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'Science fiction like' weapons on tap for political conventions
The political parties are arming themselves, in preparation for their respective conventions. Congress has approved $100 million to pay for security expenses at this summer's presidential nominating conventions, with $50 million dedicated to each party. CNN's Ed Lavendera reports that Denver and St. Paul officials have said that the types of weapons being purchased are "top secret."Apart from the traditional pepper spray and rubber bullets employed by police for controlling large protests, Denver, Colorado and St. Paul, Minnesota officials may be spending large sums on weapons CNN calls 'science fiction sounding'. Weapons such as the sonic ray gun, which emits a head-splitting frequency and deafens large groups of people. Also rumored for the conventions is the goo gun -- which shoots a gel that can coat and wrap people whole, or stop a moving vehicle in its path -- and a microwave pulse emitter -- a radio frequency device that makes one's skin feel it is on fire, previously deployed in the streets of Baghdad, Iraq.The ACLU is suing both cities to disclose how security money is being spent, with hopes as to determine what specific weapons may be deployed against Americans. However, officials say it is important they be secretive about the technologies employed by their security forces, lest the crowds which will inevitably surround the conventions gain the upper hand. The political parties are arming themselves, in preparation for their respective conventions. Congress has approved $100 million to pa... more
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Mob Excess Deterrent Using Silent Audio?
According to the New Scientist, the U.S. military has developed a non-lethal microwave weapon that creates sound inside your head.
The device – dubbed MEDUSA (Mob Excess Deterrent Using Silent Audio) – uses microwaves which interact with your ears and creates irritating noises. Such auditory effects could cause "discomfort or even incapacitation" but are heard by the recipient only.
MEDUSA is aimed for military or crowd-control applications but it is still not clear whether its employment may cause substantial neural damage.
Illustration: http://flickr.com/photos/amandagillispie/2291821425/ According to the New Scientist, the U.S. military has developed a non-lethal microwave weapon that creates sound inside your head. ... more -
H.A.A.R.P Zapping Earth's Atmosphere with a Billion Watts
Details about H A A R P
official webpage:
http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/
High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program, HAARP (1993)
The HAARP Program is jointly managed by the US Air Force and the US Navy, and is based in Gakona, Alaska. It is designed to "understand, simulate and control ionospheric processes that might alter the performance of communication and surveillance systems." The HAARP system intends to beam 3.6 Gigawatts of effective radiated power of high frequency radio energy into the ionosphere in order to: * Generate extremely low frequency (ELF) waves for communicating with submerged submarines * Conduct geophysical probes to identify and characterize natural ionospheric processes so that techniques can be developed to mitigate or control them * Generate ionospheric lenses to focus large amounts of high frequency energy, thus providing a means of triggering ionospheric processes that potentially could be exploited for Department of Defense purposes, * Electron acceleration for infrared (IR) and other optical emissions which could be used to control radio wave propagation properties * Generate geomagnetic field aligned ionization to control the reflection/scattering properties of radio waves, * Use oblique heating to produce effects on radio wave propagation, thus broadening the potential military applications of ionospheric enhancement technology.
STRANGE CLOUDS OVER CHINA BEFORE 7.9 EARTHQUAKE
http://news.qq.com/a/20080513/004283.htm
________________________________
from TouchArt.net and OneEarthBlog.blogspot.com
where we know the earth is a living organism and
zapping it with a billion watts can't be good.
Details about H A A R P official webpage: http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/ ... more -
Denver police stock up on pepper weapons
Denver police are stocking up on guns that fire a pepper spray-like substance instead of bullets - a less-lethal weapon used to disperse crowds - in advance of the Democratic National Convention.
The department recently ordered 88 Mark IV launchers and projectiles at a cost "in the low six figures," the company that makes the weapons stated in a news release Monday.
The request was for delivery in advance of the DNC, according to Louisville- based Security With Advanced Technology Inc.
The convention, scheduled for Aug. 25 to 28 at the Pepsi Center, is expected to draw thousands of protesters to sites throughout Denver.
The city received a $50 million federal grant for security. A senior adviser to Mayor John Hickenlooper has said the city plans to spend up to half that amount on equipment, with the rest going to pay officers.
But the city has refused to disclose how it is spending the money, prompting the American Civil Liberties Union last month to file a civil lawsuit.
The court filing alleges the city is violating the Colorado Open Records Act.
City officials say releasing the information is "contrary to the public interest" because it could disclose important tactical information, potentially jeopardizing security.
A city spokesperson could not be reached for comment Monday. Meanwhile, speculation about what the city is buying has run rampant.
Some organizers of protest groups believe police are buying extended-range Tasers and weapons that incapacitate people with high-intensity sound.
The Mark IV weapons the city ordered recently fire plastic balls filled with powder that's "like a combination of cayenne pepper and baby powder," the manufacturer said.
It can be fired from up to 100 feet away, said Ben Cook, director of Veritas, a subsidiary of Security With Advanced Technology.
The balls burst open on impact. While the powder will incapacitate a person like pepper spray, it doesn't cause some of the more severe reactions, Cook said.
-Sara Burnett
Rocky Mountain News Denver police are stocking up on guns that fire a pepper spray-like substance instead of bullets - a less-lethal weapon used to disper... more -
US wants 58 bases in Iraq!
58 bases??!! All the better to protect the oil? Would we want 58 Chinese military bases across the US?
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Chavez mocks critics with 'atomic bicycle'
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is mocking critics who question his close relationship with Iran by showing off what he calls an "atomic bicycle."
The bicycles are produced in Venezuela under a joint venture with an Iranian company.
Chavez rode one of the bikes during his Sunday TV program and joked about what he called the bicycle's "radioactivity" and offered one to U.S. President George W. Bush.
U.S. officials say Chavez is a destabilizing influence in Latin America and also express concern that Iran's nuclear research program could be aimed at weapons production.
Chavez says there is no cause for concern and says the new bicycle factory will eventually be able to manufacture 100,000 bikes a year.
Credit: AP Venezuela Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is mocking critics who question his close relationship with Iran by showing off what he calls an "ato... more -
United States Space Command Vision for 2020
Vision for 2020, a document published by the U.S. Space Command, is the plan for United States' domination of the Earth from space. The first page calls for, "dominating the space dimension of military operations to protect US interests and investment." When you read the document, you will find such phrases as, "full spectrum dominance;" "control of space is the ability to assure access to space…and an ability to deny others the use of space, if required."
Compare the above to the Outer Space Treaty [Declaration of Legal Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space], which can be read on the United Nations site.
It's a good read, scroll through the pages Vision for 2020, a document published by the U.S. Space Command, is the plan for United States' domination of the Earth from space. Th... more -
Halabja, The Hiroshima of Kurdistan
MAKE SURE TO WATCH PART 2 (on youtube a well)
Chemical attack on the kurdish people in Iraq. The US turned a blind eye and then capitalized on the situation to go into Iraq again.
Where does terrorism come from? Situations or neglected people. People living in immense poverty (different then US poverty) with no infrastructure and no hope... Just like Christian Missionaries going into Africa, Islamic crazies go into the underprivileged, uneducated and provide a little bit of hope. They seek to capitalize on the misfortune of these people by converting them to their ideology (I am only comparing the techniques- Missionaries are obviously not the same as Islamic crazies).
The heart of the terrorism problem is the poverty. Go give these people hope and there goes the entire terrorist threat. How much would it cost? I would imagine way less then the pointless Iraq War which if anything, will create more situations like these.
The last interesting point is the involvement of the West. They know these things were happening but turned a blind eye because it was in their best interest. I am not anti- capitalist by any means but this "get money at any cost" mentality is no different then that of the gangbangers on any city's streets... The goals only involve billions of dollars instead... MAKE SURE TO WATCH PART 2 (on youtube a well) ... more -
Pentagon's raygun demonstrated on mock protesters
The Pentagon has been developing a raygun which can harmlessly repel enemies by causing a burning sensation in the top layer of the skin. However, according to CBS's 60 Minutes, the military is unwilling to actually trust this weapon enough to deploy it in Iraq.
"We are now stepping into the Buck Rogers scenario," explained Colonel Kirk Hymes, who is in charge of testing the "Active Denial System" at Moody Air Force Base in Georgia.
Hymes demonstrated the weapon by staging what CBS somewhat oddly called "a scenario soldiers might encounter in Iraq" -- a handful of military volunteers, dressed as civilian protesters, who carried signs saying "peace not war" and threw objects at a small group of soldiers. A series of raygun blasts from half a mile away disrupted their chants and finally sent them running.
Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisiton Sue Payton calls the Active Denial System a "huge game-changer" which "would save huge numbers of lives." She told CBS, "It could be used to read someone's mind, in effect. ... If they continue to come at you, then you're fairly sure ... they're probably a terrorist or an adversary who wants to do you harm."
The Active Denial System was developed in secret for ten years before being unveiled by the Pentagon in 2001. As of 2004, it was being described as ready for use in Iraq within the next 12 months. This has still not occurred, and according to Secretary Payton, use of the weapon in Iraq is now "not politically tenable" because after Abu Ghraib "you don't ever, ever, ever want a system like this to be thought of as a torture weapon."
However, the failure to deploy the weapon as planned has raised suspicions that the real intention is to use it for domestic crowd control.
In 2006, Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne was quoted as saying that the device should be used first on Americans, because "if we're not willing to use it here against our fellow citizens, then we should not be willing to use it in a wartime situation. ... If I hit somebody with a nonlethal weapon and they claim that it injured them in a way that was not intended, I think that I would be vilified in the world press."
Raytheon, which developed the system for the Pentagon, is currently selling a more limited-range civilian version of the system, under the name "Silent Guardian," which it promotes as being suitable for "law enforcement, checkpoint security, facility protection, force protection and peacekeeping missions."
Commander Charles "Sid" Heal of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, who advised Raytheon in developing the raygun, told CBS that the real reason the system has not been deployed in Iraq is "cowardice." Heal, a former Marine, took a variety of non-lethal weapons to Somalia in 1995 and was dismayed to find that his superiors felt their supposedly humanitarian mission was better accomplished by killing. He would love to have the Pentagon's raygun available for such purposes as controlling prison riots.
The Pentagon is spending just $13.1 million on the raygun this year. Secretary Payton agrees this is "absolutely peanuts ... chump change," but she explained to CBS that with only a $475 billion annual budget, "we don't have enough money to do things that are the here and now." The raygun is seen as unproven because it has never been deployed in the field, and it has not been deployed in the field because it is unproven.
"Lethal weapons have an easier time getting into our system," acknowledges Colonel Hymes. The Pentagon has been developing a raygun which can harmlessly repel enemies by causing a burning sensation in the top layer of the sk... more -
Blackwater buys fighter plane
Why are we funding this private army? Our soldiers don't have the equipment they need such as armor or hospital equipment and our government is arranging fighter plane sales for a private security company.
Call your Congress members! Why are we funding this private army? Our soldiers don't have the equipment they need such as armor or hospital equipment and our gove... more -
Once again, we can't practice what we preach.
So we don't want certain nations to develop nuclear weapons, but want to be able to have any weapons we want. I understand the whole "defense" argument. I saw the episode of The Simpsons in which they get rid of the guns and then are taken over by those creatures and have no weapons to fight them off with. However, I think that just because they are the most effective weapons (cluster bombs) for destruction doesn't mean you should implement them in every attack, which is pretty much what we (the USA) do with cluster bombs.
Like I said I'm not saying we shouldn't have weapons, just in case, but we also shouldn't act like there is an imminent threat right around the corner 24/7, because when you adopt such thinking, you invite such occurrences. ... more -
Teacher framed on drug and weapons charges
FULLERTON – The teacher arrested and then cleared in what authorities now describe as an elaborate setup said this morning that his mood had swung from paranoia and fear to gratitude for the support he received. Police have named Abbott’s wife, Devon E. Abbott, and a male acquaintance of hers as persons of interest. FULLERTON – The teacher arrested and then cleared in what authorities now describe as an elaborate setup said this morning that his mo... more
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Robot + super gun = 'Crowd control'
What do you do with a robot armed with a million-round-per-minute gun? "Crowd control," naturally. For several months, Metal Storm, the troubled electronic gun developer, has been working with iRobot -- the makers of military machines and cute, semi-autonomous vacuum cleaners -- to arm some of their new, 250-pound unmanned ground vehicles. Last week, at a defense trade show, the two firms showed off the results of their joint venture.
Metal Storm's weapons fire bullets electronically, instead of with firing pins and primer. The ammunition is stacked, rather than mechanically reloaded. And the only moving parts in the weapon are the ammunition itself. Which means the weapon can fire at a rate of thousands of rounds per minute -- maybe even up to a million, theoretically.
Metal Storm's 40mm weapons mount, the company tells us, can deliver both high-explosive and less-lethal rounds. Which makes it perfect for everything from urban assaults to "border patrol" to "infrastructure protection" to "crowd control."
Link below to sho how it works
http://blog.wired.com/defense/2007/08/video-fix-milli.h...
CROWD CONTROL??
THEY GOT TO BE KIDDING OR ARE THEY?
What do you do with a robot armed with a million-round-per-minute gun? "Crowd control," naturally. For several months, Metal Storm, th... more -
UK will scrap cluster bombs
Following the weeks of controversy , an agreement to ban cluster bombs has been confirmed.
Ending a long-running Whitehall dispute which has pitted the Ministry of Defence against the FO and Department for International Development, Gordon Brown announced:
"We have decided we will take all our types of cluster bombs out of service. I believe that is going to make a difference to the negotiations that are now taking place," Brown said this evening.
"I look forward to other countries following us in this action and I look forward to other countries being able to take these cluster bombs out of service. I think this would be a big step forward to make the world a safer place."
Following the weeks of controversy , an agreement to ban cluster bombs has been confirmed. ... more -
Cluster bomb ban treaty faces loophole, exceptions and delays
Cluster munitions kill children and other civilians long after wars are over--and this week, we have a chance to ban them. 116 countries are in the final stages of negotiation on a cluster bomb ban -- but some are trying to water down the treaty with loopholes, exceptions, and delays. The delegations obstructing a strong treaty in the last few days include the UK, France, Germany, South Africa, the Netherlands, Finland, Denmark, Japan, Sweden and Switzerland. Cluster munitions kill children and other civilians long after wars are over--and this week, we have a chance to ban them. 116 countri... more
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Vice Magazine locates warhead for purchase with ease
VBS, short for Vice Broadcasting System, is the internet video wing of youth culture print magazine Vice. In this deeply unsettling piece, Vice co-founder Shane Smith is able to find an arms dealer more than happy to sell him a real, working warhead. VBS, short for Vice Broadcasting System, is the internet video wing of youth culture print magazine Vice. In this deeply unsettling p... more
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Mexican drug cartels prefer U.S. weapons to fight drug war
Many Mexican drug cartels are utilizing the loose gun laws in many south eastern states to purchase assault weapons that are used in the Mexican drug war. Assault weapons are illegal to the general public in Mexico, so many Mexican drug moguls are smuggling weapons from the United States across the border into Mexico. Many of the Mexican authorities are ill-equipped to defend themselves against the powerful assault weapons and have consequently lost over 2000 police officers.
Watch the video to get the full report. Many Mexican drug cartels are utilizing the loose gun laws in many south eastern states to purchase assault weapons that are used in t... more -
AFP: Conference opens in Dublin to ban cluster bombs
Representatives from around 100 countries are attending a 12-day conference in a bid to agree a global ban on cluster bombs, one of the most lethal weapons facing civilians caught up in conflict.
The talks, at Dublin's Croke Park Gaelic sports stadium, are aiming for a wide-ranging pact that would completely wipe out the use, production and stockpiling of cluster bombs by its signatories.
The US and the UK have already said they are opposed to the weapons. Representatives from around 100 countries are attending a 12-day conference in a bid to agree a global ban on cluster bombs, one of th... more -
U.S. and U.K. oppose worldwide call for ban on cluster bombs
A conference taking place today in Dublin has been tipped by top UN officials and diplomats as likely to end with the signing of a treaty outlawing cluster bombs. Over one hundred nations are gathering in the Republic of Ireland capital - but the world's top users and stockpilers of the gruesome bombs will reportedly be conspicuously absent: the United States, Israel, China, Russia, India, and Pakistan will not be attending. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon actively advocates a ban.
Cluster blasts scatter hundreds of so-called "bomblets" over wide areas. Because they often fail to explode, the shrapnel effectively leaves behind a mine field which can kill or maim. There have been 13,000 confirmed injuries and deaths caused by cluster bombs, mostly in Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Vietnam, and Laos, in Southeast Asia.
[Updated: May 19th] A conference taking place today in Dublin has been tipped by top UN officials and diplomats as likely to end with the signing of a tre... more -
The Medellin Mechanic // Comment Picked for TV
Thanks to deg334 for sharing his thoughts while watching "The Medellin Mechanic." Check out what he has to say then watch the pod: http://current.com/items/88881584_the_medellin_mechanic Thanks to deg334 for sharing his thoughts while watching "The Medellin Mechanic." Check out what he has to say then watch the pod: ht... more
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