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DHS takes the shot
Author: TriSec
Date: 05/05/2012 10:34:38
Good Morning.
It's an early blog, but no platelet donation today. (In fact, I've changed habits - there's a donation center in Worcester a mere 4 miles from the office. I was out there last Monday evening after work. You should still donate.) Nay, it's a "classroom day" for ol' Mr. Bean. It's almost kayak season and we'll be reviewing all our policies and procedures to get ready for opening weekend this Memorial day.
In any case....I've been made aware this week of a story that seems to be gaining traction among the conspiracy websites, and I'm wondering what everyone might make of all this. Dan Rea of WBZ, host of the "Nightside" program here most evenings, has started running an add wondering about where all his liberal friends are on this issue. Like I said...I never heard about it until I went digging for it.
It seems that the Department of Homeland security has signed a fairly significant contract with a small bullet manufacturer called "ATK" to purchase many millions of bullets. When I first looked for the story the other day, I found one "straight" resource that pitched it as a business deal, but I neglected to save it, and now I've got nothing. In any case, here's something from Business Insider:
Note that this deal is for "hollow-point" ammunition. Digging around a bit,
here's the bullet:
The flower-like object on the right is what it will look like after it hits something. I'm no ballistics expert, but that looks like it's only going to do one thing if it hits a person. (point of reference...hollow-point bullets were used to assasinate John Lennon.)
More troubling than that though....these bullets are illegal in war, but evidently not illegal in the United States. These aren't covered by the Geneva conventions, but rather the far less known Hague convention.
I won't bore or insult you by posting anything from our conspiracist or right wing friends (you can check that yourself by Googling "DHS + hollow point", but I suppose that I must yield the point that such a purchase by the government is troubling indeed.
It's an early blog, but no platelet donation today. (In fact, I've changed habits - there's a donation center in Worcester a mere 4 miles from the office. I was out there last Monday evening after work. You should still donate.) Nay, it's a "classroom day" for ol' Mr. Bean. It's almost kayak season and we'll be reviewing all our policies and procedures to get ready for opening weekend this Memorial day.
In any case....I've been made aware this week of a story that seems to be gaining traction among the conspiracy websites, and I'm wondering what everyone might make of all this. Dan Rea of WBZ, host of the "Nightside" program here most evenings, has started running an add wondering about where all his liberal friends are on this issue. Like I said...I never heard about it until I went digging for it.
It seems that the Department of Homeland security has signed a fairly significant contract with a small bullet manufacturer called "ATK" to purchase many millions of bullets. When I first looked for the story the other day, I found one "straight" resource that pitched it as a business deal, but I neglected to save it, and now I've got nothing. In any case, here's something from Business Insider:
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and its Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office is getting an "indefinite delivery" of an "indefinite quantity" of .40 caliber ammunition from defense contractor ATK.
U.S. agents will receive a maximum of 450 million rounds over five years, according to a press release on the deal.
The high performance HST bullets are designed for law enforcement and ATK says they offer "optimum penetration for terminal performance."
This refers to the the bullet's hollow-point tip that passes through barriers and expands for a bigger impact without the rest of the bullet getting warped out of shape: "this bullet holds its jacket in the toughest conditions."
Note that this deal is for "hollow-point" ammunition. Digging around a bit,
here's the bullet:
The flower-like object on the right is what it will look like after it hits something. I'm no ballistics expert, but that looks like it's only going to do one thing if it hits a person. (point of reference...hollow-point bullets were used to assasinate John Lennon.)
More troubling than that though....these bullets are illegal in war, but evidently not illegal in the United States. These aren't covered by the Geneva conventions, but rather the far less known Hague convention.
The Hague Convention of 1899, Declaration III, prohibited the use in international warfare of bullets that easily expand or flatten in the body.
This is often incorrectly believed to be prohibited in the Geneva Conventions, but it significantly predates those conventions, and is in fact a continuance of the St. Petersburg Declaration of 1868, which banned exploding projectiles of less than 400 grams, as well as weapons designed to aggravate injured soldiers or make their death inevitable. NATO members do not use small arms ammunition that is prohibited by the Hague Convention.
Despite the ban on military use, hollow-point bullets are one of the most common types of civilian and police ammunition, due largely to the reduced risk of bystanders being hit by over-penetrating or ricocheted bullets, and the increased speed of incapacitation. In many jurisdictions, even ones such as the United Kingdom, where expanding ammunition is generally prohibited, it is illegal to hunt certain types of game with ammunition that does not expand. Some target ranges forbid full metal jacket ammunition, due to its greater tendency to damage metal targets and backstops.
The state of New Jersey prohibits the possession and use of hollow-point ammunition by private citizens, specifically in firearms carried outside the home, but with many exceptions.
I won't bore or insult you by posting anything from our conspiracist or right wing friends (you can check that yourself by Googling "DHS + hollow point", but I suppose that I must yield the point that such a purchase by the government is troubling indeed.
