Imagine you are a military soldier or even a traditional hunter sighting down the barrel of your reliable firearm.  Just as you squeeze the trigger you realize that your intended target has been improperly identified.  Now imagine that you can simply release the trigger and your target will walk away unharmed.  The very idea is impossible with traditional weaponry, but a new collection of energy beam-weapons stands poised to make this a reality.

When a bullet leaves the barrel of a gun, it is a definitive motion that represents a final judgment on the part of the firearm operator.  The risks inherent with projectile weaponry cannot be ignored.  Bullets are sent off-course by the wind, they ricochet of objects and fly in unpredictable directions, they take time to reach their intended target, they are heavy, and under no circumstances can they be recalled.

Modern energy-based beam weapons aim to mitigate these risks by replacing the bullet with a controlled beam of energy.  As reported by Brian Bergstein of the Associated Press,

The hallmark of all directed-energy weapons is that the target — whether a human or a mechanical object — has no chance to avoid the shot because it moves at the speed of light. At some frequencies, it can penetrate walls.

Since the ammunition is merely light or radio waves, directed-energy weapons are limited only by the supply of electricity. And they don't involve chemicals or projectiles that can be inaccurate, accidentally cause injury or violate international treaties.

There are many forms of energy weapons being developed at tremendous expense.  Yet these technologies have the ability to supplant traditional firearms as the next generation of civilian and military weaponry.  The number of approaches being pursued demonstrate the flexibility of energy weapons and will ultimately provide firearm operators with a variety of options to employ against their intended target.  Some of these technologies aim to burn, stun, blind, confuse, nauseate, and outright kill their intended targets.  Never has such a variety of options been available for law enforcement, military, personal defense, and hunting. 

While traditional weaponry will probably always exist, the new age of energy weapons is dawning.  In some respects, it foreshadows a Star Trek future.  A future in which the firearms operator is able to make a decision about the effect their weapon will have upon the intended target.  A future where non-lethal weaponry can be deployed in confidence to avoid unnecessary deaths, and a future where instantaneous death can be delivered on target with confidence when it is needed. 

W.S.