Anything can be a weapon without killing intentions, like firetruck water cannons, sometimes used for crowd control.

But thats in the urban scene. Outside it, things get a little bit rougher, when the place of action of weapons of this kind, is at actual warfare, and not a city populated by civilians.

You must be asking yourself; "Why would you spare the life of an insurgent?". Well, sometimes its easier to avoid lethal confront and prevent human causalities while making sure you don't hurt an innocent target, but still, protect yourself in the process.

Non-lethal weapons such as the LRAD are being used today to prevent attacks similar to USS Cole, in 2000, where a small boat loaded with explosives collided in a suicide attack and killed 17 American sailors while it was harbored in the port of Aden. The destroyer didn't protect itself from the boat because it didn't present any apparent threats before the collision, sailors followed the rules of engagement which say they can't shoot unless they are shot at.

The LRAD could have prevented that, since it would have stopped the suicide conductors of the boat without imposing any potential life threats, maintaining the strict rules of engagement. The LRAD sends away powerful acoustic waves that disorients anyone in its sight, assuring effectiveness and preventing any permanent physical harm.

While non-lethal weapons won't replace lethal fire arms in warfare, they can still be used in effective ways to prevent causalities and in cases such as USS Cole's, offer a second and safer option when you don't know who you are dealing with.

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This is my Writing task 3 for my English course homework. I'll actually have to deliver a speech with that text :T I hope it is good enough. It didn't pass correction yet.

Looking forward your opinion.

The 250 word limit was a pain, this is why I couldn't get deeper into the subject, otherwise I would have done much better!

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