“The military yesterday maintained its support for the so-called GT200 bomb detectors by conducting a demonstration in front of reporters instead of putting it through scientific tests as demanded by academics. The bomb detector, which is widely used in the restive South, became the subject of controversy after the UK banned the export and use of a similar type of bomb detector going under the name of ADE 651 and arrested its manufacturer Jim McCormick.” (The Nation)

Why, exactly, might the UK ban the export of a bomb detector, and arrest the manufacturer of the device? Well it has something to do with this,

“The director of a British company that supplies bomb detectors to Iraq has been arrested on fraud charges, and the export of the devices has been banned, British government officials confirmed Saturday. Iraqi officials reacted with fury to the news, noting a series of horrific bombings in the past six months despite the widespread use of the bomb detectors at hundreds of checkpoints in the capital.” (NY Times)

Oh, wow, clearly there is a real flaw in the design of these bomb detectors. Let’s see how this thing works and why it might have such a spectacular failure rate.

The ADE and ATSC corporate websites are… um… “under construction” at the moment, so I went to check out the website for the GT200, the model under investigation in Thailand

Here is a video from the E-K9 website– Intro to the GT200

Yea. That’s it. That’s their video, from their professional, promotional, buy-this-product-from-us website.

Here’s another one– Detection in Airport Security

Those men are wearing uniforms. And they are training to search for bombs. Think about that.

The website never, never, comes right out and tells you what the hell this plastic box with an antenna actually does, or how it works, but fortunately there is a little place called Wikipedia, where the truth shall always come out.

“The ADE 651 consists of a swiveling antenna mounted via a hinge to a plastic handgrip. It requires no battery or other power source, its manufacturer stating that it is powered solely by the user’s static electricity. To use the device, the operator must walk for a few moments to charge it before holding it at right angles to the body. After a substance-specific ‘programmed substance detection card’ is inserted, the device is supposed to swivel in the user’s hand to point its antenna in the direction of the target substance. The cards are claimed to be designed to ‘tune into’ the frequency of a particular explosive or other substance named on the card.“

Okay, so that tells us… nothing. Maybe that New York Times article has a little move info…

“Iraqi officials said they would begin an investigation into why their government paid at least $85 million to the British company, ATSC Ltd., for at least 800 of the bomb detectors, called ADE 651s… The ADE 651 is a hand-held wand with no batteries or internal electronic components, ostensibly powered by the static electricity of the user, who needs to walk in place to charge it. The only moving part is what looks like a radio antenna on a swivel, which swings to point toward the presence of weapons or explosives. An associate of ATSC, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation, said the devices were manufactured at a cost of $250 each by suppliers in Britain and Romania. ‘Everyone at ATSC knew there was nothing inside the ADE 651,‘  he said.”

Nothing in it? $85 million dollars? Thousands of dead Iraqi citizens because these things are NOT detecting bombs?

“The Iraqi government, according to its auditors, paid $40,000 to $60,000 for each device, although it determined that ATSC was marketing the device for $16,000. The additional money was said to have been for training, spare parts and commissions. The Times of London quoted Mr. McCormick in November as saying that the device’s technology was similar to that of dowsing or divining rods used to find water. ‘We have been dealing with doubters for 10 years,’ he said. ‘One of the problems we have is that the machine does look primitive. We are working on a new model that has flashing lights.‘ Shortly after the arrest on Friday, the BBC reported that it had arranged a lab test of the device and found that its bomb-detection component was an electronic merchandise tag of the sort used to prevent shoplifting.”

This man is NOT an idiot. I want to be very clear on that. This man is not delusional enough to actually believe that an empty plastic box can detect a bomb. It’s like he said, it’s very similar to dowsing. A man walking around with a stick hoping to find water, a soldier walking around with an antenna trying to find a bomb, subconscious movements of the user effecting the device he or she is holding, it is EXACTLY the same thing. And Mr. McCormick doesn’t care. He doesn’t care that he is selling a useless product at a disgusting mark up to a war torn and desperate country. He doesn’t care that he is almost directly responsible for bombings that have killed innocent people.

However, he was a business man with a great idea. Lot’s of products that don’t really work are on the market, and people will buy just about anything if the commercial is colorful and loud enough (I still miss you, Billy Mays). The person responsible for signing the contract, the person who saw this product and agreed to let it be a prevalent security measure in Iraq, is an idiot. The complete lack of critical thinking, or investigation, or even asking for any studies done by ATSC proving the validity of their claims (peer reviewed, double blind studies performed: None. Zero. Ever.) is beyond belief. But, whatever, buyer beware, let the free market decide, what’s the harm in the placebo effect, random chance is better than nothing. It’s not like it’s going to hurt anyone.

Okay, l admit that in my 30 years of shuffling along this mortal coil I’ve not always been the most enlightened of people. I have, on occasion, made decisions that were not the best and had opinions that were changed after reasoned and passionate effort by my peers. I am able to adjust my line of thinking, if properly convinced.

Thus, it always frustrates me to see ignorance and stupidity win out on any side of a discussion.

Be it hate made vocal by the likes of David Duke and the KKK, shilling for opinions without reason and true belief by liberals and conservatives alike, or suppression of freedom by a regime bent on control, we see examples of people doing ignorant things on a daily basis.

Witness, for example, the royal family of Thailand.

Thailand, it seems, doesn’t quite have the freedom of speech that we have here in the United States. Whereas I can get away with saying “President Obama is a poopy head” or “George Bush is an assbag” without fear of retribution by my government (whether or not I believe that), one cannot do that in Thailand. Even blogging about the royal family, it seems, can get one placed in jail.

See, the king there is 81 years old and has been in power for 60 years+. He doesn’t like anything even potentially showing weakness in his regime, and thus has cracked down on speech in Thailand. Thus, he came across a shitstorm when the Interwebs came out.

Thus, we come across this pickle- what to say about such attempts to stifle dissent?

Ahem… let me try.

King Bhumibol Adulyadej,or as I like to call you, Bhummy? Hey there.

How you doing?

See, we’re over here in America and thus are not subject to the whims of an 81 year old with delusions of grandeur who is making the mistake of thinking that by throwing people in jail for writing, he can control the minds of the people. It’s the political equivalent of telling a class of students to shut up- they may be quiet for a few minutes, but once they’re out of your sight the talk starts.

And oh, will it start.

See, Bhummy, you just made a mistake by creating a political martyr of sorts. Oh sure, you haven’t killed anyone over this- yet. But I see that little pea brain of yours working, yessir I do. I see the idea in your head saying “Uhm, maybe it’ll be easier just to shut him up permanently.”

See, that’s where you’re wrong. You may think this only affects your country, but in reality?

MILLIONS of people are watching.

Not only that, but millions of businesses are watching as well and waiting to see what you do. And if you keep on this track, they’re not going to want to be associated too closely with a suppressive regime. Just ask how many businesses enjoyed the protests and such when they started working in China.

Or for that matter, how many are working with Commy McDumbass over in North Korea.

Not too many stepping up to the mic, are they?

Nope.

Hey, I’m not gonna say how you should rule your country. If you want to run your country back into the mid-20th century with your shitheadedness, then that’ your choice. Just don’t be too surprised when business don’t necessarily come a-calling.

Oh, and your wife looks like an old drag queen.

Out.