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We easily react to the sound of gunfire: we drop to the ground. When
somebody in a crowded cinema shouts, “fire,” almost by instinct,
everybody rushes to the exits. Now the question: How do you react to
a stench attack?
Most of us are not totally inexperienced when it
comes to bad odors. Some say they have sat in the jeepney next to a
man who stank so bad it seemed he just climbed out of a septic tank.
Others said they have endured living with a spouse who does not
shout, “I’m home” when he arrives from work. He takes his
shoes off and everybody knows he’s home.
You can cover your nose with cloth to avoid the
terrible smell. You can follow what embalmers do to a corpse: stuff
your nose with wads of cotton. But it will not be enough.
In a stench attack, the effect of bad smell
would make you so dizzy and nauseated you will be forced to flee.
Its main purpose is not to kill but to make you lose your appetite
for aggression.
According to the Monell Chemical Senses Center,
a research institute based in Philadelphia, the US Defense
Department’s Joint Non-lethal Weapons Program has began its quest
for the ultimate adversarial aroma several years ago, and now it is
seeing results.
What kind of aromas do they have? “We brought
in food and let it ferment and rot. People donate animal carcasses,
blood and other things,” said Pamela Dalton, a resident scientist,
who analyzed the odors and reduced them to their component
chemicals.
In the end, Dalton said, they came up with a
chemical cocktail containing the olfactory essences of two
universally despised odors. The first, which she describes as
rotting flesh—”squirrels, people, steak, a mixture of all
that”—left volunteer test subjects begging for mercy. The second
was variation of that old favorite human excrement, which Dalton
describes as reminiscent of “the worst outhouse you’ve ever
stumbled on.”
Dalton said the US government is still trying to
find a way to turn it into an effective weapon. We invite them to
visit Makati. If stench warfare is the latest method of fighting,
the Americans can learn from Mayor Jejomar Binay of Makati City.
Residents of Makati were roused from sleep one
morning last week by a powerful stench that forced them to slam shut
their windows and doors and bury their noses into thick wads of
cloths to keep the odor out.
Many people said they missed breakfast because
of the stench. They said they could not even perform simple chores.
One man said brushing the teeth with the nose heavily stuffed with
cotton was awkward. In the end many of them gave up. They locked
their doors and fled.
Some people said the stench was so foul, so
nasty if they would have known it was an attack, they would have
immediately begged for mercy. Teary-eyed and gasping for breath,
they said it would have been easier if they just raised their hands
and screamed: “We surrender.”
Press reports said Binay ordered about 60
foul-smelling garbage trucks to surround the headquarters of the
Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) in what supporters
described as brilliant and unprecedented attack. Binay has been
publicly feuding with MMDA head Bayani Fernando.
The reports said Makati launched the attack on
midnight of June 23. “Stink them, stink them,” you could imagine
Binay telling his men. Binay was really impressive in what seemed
his moment of glory, supporters said.
Drivers were ordered to abandon the trucks so
the stench can seep out during the night. The MMDA was defenseless.
Officials were caught flat-footed and the MMDA men were confused.
The stench attack was a big success, supporters said.
The attack was apparently intended to embarrass
the MMDA, which encountered problem of mounting garbage after its
dumps in Rizal province were closed because local politicians were
fighting over payments. Garbage trucks were forced to return to
Makati with their unwanted cargo. Binay blamed the MMDA for the mess
and ordered to “stink them.”
General Manager Robert Nacianceno said the
trucks were impounded but they did not touch the contents. He said
he would leave it to the owners to claim the trucks and dump the
stinking cargoes. It means they probably just stuffed cottons into
their noses and waited for the owners. “Garbage in, garbage
out.”
Will the attack trigger a smelly war between
Makati city hall and the MMDA? If the MMDA fights back, it’ll be
awesome. MMDA, which is mainly responsible for collecting the trash
in Metro Manila, can easily swamp city hall with garbage and put it
under a blanket of terrible and gut-wrenching odor. There is no
escape.
But Binay is no push over. Can he sustain a
counter attack? Maybe he has a stockpile of garbage hidden somewhere
in the city just in case the conflict escalates into an open war.
Meanwhile, can the government teach us how to act during a stench
war? What is the best way to cover your nose? Our security personnel
should be trained to “watch out for that terrible smell.”
palaciosjp@sss.gov.ph
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