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A Booby Trap is a device which can be used to trap or snare animals. In the military sense it is an object which is designed to maim, kill, and psychologically defeat the enemy. It can also be used to deny his access to a territory, and to make him combat ineffective. Some booby traps are designed to wound but not kill. The reason for this is that it takes several other soldiers to attend to 1 wounded soldier thus reducing the number of soldiers who can participate in the fight.
It is believed that the name booby trap came from the practice of catching boobies which are sea birds. Bait would be placed to lure the bird to a noose which would be tightened when the bird stepped into it. The boobie trap usually works according to the same principle when used as a military weapon in that it takes advantage of human nature. Objects can be used which are colorful or in some other way attractive to the intended victim. When the victim moves or touches the object it will injure him or her in some way.
One trick that German soldiers would use to kill American military Officers would be to rig a picture to explode and then hang it crooked on a wall. When American soldiers took over the building the Officer by nature would not be able to resist straightening the picture. The picture would explode and deprive the unit of one of its senior leaders.
One advantage of the booby trap is that it is simple and inexpensive to construct and use. During the Vietnam war one of the Viet Cong favorites was to sharpen Pungi Sticks (bamboo sticks) and place them into the ground. They would cover the hole to hide the trap. It would always be placed in an area where the soldiers had to walk so if the victim did not have his guard up he might have a problem.
Boobie traps are more of a help to a small Army because it gives them an advantage. IED’s used in Operations Iraqi Freedom, and Operation Enduring Freedom are examples of modern day boobie traps. I have not talked to any custom military ring customers yet who have had the displeasure of many boobie traps, but many of my Operation Iraqi Freedom military ring customers have come into contact with IED’s.
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