US Air Force secretary says directed energy weapons should be used on US citizens

OMFG!!! What else can you say about somthing like this?

 

Better to be hit with one of these than a bullet tbh.

Great idea.

 

doesnt microwaves make you sterile? and cause cancer and other mutations?

 

That's particle radiation much further up the spectrum. The exact effects of microwaves on people are unknown, however. Needless to say, if it is powerful enough to hurt, it is powerful enough to do damage.

 

At least they're not testing the stuff on Iraqi's.

 

How do you know they're not?

 

Actually, I'm sure I read something that they were deploying a vehicle mounted system which sounds very much like this to Iraq quite some time ago, on a small scale for 'developmental' purposes I'll try and find it again.

 

One must try be optimistic in these matters

 

In extreme cases, it might be prefered to other measures such as gas or rubber bullets. A Boston college student was killed by police a while back when they fired rubber bullets into the crowd. It hit her in the eye or something.

It'll probably give people intense pain such as bad sunburn sensations.

 

Ever put tinfoil in the microwave? How about a CD? Got coins in your pocket? Rivets holding your Jeans together? How about a zipper (OUCH!). THink about it, they may be using this on you some day. They certainly sound like they enjoy the idea

 

The metallic objects one has on them won't be an issue. The basic principle of microwave ovens is that they vibrate the water molecules in the food. Hence, increased vibrations is translated to thermal energy.

They don't want to zap your rivets and zippers - they want to virtually cook you for a split second, hence the intense pain I mentioned.

 

If you want to know what it feels like to be zapped with microwaves goe to a dockyard and stand infront of a Navy Radar. Apparently you feel slighty warm, then you feel dizzy and sick, then you die as all your internel organs have been cooked.

NOT very nice.

 

Unless the metal acts as an antenna and arcs to your skin, which could easily cause localized burns of a pretty serious nature. I think the article mentioned that this was enough of a concern that they had volunteers involved in the testing of this remove all metal objects from their bodies and also remove contact lenses.

I agree that this is a better alternative to existing means of riot control, but what scares the hell out of me is that the government sees it's use not as a last resort, but as a desireable example to the rest of the world that we used it to inflict pain on our own citizens before we used it to inflict pain on people overseas. Call me naieve, but in't the government supposed to protect the citizenry from such threats?

 

I think we're all taking it a little out of perspective. I see it more as "if we're willing to use it on our own people as a safer and more efficient non-lethal riot control technique, then there should be no outcry if we choose to use this oversees on a non-American populace".

They've been working on other similar stuff for a while now. Out of sonic and visual, and directed energy harassment, the focused energy seems to have won out.

 

ok, it heats up liquids, most of your body is liquid, but as i see it, people would go blind and infertile with this, right? if it heats up liquids it will heat up your eyes making them dry, and heat your testicles. for Cthippo this would not be a great deal since he does not want to breed, but i want kids!!!

no ofence there Cthippo

 

Er microwave in your kitchen is tuned to make water molecules vibrate. The military version doesn't necessarily do the same thing.

 

i've heard of using low level sound waves to make people extremely uncomfortable before... but microwave?

 

No problem, DXR

Actually, I think the danger of sterility is overstated. I did some research on this a few years back for a friend and basically found that the danger from microwave radiation is pretty much systemic. Either it cooks you whole, orit doesn't do any permanent damage. As I've said before, my concern is for localized burns and possible electrocution form different electrical potentials on different parts of the body and to ground.

If someone wants to prove me wrong, go right ahead.

 

another thing springs to mind...... "torture device".

 

I read recently that during the testing of this device, no test subjects were allowed to wear glasses due to them magnifying the beam and causing eye damage. They also found that any solid objects like buildings or the ground could reflect the beam and cause hot spots with sometimes double the original power. I think this was in New Scientist.

Of all the nonlethal things they could have used, I can't understand why they chose microwaves. I just don't see how they're ever going to stop hot spots, as once the beam has left the "gun" it's unpredictable and uncontrollable.

EDIT: Here are the articles I read:

Microwave weapon 'less lethal', but still not safe

Microwave weapon intensified by sweaty skin