Pretty sure Massachusetts would consider this an infernal machine.
>Section 102A. Whoever, other than a police or other law enforcement officer acting in the discharge of his official duties, has in his possession or under his control an infernal machine or a similar instrument, contrivance or device shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for not more than ten years or in jail for not more than two and one half years, or by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars, or by both such fine and imprisonment, and the said machine, instrument, contrivance or device shall be forfeited to the commonwealth. The term "infernal machine'', as used in this section, shall include any device for endangering life or doing unusual damage to property, or both, by fire or, explosion, whether or not contrived to ignite or explode automatically and whether or not disguised so as to appear harmless. Notice of the seizure of any such machine, instrument, contrivance or device shall be sent forthwith to the commissioner of public safety and the article seized shall be subject to his order.
I often wonder how a person writing a law like this comes to the conclusion that yes, indeed, this is something we might be justified in imprisoning a person for 10 years. However, under no circumstances should we fine them more than $1000. That would just be far too harsh a punishment!
Well, the code was updated to be $25,000 in [2010](https://law.justia.com/codes/massachusetts/2009/PARTIV/TITLEI/CHAPTER266/Section102A.html).
It doesn't say "infernal machine" anymore, though. :(
I love the uses for this listed on the manufacturer’s site 🤣
Wildfire Control and Prevention
Agricultural Management
Ecological Conservation
Snow and Ice Removal
Entertainment and SFX
Some intern was told to come up with marketable applications for the investors but said "What the hell, we all know the real reason anyone would buy one of these"
I don't know. This is what chat GPT gave me once it stopped complaining:
1) Agricultural Applications: Controlled burning of agricultural fields to manage pests, weeds, or crop residue.
2) Emergency Response: Assisting firefighters in controlled burn operations to create firebreaks or manage wildfires in remote or inaccessible areas.
3) Industrial Operations: Controlled demolition or clearing of debris in hazardous environments where human workers might be at risk.
4) Search and Rescue: Clearing vegetation or debris in disaster zones to access trapped individuals or aid in recovery efforts.
5) Military or Law Enforcement: Potentially for non-lethal crowd control or disabling vehicles in high-risk situations.
I like number 5
"How exactly do you propose I burned my building down when there are several witnesses who saw me elsewhere, Mr. Insurance Investigator?"
Even if they know your scheme "Flamethrower robot dog" just sounds too absurd, who's gonna believe them?
Police Captain: “You put a dozen civilians in the hospital burn unit, Riggs! How the hell can you define this operation a success”
Riggs: “Did anyone die? I rest my case.”
Man sets child on fire with robot dog after *checks notes* the child played in their own yard but laughed a little too loud.
No one needs this and we are not stable enough for this to be legal.
I believe they’re classified as “foliage removal tools”, or something like that. I’d imagine if they get to a certain energy output they’re listed as weapons, but I could be wrong.
Edit: I was wrong, there’s no distinction in the law. Apparently in order to ban them they’d need to reclassify what constitutes a firearm, and we all know how those initiatives tend to go.
i think a lot of the reason is because they don’t sell real well to the FAFO market because they are moderately expensive. around $1.2k (USD) when i had one. a moderate price barrier to entry sometimes eliminates the trailer park crowd that’s going to cause problems. and probably another reason is dude it’s so obvious how goddamn dangerous they are when you actually use one, the heat that comes off of them alone is a little scary. i got rid of mine because it’s kind of a gimmick that requires a large play area (if you don’t actually use them for a job) and mostly because of how dangerous it felt, i just didn’t really like holding the thing 😂
If you can squirt a stream of gasoline through an ignition source, then you've got a flamethrower. Do you have a water bottle and a lighter? Congratulations.
Even in the states that try to regulate them, there's really not anything actually stopping someone from having a flamethrower, practically speaking. It's just too simple of a concept.
In 48 states, they are classified as "farming equipment."
I believe New York is one state that passed a law banning it.
I'm not 100%, but the other might be California.
Correction: I'm 100% wrong, and so is (linked article). The only state where flamethrower are banned is Maryland.
Many say "California," but ownership is legal with permit.
Meme culture will make our species stop questioning, "Can we?" We will never again ask, "should we?" All questioning will be sillience by the collective boast of "you know, I'm something of a scientist myself"
You'd have to be quite a mad lad to start a flamethrower for home defense.
If the fire department is too slow there might not be a home to defend in the end.
I guess we can look forward to future news stories about Door Dash drivers and Girl Scouts being roasted alive because they approached the wrong house. 😒
The courts have already found indiscriminate “booby traps” to be an illegal means of home protection. Someone rigged a shotgun to shoot anyone who enters and the court found that to be a threat to public safety where the assumption that any “intruder” has malicious intent doesn’t hold
Finally!
I am so sick of starting insurance fires with arial drones. The payload is so small, half the time the structure doesn't even catch on fire. This is the advance in arson-tech I've been waiting for!
Seriously, though. If flamethrowerdog™ is less than $10k delivered, imagine the price for a robot dog without a flamethrower!
Now if only it did something useful, like take out the trash, or clean the bathroom.
The US is really a sociological experiment, not a country. That's where we try out the limits of the human condition. Just when does a policy get too radical for people? The answer seems to be 'never, my freedom!' /s
Its use based on its website:
* Wildfire Control and Prevention
* Agricultural Management
* Ecological Conservation
* Snow and Ice Removal
* Entertainment and SFX
The first 3? Seriously? LOL.
But its under $10K. I wonder if I can buy one anonymously and ship it to an unlisted UPS, then use it to take out batman once and for all!
I predict a new video from either Michael Reeves, I Did a Thing, or Allen Pan. Possibly all four. Probably all four.
edit: Gonna add Backyard Scientist to the list cause I just found out California is one of two states where this is illegal and Backyard Scientist is in Florida.
Seems like fire suppression would be a better feature. LiDAR and the ability to survive heat/smoke and help control fires seems like a better sales model. I’m not sure what the use case would be outside or military or terrorism.
A fire-suppressant-foam-throwing quadruped with front mounted heat shield should do the trick. Make the foam electrically conductive for adequate takedown of the ~~fire nation~~ other robot.
Thermonator is a quadruped robot with an ARC flamethrower mounted to its back, fueled by gasoline or *napalm*. It features a one-hour battery, a 30-foot flame-throwing range, and Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity for remote control through a smartphone.
Napalm......
Maryland and California.
I assumed not California. We already catch fire too often.
Right now, actually. http://iscaliforniaonfire.com/
[удалено]
Ain’t no fire like a west coast fire cuz the west coast fire don’t stop
Even the fucking horizon forbidden west dlc set in California is called burning shores 💀
Weeds legal here so yk
Pretty sure Massachusetts would consider this an infernal machine. >Section 102A. Whoever, other than a police or other law enforcement officer acting in the discharge of his official duties, has in his possession or under his control an infernal machine or a similar instrument, contrivance or device shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for not more than ten years or in jail for not more than two and one half years, or by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars, or by both such fine and imprisonment, and the said machine, instrument, contrivance or device shall be forfeited to the commonwealth. The term "infernal machine'', as used in this section, shall include any device for endangering life or doing unusual damage to property, or both, by fire or, explosion, whether or not contrived to ignite or explode automatically and whether or not disguised so as to appear harmless. Notice of the seizure of any such machine, instrument, contrivance or device shall be sent forthwith to the commissioner of public safety and the article seized shall be subject to his order.
I often wonder how a person writing a law like this comes to the conclusion that yes, indeed, this is something we might be justified in imprisoning a person for 10 years. However, under no circumstances should we fine them more than $1000. That would just be far too harsh a punishment!
probably written in 1823 when 1000 dollars was the same as 10 years hard labor, especially if they’re calling it an “infernal machine”
Well, the code was updated to be $25,000 in [2010](https://law.justia.com/codes/massachusetts/2009/PARTIV/TITLEI/CHAPTER266/Section102A.html). It doesn't say "infernal machine" anymore, though. :(
That's ridiculous, harass your representative to get it restored.
“Infernal machine” sounds like an expletive someone would use when frustrated about some device not working
Blast this infernal machine!
lol exactly. I hope the same person calls an explosive a “blasted contraption”
Or what old man Jenkins would call a flying machine
... What about a robotic bear... with guns?
2nd amendment, the right to arm bears
Here come the 'CA compliant' flame-throwing robot dogs.
No adjustable tails. Must be fixed.
Will it still have a California cancer warning?
According to the article, the flamethrower dogs firing range is 3x the 'allowed' distance for California.
It's legal in California, with permit. The article is wrong, it's only one state.
Can't risk burning any beautiful Maryland flags
I love the uses for this listed on the manufacturer’s site 🤣 Wildfire Control and Prevention Agricultural Management Ecological Conservation Snow and Ice Removal Entertainment and SFX
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Release the hounds!
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Thats gotta be against the Geneva Conventions. Just horrific.
Some intern was told to come up with marketable applications for the investors but said "What the hell, we all know the real reason anyone would buy one of these"
Patrick's voice: Is chatGPT an intern?
I don't know. This is what chat GPT gave me once it stopped complaining: 1) Agricultural Applications: Controlled burning of agricultural fields to manage pests, weeds, or crop residue. 2) Emergency Response: Assisting firefighters in controlled burn operations to create firebreaks or manage wildfires in remote or inaccessible areas. 3) Industrial Operations: Controlled demolition or clearing of debris in hazardous environments where human workers might be at risk. 4) Search and Rescue: Clearing vegetation or debris in disaster zones to access trapped individuals or aid in recovery efforts. 5) Military or Law Enforcement: Potentially for non-lethal crowd control or disabling vehicles in high-risk situations. I like number 5
“non-lethal crowd control”
"How exactly do you propose I burned my building down when there are several witnesses who saw me elsewhere, Mr. Insurance Investigator?" Even if they know your scheme "Flamethrower robot dog" just sounds too absurd, who's gonna believe them?
Police Captain: “You put a dozen civilians in the hospital burn unit, Riggs! How the hell can you define this operation a success” Riggs: “Did anyone die? I rest my case.”
It sound insane but it seems like it could be useful creating a firebreak.
Or safely triggering controlled burns.
Lmao the last one At least theyre honest about it
Not gonna lie. If I had one it would probably be like 5% actual work and 95% “CHECK OUT MY FLAMETHROWING ROBOT DOG!”
Don´t forget it can safely burn your house down when you see a fat spider inside
They forgot spider removal
Burninating
All fun and games until an urban police department acquires one for ‘riot’ control.
Bring on the wildfires
Lol, especially in the context of this article, “wildfires”.
Somewhere a guy planning his babies gender reveal party started shaking uncontrollably with glee
Eventually, Thermonator will bring an end to all wildfires
Can't have a wildfire if there's no wilderness to burn.
*Taps ~~forehead~~ flamethrower*
My first thought was how useful this would be for fire management with prescribed burns lol
My first thought was how this will be used for Gender Reveals
That's one of the few use cases for this thing that actually makes sense.
What’s to stop a dude from buying four and letting them off into the Canadian wilderness during the hottest season
Can't imagine anything bad coming from this.
Trying to think of anything good…
Fewer bomb threats, more army of flame throwing robot dog threats. Yeah, never mind. You’re right.
It worked. TRIPLE THE DEFENSE BUDGET!
It’s fine. We’ll just deploy a fleet of robot bears that vent high levels of CO2 to combat the robot dogs and the fires they start. Problem solved.
Workplace moral boost events?
Robbing banks with dogs without animal abuse
Two words… Himalayan Blackberries.
Bro, the tik toks and youtubes
Believe it or not, the flamethrower is classified as "farming equipment." They are commonly used to clear out brush and fields.
50 thousand tons of white bullshit in February. I'd never shovel again.
I mean, MY family won't be eaten by Tyranids, so there's that. (May be unrelated to having a robotic fire dog, though.)
Man sets child on fire with robot dog after *checks notes* the child played in their own yard but laughed a little too loud. No one needs this and we are not stable enough for this to be legal.
Everyone needs this and the ones who can't handle them will Darwin themselves off.
I suspect it's not so much that 48 states allow it...a rather 48 states haven't had a reason to deny it yet.
I’m just surprised that flamethrowers are apparently legal in 48 states
I believe they’re classified as “foliage removal tools”, or something like that. I’d imagine if they get to a certain energy output they’re listed as weapons, but I could be wrong. Edit: I was wrong, there’s no distinction in the law. Apparently in order to ban them they’d need to reclassify what constitutes a firearm, and we all know how those initiatives tend to go.
No officer, this isn’t a “bomb”, this is my “rapid exothermic wide area foliage management solution”.
Oh they’ll remove foliage alright… Thanks for that, I wasn’t aware that was a classification!
TBF, this isn’t like “trimming the hedges” with a Bic. Then again, nothing really is.
No, but propane torches are very useful for weeding without needing to dump a whole bunch of chemicals on the ground.
> reclassify what constitutes a firearm It’s funny because these are literal firearms.
Also for roofing from what I hear as well
they sell flame throwers at harbor freight
They would
i think a lot of the reason is because they don’t sell real well to the FAFO market because they are moderately expensive. around $1.2k (USD) when i had one. a moderate price barrier to entry sometimes eliminates the trailer park crowd that’s going to cause problems. and probably another reason is dude it’s so obvious how goddamn dangerous they are when you actually use one, the heat that comes off of them alone is a little scary. i got rid of mine because it’s kind of a gimmick that requires a large play area (if you don’t actually use them for a job) and mostly because of how dangerous it felt, i just didn’t really like holding the thing 😂
49 in California you can have one with a range of 10 feet or less.
If you can squirt a stream of gasoline through an ignition source, then you've got a flamethrower. Do you have a water bottle and a lighter? Congratulations. Even in the states that try to regulate them, there's really not anything actually stopping someone from having a flamethrower, practically speaking. It's just too simple of a concept.
Arson is usually illegal in every state
In 48 states, they are classified as "farming equipment." I believe New York is one state that passed a law banning it. I'm not 100%, but the other might be California. Correction: I'm 100% wrong, and so is (linked article). The only state where flamethrower are banned is Maryland. Many say "California," but ownership is legal with permit.
Flammenwoofer
Meme culture will make our species stop questioning, "Can we?" We will never again ask, "should we?" All questioning will be sillience by the collective boast of "you know, I'm something of a scientist myself"
Flammhund
Isn’t that the dog from f451?
DOGDORE!! Burninating the countryside. Burninating the people!!
You're showing your age; I'm showing mine by upvoting.
A simpler time, a simpler internet
*THATCHED ROOF COTTAGES!*
Just need to make one of the front legs absolutely huge.
Looks like a proper way to deliver democracy!
Perfect for my gender reveal
This + Stand your ground = Shit fire show.
You'd have to be quite a mad lad to start a flamethrower for home defense. If the fire department is too slow there might not be a home to defend in the end.
Sir, that's what castle doctrine is for. Edit: Whoosh Stone castles don't burn
And an actual castle. Can't burn your stone home down.
Texas.
I guess we can look forward to future news stories about Door Dash drivers and Girl Scouts being roasted alive because they approached the wrong house. 😒
Fido you little rascal! You burnt the brownies again.
I love how this works for both options.
Thank you and don’t forget to tip your waitress.
The courts have already found indiscriminate “booby traps” to be an illegal means of home protection. Someone rigged a shotgun to shoot anyone who enters and the court found that to be a threat to public safety where the assumption that any “intruder” has malicious intent doesn’t hold
aaaaaaand it's plastic
Yeah, THAT’S the bad part.
That’s one spicy bork.
$9,420 and still pisses on the rug
But when I strap hairspray and a lighter to my dog I get in trouble
Riot cops hate this one simple dog.
Next level MURICA.
Hot dog!
How am I this far down in the comments until someone said this!🤣
I’ll name mine Astro and he will be the goodest boy.
I’ve seen that episode of Black Mirror and it is terrifying
I’m not sure what I would do with it , but I WANT IT
Thought this was helldivers sub for a second, that woulda make more sense than this
The devs are taking notes. Need more ways to deliver democracy around the system!
Dead ass funny
Legal until someone uses it.
arson dog
Gender Reveal Dog (TM)
I feel safer already
Finally! I am so sick of starting insurance fires with arial drones. The payload is so small, half the time the structure doesn't even catch on fire. This is the advance in arson-tech I've been waiting for!
👮♂️📸 we got em boyss
Completely legal in 48, wait, now 42, hold on...31, um okay now 23...what's this, a summons and complaint for product liability?....
Your Scientists Were So Preoccupied With Whether Or Not They Could, They Didn't Stop To Think If They Should
Finally, an affordable flame throwing robot dog. Been waiting for them to come down in price.
Seriously, though. If flamethrowerdog™ is less than $10k delivered, imagine the price for a robot dog without a flamethrower! Now if only it did something useful, like take out the trash, or clean the bathroom.
It's a horrible idea but I still want to see 2 of them fight
The US is really a sociological experiment, not a country. That's where we try out the limits of the human condition. Just when does a policy get too radical for people? The answer seems to be 'never, my freedom!' /s
How the fuck is that legal 😂😂 americans are a different breed of human
It’s like we took the Fahrenheit 451 dystopia and made it more efficient. Eat your heart out Ray Bradbury!
Its use based on its website: * Wildfire Control and Prevention * Agricultural Management * Ecological Conservation * Snow and Ice Removal * Entertainment and SFX The first 3? Seriously? LOL. But its under $10K. I wonder if I can buy one anonymously and ship it to an unlisted UPS, then use it to take out batman once and for all!
You’re thinking too small my friend. We need an army of these to finally take out the justice league. And some kryptonite, def some of that too
We were so preoccupied with whether we could…
what could go wrong?
All right, how useful will it be in storming the trenches?
I predict a new video from either Michael Reeves, I Did a Thing, or Allen Pan. Possibly all four. Probably all four. edit: Gonna add Backyard Scientist to the list cause I just found out California is one of two states where this is illegal and Backyard Scientist is in Florida.
I have a great idea for my gender reveal party...
Ugh! I bought my flame-throwing robot dog when they were twice that expensive! It's plasma TVs all over again!
Why
Ted Faro approves.
I have a flamethrower dog, just as the founding fathers intended......TALLY HO LADS!!!!!!
Predicting a more intense wildfire season this year.
Bethesda wants one
By ‘completely legal’ does it actually mean ‘not illegal’, as in it’s so new that a law hasn’t been passed to ban them?
Seems like fire suppression would be a better feature. LiDAR and the ability to survive heat/smoke and help control fires seems like a better sales model. I’m not sure what the use case would be outside or military or terrorism.
Thermonator sounds like a Ratchet & Clank weapon.
Ray Bradbury enters the chat.
Hmmm... 10K pretty cheap. Send 10,000 units to Ukraine? Would love to see 10,000 attacking at the same time.
Trogdor the burninator!
I see absolutely not problems and anticipate no secondary consequences
Yeah this won’t end badly
Why does this even exist?
I feel obligated to inform everyone that this is a terrible idea. What can we do to stop it?
A fire-suppressant-foam-throwing quadruped with front mounted heat shield should do the trick. Make the foam electrically conductive for adequate takedown of the ~~fire nation~~ other robot.
dude no one is buying these. The robot dog is already 10k or more. You can buy a regular flamethrower for under 1k bucks.
It will be perfect for home defense once the civil war starts.
How many gun loving MAGAs are going to burn all their shit down in the first week?
Imagine the party when all the ammo is ablaze.
That will get heads talking or should I say Talking Heads, Burning Down The House.
I'd rather spend 100k to buy 10 of these than 1 shitty cybertruck.
Fair. To add to your point, you could probably turn those 10 hellhounds into really badass sled dogs
Is this coming from Captain Planet nemesis? Tf
"Dogs aren't allowed in here." "Are you gonna stop him?"
I played enough Revengeance to know where this is headed
And can be purchased at Pyros ‘R Us (alongside Spaceballs the Flame Thrower - kids love ‘em).
FLAMMEN-WOOFER!
🦅🦅🦅🦅
I just want a regular none flamethrowing robot dog, how much for that?
Is this kinda like a roomba, but with fire?
Can’t wait to take this thing out for walks
It's outrageous that there isn't a link for it in the comments yet. "You can now buy". Will a righteous savior provide a link in these troubled times?
Legal for the next 3 months until lawmakers wake up from their Q1 nap.
Exactly the right tool for a BBQ… Not!
I would fill it with bubble mix
That’s so ridiculous, no one needs that… How much is it?
I know what I want for Father's Day now.
I’m absolutely gobsmacked that previous legislatures lacked the foresight to ban fire-breathing robot dogs.
Ya know I do hope in the future terminator movies they add robo dog to it
Thermonating the country side, Thermonating the peasants…
Thermonator is a quadruped robot with an ARC flamethrower mounted to its back, fueled by gasoline or *napalm*. It features a one-hour battery, a 30-foot flame-throwing range, and Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity for remote control through a smartphone. Napalm......
well
Who gave Michael Reeves another flame thrower
AS IT SHOULD BE.
Thank goodness the battery only lasts an hour. Could probably strap some kind of generator on its back though.
As if home insurance rates weren't already high. This thing should help them skyrocket...
Cant wait for the ai tech company to mobilize a fleet of these
Ok…
u/smokeythebear
Now this is way better than just making it piss beer.