[extropy-chat] fanatic anxietist

[BillK]

On 6/8/05, Adrian Tymes wrote:
> Because, much as they have been discussed and are under development,
> there aren't any field-ready EMP guns yet.  Not even for the military
> (which accepts reliability as low as the Patriot anti-missile system),
> and certainly not for law enforcement.

And why not?
Because an EMP pulse would fry any electronics in the vicinity,
including pacemakers.
However, I have read that shielding pacemakers and other devices would
not be too difficult, but they would all have to be protected before
deployment.
Also, the cops would have to shield their own electronics first.
So if the cops can get shielded cars, you can bet the crooks will get them also.

The public and press also see a difference between a runaway driver
causing damage and the police causing damage when they try to stop
him.

So EMP guns would be expensive, heavy, dangerous to bystanders and
after a time pretty well useless for stopping criminals.

BillK