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Author: tio

  • Pluralistic: Carney isn’t a hero (and that’s OK) (27 Jan 2026)

    Today’s links


    A triple-masted schooner on a rough sea racing ahead of the wind. Drowning in its wake is a beleaguered caricature of Uncle Sam.

    Carney isn’t a hero (and that’s OK) (permalink)

    I blame novelists: it’s only in prose that we get the illusion of telepathy, of being inside the mind of another. No wonder novelistic tales of political transformation focus on the moral fortitude of individual leaders.

    The problem is, it’s a destructive lie.

    Sure, leaders sometimes exhibit moral fortitude and courage. But we can’t rely on our leaders to be perfect – or even pretty good. The only reliable way to get the leadership we deserve is to force our leaders to follow us, by organizing in political blocs that mete out severe punishments when they betray us.

    Say what you will about the Tea Party, but boy, did they understand this. During the Obama years, any Republican that wavered from the party line was mercilessly tormented by Tea Party activists, who flooded their offices with calls and emails, showed up at their town halls, and at restaurants when they were trying to have dinner, and then they backed their primary opponents. The Tea Party years were a winnowing function for the GOP, and the only Republican politicians who survived were the ones who refused to compromise. This worked for them in world-historic ways. It was thanks to the Tea Party that the GOP was able to steal two Supreme Court seats, for example.

    Corporate Democrats use the Tea Party as an example of why we can’t let the public into progressive politics. After all, corporate Dems already have control over Democratic politicians, and so any organized rank-and-file bloc threatens their ability to push elected politicians to pursue grotesque policies like supporting genocide in Gaza or showering billions on ICE:

    https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/seven-democrats-just-voted-to-approve-ice-funding-full-list/ar-AA1ULAn7

    The seven Dems who voted to fund ICE knew that they were doing something that would be wildly unpopular with the voters who sent them to DC, but they did it anyway, because they aren’t afraid of those voters. They treat their voters as ambulatory wallets to be terrorized into donating small sums via relentless text messages about the impending end of democracy in America, even as they vote for the impending end of democracy in America.

    These seven lawmakers don’t just need to be primaried: they need to be made an example of. Their names must be a curse. They must be confronted in public – long after they are out of office – by voters brandishing pictures of the people ICE murdered after receiving the funds they voted for. They must be haunted for this decision for the rest of their days. As Voltaire said, “Sometimes you must execute an admiral to encourage the others.”

    Here are their names:

    • Tom Suozzi (New York)
    • Henry Cuellar (Texas)
    • Don Davis (North Carolina)
    • Laura Gillen (New York)
    • Jared Golden (Maine)
    • Vicente Gonzalez (Texas)
    • Marie Glusenkamp Perez (Washington)

    https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/seven-democrats-just-voted-to-approve-ice-funding-full-list/ar-AA1ULAn7

    Politicians – even the most unhinged and narcissistic ones – go through life attuned to public rage. Even Trump. Why else would Trump have ordered ICE Obergruppenführer Gregory Bovino “home with his tail between his legs”?

    https://prospect.org/2026/01/27/ice-greg-bovino-minneapolis-one-battle-after-another-sean-penn/

    Counting on politicians to do the right thing out of principle is a loser’s bet. Far more reliable is to bet on them doing the right thing because they’re afraid of being cursed and humiliated and haunted by their betrayal to the end of their days.

    Don’t be fooled by politicians and pearl-clutchers insisting that the norms fairy and “comity” are the only way to get things done. We are not in an era of reaching across the aisle in a spirit of public service. We are in the era of fascist goons murdering our neighbors in the street and then dancing a celebratory jig. We arrived at this juncture in large part because we accepted glaring bullshit about “comity”:

    https://pluralistic.net/2021/01/30/meme-stocks/#comity

    This isn’t merely frustrated militancy on my part. I’m hoping that you will join me in this understanding of politics: that good leadership is downstream of politicians being terrified of betraying their duty to the public, and we need not rely on moral perfection to make progress.

    Take the EU’s energy transition. For decades, the EU’s leaders – like leaders everywhere – were in thrall to the fossil fuel industry. They were fully paid-up members of the most extreme wing of the capitalist death cult, determined to render the only planet in the known universe capable of sustaining human life uninhabitable in order to enrich a tiny coterie of already ultrawealthy climate criminals.

    Then came the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and with it, a continent shivering in the dark, bereft of Russian gas and oil. Suddenly, the most powerful lobbyists in the history of civilization – fossil fuel pushers – lost their grip on Europe’s leaders. In a few short years, Europe went from a decade behind its energy transition to a decade ahead:

    https://pluralistic.net/2025/09/23/our-friend-the-electron/#to-every-man-his-castle

    European politicians didn’t just trip and find their spines. A continent full of frozen, furious people made yielding to the fossil fuel lobby unthinkable. Once the penalties for betraying the public inarguably exceeded any conceivable benefits from selling out to Big Oil, Big Oil ate shit.

    Which brings me to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, a man who didn’t so much win office as fail to lose it, after his Conservative opponent Pierre Poilievre saw a 50-point collapse in his poll numbers the instant Donald Trump (whom Poilievre had repeatedly associated himself with during the campaign) promised to turn Canada into “the 51st state.”

    Carney is hardly an avatar of progressive politics. As Governor of the Bank of England, he oversaw a program of crushing austerity after the crash of 2008. As Canadian PM, he has fired tens of thousands of civil servants while promising billions to build out national AI so that our government can be handed over to hallucinating chatbots running on processors and software that we can only buy from companies that will do Trump’s bidding. Having won office with an “elbows up” mandate to resist Trump, Carney proceeded to cave to Trump’s demands on even modest measures, such as a plan to end rampant tax cheating by the US tech giants.

    And yet, earlier this month, Carney travelled to the World Economic Forum in Davos to deliver an extraordinary speech that declared a “rupture” in the “international rules-based order,” an order that he simultaneously declared to have been a sham all along:

    https://www.programmablemutter.com/p/davos-is-a-rational-ritual

    This is an incredibly weird (but good!) speech for Carney to have made. Carney is the epitome of “Davos Man,” a technocrat with a long history of using his office and power to inflict real suffering on working people in the name of abstract economic stability. This contradiction has been the source of much opnionating about whether a) Carney is sincere about this, and b) Carney can be trusted to follow through on it.

    The answers to this are obvious (to me, at least): a) Who cares if he’s sincere, because b) He’s shown that if he’s frightened enough of the public’s fury at his capitulation, he will locate his spine. Which means that the future of Carney’s ambitious program of “rupture” and bold effort to isolate Trump and the USA will depend on our ability to force him to make good on his promises.

    That means that we have to “stand on guard” – to give no ground to Canadian “moderates” who counsel against bold action to defend the country from Trump, lest this make Trump mad. The idea that we can strike a bargain with Trump is indisputably, profoundly stupid. Yet for the past year a sizable fraction of Canada’s great and good have been able to insist, in public, that Trump will bargain with us in good faith.

    Trump undeniably, provably treats any concession as weakness. He will break his word in a heartbeat. The more we appease him, the more he will demand of us. Any Canadian politician or opinion-former who even hints that we can “make a deal” with Trump should be treated as a dangerous lunatic to be isolated and shunned (the only exception being that any time they show their faces in public, they should be relentlessly bollocked for their nation-risking program of appeasement to a fascist madman).

    Give Trump a centimetre and he’ll take a mile. Give him two centimetres and he’ll take Greenland. Give him three centimetres and he’ll grab Alberta, too. Anyone who insists that Canada should confine itself to ornamental gestures of resistance to Trump (because anything that truly matters will make him mad) is a danger to themselves and the country.

    This all goes double for people aligned with other national parties: the way we get Carney to live up to his Davos speech is by pouncing any time he even hints that he might go back on his word, poaching his voters by campaigning on a promise to live up the Carney Doctrine (even if Carney won’t). Promising to live up to Carney’s Davos speech (even if Carney won’t) must be the central issue in every by-election and provincial race between now and the next federal election.

    When we talk about politics and especially political change, there’s often talk of “political will.” Politicians who break with their own record of weakness and compromise are said to be propelled by “political will.”

    It’s all very abstract sounding, but at root, political will is something quite tangible – it’s merely invisible until something gets in its way.

    Think of political will as something like the wind. You can’t tell how windy it is outside unless there’s something in the path of the wind, and then it’s obvious. For the past decade, there has been a growing worldwide political will blowing for an end to corporate and billionaire power:

    https://pluralistic.net/2025/06/28/mamdani/#trustbusting

    It’s easy to feel like the project of taking our world back from oligarchs has been becalmed for decades. The political will is like the wind: we only see it when something gets in its path. After generations of Davos-style oligarch worship, there are damned few politicians who dare to unfurl a sail and aim the tiller for a world that works for working people.

    But every time some politician does, that sail bellies out with the wind with an audible snap. These politicians are lionized and lauded for their bravery, and any betrayal is met with bitter recriminations that go on and on and on. Any ship rigged for a better future is propelled by a wind that is a fiercer gale than any we’ve seen for generations.

    That’s where we all fit in. I’m not asking you to credulously accept Carney’s conversion at face value. Rather, I’m asking that you celebrate the vision that Carney articulated while threatening to destroy his political life if he breaks his word. Let every politician know that there is glory in standing up for us – and let them know that betrayal will see them tossed overboard, to drown in our wake.

    Hey look at this (permalink)


    A shelf of leatherbound history books with a gilt-stamped series title, 'The World's Famous Events.'

    Object permanence (permalink)

    #25yrsago Things My Girlfriend and I Have Argued About https://web.archive.org/web/20010604131027/http://homepage.ntlworld.com/mil.millington/things.html

    #20yrsago Law enforcement professionals against the war on drugs https://web.archive.org/web/20060202103138/http://leap.cc/

    #20yrsago How DRM tries to resist uninstalling https://blog.citp.princeton.edu/2006/01/29/cd-drm-unauthorized-deactivation-attacks/

    #15yrsago EFF: FBI may have committed more than 40K intelligence violations since 9/11 https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2011/01/eff-releases-report-detailing-fbi-intelligence

    #15yrsago AnarchistU Toronto: free school classes for February https://web.archive.org/web/20110126075027/https://anarchistu.org/

    #10yrsago Florida climate survivors travel to New Hampshire to confront Marco Rubio https://web.archive.org/web/20160201193104/https://act.climatetruth.org/sign/climatevoices2016_videoandpetition/?source=BB

    #10yrsago Elizabeth Warren’s new 1%: the percentage of fraudulent profits companies pay in fines https://web.archive.org/web/20160129113016/https://theintercept.com/2016/01/29/elizabeth-warren-challenges-clinton-sanders-to-prosecute-corporate-crime-better-than-obama/

    #5yrsago David Dayen’s MONOPOLIZED https://pluralistic.net/2021/01/29/fractal-bullshit/#dayenu

    #1yrago All bets are off https://pluralistic.net/2025/01/29/which-side-are-you-on-2/#strike-three-yer-out

    Upcoming appearances (permalink)

    A photo of me onstage, giving a speech, pounding the podium.


    A screenshot of me at my desk, doing a livecast.

    Recent appearances (permalink)


    A grid of my books with Will Stahle covers..

    Latest books (permalink)


    A cardboard book box with the Macmillan logo.

    Upcoming books (permalink)

    • “Unauthorized Bread”: a middle-grades graphic novel adapted from my novella about refugees, toasters and DRM, FirstSecond, 2026

    • “Enshittification, Why Everything Suddenly Got Worse and What to Do About It” (the graphic novel), Firstsecond, 2026

    • “The Memex Method,” Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 2026

    • “The Reverse-Centaur’s Guide to AI,” a short book about being a better AI critic, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, June 2026


    Colophon (permalink)

    Today’s top sources:

    Currently writing: “The Post-American Internet,” a sequel to “Enshittification,” about the better world the rest of us get to have now that Trump has torched America (1004 words today, 15484 total)

    • “The Reverse Centaur’s Guide to AI,” a short book for Farrar, Straus and Giroux about being an effective AI critic. LEGAL REVIEW AND COPYEDIT COMPLETE.

    • “The Post-American Internet,” a short book about internet policy in the age of Trumpism. PLANNING.

    • A Little Brother short story about DIY insulin PLANNING

    This work – excluding any serialized fiction – is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. That means you can use it any way you like, including commercially, provided that you attribute it to me, Cory Doctorow, and include a link to pluralistic.net.

    https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

    Quotations and images are not included in this license; they are included either under a limitation or exception to copyright, or on the basis of a separate license. Please exercise caution.

    How to get Pluralistic:

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    “When life gives you SARS, you make sarsaparilla” -Joey “Accordion Guy” DeVilla

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  • Growing number of adults avoid booze, says NHS survey

    Almost a quarter of adults in England do not drink alcohol, according to new figures from a health survey.
  • Timeless Songs, Fresh Lyrics: Musician Stephanie Woodford Reinterprets the Public Domain

    Timeless Songs, Fresh Lyrics: Musician Stephanie Woodford Reinterprets the Public Domain

    When songs enter the public domain, they don’t just get older, they get new lives. For this year’s virtual Public Domain Day celebration, musician Stephanie Woodford gave three newly public-domain classics a fresh voice by writing new lyrics, reimagined for today.

    Partygoers were treated to live performances of Georgia on My Mind and Dream a Little Dream of Me, while a third reinterpretation, On the Sunny Side of the Street, lives on as a special recording. Together, these performances show what the public domain makes possible: creativity that’s playful, personal, and very much alive.

    Dream a Little Dream of Me

    Music composed by Fabian Andre and Wilbur Schwandt, with lyrics by Gus Kahn. (1930)

    Georgia on My Mind

    Music composed by Hoagy Carmichael, with lyrics by Stuart Gorrell. (1930)

    On the Sunny Side of the Street

    Music composed by Jimmy McHugh, with lyrics by Dorothy Fields. (1930)

    Stephanie Woodford is a pop, soul, and RnB singer/songwriter and performer. She is a graduate of both the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Preparatory Division and also St. Ignatius College Preparatory High School. She has a degree in music from City College of San Francisco.

  • Cancer waiting times: Latest updates and analysis

  • Identifying ‘Less-Lethal’ Weapons Used By DHS Agents in US Immigration Raids and Protests

    Identifying ‘Less-Lethal’ Weapons Used By DHS Agents in US Immigration Raids and Protests

    To stay up to date on our latest investigations, join Bellingcat’s WhatsApp channel here.

    Federal agents have frequently used so-called “less-lethal” weapons against protesters, including impact projectiles, tear gas and pepper spray, since the Trump administration’s nationwide immigration raids began last year. 

    The use of less-lethal weapons (LLWs) has been controversial. While designed to incapacitate or control a person without causing death or permanent injury, they can cause serious or fatal injuries, especially when used improperly. 

    Earlier this month, two protesters in California were reportedly blinded after US federal agents fired less-lethal rounds at their faces from close range. These incidents were part of a wave of violent clashes between agents from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and protesters across the country after the deadly shooting of US citizen Renee Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent in Minneapolis. 

    Federal agents armed with less-lethal weapons in Minneapolis on Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. Source: Cristina Matuozzi/Sipa USA via Reuters Connect

    In protests in Minneapolis immediately following Good’s death, one Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) officer was captured on camera firing a 40mm less-lethal launcher five times in less than five minutes, with several of these shots appearing to target protesters’ faces, which is against CBP’s own use-of-force policy. 

    A Bellingcat investigation of DHS incidents in October 2025 also found about 30 incidents that appeared to violate a temporary restraining order (TRO) issued by an Illinois judge restricting how DHS agents could use LLWs.

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    Your donations directly contribute to our ability to publish groundbreaking investigations and uncover wrongdoing around the world.

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    It is not always obvious whether the use of a LLW is authorised or not, as DHS component agencies such as ICE and CBP have varying guidance on factors such as the level of resistance an individual needs to show before a certain type of force can be used, as well as how specific types of less-lethal weapons and munitions can be used. 

    While CBP’s use-of-force policy as of January 2021 is available on its website, ICE does not include specific guidance on less-lethal weapons in its 2023 “Firearms and Use of Force” Directive, and does not appear to have any publicly available policy that outlines this guidance.

    DHS did not respond by publication time to Bellingcat’s request for the most recent DHS, CBP and ICE use-of-force policies, or to questions about what less-lethal weapons were authorised for use by the department and its component agencies. 

    The DHS use-of-force policy, updated in February 2023, states that the department’s law enforcement officers and agents may use force, including LLWs, “only when no reasonably effective, safe and feasible alternative appears to exist”. It also says agents may only use a level of force that is “objectively reasonable in light of the facts and circumstances” that they face at the time.

    DHS has repeatedly defended its use of riot-control weapons in protests across the country, stating that it was “taking reasonable and constitutional measures to uphold the rule of law and protect [its] officers”. 

    Here’s how to identify some of the less-lethal weapons that DHS agents, including those from ICE and CBP, have been seen using during recent immigration operations. 

    Compressed Air Launchers or ‘PepperBall Guns’

    Left: A Border Patrol Agent in Chicago carrying an orange TAC-SF series PepperBall gun in Illinois on Oct. 24, 2025. Right: Agent aiming a Pepperball gun at someone filming them in Illinois on Oct. 19, 2025. Source: Youtube / @BlockClubChicago and Tiktok / @ericcervantes25

    Compressed air, or pneumatic launchers, are essentially paintball guns that fire 0.68mm balls which break on impact. Often, this releases a powdered chemical irritant such as oleoresin capsicum (OC) or PavaPowder – the same compounds typically found in pepper spray. 

    Compressed air launchers can also be used with other projectiles, such as “marking” projectiles that use paint to mark an individual for later arrest, and projectiles intended to break glass.

    These weapons are often referred to as “PepperBall” guns, named after the leading brand PepperBall. However, DHS agents have also been seen carrying compressed air launchers from different brands, such as the FN303, produced by FN America.

    Many compressed air launchers resemble standard paintball guns, with a distinct hopper or loader, which holds the ball projectiles, mounted to the top. They also have a compressed air tank that might be mounted to the side, bottom, or inside the buttstock (or back) of the weapon.

    Many compressed air launchers, and less-lethal weapons in general, have very bright colours such as orange to distinguish them from lethal weapons. 

    The TAC-SF PepperBall gun features a compressed air tank and a top-mounted EL-2 hopper, which has a distinctive shape. Graphic: Justin Baird for Bellingcat
    The PepperBall TAC-SA Pro’s hopper is a slightly different shape from the TAC-SF, but serves the same purpose. Graphic: Justin Baird for Bellingcat
    PepperBall VKS Pro features a compressed air tank located inside the buttstock and a magazine rather than a top-mounted hopper. Graphic: Justin Baird for Bellingcat

    However, some compressed air launchers require closer scrutiny to distinguish them from firearms. 

    For example, federal agents have been seen carrying FN303 compressed air launchers in videos of immigration enforcement activities. This weapon may resemble a rifle or other firearm, as it is usually all-black and, unlike the TAC-SF series PepperBall guns, lacks a visible hopper. 

    Left: Agent holding an FN303 in California on June 11, 2025. Right: Federal Agent aiming a FN303 compressed air launcher at someone filming them in Illinois on Oct. 7, 2025. Source: TikTok / @anthony.depice and TikTok / @krisvvec

    If closer examination is possible, this weapon can be identified by its distinct features, including a circular magazine, side-mounted compressed air tank and a hose connecting the firearm to the air tank.

    The FN303’s air tank is mounted on the side and connected to the firearm by a hose. Graphic: Justin Baird for Bellingcat

    The January 2021 CBP Use of Force Policy places several restrictions on the use of compressed air launchers, including that they should not be used against small children, the elderly, visibly pregnant women, or people operating a vehicle. It also states that PepperBall guns should not be used within 3 feet “unless the use of deadly force is reasonable and necessary”. When using the FN303, the minimum distance is increased to 10 feet. 

    The CBP Use of Force Policy says that the intentional targeting of areas where there is a “substantial risk of serious bodily injury or death is considered a use of deadly force.” Agents are instructed not to target “the head, neck, spine, or groin of the intended subject, unless the use of deadly force is reasonable”. PepperBall and FN America provide similar warnings about avoiding vital areas to prevent serious injury or death.

    According to a 2021 report by the US Office of Inspector General, CBP requires its agents to recertify their training to use PepperBall guns and FN303s every year, but ICE does not.   

    40mm Launchers

    Left: CBP agent “EZ-17” with a B&T GL06 40mm launcher and a belt with a variety of Defense Technology 40mm less lethal munitions, including one Direct Impact OC round and two Direct Impact CS rounds in Illinois on Oct. 24, 2025. Centre: EZ-17 firing a B&T GL06 launcher at a man in Minneapolis on Jan. 7, 2026. Right: A federal agent with a B&T GL06 in Illinois on Oct. 24, 2025. Source: YouTube / Block Club Chicago, X / Dymanh, Facebook / Draco Nesquik

    DHS agents also use 40mm launchers to fire “Less-Lethal Specialist Impact and Chemical Munitions (LLSI-CM)”. These launchers resemble military grenade launchers, but are used to fire less-lethal ammunition, including “sponge” rounds that can disperse chemical irritants on impact. 

    Federal agents have been seen using or carrying the B&T GL06 launcher in footage of multiple incidents reviewed by Bellingcat. They have also been spotted with other 40mm launchers, including Penn Arms 40mm multi-shot launchers, which have a six-round cylinder magazine. 

    The B&T GL06 (pictured) and other 40mm launchers have a visibly wider barrel than compressed air launchers or standard firearms. Graphic: Justin Baird for Bellingcat

    There are various less-lethal munitions available for 40mm launchers, including those whose primary function is “pain compliance” through the force of impact, chemical irritants or a combination of both. 

    Videos of clashes between Border Patrol agents and protesters show these launchers being used with combination rounds designed to hit the target for pain compliance while also delivering a chemical irritant such as OC or CS. 

    Direct Impact munitions by Defense Technology have distinctive rounded sponge foam noses and colours that indicate their chemical fill. Graphic: Justin Baird for Bellingcat

    Other munitions dispense chemical irritants or smoke after being launched. For example, in the protests immediately following Good’s death, a Border Patrol agent was seen firing a 40mm munition that released multiple projectiles emitting chemical irritants in a single shot, consistent with the “SKAT Shell” by Defense Technology.

    The SKAT Shell by Defense Technology (left) fires multiple projectiles, while the company’s SPEDE-Heat shell launches a single projectile. Graphic: Justin Baird for Bellingcat

    Defense Technology’s technical specifications for its 40mm Direct Impact Rounds, which agents have been seen armed with, state that the munitions are considered less-lethal when fired at a minimum safe range of 5 feet and at the large muscle groups of the buttocks, thigh and knees, which “provide sufficient pain stimulus, while greatly reducing serious or life-threatening injuries”.

    A DHS Office of Inspector General Report in 2021 noted varying guidance on the use of 40mm launchers among the department’s component agencies: “ICE’s use of force policy indicates that the 40MM launcher is deadly force when fired at someone, while the CBP use of force policy only directs officers not to target a person’s head or neck.”

    CBP’s 2021 use-of-force policy states that agents should “not intentionally target the head, neck, groin, spine, or female breast”, and that anyone in custody who has been subject to such munitions should be seen by a medical professional “as soon as practicable”.

    As of publication, DHS had not replied to Bellingcat’s questions about whether the department had an internal policy or provided training to staff on the minimum safe distance for 40mm less-lethal launchers as recommended by the manufacturers.

    Hand-Thrown Munitions

    Top Left: Border Patrol Commander of Operations At Large Greg Bovino with two Triple-Chaser CS Grenades on his vest in Minneapolis on Jan. 8, 2026. Top Right: Person holding a used Pocket Tactical Green Smoke grenade in Minneapolis, Jan. 21, 2026. Bottom Left: Top third of a Triple-Chaser Grenade in Illinois, Oct. 25, 2025. Bottom Right: Used Riot Control CS Grenade in Minneapolis, Jan. 23, 2026. Source: Nick Sortor, Rollofthedice, Bluesky / Unraveled Press, Andrew Hazzard

    DHS agents have also been seen throwing some less-lethal munitions, such as flash-bangs, smoke and “tear gas” grenades or canisters by hand. 

    Related articles by Bellingcat

    ‘Pattern of Extreme Brutality’: Tear Gas, Pepper Balls Among Weapons Deployed Against Protesters in Illinois

    Investigations

    ‘Pattern of Extreme Brutality’: Tear Gas, Pepper Balls Among Weapons Deployed Against Protesters in Illinois

    These munitions activate a short delay after the grenade is employed. When they activate, flash-bangs or “stun” grenades emit a bright flash of light and a loud sound that is designed to disorient targets. Both smoke grenades and tear gas (also known as “CS gas” or “OC gas”) emit thick smoke, but the former just impedes visibility, whereas the latter also contains chemical irritants that sting the eyes. 

    Defense Technology offers smoke grenades with hexachloroethane smoke composition, but most of their smoke grenades use “SAF-Smoke”, a less toxic terephthalic acid smoke composition. 

    Hexachloroethane, while toxic, is not a nerve agent, despite misinformation surrounding the deployment of green colored smoke grenades in Minnesota by DHS personnel. 

    The shape and general construction, colour, and any text can help identify these munitions.

    Less-lethal munitions typically feature the manufacturer’s logo, the model name of the munition, and the model or part number. The text and manufacturer logo are typically colour-coded to indicate the type of payload the munition has, with blue indicating CS, orange indicating OC, yellow indicating smoke, green indicating a marking composition and black indicating munitions with no chemical payload. 

    The “Triple-Chaser” grenade by Defense Technology (left) has three distinct segments that separate after the grenade is thrown, with each emitting smoke or chemical irritants, while other chemical grenades by the same company have a single smooth body (right). Graphic: Justin Baird for Bellingcat

    A 2021 analysis by Bellingcat and Newsy found that Defense Technology and Combined Tactical Systems, the two manufacturers which produce most of the less-lethal munitions used by federal agents, both list the model numbers of their products online. Publicly available price lists for Defense Technology and Combined Tactical Systems can also be used to identify specific munitions by their model numbers. 

    Part numbers seen on less-lethal munitions recovered in Portland in 2020. Source: Robert Evans/Bellingcat and X / @AnalystMick

    CBP’s 2021 use-of-force policy states that hand-thrown munitions are subject to the same restrictions for use as munition launcher-fired impact and chemical munitions. 

    Chemical Irritant Sprays

    Left: DHS agent using a chemical irritant spray on a protester in Minneapolis on Nov. 25, 2025. Centre: CBP Agent spraying Alex Pretti with what appears to be OC spray moments before he is killed in Minneapolis on Jan. 24, 2026. Right: Federal Agent with a SABRE MK-9 spray threatening to spray a journalist if they do not move back in Minneapolis on Dec. 11, 2025. Source: Reddit / I_May_Have_Weed, TikTok/ShitboxHyundai, Instagram / Status Coup

    DHS agents have also been using handheld chemical irritant sprays, often colloquially referred to as “pepper spray” or “mace”.

    These sprays come in a variety of sizes and concentrations containing CS, OC, or both. Sprays used by law enforcement usually have a canister size designated “MK-” followed by a number, with higher numbers indicating larger canister sizes. The concentration of chemical irritants contained in the spray is also indicated on the canister.

    The .2% MK-9 OC Spray by Defense Technology (left). The MK-9 produced by various companies with various concentrations has been seen often used by federal agents on protestors (right). Graphic: Justin Baird for Bellingcat

    The effectiveness of OC sprays is determined by the concentration of major capsaicinoids, which are the active compounds in OC that cause irritation. These sprays are also affected by the type of aerosol dispersion, or stream, used. Different types of streams increase or decrease the range of the spray as well as the coverage area. 

    Civilian and law enforcement sprays range from 0.18 percent to 1.33 percent major capsaicinoids, according to SABRE, a producer of law enforcement and civilian sprays. Civilian sprays in the US can have the same major capsaicinoid content as law enforcement sprays, but are restricted to smaller-sized canisters. 

    Defense Technology sprays have different colour bands to indicate the percentage of major capsaicinoids in the spray for OC. If the spray is CS, the CS concentration is standardised at 2 percent. The company uses a white band for .2 percent, yellow band for .4 percent, orange band for .7 percent, red band for 1.3 percent and a grey band for sprays containing either CS or a combination of OC and CS.

    SABRE sells a variety of concentrations and sprays as law enforcement products, including 0.33 percent, 0.67 percent, and 1.33 percent major capsaicinoid concentrations of OC, as well as CS, and combination CS and OC sprays. The specific concentrations of SABRE sprays and the type of stream can also be identified by the text on the canister. 

    One Air Force Research Laboratory study found that some sprays may pose a significant risk of severe eye damage due to pressure injuries resulting from large aerosol droplets hitting the eye. 

    Defense Technology’s technical specifications recommend a minimum distance of between 3 and 6 feet, depending on the specific spray. SABRE does not publicly provide their minimum safe deployment distances, but a Mesa Police Department document lists a minimum distance of six feet for the SABRE Red MK-9. CBP’s 2021 use-of-force policy does not provide any minimum use distances. 

    CBP’s 2021 use-of-force policy states that OC Spray may only be used on individuals offering “active resistance”, and that it should not be used on “small children; visibly pregnant; and operators of motor vehicles”. 

    Electronic Control Weapons

    Left: Federal Agent pointing an Axon Taser 10 at a bystander who was filming an arrest in Los Angeles in June 2025. Right: DHS Agent with an Axon Taser 10 during an arrest in California on June 24, 2025. Source: Instagram / @dianaluespeciales, Instagram / Joe Knows Ventura

    DHS agents have also been seen using electronic control weapons (ECWs), which are colloquially called TASERs after the original weapon invented for law enforcement use, in immigration-related raids. 

    ECWs can deliver a shock upon direct contact or launch probes that embed in the targeted person, incapacitating them. 

    A shock on contact, or a “drive-stun” feature, delivers localised pain while in direct contact. When properly deployed, the probes send signals to the body that cause muscles to contract. A person’s body “locking up” from muscle contractions is an indicator that an ECW has been deployed. ECWs may be capable of using either or both methods.

    ECWs are typically painted a combination of black and bright yellow, but this varies between models. The bright colour of parts of tasers is a common feature to help distinguish an ECW from handguns used by federal agents. When viewed from the front, a circular gun barrel is visible on handguns, while ECWs feature multiple circular probes or rectangular covers on the cartridge. ECWs also usually have flashlights and lasers, although handguns may also be equipped with these features. Some ECWs may make audible sounds when armed or deployed.

    The Axon TASER 10. Graphic: Justin Baird for Bellingcat

    Axon, the predominant manufacturer of ECWs, produces several models including the TASER 10 and TASER 7. Axon provides a policy guide on recommended use of its TASER models to law enforcement agencies, which recommends targeting below the neck from behind, or the lower torso from the front. It recommends avoiding sensitive areas including the head, face, throat, chest and groin. 

    Axon also recommends against using ECWs against small children, the elderly, pregnant people, very thin people and individuals in positions of increased risks such as running, operating a motor vehicle, or in an elevated position “unless the situation justifies an increased risk”.

    CBP’s 2021 use-of-force policy, in addition to restricting the use of ECWs against small children, the elderly, visibly pregnant women, and people operating a vehicle, states that they should not be used against someone who is running or handcuffed. However, the policy does state that there may be an exception to the rule against using ECWs on a running person if an agent has a “reasonable belief that the subject presents an imminent threat of injury” to an agent or another person. This threat, according to the policy, must “outweigh the risk of injury to the subject that might occur as a result of an uncontrolled fall while the subject is running”.

    Bellingcat is a non-profit and the ability to carry out our work is dependent on the kind support of individual donors. If you would like to support our work, you can do so here. You can also subscribe to our Patreon channel here. Subscribe to our Newsletter and follow us on Bluesky here and Mastodon here.

    The post Identifying ‘Less-Lethal’ Weapons Used By DHS Agents in US Immigration Raids and Protests appeared first on bellingcat.

  • Third Kuciak Murder Trial Starts in Slovakia

    A Slovak court on Monday ruled that encrypted Threema messages would remain in evidence as proceedings resumed in the third trial over the 2018 murders of investigative journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée, Martina Kušnírová.

    Kuciak, 27, was an investigative reporter covering corruption and organized crime, while Kušnírová was his fiancée. The two were shot dead at their home in the village of Veľká Mača in February 2018, in a contract-style killing that triggered mass protests in Slovakia and led to the resignation of senior government officials.

    Businessman Marián Kočner and his associate Alena Zsuzsová stand accused of ordering the killing and they again appeared before a newly constituted panel of the Specialized Criminal Court.

    The retrial was ordered after Slovakia’s Supreme Court overturned a May 2023 verdict, saying the lower court made “unclear factual findings” and failed to examine all relevant evidence. The top court said the previous judges “did not deal with all circumstances significant for the decision” and sent the case back for a fresh hearing before a new panel.

    At Monday’s hearing, Kočner’s lawyer Marek Para challenged the prosecution’s use of Threema messages, questioning whether they were legally obtained, and attacked the credibility of key witness Zoltán Andruskó, calling him “absolutely untrustworthy.” 

    Zsuzsová’s lawyers echoed the criticism, saying the case relied almost entirely on Andruskó and that the evidence presented so far did not prove her involvement in the murders.

    Lawyers representing the victims’ families opposed the defense motion. Roman Kvasnica, who represents Kuciak’s parents and Kušnírová’s mother, said there was no reason to exclude the digital evidence.

    The court rejected the defense request and ruled that Kočner’s Threema communications would remain part of the case file.

    The next hearing was scheduled for Feb. 9, with the court setting 42 hearing dates through the end of 2026.

  • Infant formula batch recall over toxin discovery

    Parents are warned to return any of the specific product affected because it is not safe for babies to consume.

  • An Open Letter to the Minnesota Law Community

    In light of recent events in Minnesota, the LPE Blog is republishing an open letter, signed by seventy-two University of Minnesota Law Faculty. ** ** ** We, the undersigned faculty of the University of Minnesota Law School, write in our individual capacities to address the federal government’s ongoing campaign of fear, intimidation, and violence against Minnesotans. Like many of you…

    Source

  • Independent experts alarmed by child rights violations in US immigration procedures

    UN-appointed independent human rights experts have raised alarm over violations of children’s rights during US immigration procedures, nearly a year after federal funding for legal representation for unaccompanied minors was terminated. 

  • Remembering the Holocaust: ‘You are here because you choose hope over hate’

    The Holocaust is a warning, that hatred “can consume everything” – a message that feels more urgent than ever, the UN chief said on Tuesday, as antisemitism rages worldwide.