With economic turmoil, global climate change, and wars across the globe, riots and protests have become an increasingly big problem for world governments. While some still go with the old-fashioned methods for brutally cracking down on protesters, some governments have turned to technology for more effective ways to corral their own citizens. Some of these weapons are quite terrifying, hardly humane in the least, and could have terrible consequences if we allow them to become a normal part of everyday life.

10 Sonic Weapons Designed For Crowd Control

Against the State: An ... Rockwell Jr., Llewelly... Best Price: $5.02 Buy New $5.52 (as of 11:35 UTC - Details) It’s well known that loud noises can cause extreme pain and hearing loss, but it wasn’t until very recently that these noises became fully weaponized. The US government has been using a powerful device for quite some time now called the Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD). It was originally developed in order to project commands over extremely long distances, especially out at sea. LRADs were also used on the ocean to deter piracy. Its other positive uses included alerting people in the case of an emergency and even preventing wildlife from getting too close to power generators. However, as beneficial as the LRAD can be, over time it became popular as a crowd control device.

A few years ago, it was turned on Occupy Wall Street protesters in order to make them disperse. More recently, it was a pivotal part of the police strategy against the Ferguson protesters. These massive devices emit incredibly loud commands, followed by noises designed to make people get as far away from the sound as quickly as they can. However, while the devices are meant for nonlethal crowd control, they are far from harmless. Not only can they cause severe headaches, they can also cause permanent hearing loss, and cities have been sued in the past for damage done by LRADs. Like many crowd control weapons, “nonlethal” almost never means “non-damaging.”

9 Laser Weapons Designed To Blind People And Potentially Sicken Them

Battlefield America: T... John W. Whitehead Best Price: $10.95 Buy New $18.80 (as of 10:15 UTC - Details) Perhaps the least-threatening weapon being field-tested, the Dazer Laser is supposed to emit a green light that can temporarily blind a suspect without any permanent negative effects on the body. However, while it may sound fairly benign, it can supposedly make the target feel disoriented, confused, and even nauseous. Worse yet, even if you’re only blinded by the light for a short time, the purveyors of this device claim that the effects can stay with you for hours afterward.

Of course, lasers are quite dangerous, especially when strong enough to be effective against humans. And since they’re pointed at the eyes, it’s hard to see how these can be entirely safe. Unfortunately, many police departments around the country are already using these dangerous devices, even though they haven’t been fully tested. Law enforcement agencies seem interested in the Dazer Laser because it’s less lethal than a Taser (as far as they currently know), and it’s also extremely easy to use.

8 An Actual Heat Ray For Dispersing Crowds

Police State: How Amer... Spence, Gerry Best Price: $1.60 Buy New $18.26 (as of 01:30 UTC - Details) The Active Denial System sounds like something straight out of a comic book. This “sci-fi” weapon is a heat ray, and while that may seem utterly ridiculous, the truth is that the US military has been carefully developing this device for many years now. The heat ray was developed for riot control purposes, and US officials are incredibly proud of their accomplishment.

Designed for military use against crowds, the heat ray could be an incredibly effective way to disperse civilian rioters in a nonlethal manner. Its inventors claim that you will not hear, see, or smell the weapon coming. Instead, you’ll feel an intense heat that causes you to feel like you are standing in front of a furnace. The military believes this will cause people to quickly disperse from an area.

However, some are skeptical about the safety of such a device. A few researchers have pointed out that due to the way heat disperses, people toward the middle of a crowd could face serious injury or death. Others have speculated on the possibility that if the weapon is used on an already hot day, it might cause a crowd to become delirious or enter a full-on panic. There is also the possibility that people in the back of a crowd could make it difficult for those near the front to escape, thus causing them to burn.

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