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This is useful as a novelty for the modern activist, but nothing more. In practical terms it would make most arrest situations far worse. This tool only makes
by s_q_b 13y ago
This is useful as a novelty for the modern activist, but nothing more. In practical terms it would make most arrest situations far worse.
This tool only makes sense for hardcore criminals, with little to lose by running from the police, maybe some law enforcement or military application, and for activism fashionistas.
As a hacker, such a simple tool defeating handcuffs is rather cool. Are they all on a single un-keyed unlock tool, like a cheap interior house lock? I'd expect specific keys matched with specific cuffs.
- sheelu 13y agoAgree, it's only of use as novelty. Almost all handcuffs in the US use the same key (peerless). You can buy them at a uniform store for about a buck, or $4 on amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Peerless-Handcuff-Company-Standard-Key/dp/B0051EOHGI/ http://www.amazon.com/Peerless-Handcuff-Company-Standard-Key...
- ygra 13y agoAt least around here (Germany) it probably wouldn't be as useful to activists. From what I noticed they just use large cable ties instead of handcuffs. Faster to apply, you can carry a lot of them and the key would be rather useless.
- s_q_b 13y agoI'm not suggesting that activists here could actually use them, as that would lead to very bad consequences. I see it more as a statement. For example, in high school I used to carry around a bootable USB stick on my keychain with a little Linux distro that would automatically remove the root/administrator password on any Windows/Mac/Linux box at which I could sit at the console. It was never used for harm, but it just seemed like a cool thing to have.
- vinceguidry 13y agoSerious activists are prepared for the possibility of arrest. This involves having the proper phone numbers memorized, not carrying anything of value while protesting, and knowing what to say to law enforcement. This tool would be of negative value to them, as it would only hurt their position if it was found in a search. Getting arrested, on the other hand, can prove to be beneficial, as the event can be set inside a narrative of police excess, driving public sympathy to their cause.
- s_q_b 13y agoYep, that's about right. Especially the memorizing the phone numbers part. One of my mother's former law partners used to help get Martin Sheen out of jail whenever he arrested protesting. He actually has a quick cameo in the first season of the West Wing. He's a state judge now, but still has a bit of that radical streak in him. He once described the whole elaborate choreography of activist arrest and release. You want the media to be present, both at arrest and release. You want the use of force by the police to be both disproportionate and highly visible. There are a whole series of elaborate rules to make the state's use of force work for you. Saul Alinsky's Rules for Radicals is the traditional primer in this sort of thing, but it's always interesting to hear the stories of those that lived that type of life.
- vinceguidry 13y agoAnybody interested in this topic should check out the Crimethinc Collective. They have many excellently written essays about the minutiae of activism, including ins and outs of the more dangerous "black bloc" tactics. http://crimethinc.com/ http://crimethinc.com/