| Submit your comments on this article |
| Home Front: WoT |
| Can you hear me now? |
| 2004-03-09 |
| EFL (Source: Los Angeles Times; published March 7, 2004) (Reproduced courtesy of William B. Arkin) Marines arriving in Iraq this month as part of a massive troop rotation will bring with them a high-tech weapon never before used in combat - or in peacekeeping. The device is a powerful megaphone the size of a satellite dish That’s a wide range that can deliver recorded warnings in Arabic and, on command, emit a piercing tone so excruciating to humans, its boosters say, that it causes crowds to disperse, clears buildings and repels intruders. "[For] most people, even if they plug their ears, [the device] will produce the equivalent of an instant migraine," says Woody Norris, chairman of American Technology Corp., the San Diego firm that produces the weapon. "It will knock [some people] on their knees."  Sounds like a cross between my ninth grade English teacher and the fire alarms in my office  American Technology says its new product "is designed to determine intent, change behavior and support various rules of engagement." The company is careful in its public relations not to refer to the megaphone as a weapon, or to dwell on the debilitating pain American forces will be able to deliver with it. The military has been equally reticent on the subject. And that’s a problem. Three paragraphs before the but. Not bad for the LAT The new sound weapon might, in some scenarios, save lives. It might provide a good alternative to lethal force in riot situations, as its proponents assert. But the U.S. is making a huge mistake by trying to quietly deploy a new pain-inducing weapon without first airing all of the legal, policy and human rights issues associated with it. That was our big mistake at Hiroshima too. But now the LAT will solve our probelem by pre-announcing delivery of the weapon. This is a weapon unlike any other used by the military, and it is certain to provoke public outcry and the conspiracy theories that often greet new U.S. military technology. If the military feels that its new-style weaponry brings something important to the battlefield, and if testing has shown it to be safe, then why not make our reasoning – and research - transparent to the world? And the design specs and the op manual and the train the trainer manual  Is actual combat in a foreign country the appropriate place to test a new weapon? Clearly not. Let’s use LA. Apparently, we are about to find out.  |
| Posted by:Mr. Davis |
| #5 LOL! Hard to stop laughing (at LAT melodrama) long enough to do it... I second, it, OP! Wotta buncha maroons, 1st Class. Every tool available should be in the inventory for when that tool is the right tool. In this case, obviously, they can try the weapon on Sadr's bunch when they run one of their staged demonstrations - or similar moment. Just in case, of course, you would also have shitload of hardballers armed to the eyeballs, in case it requires AA batteries and you brought AAA's. Sheesh. |
| Posted by: .com 2004-3-10 12:05:32 AM |
| #4 I think he's right. I think the Marines SHOULD test this new weapon before deploying it. I recommend testing it at full volume at the LA Times. For a month. Any seconds? |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2004-3-9 11:19:35 PM |
| #3 "Provoke public outcry" seems about right. |
| Posted by: Grunter 2004-3-9 11:16:28 PM |
| #2 But the U.S. is making a huge mistake by trying to quietly deploy a new pain-inducing weapon without first airing all of the legal.. Oh yeah, it's all about law enforcement still. Well, the alternative is to shoot people. So what's the sensible choice? |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2004-3-9 10:51:00 PM |
| #1 emit a piercing tone so excruciating to humans, its boosters say, that it causes crowds to disperse, clears buildings and repels intruders. "[For] most people, even if they plug their ears, [the device] will produce the equivalent of an instant migraine I wonder if the Ex-Mrs.JerseyMike was involved in its development? |
| Posted by: JerseyMike 2004-3-9 8:06:40 PM |