Saturday, January 23, 2010

BBC Newsnight: UK Government Bans Exports of "Bomb Detecting" Dowsing Rods


January 22, 2010 on BBC Newsnight
The UK government has announced a ban on the export to Iraq and Afghanistan of some so-called "bomb detectors".

It follows an investigation by the BBC's Newsnight programme which found that one type of "detector" made by a British company cannot work.

The Iraqi government has spent $85m on the ADE-651 and there are concerns that they have failed to stop bomb attacks that have killed hundreds of people.

The ban on the ADE-651 and other similar devices starts next week.

13 comments:

  1. Sigh... Facepalm.

    ReplyDelete
  2. does that qualify as murder under the <span>malevolent indifference standard?
    </span>

    ReplyDelete
  3. Can't believe how many conspiracy theories built on recent bombing and on how accurate that dowsing stick are by Iraqis!! some fellows from Iraq told me that that stick was so accurate that it was able to detect perfumes?!! and when it comes to bombs it fails. 85 mil dollars ..wow

    ReplyDelete
  4. Yet another example of why faith is NOT a virtue.  Doesn't matter whether it's faith used to pretend you believe god exists, or faith used to pretend you believe dowsing works.  Faith has detrimental effects.

    ReplyDelete
  5. =P, I seriously hope so. as the users rely on the devide to help them, and therefore don't use proper detection equipment.
    It is like those "Doctors" who give their patients water, and claim it can cure them, and therefore keep them away from real medicine that is known to work.

    ReplyDelete
  6. It frustrates me to no end that they all word the efficiancy of the "device" carefully. "It might not work" my ASS! It's cheap plastic. Stop pretending you need expert witnesses and that the jury is still out... *SIGH*

    ReplyDelete
  7. This is the best evidence against the "Flynn Effect" that I've ever seen.

    ReplyDelete
  8. The guy who pulled off this disgraceful swindle should be locked up, and all the money he reaped from the ignorant used on actual bomb detection equiptment/training/etc.

    ReplyDelete
  9. 85 millions hahahahahahahahaha and I guess all of thouse are american taxpayer money.... All those poor Iraqies getting killed :( .

    ReplyDelete
  10. "This is the best evidence against the "Flynn Effect" that I've ever seen."

    ... and the pretty good evidence for the ideomotor effect.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Soren, what American taxpayer money?!! it is Iraqi money from their oil they are selling instead of using 85 million dollars in reconstructing the torn apart country and restabilize Iraq by proper security measures, they spent it on dowsing rods!!!! 
    ughh.......why all stupid and ignorant religious schmucks hurled on Iraq after the removal of Saddam Hussein's regime!!!? and why didn't US stop them?

    ReplyDelete
  12. Actually, these bomb detectors work extremely well.  If the detector suddenly flies 100 feet up into the air, you've found a bomb!

    ReplyDelete
  13. He's been arrested: http://www.nowpublic.com/world/bomb-detector-maker-jim-mccormick-arrested

    ReplyDelete