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<font face="Verdana" size=2>May 28, 2008<br>
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<a href="http://www.counterpunch.org/dickinson05282008.html" eudora="autourl">
http://www.counterpunch.org/dickinson05282008.html<br><br>
</a></font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=4><b><i>Raytheon's
Pain Ray <br><br>
</i></font><h1><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=5 color="#990000">
<b>Fry 'Em! </b></font></h1><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=4>By
MICHAEL DICKINSON <br><br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=6 color="#990000">C</font>
<font face="Verdana" size=2>oming soon, from the folks who brought you
the microwave - Raytheon! After more than ten years in the making
and at a cost of over 40 million dollars, ‘Silent Guardian’, or Active
Denial System, (ADS, in it’s formal mood), is almost ready for public
release!<br><br>
Yes, Raytheon - manufacturer of the 100 bunker buster bombs kindly flown
by America to Israel at the height of their bombardment of Lebanon, and
supplier of electronic equipment for the apartheid wall built on
Palestinian land; - Raytheon - with its73,000 employees worldwide and
annual revenues of 20 billion dollars has gone and done it
again!<br><br>
For, Raytheon - the world's largest producer of guided missiles, and
fifth largest defense contractor in the world, provider of aircraft radar
systems, weapons sights and targeting systems, communication and
battle-management systems, and satellite components – has come up with a
system which could scatter a crowd in a trice without a drop of blood
being spilled.<br><br>
Yes, folks, originally designed to protect military personnel against
small-arms fire without the use of lethal force, Silent Guardian, ADS,
the Pain Ray, call it what you will, (Raytheon would prefer you not to
use the latter however), will finally soon be here!<br><br>
Transmitted at the speed of light over a 700 yard distance, the Pain Ray
is a millimeter-wave beam that penetrates 1/64th of an inch beneath the
skin, causing the water molecules there to bubble, producing an intense
burning sensation, said to feel like being burnt by molten lava or a hot
iron. Its delivery system attached to a Humvee and aimed right, the
Pain Ray makes people run away – fast.<br><br>
Tests conducted at Kirtland Air Force Base south of Albuquerque, New
Mexico, employ realistic combat scenarios to determine its potential
effectiveness in a deployed environment, the first to expose an entire
test subject to the ray.<br><br>
The Defense Department want to use it for protecting Defense resources,
peacekeeping, humanitarian missions and other situations in which the use
of lethal force is undesirable, but already there have been inquiries
from other institutes and wealthy individuals about using it to protect
private property. <br><br>
Testing, conducted on human volunteers and animals by the Air Force
Research Laboratory's Human Effectiveness Directorate continues, and
although it has not been proved that exposure to the ray can cause
cancer, it has been ascertained that the corneas of Rhesus monkeys can be
damaged. <br><br>
Deployment of the system is slated to begin in Iraq in 2010, but there
are rumors that it has already been tested there.<br><br>
Raytheon congratulates itself on having developed a non-lethal weapon
which has been described as "Holy Grail of crowd control," but
their Silent Guardian also has its critics. One, author Richard
Hunter asks:<br><br>
</font>
<dl>
<dd>“But what happens if the people faced with such a weapon can't just
run away? What happens if they're trapped in a crowd, and the crowd can't
move? How much pain must that crowd endure? How long can any member of
the crowd be exposed to that weapon before his or her skin -- or their
eyes -- simply cook off?<br><br>
<dd>What happens if the devices are used deliberately in a manner
designed to cause maximum harm -- say, by training the device on
prisoners trapped in prison cells until they literally go mad with
pain?<br><br>
<dd>What happens if the system operator turns up the power? A little bit
works well, why not try a lot?<br><br>
<dd>What happens if the scientists didn't test the devices thoroughly,
and they turn out to render anyone touched by them blind, or impotent, or
sterile?”<br><br>
</dl>And the National Lawyers Guild of the US has accused Raytheon of
being "implicated in the commission of war crime.”<br><br>
One critical group, the Derry Anti-War Coalition, occupied the Raytheon
weapons factory in Ireland in 2006 to protest at the production of guided
missile components there.<br><br>
Said a spokesman: <br><br>
<dl>
<dd>"We are calling for arms components manufacturers to be shut
down all over Ireland - North and South. It is disgraceful that so many
companies in Ireland are profiteering from the maiming and murder of
peaceful and innocent civilians in the Middle East. We are calling for
and supporting non-violent occupation of all weapons manufacturers that
supply arms to the Israeli Military."<br><br>
</dl>The protestors were arrested and charged with damaging Raytheon
property. They await conviction. The cheeky blighters have
got up a petition to sign to support them!
<a href="http://www.petitiononline.com/dawc/petition.html">
http://www.petitiononline.com/dawc/petition.html</a> <br><br>
As if you would!<br><br>
They wouldn’t have been able to get into the building if a Silent
Guardian had been in action. A tiny squirt of the Pain Ray would
have quickly sent them yelping away. <br><br>
Roll on the ADS! Coming soon! To a street near you!<br><br>
Michael Dickinson</b>, whose artwork graces the covers of
<a href="http://www.easycartsecure.com/CounterPunch/CounterPunch_Books.html">
Dime's Worth of Difference</a>,
<a href="http://www.easycartsecure.com/CounterPunch/CounterPunch_Books.html">
Serpents in the Garden</a> and
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1567513360/counterpunchmaga">
Grand Theft Pentagon</a>, lives in Istanbul. He can be contacted via his
website
<a href="http://yabanji.tripod.com/">http://yabanji.tripod.com/</a> or
at:
<a href="mailto:michaelyabanji@gmail.com">michaelyabanji@gmail.com</a><br>
<br>
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