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Fake Bomb Detector, Blamed For Hundreds of Deaths, Is Still In Use
HughPickens.com writes: Murtaza Hussain writes at The Intercept that although it remains in use at sensitive security areas throughout the world, the ADE 651 is a complete fraud and the ADE-651's manufacturer sold it with the full knowledge that it was useless at detecting explosives. There are no batteries in the unit and it consists of a swivelling aerial mounted to a hinge on a hand-grip. The device contains nothing but the type of anti-theft tag used to prevent stealing in high street stores and critics have likened it to a glorified dowsing rod.
The story of how the ADE 651 came into use involves the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq. At the height of the conflict, as the new Iraqi government battled a wave of deadly car bombings, it purchased more than 7,000 ADE 651 units worth tens of millions of dollars in a desperate effort to stop the attacks. Not only did the units not help, the device actually heightened the bloodshed by creating "a false sense of security" that contributed to the deaths of hundreds of Iraqi civilians. A BBC investigation led to a subsequent export ban on the devices.
The device is once again back in the news as it was reportedly used for security screening at hotels in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh where a Russian airliner that took off from that city's airport was recently destroyed in a likely bombing attack by the militant Islamic State group. Speaking to The Independent about the hotel screening, the U.K. Foreign Office stated it would "continue to raise concerns" over the use of the ADE 651. James McCormick, the man responsible for the manufacture and sale of the ADE 651, received a 10-year prison sentence for his part in manufacture of the devices, sold to Iraq for $40,000 each. An employee of McCormick who later became a whistleblower said that after becoming concerned and questioning McCormick about the device, McCormick told him the ADE 651 "does exactly what it's designed to. It makes money."
The story of how the ADE 651 came into use involves the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq. At the height of the conflict, as the new Iraqi government battled a wave of deadly car bombings, it purchased more than 7,000 ADE 651 units worth tens of millions of dollars in a desperate effort to stop the attacks. Not only did the units not help, the device actually heightened the bloodshed by creating "a false sense of security" that contributed to the deaths of hundreds of Iraqi civilians. A BBC investigation led to a subsequent export ban on the devices.
The device is once again back in the news as it was reportedly used for security screening at hotels in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh where a Russian airliner that took off from that city's airport was recently destroyed in a likely bombing attack by the militant Islamic State group. Speaking to The Independent about the hotel screening, the U.K. Foreign Office stated it would "continue to raise concerns" over the use of the ADE 651. James McCormick, the man responsible for the manufacture and sale of the ADE 651, received a 10-year prison sentence for his part in manufacture of the devices, sold to Iraq for $40,000 each. An employee of McCormick who later became a whistleblower said that after becoming concerned and questioning McCormick about the device, McCormick told him the ADE 651 "does exactly what it's designed to. It makes money."
We've all said it before and we've been right all along.
Some scumbags were selling it back in the 90's, calling it "the tracker" and claiming that it could detect drugs.
-jcr
The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
At least they only got ripped off a few tens of millions of dollars with those fake scanners -- the USA got ripped off of $160M for body scanners that don't work
Whereby McCormick gets to detect which one out of six bombs is not a bomb and is then forced to detonate it.
As an aside, really!?, a ten year sentence? Either this whole story is total bullshit or someone has no concept of proportionality - doesn't taking the name of a media-multinational in vain result a longer sentence than this?
Requiem for the American Dream
We have something similar at work, it's called McAf~` &j # ' NO CARRIER
Table-ized A.I.
A fraud which has contributed to the deaths of tens of thousands of people should be punished with way more than 10 years.
Why wasn't this guy tried for multiple murders and then executed?
It's clear as can be that I'm in the wrong business.
Here I've been working and making an honest living all these years when I could have cobbled some 100% bullshit gadget together and sold enough of them to retire to my own tropical island and live in luxury for the rest of my life.
Who says "crime doesn't pay"? Seems like it pays pretty damn well to me....
Just cruising through this digital world at 33 1/3 rpm...
GP is clearly referring to the science of pseudo-suede, known colloquially by the portmanteau psuede.
Seems like a "fake bomb" detector could be a valuable thing as long as it's put to the right use.
what, no jack-worthy nude body pictures the TSA could pass around?
E before U, except, you know... ~*woo*~
He needs a 100 million contract from Lockheed and then he can get them working units.
Nah, it just proves that they're a savvy businessman who need a raise and a corner office.
The body scanners worked just fine. They made money for the people who made campaign contributions to the politicians who won and authorized their purchase.
Meanwhile, in the United States our own "glorified dowsing rods" the TSA continues to rake in somewhere around $8 Billion dollars a year in direct costs alone (likely tens of billions when you factor in economic losses, increased road deaths and secondary costs) and is 95% ineffective at finding lighters and knives. And chances are no one responsible for that debacle is ever going to see a fine let alone a prison sentence.
You must be holding it wrong.
Have gnu, will travel.
At the height of the conflict, as the new Iraqi government battled a wave of deadly car bombings, it purchased more than 7,000 ADE 651 units worth tens of millions of dollars
It cost tens of millions of dollars. It is worth tens of dollars as scrap. Sometimes, you don't get what you pay for.
Don't waste your vote! Vote for whoever you want, unless you live in a swing state it won't matter anyways
Why oh why are so many humans so stupid?
With any gear, even from a reputable supplier, you need to regularly test and calibrate it. If it fails you don't keep using it!
You probably blame religion for stuff like the Paris bombings or the Inquisition, but really it's bullshit. It's all about people, not religion.
Look at the brave old USSR, which was officially godless and atheist, and see how many millions died in prison camps or politically-driven mass murders. Same with Cambodia.
I know it's comforting to have something to blame for all the problems in the world, but that's basically the same as joining a religion because its dogma is a comforting way to see the world. Truth is, people have killed, stolen and raped each others forever, it has nothing to do with religion or politics, it's just how people are.
So we've heard it all about religion. Religions are stupid, religious books are fables, god is a security blanket blablabla. Can we please move beyond this? It feels as dated as SCO bashing.
lucm, indeed.
Yes. Walls and checkpoints do work. Remember how it was basically a daily thing to hear about a bus or market bombing in Israel 10, 20 years ago? Then they built that electronic wall and those checkpoints, and while bleeding heart liberals tear their shirts open in outrage over the unpleasantness experienced by Palestinians, the bus and market bombings have stopped. The fuckers had to go in the next country, hiding behind women and children to throw rockets at Israel, and that problem more or less got solved too. Now apparently they started attacking people with knives.
France and other countries will learn. People who are willing to blow themselves up should not be allowed with the civilized people, and for that there's nothing like walls and checkpoints. It makes it more difficult for idiots to cause damage.
lucm, indeed.
The body scanners worked just fine. They made money for the people who made campaign contributions to the politicians who won and authorized their purchase.
Hey no fair, you took that quote from the article:
McCormick told him the ADE 651 "does exactly what it's designed to. It makes money."
Preventing all terrorist attacks is impossible. The most important thing for governments is to keep the public calm by giving the impression of security. A afraid and panicked populace is a bigger threat to those in power than the terrorists themselves. The false sense of security, ineffective but very visible security measures provide is in fact exactly what they want. Of course they could have saved millions of dollars by making consoles with blinking lights themselves.
Nope, he's not American. You, however, have kept up your perfect record of being entirely ignorant of the facts every time you post your Leninist garbage.
That is the key thing here. There are almost certainly kickbacks to various local officials that pushed the purchase through. Follow the money, send them to jail.
I believe there were some well greased palms in Iraq.
much of left-wing thought is a kind of playing with fire by people who don't even know that fire is hot - George Orwell
What kind of a bad ass do you have to be to get the MOH twice?!? Did he single handedly kill Hitler?
Its a matter of luck, bad and good. Bad luck to be in a situation where the award of a Medal of Honor is appropriate. This happens far more often than such awards suggest. Good luck in the sense that two people witnessed your actions, and that they survived. Many MOH recipients accept the award in memory of those whose actions were as brave or braver than theirs but were never reported or properly witnessed.
There are far more heroes that are unknown rather than known.
Businesses sell BS every day. Atomic grade, deadly bullshit is common. Visit a 'natural health' store, anywhere.
But they convince themselves and don't go on record: 'of course [InsertBSproduct] is bullshit'.
This guy thought he could get away with it. Look at his history. I bet you he's done similar before, but his connections kept him in tea and crumpets.
Look at who this guy knew, the ones trying to look inconspicuous and hoping the sacrifice will be sufficient. I smell an upper class twit conspiracy. Should unravel with a few swift kicks. Going to have to give him something to get it unrolling.
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
Don't confuse dumb with corrupt.
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
France has far more experience of terrorism than the USA. You may have heard of a country called Algeria. You may have heard of another called Lebanon. You may have heard of a few things that happened in Europe in the 1960s and 1970s. You haven't? Why are you giving advice then?
You can be imprisoned for life for swindling people out of money, but contributing to the murder of thousands of people through fraud is only 10 years? The guy should have been given 3 boxes and an ADE 651. If he detects the bomb, he gets to live.
If the police wants to search something, the device can provide a reasonable suspicion. It's a circumvention device for civil rights. Much like drug sniffing dogs are reportedly misused.
How is the parent not yet modded Troll?
A) Anybody who wants to study the science behind those things can do so, and there is quite sufficient evidence (replicated continuously in labs all over the world) for the latter two (assuming you mean Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection, and yes, speciation through evolutionary response to environmental pressure has been demonstrated in the lab). The effect of the first is still hotly (haha) debated, but the basic science behind it - humans emit literal tons of CO2, CO2 causes greenhouse effect, greenhouse effect warms the planet - are quite thoroughly understood.
B) Can you find me anybody, anywhere, who was killed for not believing in any of the above three things? I'd call you a blithering idiot to your face, but I wouldn't have you killed even if I was dictator of the world and could get away with it. It bears no resemblance to the kind of fanaticism that leads to mass murder.
The evidence is present and sufficient, and nobody is demanding you accept it. You might find yourself lacking opportunities to breed with anybody that has an IQ above room temperature, but such it the price of being vocally moronic.
There's no place I could be, since I've found Serenity...
One slight difference - the fact that those body scanners are crap didn't contribute to anyone's death.
systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
Fake Bomb Detector, Blamed For Hundreds of Deaths, Is Still In Use
Sounds like someone needs to buy a few of my fake bomb detector decectors.
systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
Why don't you publicly question the theory of evolution or global warming then? You'll either be labeled a creationist or be told that there's "overwhelming evidence", end of discussion. The whole "question everything" thing only applies to whatever is not covered by the dogma. Total hypocrisy, just like those christians who take charity seriously unless you're gay.
lucm, indeed.
How is the parent not yet modded Troll?
You might find yourself lacking opportunities to breed with anybody that has an IQ above room temperature, but such it the price of being vocally moronic.
Given the level of discussion that is your contribution to this thread, I'll take your alleged evidence (which is, as usual, not presented but merely stipulated) with a bag of salt.
lucm, indeed.
What unmitigated bullshit!
Here...written in terms so simple even you should be able to grasp. Read and learn:
http://blogs.discovermagazine....
I've calculated my velocity with such exquisite precision that I have no idea where I am.
There's nothing to learn in that article. It's just one more global warming zealot who goes on a rant about people who disagree with his dogma, and he even does the usual: put them in the same basket as holocaust deniers.
Oh wait: were you trying to provide an example of unmitigated bullshit? Because if that's the case, good one!
lucm, indeed.
> Biology needs an Einstein.
that may be true, but, unlike religion, science will seek out a better theory and adopt it as soon as it proves out to be a better explanation of observed evidence.
if that happens with theory of evolution, fine. there's no scientist who will resist that kind of revision. in fact it has happened many many times.
> According to darwinists, our bodies mutated slowly for millions of years one at a time, so that our genome could have parts that look exactly like viral code from previous infections, because that is the only possible explanation. They were planted there by "evolution" to toy with us.
darwin's theory of evolution says nothing of this kind.
here's what it does say (exactly this and nothing more):
and, lastly, you don't "believe" in evolution, or any theories of science for that matter. thats what separates science from religion, belief is neither required nor desired.
Some of the Gov officials did test it, and I seem to recall that McCormick's excuse for any bad results was always along the lines of operator error, inadequate training and, get this, the operator had to believe the device would work, otherwise it would not work.
It was standard pseudo-science bullshit. If it doesn't work, it's not the fault of the pseudo-science, it's because of those involved giving off bad vibes.
The real problem is that apparently no scientists were involved in the decision to purchase these things.
He sold exactly what the Iraqis wanted.
The corrupt police wanted to look like they were working but they sure as hell didn't want to actually catch any bombers. If the bomb detectors actually worked then the police officer would have a suicide bomber in front of him who might detonate the bomb at the police check point instead of some crowded market.
If the UK is going to start jailing people for fulfilling useless government contracts then they are going to have to start building more jails.
You don't know that.
I was out camping with a larger group. You know, all those friends of friends who say the darndest things. As topics bounced around I was reminded of this device and mentioned it, saying "it was basically an explosive finding dowsing rod" and one of the people pipes up
"Well nothing wrong with that then, dowsing rods work just fine"
What do you even say?
"I opened my eyes, and everything went dark again"
"Finds its way in"? You may have noticed that the folks behind the French attack were born there.
As a society, France isn't doing a very good job of helping immigrants feel like Frenchman -- even two or three generations out. Meaning you get folks who feel like second-class citizens, easy to radicalize and recruit.
And, for that matter, the US has no small problem with homegrown terrorism either. Hello, Oklahoma City bombing. Hello, burning churches. Looking at terrorism as a problem that comes from outside is understating the issue.
Yes, in much the same sense that I don't know whether the Sun came up on the morning of 19th February, 1862.
Still, if you know of a terrorist plot that was foiled by a TSA body scanner...
systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
Hang on, no, what I mean is:
If you know of a terrorist plot that wasn't foiled by a TSA body scanner when it should have been...
I think.
systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
Yes, in much the same sense that I don't know whether the Sun came up on the morning of 19th February, 1862.
Still, if you know of a terrorist plot that was foiled by a TSA body scanner...
Theres been some concern that the backscatter X-Ray scanners (which were rushed into service with little testing or oversight, and which are no longer used) caused more radioactive damage to the skin than expected, and possibly exposed workers to higher than expected X-ray doses. But the additional cancer risk was so slight that it could take years to show up. But it's *possible* that some of the machines did lead to premature deaths.
I don't know, how much excess radiation was absorbed by those bodies?
Out of modpoints but really liked a post? 1BDkF6TtmmeZ3yqXbz9yhdYVqRYnwFoXDj
here's the thing. evidence doesn't need someone's approval. you needn't "present it to someone".
facts, evidence, reproducible experiment are not up for debate, they're there, full stop.
if evidence is legit, legit scientists _will_ notice.
See this is why it is not worth the time to present evidence to idiots like yourself.. because you wouldn't know what to do with said evidence if it were dropped in your lap due to your scorching case of confirmation bias and Dunning Kruger effect.
Again no evidence, just posturing and figure skating to hide the fact that you have no fucking clue if such "evidence" actually exists or not, you just gobbled up the dogma and perpetuate the cycle of blissful obedience.
People like you think that you are like Copernicus, bravely facing the hordes of idiots, but really in that story you're more like the Church who couldn't tolerate people arguing with the dogma and sent the heretic to jail..
lucm, indeed.
Truth is, people have killed, stolen and raped each others forever, it has nothing to do with religion or politics, it's just how people are.
No it's not.
"Religion is an insult to human dignity. With or without it you would have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion." -- Steven Weinberg
And what makes bad people do good things, if not religion? Mother Teresa comes to mind.
lucm, indeed.
Kind of my point. If you knew enough to understand you wouldn't have written "France and other countries will learn", but you've clearly not bothered to pay much attention to the issue you are commenting on and thus what is considered normal general knowledge seems mysterious.
Kind of my point. If you knew enough to understand you wouldn't have written "France and other countries will learn", but you've clearly not bothered to pay much attention to the issue you are commenting on and thus what is considered normal general knowledge seems mysterious.
No, what is mysterious is the way you put words and sentences together but as a whole they mean nothing. Are you Estonian or something like that? I've heard this kind of babbling from an Estonian janitor at work. The guy is very friendly but omg the way he speaks reminds me of that robot lady that drives airships from her bath in BSG.
lucm, indeed.
Maybe I should have point bullet points in front of every sentence to help you comprehend that it was in point form, but I had no idea you would be so lazy.
To put things in simple English since you seem to have trouble with it, there are plenty of subject matter experts in France that do not need advice from someone like you that has apparently been living under a rock and had no idea of the very long list of incidents that have occurred there. I'm not French but I do not ignore international affairs to such a breathtakingly insular level.
Do you get the idea now about how your initial post insulted just about everyone? It's the sort of thing people will point at as an example of how stupid Americans are so you are really letting the side down.
Do you get the idea now about how your initial post insulted just about everyone?
And you know that how? Did you organize a poll? Made phone calls? Went door to door with a clipboard? Or are you just so full of yourself that you can't help but project your own feelings on "everyone"?
I don't know what led you to get your panties in a bunch like that, and to be honest I can't say I really care, but really take a chill pill dude.
As for the whole "France has more experience in terrorism", a simple Wikipedia search proves you wrong. Compare the ranks of the USA and France on this simple scale:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
Even Norway has a higher Global Terrorism Index score than France.
Maybe next time you could look things up before calling other people stupid.
lucm, indeed.
Norway? If you had a clue you'd know it's due to a single incident that skewed the number so would never have brought that flawed metric up.
Your comments about Israel's efforts to keep the pot from boiling over instead of solving anything in a local situation were another thing to demonstrate how worthless your advice is.
Why do people get off on telling others what to do when they know less than what the average person on the street does?
Why do people get off on telling others what to do when they know less than what the average person on the street does?
Maybe the first step to get an answer to that question would be for you to explain why you, personally, are doing it?
You call people stupid, you claim to know what "everyone" thinks, and also you claim to know more about terrorism than Wikipedia. Feel free to keep piling up bitter comments and outrageous claims, but I think the extent of what you can contribute to this debate has been fully explored.
lucm, indeed.
I actually read the article, and the conclusion was that they would work if the TSA employees were better trained and motivated. The scanners work about as well as they could, given the difficulty of the threat.
The Israeli situation is both very different and nobody is pretending it is anything other than managing the risk.
I haven't put forward anything other than pointing you towards massive holes in your understanding of the issue - so sorry - you are not fooling anyone by trying to offload your faults onto me. Maybe you should start with wikipedia and keep going before telling people what to do instead of insulting half the fucking world in your ignorance.
And another thing - why should the country that fruitlessly warned the US Marines to watch out for Hezbolla truck bombs in Beirut take advice from you? Maybe unlike you they have been thinking of the problems and dealing with some of them for many years. I'll give you time to look up what I've written about since you probably don't even know about that major incident because it happened outside California.
For the knowledge of others to be useful some understanding on your part that you can link it to is required. You've just given an example of a failure in that respect and in using a metric for a purpose it was never intended for. That metric does not prove what you have written in any way.
Just accept the criticism at face value.
I'm not even going as far as you did in telling you what to do.
I'm just pointing out that others who know more than you do don't really need your very stupid suggestion and it's likely to annoy the shit out of people like me who are in no way experts so would not attempt to run down those who are - yet someone with less understanding than would be expected in the general population is having a go!
And what makes bad people do good things, if not religion? Mother Teresa comes to mind.
'Mother' Theresa did many bad things, and was definitely a bad person. Try again.