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Chgo cops, new weapon=Sound Cannon to disperse unruly Nato protests
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Capt. Justice
May 15, 2012, 8:21:23 PM5/15/12
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Capt. Justice
May 21, 2012, 10:56:04 AM5/21/12
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Monday, May 14, 2012 3:54 PM UTC
.
As week-long protests against the NATO summit begin, city police may use
a potentially dangerous sound cannon
.
By Natasha Lennard
.
This week, Occupy Chicago welcomes allies from around the country and
the world as they descend on the Windy City to protest the weekend?s
NATO summit. The Chicago Police Department is ready: Not only has the
city passed strict new protest ordinances, but it?s been stockpiling
serious riot gear in anticipation of conflict with the protesters.
According to a report from the Guardian's Adam Gabbatt, in recent months
the Chicago police have spent over $1 million on riot equipment, and are
preparing to use a controversial LRAD (long-range acoustic device) - a
sound cannon designed to cause extreme pain to those in its path.
The Chicago Police Department is pitching the LRAD largely as a means to
communicate with large crowds:
"This is simply a risk management tool, as the public will receive clear
information regarding public safety messages and any orders provided by
police," Chicago Police spokeswoman Melissa Stratton told the Guardian.
However, during its first outing at a U.S. protest, during the G-20
summit in Pittsburgh in 2009, police blasted non-lethal sound waves from
the device as a crowd deterrent. Unlike firing tear gas or swinging
batons, deploying the LRAD does not create a dramatic media spectacle;
indeed, videos from the Pittsburgh protests capture the LRAD emitting
little more than a high-pitched siren. Those within the sound cannon?s
range, however, have described immense pain and severe headaches and ?
in some cases ? irreversible hearing damage.
LRAD Corp., which produces the weapon for the military and domestic
policing, said that anyone within 100m of the device's directed sound
path will experience "extreme pain,' according to Gizmodo.
"In Pittsburgh, they directed the LRAD at a crowd coming up the center
of a wide street, then sent tear gas canisters down the sides of the
street. Tear gas is painful, but everyone ran into the tear gas to get
out of the LRAD path," one protester who attended the Pittsburgh G-20
told me, asking to remain anonymous. Chicago's Police Superintendent
Garry McCarthy has recently expressed that he believes tear gas to be an
ineffective crowd control device " and based on lessons from Pittsburgh,
the LRAD can produce a painful enough effect to force crowd dispersal
without the dramatic media impact tear gas creates; it's certainly a
more insidious weapon. (Indeed, the Chicago police riot during the 1968
Democratic National Convention went down in infamy partly because of the
excessive use of tear gas.)
Norm Stamper, the former Seattle police chief who oversaw the policing
of the Battle in Seattle in 1999, has learned some hard personal lessons
about protest policing. Stamper resigned after his department was
condemned for excessive use of force and tear gas against the ?99 World
Trade Organization protesters; he has since become an outspoken critic
of harsh crowd control techniques. Of the LRAD Stamper told Salon, "I'm
not a fan. And it's not just because I suffer from tinnitus. Everyone,
without ear protection, is at risk for permanent hearing damage. Not
worth it, as far as I?m concerned.?
Mayor Rahm Emanuel has assured Chicagoans that no taxpayer money will go
toward covering any summit activity (federal and private money was
secured for this purpose). However, Chicago organizers and participants
in the counter-summit have nonetheless balked that money can be made
available for such purposes, while public services, such as mental
health clinics are being shuttered (six out of 12 of the city's mental
health clinics are set for closure, which sparked the week-long
occupation of one clinic by staff and clients with the support of Occupy
Chicago).
Occupy Chicago's press committee late last week held a conference to
give the media a preview of the week of protests. Although it was made
explicit that actions would take place that have not yet been disclosed
or even planned, scheduled protests include a march Tuesday organized by
National Nurses United (who are paying for 12 busloads of protesters to
get to Chicago from across the country). The NNU march will end with a
musical performance by Rage Against the Machine guitarist and 'guitarmy'
instigator Tom Morello, and aims to speak out against austerity measures
implemented by the G-8. Having changed original plans to hold the G-8
summit in Chicago the same week as NATO, G-8 leaders are instead meeting
this week in the rural seclusion of Camp David.
Organizers plan to make their opposition to the G-8 visible in Chicago
nonetheless.
Other actions specifically targeting NATO include a procession to the
summit headquarters on May 20, during which veterans of the Iraq and
Afghanistan wars plan to hand back their service medals to NATO generals
in protest against ongoing wars. Occupy Chicago also has plans for an
unpermitted march to shut down Boeing's main office on May 21, in
opposition to the government defense contracts the company receives.
Occupy Chicago, CANG8 and other organizing groups have pitched all
counter-summit activity as 'peaceful,' prompting further outcry that the
city is preparing a militaristic crowd control response, especially with
the threat of the LRAD.
Clarification: An earlier version of this story suggested the LRAD was a
new purchase for Chicago. The riot gear is newly purchased and CPD are
preparing to use the LRAD, which they already owned.
Natasha Lennard covers the Occupy movement for Salon. A British-born,
Brooklyn-based journalist, she has been covering Occupy Wall Street
since before the first sleeping bag was unrolled in Zuccotti Park. One
of the first journalists arrested at an Occupy action, she has managed
to enrage Andrew Breitbart, Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck. You can follow
her on Twitter (@natashalennard), and email her any Occupy
updates/videos/ideas to natasha...@gmail.com
.
As week-long protests against the NATO summit begin, city police may use
a potentially dangerous sound cannon
.
By Natasha Lennard
.
This week, Occupy Chicago welcomes allies from around the country and
the world as they descend on the Windy City to protest the weekend?s
NATO summit. The Chicago Police Department is ready: Not only has the
city passed strict new protest ordinances, but it?s been stockpiling
serious riot gear in anticipation of conflict with the protesters.
According to a report from the Guardian's Adam Gabbatt, in recent months
the Chicago police have spent over $1 million on riot equipment, and are
preparing to use a controversial LRAD (long-range acoustic device) - a
sound cannon designed to cause extreme pain to those in its path.
The Chicago Police Department is pitching the LRAD largely as a means to
communicate with large crowds:
"This is simply a risk management tool, as the public will receive clear
information regarding public safety messages and any orders provided by
police," Chicago Police spokeswoman Melissa Stratton told the Guardian.
However, during its first outing at a U.S. protest, during the G-20
summit in Pittsburgh in 2009, police blasted non-lethal sound waves from
the device as a crowd deterrent. Unlike firing tear gas or swinging
batons, deploying the LRAD does not create a dramatic media spectacle;
indeed, videos from the Pittsburgh protests capture the LRAD emitting
little more than a high-pitched siren. Those within the sound cannon?s
range, however, have described immense pain and severe headaches and ?
in some cases ? irreversible hearing damage.
LRAD Corp., which produces the weapon for the military and domestic
policing, said that anyone within 100m of the device's directed sound
path will experience "extreme pain,' according to Gizmodo.
"In Pittsburgh, they directed the LRAD at a crowd coming up the center
of a wide street, then sent tear gas canisters down the sides of the
street. Tear gas is painful, but everyone ran into the tear gas to get
out of the LRAD path," one protester who attended the Pittsburgh G-20
told me, asking to remain anonymous. Chicago's Police Superintendent
Garry McCarthy has recently expressed that he believes tear gas to be an
ineffective crowd control device " and based on lessons from Pittsburgh,
the LRAD can produce a painful enough effect to force crowd dispersal
without the dramatic media impact tear gas creates; it's certainly a
more insidious weapon. (Indeed, the Chicago police riot during the 1968
Democratic National Convention went down in infamy partly because of the
excessive use of tear gas.)
Norm Stamper, the former Seattle police chief who oversaw the policing
of the Battle in Seattle in 1999, has learned some hard personal lessons
about protest policing. Stamper resigned after his department was
condemned for excessive use of force and tear gas against the ?99 World
Trade Organization protesters; he has since become an outspoken critic
of harsh crowd control techniques. Of the LRAD Stamper told Salon, "I'm
not a fan. And it's not just because I suffer from tinnitus. Everyone,
without ear protection, is at risk for permanent hearing damage. Not
worth it, as far as I?m concerned.?
Mayor Rahm Emanuel has assured Chicagoans that no taxpayer money will go
toward covering any summit activity (federal and private money was
secured for this purpose). However, Chicago organizers and participants
in the counter-summit have nonetheless balked that money can be made
available for such purposes, while public services, such as mental
health clinics are being shuttered (six out of 12 of the city's mental
health clinics are set for closure, which sparked the week-long
occupation of one clinic by staff and clients with the support of Occupy
Chicago).
Occupy Chicago's press committee late last week held a conference to
give the media a preview of the week of protests. Although it was made
explicit that actions would take place that have not yet been disclosed
or even planned, scheduled protests include a march Tuesday organized by
National Nurses United (who are paying for 12 busloads of protesters to
get to Chicago from across the country). The NNU march will end with a
musical performance by Rage Against the Machine guitarist and 'guitarmy'
instigator Tom Morello, and aims to speak out against austerity measures
implemented by the G-8. Having changed original plans to hold the G-8
summit in Chicago the same week as NATO, G-8 leaders are instead meeting
this week in the rural seclusion of Camp David.
Organizers plan to make their opposition to the G-8 visible in Chicago
nonetheless.
Other actions specifically targeting NATO include a procession to the
summit headquarters on May 20, during which veterans of the Iraq and
Afghanistan wars plan to hand back their service medals to NATO generals
in protest against ongoing wars. Occupy Chicago also has plans for an
unpermitted march to shut down Boeing's main office on May 21, in
opposition to the government defense contracts the company receives.
Occupy Chicago, CANG8 and other organizing groups have pitched all
counter-summit activity as 'peaceful,' prompting further outcry that the
city is preparing a militaristic crowd control response, especially with
the threat of the LRAD.
Clarification: An earlier version of this story suggested the LRAD was a
new purchase for Chicago. The riot gear is newly purchased and CPD are
preparing to use the LRAD, which they already owned.
Natasha Lennard covers the Occupy movement for Salon. A British-born,
Brooklyn-based journalist, she has been covering Occupy Wall Street
since before the first sleeping bag was unrolled in Zuccotti Park. One
of the first journalists arrested at an Occupy action, she has managed
to enrage Andrew Breitbart, Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck. You can follow
her on Twitter (@natashalennard), and email her any Occupy
updates/videos/ideas to natasha...@gmail.com
Capt. Justice
May 21, 2012, 6:56:07 PM5/21/12
to
NATO Seeks Unity on Keeping Afghan War Going
France Is Out, But Obama, Rasmussen Push for Others to Stay
.
http://news.antiwar.com/2012/05/20/nato-seeks-unity-on-keeping-afghan-war-going/
.
by Jason Ditz, May 20, 2012
.
The newly elected French President is still very clear about following
through on his campaign promise to get all French troops out of occupied
Afghanistan by the end of the year. Officials are downplaying the
significance of the pullout, however, and are pressing for the rest of
NATO to reiterate their commitment to the war.
NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen expressed 'optimism' in this regard,
saying he believes that the member nations will come through with major
funding for the Afghan military and insisting that the alliance is
united on seeing the conflict through despite its enormous unpopularity.
President Obama, meanwhile, struggled to stay on message, insisting in
comments meant for the public that the war 'as we understood it is over'
but centering on the long, difficult road ahead in comments to other
officials, while pressing NATO for unity on the conflict going forward.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai also used the summit to reiterate how
important it is for his government to receive massive financial and
military support for the foreseeable future, while insisting that at
some point Afghanistan would become self-reliant. Naturally, Karzai gave
no indication how this would ever happen.
Last 5 posts by Jason Ditz
At Least 96 Yemeni Soldiers Slain as Ally Turns Bomber - May 21st, 2012
US Soldiers Shot in Yemen Ambush - May 20th, 2012
Soaring Tensions in Lebanon: Clerics Announce 'Lebanese Free Army' -
May 20th, 2012
Report: Afghan Troops Forge 'Secret Alliances' With Taliban - May 20th,
2012
Mixed Messages as Obama Talks Afghan War - May 20th, 2012
France Is Out, But Obama, Rasmussen Push for Others to Stay
.
http://news.antiwar.com/2012/05/20/nato-seeks-unity-on-keeping-afghan-war-going/
.
by Jason Ditz, May 20, 2012
.
The newly elected French President is still very clear about following
through on his campaign promise to get all French troops out of occupied
Afghanistan by the end of the year. Officials are downplaying the
significance of the pullout, however, and are pressing for the rest of
NATO to reiterate their commitment to the war.
NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen expressed 'optimism' in this regard,
saying he believes that the member nations will come through with major
funding for the Afghan military and insisting that the alliance is
united on seeing the conflict through despite its enormous unpopularity.
President Obama, meanwhile, struggled to stay on message, insisting in
comments meant for the public that the war 'as we understood it is over'
but centering on the long, difficult road ahead in comments to other
officials, while pressing NATO for unity on the conflict going forward.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai also used the summit to reiterate how
important it is for his government to receive massive financial and
military support for the foreseeable future, while insisting that at
some point Afghanistan would become self-reliant. Naturally, Karzai gave
no indication how this would ever happen.
Last 5 posts by Jason Ditz
At Least 96 Yemeni Soldiers Slain as Ally Turns Bomber - May 21st, 2012
US Soldiers Shot in Yemen Ambush - May 20th, 2012
Soaring Tensions in Lebanon: Clerics Announce 'Lebanese Free Army' -
May 20th, 2012
Report: Afghan Troops Forge 'Secret Alliances' With Taliban - May 20th,
2012
Mixed Messages as Obama Talks Afghan War - May 20th, 2012
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