The tools of lethal force have always attracted controversy and fascination. In the modern media age, however, they are also surrounded by confusion and misunderstanding. McNab and Keeter cut through mythology and misinformation and comprehensively lay out the facts, often revealing startling gaps in our everyday knowledge. Tools of Violence unravels the myths of modern weaponry. Not only explaining how a weapon system works, the authors explore how it is applied by soldiers, police or civilians under pressure, what happens when innocents get in the way, its effect on the human body or physical structures, its political controversies, and its place in international law. Judgments are backed up by interviews with those directly engaged with weapons technology, including frontline soldiers, police officers, academics, weapons specialists and defense analysts. Accessible and absorbing, Tools of Violence is essential reading for those wanting to understand the weapons technology of today and how and why it is used. CONTENTS Introduction; Hand-Held War - Small Arms; Perfect Destruction - Explosives; Mechanized Muscle - Battlefield Armor; Death from a Distance - Artillery: Power from Above - Military Aviation; Firepower at Sea - Naval Weapon Systems; Shadow Threat - Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) Weapons / WMD