interested in this thing might want to study microwave telescope design. If you are behind say, an inversed hyperbolic or parabolic curve, you *should* be ok, provided the material you use is capable of reflecting a microwave off it's surface..<br><br>Hell..Maybe even a Fun House mirror would do it with the right dialectric coating..<br><br>However, a small cloud of .50 cal rounds sent your way for being a nuiscance in this fashion is pretty likely, I'd say..<br><br>I'm not too hip on my own money being spent to develop something that may be used one day to boil my own kid's skin off..<br><br>Or mine, for that matter.<br><br> <p></p><i></i>
User avatar
Et in Arcadia ego
 
Posts: 4104
Joined: Fri Dec 02, 2005 5:06 pm
Location: The Void
Blog: View Blog (0)

a prototype of this may have been used long ago...

Postby anotherdrew » Thu Dec 22, 2005 6:36 am

In the UK at an anti-nuke protest that lasted a long time, the protesters camp seems like it may have been attacked by psycotronics or this type of thing on a 'low' setting. <p></p><i></i>
anotherdrew
 
Posts: 528
Joined: Mon May 23, 2005 6:06 pm
Blog: View Blog (0)


Return to Iraq

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 0 guests