Recent posts have mentioned non-lethal weapons. I have purchased firearms for worst-case sceanarios, but I was concerned about situations when I might need protection, but wouldn't want to kill the person, or maybe wouldn't wish to attract attention with the sound of the gunshot. We bought a Myotron, which claims that it isn't a stun gun, but is a pulse wave weapon. I haven't used it on anyone, and would like to have input from anyone who has used one. It can be seen at

www.d-mail.com/d-mail/75565.html

-- Pearlie Sweetcake (storestuff@home.now), March 17, 1999

Answers

From the description at http://www.d-mail.com/d -mail/75565.html it seems that you have to contact the targeted person with a fairly small device. ("The person that is touched by the Myotron will be ...") ("The Myotron is pocket-sized ..." -- [agrees with photo])

Are you sure you wouldn't prefer an aerosol or something else with a range of a few feet?

-- No Spam Please (No_Spam_Please@anon_ymous.com), March 18, 1999.

There's some risk with a defensive device that needs to be within the opponent's reach to work effectively -- he/she might take it away from yo.

-- Tom Carey (tomcarey@mindspring.com), March 18, 1999.

Some off-road motorcycles have a deadman switch. This is a loop of cord around the rider;s wrist so that if he falls off, the cord pulls out a piin that opens the circuit to kill the engine, or just pulls the plug wire off.

I've always thought that this would be a good idea on handheld weapons. This shouldn't be too hard to rig on an electricaly activated weapon. For a gun I assume it would have to be designed in fby the manufacturer.

-- y2kbiker (y2kbiker@bellatlantic.net), March 18, 1999.

Did you mean what good is a non-lethal weapon?    :)

Revised version of old saying:
"He (she) who fights and lets the opponent get away, will get to fight that opponent another day."

-- A (A@AisA.com), March 18, 1999.

This home defense stuff is very tricky. I really do not think it has been thought through by very many people. I think gun play is a mistake. Once the shooting starts, someone will throw a gasoline bomb on your house. Not good.

My plan is to invite lots of people to stay in my house with my family if things are bad (i.e. no electricity). We have a wood stove, plenty of food and other recommended items. I do have a gun or two that I plan to use to show, and not to use. I do have a Myotron (however it is spelled). It has a wrist strap, and they say it is virtually impossible for someone to take it away.

I do plan on feeding lots of people (neighbors, etc.). That would be the best way of defusing a tense situation.

The problem with guns is that if shown, and if someone still persists in unwanted behavior, there is little choice but to use it. Once the shooting starts, lots of bad things can happen. I think if we took the money being spent on guns and ammo and just bought extra food to give away, it would make us safer.

Good luck.

-- david (david@home.com), March 18, 1999.

I think you should have the biggest most heavy-caliber gun that you can get. BIG BAD BANG GUN!

Why buy a gun you will not be able to blow people away with? The commies would therefore escape and that is not a good idea when they are evil motherfucking sons of bitches who deserve life behind bars or a deep grave.

you should do the following: first go into the gun store and say mister give me the biggest baddest bangbangbangest gun you have or I will blow your head off. Then get all the ammo for it and some mustard gas. If the commies come knocking on your door you theow the mustard gass at them and laugh ha! ha! ha! as all the commies die and then you shoot them all dead with the rifle. Go!

jERRY

-- jerry (jj@jj.jj), March 18, 1999.

Already been done biker. Cops are testing a wrist cuff that holds a gadget that sends out a signal to their gun that allows it to fire. If you grab their gun, it goes on safe when it leaves their hand and you will get your ass kicked when you try to use it. Cops getting shot with their own guns is a major problem.

-- Paul Davis (davisp1953@yahoo.com), March 18, 1999.

Is this post indicative of the people on this forum? I'm too scared to bug out and head to the hills, to be around fear-engulfed people who are scared of their own shadows. They'll wind up shooting each other by noon on January 1, 2000. The true cowards are those who head to the hills and blow off their community.

-- junkman (film@11.com), March 18, 1999.

Hang around, Junkman, and you'll find that there're a lot of viewpoints here. As for community, that's fine... just remember that come Y2K, most folk's idea of "community" will mean that they didn't store food, and now want yours.

As for the title of this thread: "Is This A Good Non-Lethal Weapon"... it's a contrdiction in terms. There ARE no good non-lethal weapons, IMO. If someone's such a hardcase that you have to use ANY weapon at all on them, make sure whatever you use puts them in the ground.

-- sparks (wireless@home.com), March 18, 1999.

With all the talk about weapons, assuming anything other than guns (and barbed wire), I'm surprised I haven't heard anything about blowguns. They're popular with natives because they work -- and at a distance. Assuming we are talking about DEFENSE, say something trying to get in your house, this might work. You can even buy them. You probably have to make the poison yourself, though. :-)

PJ in TX

-- PJ Gaenir (fire@firedocs.com), March 19, 1999.

Pearlie: The fact that you are worrying about lethal vs. non-lethal means you will be dead if push comes to shove. While you are dithering about whether to get the shotgun or the taser you will be becoming dog food.

Someone in a previous thread complained that leaving dead bodies around would attract attention. The answer was, you strip them of anything of use and drag them to someplace else.

Regarding noise, shouldn't take more than one or two pops unless you're up against an army (private or government). If you survive that, then any curiosity seekers coming round because of noise should be a piece of cake in comparison.

And you could mount the heads on poles at the corners of your block or around your property. :)

-- A (A@AisA.com), March 19, 1999.

The debate about lethal vs non-lethal weapons is very interesting, as is the question whether the latter is even worthwhile. But I am most interested if anyone has actually used a myotron or seen one used. If so, how well does it work? I'd be glad to volunteer if anybody in the central Michigan area that has one and would like a test subject. It isn't hard for me to imagine a situation where I'd prefer not to kill someone. We have a big house and ALOT of food, so it could get crowded here. Tempers could flare and while a gun could break up a fist fight fairly quickly it would also stain the carpet.

-- Steve Hartzler (s.hartzler@usa.net), March 19, 1999.