Real lightsaber hits UK stores
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Because it's AWESOME.Demented Teddy said:
And yeah, I think I could kill a guy with a rock. If his back is turned, my hands too. Besides, the gun laws in Ireland are really not that restrictive. You just need a safe and a piece of paper signed by the uncle or aunt you will probably have (Considering you're Irish) who owns a farm out in the country. If the police dont think you should have a gun for no quantifiable reason, you can even appeal to the minister for justice.
Oh, and you only need to be 16.
Yeah it's amazing we have so little (compared to other nations) gun crime here.Kazturkey said:
OT: Even though I understand how horrible these things are, don't tell me I'm the only one a little tempted to buy 100 and focus them all on something.... for science?
You can't guarantee any of that. In fact I will personally guarantee that if you managed to take over this country tomorrow, you'd be dead or out on your ass by next week. The simple reason is that the military will not follow you. They really won't. They're not stupid, they know that if they did they'd be outnumbered roughly 500:1 in the massive civil war that would follow. They'd run out of bullets, and wouldn't want to shoot innocent civilians. So, they'd shoot you instead and proclaim great victory for freedom.Demented Teddy said:
Yeah.. uh.. definitely the only one... for SCIENCE!Bobzer77 said:
To which I must say THIS IS WHY WE CANNOT HAVE NICE THINGS!!
Seriously, the second us Brits get our hands on something powerful we instantly fuck it up or assume we will fuck it up.
I'm reminded of the 1970's when a few police departments armed patrol police... within weeks there were several accidental shootings - one killing a young child - WHY CAN'T WE BE TRUSTED!?!
No, most bullet matching is a statistics game, they find out the calibre of the cartridge fired, who manufactured the ammo, what type of ammo (each bullet has a particular weight, sold under different variants). Then they can tell what TYPE of gun it was fired from: Smith and Wesson pistols have a different type of Rifling from Glock pistols. Then it might be possible to narrow down to a few Models based on Calibre, but almost impossible to deduce it down to a serial number of a particular weapon. And barrels are easily changed anyway, it is the receiver which is the "identifier" component.
It's a lot like tyre tracks in mud... it only indicates roughly which car might have driven there.
The purpose is to build circumstantial evidence, if a suspect is fingered by eyewitness as being at the scene, it adds to his guilt if he owns or has access to same model of gun loaded with the same type of ammunition... what are the chances of them all matching up. You can also identify if the gun has been fired recently and also if they have gun residue of them firing a gun recently. Any one piece of evidence is meaningless... it's the combination which reveals their actions.
Trust me, this laser is VERY traceable for one reason: it is unique.
In Ireland there was a Terrorist who liked to execute people with a Captive Bolt gun, the type used to slaughter cattle, under the logic of "it left not ballistic trail" well in fact if left a distinct wound. No one else used a captive bolt gun for murder but him, and as such the authorities had a rock solid case against him when they caught him with a captive bolt gun of the EXACT same type as caused the fatal wounds in his victims. There were only a handful of captive bolt guns in the whole country, only a couple for the few slaughterhouses.
No. The worst murder weapon for forensic investigators is one that could be linked to as many people as possible, like a very common pistol or shotgun with the most popular brand and type of ammunition. It's how most gangland killings in USA go unsolved, shot dead by a 9mm pistol, could be any one of the Hundreds of thousands listed as stolen or illegally sold on. Even if in random searches they found a pistol that matched the Bullet Brand/type and Gun Model, statistically that is meaningless as with so many guns in circulation that that combination is common.
This laser is also not the perfect murder weapon as it is not even clear how it can kill... 1000 times the power of sunlight in only comparable to focusing light with a magnifying glass, yes, nasty burns but too much time to run away, hide or fight back. A simple club is deadlier. Also, these lasers don't have unlimited range, they are negatively affected by "bloom" with the high energies making the air turn refractive to diverge and absorb the light.
Police should be more worried about the thousands of old pistols from the former USSR. The military and police of those countries are upgrading to 9x19mm and other calibres, these 9x18mm-Short Makarov pistols are flooding the market they were cheap when they were made and now "obsolete" and plentiful they are worth little more than scrap. As a result they are lucrative the smugglers, the problem is all these pistols, all the same type, all the same ammo, virtually indistinguishable.
Seriously, the second us Brits get our hands on something powerful we instantly fuck it up or assume we will fuck it up.
I'm reminded of the 1970's when a few police departments armed patrol police... within weeks there were several accidental shootings - one killing a young child - WHY CAN'T WE BE TRUSTED!?!
I think you have a bit too much faith in firearms ballistics... it is normally no where near that sophisticated as the marking left on a bullet by a barrel are not a "fingerprint" as the marking change over time from cleaning, continued firing and just the random interactions with the bullet-to-barrel from shot to shot.Omega V said:
No, most bullet matching is a statistics game, they find out the calibre of the cartridge fired, who manufactured the ammo, what type of ammo (each bullet has a particular weight, sold under different variants). Then they can tell what TYPE of gun it was fired from: Smith and Wesson pistols have a different type of Rifling from Glock pistols. Then it might be possible to narrow down to a few Models based on Calibre, but almost impossible to deduce it down to a serial number of a particular weapon. And barrels are easily changed anyway, it is the receiver which is the "identifier" component.
It's a lot like tyre tracks in mud... it only indicates roughly which car might have driven there.
The purpose is to build circumstantial evidence, if a suspect is fingered by eyewitness as being at the scene, it adds to his guilt if he owns or has access to same model of gun loaded with the same type of ammunition... what are the chances of them all matching up. You can also identify if the gun has been fired recently and also if they have gun residue of them firing a gun recently. Any one piece of evidence is meaningless... it's the combination which reveals their actions.
Trust me, this laser is VERY traceable for one reason: it is unique.
In Ireland there was a Terrorist who liked to execute people with a Captive Bolt gun, the type used to slaughter cattle, under the logic of "it left not ballistic trail" well in fact if left a distinct wound. No one else used a captive bolt gun for murder but him, and as such the authorities had a rock solid case against him when they caught him with a captive bolt gun of the EXACT same type as caused the fatal wounds in his victims. There were only a handful of captive bolt guns in the whole country, only a couple for the few slaughterhouses.
No. The worst murder weapon for forensic investigators is one that could be linked to as many people as possible, like a very common pistol or shotgun with the most popular brand and type of ammunition. It's how most gangland killings in USA go unsolved, shot dead by a 9mm pistol, could be any one of the Hundreds of thousands listed as stolen or illegally sold on. Even if in random searches they found a pistol that matched the Bullet Brand/type and Gun Model, statistically that is meaningless as with so many guns in circulation that that combination is common.
See when they say the DNA match is 1:60'000 chance of being a false match, that means if you have a database of 60'000 random individuals who are NOT connected to the crime, statistically 1 will be a false positive. If - as many governments want - sequence every person in the country for a DNA database, 60 million people in the country you'd get ONE THOUSAND false positives for one case!
In fact, if you randomly DNA sequence 6'000 people in an area around a crime, with this technique that means there is a 1 in 10 chance of getting a false positive... because a DNA sequence is just a comparatively CRUDE "representation" of a HUGE genome... people who can be completely genetically different, completely unrelated, can have the same genetic sequence. And of course, if one is related to the actual source of the sample there is increased chance of False positive.
Don't believe this CSI bullshit that you find the "one piece of evidence that undeniably and rock solid proves who is the guilty one", that is for the courts to decide and often it is not clear cut at all. Often it is a collection of circumstantial evidence that "builds a case"
Real life criminal investigation is in shades of grey, probabilities, and balancing the nature of coincidence and causality.
If you ever have to sit on a jury you WILL have to consider the nature of probability and coincidence. And you may very well be asked to convict or acquit based on uncertain and contradictory evidence.
Remember, the wider the police cast their net, the more likely they are to find someone who merely by co-incidence fits with the evidence... like if you roll a dice enough times you'll get the numbers you want.
In fact, if you randomly DNA sequence 6'000 people in an area around a crime, with this technique that means there is a 1 in 10 chance of getting a false positive... because a DNA sequence is just a comparatively CRUDE "representation" of a HUGE genome... people who can be completely genetically different, completely unrelated, can have the same genetic sequence. And of course, if one is related to the actual source of the sample there is increased chance of False positive.
Don't believe this CSI bullshit that you find the "one piece of evidence that undeniably and rock solid proves who is the guilty one", that is for the courts to decide and often it is not clear cut at all. Often it is a collection of circumstantial evidence that "builds a case"
Real life criminal investigation is in shades of grey, probabilities, and balancing the nature of coincidence and causality.
If you ever have to sit on a jury you WILL have to consider the nature of probability and coincidence. And you may very well be asked to convict or acquit based on uncertain and contradictory evidence.
Remember, the wider the police cast their net, the more likely they are to find someone who merely by co-incidence fits with the evidence... like if you roll a dice enough times you'll get the numbers you want.
This laser is also not the perfect murder weapon as it is not even clear how it can kill... 1000 times the power of sunlight in only comparable to focusing light with a magnifying glass, yes, nasty burns but too much time to run away, hide or fight back. A simple club is deadlier. Also, these lasers don't have unlimited range, they are negatively affected by "bloom" with the high energies making the air turn refractive to diverge and absorb the light.
Police should be more worried about the thousands of old pistols from the former USSR. The military and police of those countries are upgrading to 9x19mm and other calibres, these 9x18mm-Short Makarov pistols are flooding the market they were cheap when they were made and now "obsolete" and plentiful they are worth little more than scrap. As a result they are lucrative the smugglers, the problem is all these pistols, all the same type, all the same ammo, virtually indistinguishable.
You know, it probably isn't what it's being made out to be here.
I'd wager that one would have to wait patiently to burn a hole in material to allow the beam sufficient focus to heat the target surface up. No 'blasting' or swinging a lightsaber here.
It's being sexed up as a weapon, but in reality it's just a strong laser, to be used as all lasers have been used in the past.
Hmmm... this post makes me seem like such a nay-sayer.
...
On the plus side, I have been told that they can entrap ghosts.
I'd wager that one would have to wait patiently to burn a hole in material to allow the beam sufficient focus to heat the target surface up. No 'blasting' or swinging a lightsaber here.
It's being sexed up as a weapon, but in reality it's just a strong laser, to be used as all lasers have been used in the past.
Hmmm... this post makes me seem like such a nay-sayer.
...
On the plus side, I have been told that they can entrap ghosts.
This is unbelievably stupid, for so many reasons.
Firstly however, I will say that I don't want lasers banned, or high powered lasers made unavailable for civilians or hobbyists... the problem with this is not that it is an extremely powerful laser, but in the way it is marketed and designed.
It looks like a laser pointer. Most laser pointers that people are familiar with simply project a rather pathetic red dot with about ~5mw of power. Even though these pointers have all the same 'avoid eye exposure' warnings on them, they are pratically harmless. A short direct eye exposure will not cause any damage. I've even read of a study where they directed such a laser at a person's eye for several minutes (they eye had to be removed because of cancer anyway), and studied the effects it had. None were found from the red pointer, and a low powered green pointer only produced minor damage after significant exposure. Not somthing that will in any way cause any damage by accident.
This thing however... it's more dangerous than any knife, gun, air rifle or firework I've ever seen. Due to it's association with regular lasers, it is unlikely to be treated with the respect it so desperately needs. It isn't like a gun or a knife, which people know are dangerous and are (relatively) unlikely hurt others with by accident. You can wave this thing around when it's on, and the beam is impossible to react to. It's not like, say, a bb gun, where you can see it being pointed in an unsafe direction and then take action before it is fired. This thing puts out a constant beam, so is a constant danger when activated. It also has ludicrous range and accuracy... just wave it in the general direction of whomever you want to go blind. Unexpected reflections can also cause instant eye damage to anyone unlucky enough to be looking in the wrong direction.
Normally I'm annoyed with the import laws in Australia, which confiscate any laser over 1mw, and generally make the less powerful lasers out to be much more dangerous than they really are, but for once I'm glad to know that anyone caught trying to import this thing will lose their laser.
Firstly however, I will say that I don't want lasers banned, or high powered lasers made unavailable for civilians or hobbyists... the problem with this is not that it is an extremely powerful laser, but in the way it is marketed and designed.
It looks like a laser pointer. Most laser pointers that people are familiar with simply project a rather pathetic red dot with about ~5mw of power. Even though these pointers have all the same 'avoid eye exposure' warnings on them, they are pratically harmless. A short direct eye exposure will not cause any damage. I've even read of a study where they directed such a laser at a person's eye for several minutes (they eye had to be removed because of cancer anyway), and studied the effects it had. None were found from the red pointer, and a low powered green pointer only produced minor damage after significant exposure. Not somthing that will in any way cause any damage by accident.
This thing however... it's more dangerous than any knife, gun, air rifle or firework I've ever seen. Due to it's association with regular lasers, it is unlikely to be treated with the respect it so desperately needs. It isn't like a gun or a knife, which people know are dangerous and are (relatively) unlikely hurt others with by accident. You can wave this thing around when it's on, and the beam is impossible to react to. It's not like, say, a bb gun, where you can see it being pointed in an unsafe direction and then take action before it is fired. This thing puts out a constant beam, so is a constant danger when activated. It also has ludicrous range and accuracy... just wave it in the general direction of whomever you want to go blind. Unexpected reflections can also cause instant eye damage to anyone unlucky enough to be looking in the wrong direction.
Normally I'm annoyed with the import laws in Australia, which confiscate any laser over 1mw, and generally make the less powerful lasers out to be much more dangerous than they really are, but for once I'm glad to know that anyone caught trying to import this thing will lose their laser.
I just lol'd. Imagine a bunch of crazy bullies who know nothing about how powerful this is and they steal it from you. Then, when they are on the streets, they activate it and cause about 10 cars to crash against each other. That would be funny as hell.
Hmm, didn't consider the mindless vandalism factor.Crazie_Guy said:
This would be an arsonist's dream tool, start fires from many metres away both disconnecting them from any chain of evidence, also bypassing fences and other barriers that would otherwise discourage them. I mean point this at the screen and it could easily set the thing on fire!
Anything within eyesight could easily and anonymously be ignited! in many cases if it completely burst it would be too hard to tell if a laser was even used or they just approached it with a lighter.
Dammit... I wish the "experts" hadn't resorted to such ridiculous hyperbole with "Durp, dis shit can take out A COMMERCIAL AIRLINER... nerp!" which is patently ridiculous, it just makes everyone ignore them.
I mean you could from street level, from inside a car, shine through a top floor window to ignite a curtain on fire... no chain of evidence, no tell-tale source of ignition, or fingerprints or anything. Also no fear of being caught mid-trespass or in escape. Now that is more dangerous because it is conceivable that some idiot would see it as a prank - so make the event more likely - when it could easily kill everyone in a building.
This could deface posters, billboards and public works of art that would otherwise have been out of reach.
Oh fuck. This is going to be a REAL mess.
EDIT: I have lived in a lot of countries and known many more people from around the world and trust me: the UK is the NUMBER ONE country that would abuse a laser like this for mindless vandalism and sadistic "pranks".
What a... interesting... weapon... that would be so ridiculous it'd have to be fun or end up with me or someone else dead... probably me
Quite a few people seem to be confusing the words "to" and "from".
The company making and selling these lasers is based in Hong Kong, not the UK, but because the article is British orientated, their only concern is that these can be shipped to the UK, from Hong Kong (which is also why the prices on the website are in dollars and not pound sterling).
In light of this obvious fact, there's not a lot the British authorities can do (short of banning the lasers and intercepting the packages), as Hong Kong no longer falls under their jurisdiction.
However, this is good news for the few people who were under the false impression that these are exclusively for sale in Britain, since they're not, and can be shipped from Hong Kong to almost any country.
The company making and selling these lasers is based in Hong Kong, not the UK, but because the article is British orientated, their only concern is that these can be shipped to the UK, from Hong Kong (which is also why the prices on the website are in dollars and not pound sterling).
In light of this obvious fact, there's not a lot the British authorities can do (short of banning the lasers and intercepting the packages), as Hong Kong no longer falls under their jurisdiction.
However, this is good news for the few people who were under the false impression that these are exclusively for sale in Britain, since they're not, and can be shipped from Hong Kong to almost any country.
I wouldn't buy one but I'm pretty damn impressed that we are *this* close to having Lasers as coventional weapons. Future, here we come.