But then again, maybe not. Tell me what you think.
Here’s another Taser issue to consider. There is a report on Live Leak today about how police officers are able to save people from committing suicide by shooting them with the Taser gun. Finally, one good use for the Taser.
Does it matter that this “news” is sponsors by the manufacturer of the Taser weapon? They have taken so much heat and bad press lately that it’s only natural that they would try to spin it back.
I don’t hate all police officers. I have a good friend who is a deputy and another who is a highway patrol. They are both good men. But I do have a general distrust of police. My friendship with these individuals doesn’t change what I feel in my heart. I’m glad they are in law enforcement, because it possibly cancels out two of the bad ones.. kind of. I know, that’s not really possible.
Anyway, I know most of you are sick to death by now of the Taser stories. And that may be a generous understatement, however, in the interest of balance I offer this story in which Tasers are not used inappropriately. The officers in these instances didn’t Taser babies, innocent citizens, mentally retarded people or invalids - instead they used the Taser to actually save lives.
That’s quite a spin, wouldn’t you agree?
My Previous Taser Related Posts:
Police Taser Use Out Of Control
Tell Me You Are Not Afraid Of Tasers
Taser Category
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22 responses so far ↓
1 Joff // Dec 11, 2007 at 8:53 am
What, you didn’t know that tasers are the answer to all the world’s problems!?
2 Cafe_Cafe // Dec 11, 2007 at 5:03 pm
Could be worse with a gun
Regards from Uruguay.
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3 Bryan // Dec 11, 2007 at 5:30 pm
So the only people that tasers don’t kill are people that actually wanted to die?
4 Free Chat Rooms // Dec 11, 2007 at 5:39 pm
Don’t taser me bro, I just want to kill myself. Lol what the hell kind of crap is this? What if a cop gives a guy a heart attack by tasing him while preventing him from killing himself?
5 grey // Dec 11, 2007 at 5:39 pm
Erectile dysfunction? Get tased!
6 Gerri // Dec 11, 2007 at 6:01 pm
Joff - yeah, Tasers are going to stop global warming!
Bryan - That about sums it up.
grey - you’ve found another use for them! Taser International will be so pleased.
7 D // Dec 11, 2007 at 6:32 pm
I don’t believe this to be inaccurate, or a propaganda spin move by Taser Int’l. I have seen first-hand many suicidal individuals who were brought safely under control using a Taser, minimizing danger to themselves or others (I worked in the emergency psychiatry unit of a busy urban trauma center). In many of these situations, the Taser was the best tool to use, as muscular incapacitation was the safest option for the individual, the police, and any bystanders (over physical take-down, pepper spray, etc.). The fact that an individual is suicidal adds a new layer of complexity and increased risk any time the police get involved, as the individual may have a “nothing to lose” mentality and be more prone to violence.
8 Officer Tom // Dec 11, 2007 at 6:37 pm
“Didnt taser babies, or the mentally retarded”
What is wrong with you? If a retarded maniac is swinging a knife at you, what are you gonna do???? give him a hug???
9 Gerri // Dec 12, 2007 at 4:44 am
Tom,
Actually, if a retarded maniac were swinging a knife at me personally, I would run. I’m a private citizen.
As for the mentally retarded person I was actually referring to in this post, she had no weapons. She was unfortunately a passenger in her mother’s car when her mom broke the law.
10 van // Dec 12, 2007 at 8:12 am
I say, let them commit suicide… It reduces the risk even more of hurting MORE people later…
11 DNieves // Dec 12, 2007 at 1:11 pm
@Officer Tom - “What is wrong with you? If a retarded maniac is swinging a knife at you, what are you gonna do???? give him a hug???”
I’m pretty sure he means tasering a mental retard just because he/she IS mentally retarded. Too many stories of tasering people unnecessarily just because cops are getting away with it.
Do you even bother to read the stories all over every single newspaper and blog in the world. Get a clue!
12 Michelle // Dec 13, 2007 at 4:43 pm
Better training.
Regarding both the mentally ill and the mentally challenged. Would go a long way.
13 James // Dec 15, 2007 at 3:41 am
A recent article from the UN stated that - ( (TASER electronic stun guns are a form of torture that can kill, a UN committee has declared after several recent deaths in North America.
“The use of these weapons causes acute pain, constituting a form of torture,” the UN’s Committee against Torture said.
“In certain cases, they can even cause death, as has been shown by reliable studies and recent real-life events,” the committee of 10 experts said.)
14 C A // Dec 17, 2007 at 12:39 am
Better a cop with a taser than one with a gun.
15 Mani // Dec 20, 2007 at 2:35 pm
Tasers, when properly used, can eliminate the need for deadly force, ie. shooting someone - but, on the other hand, tasers improperly used can be just as deadly. Reminds me of a Billy Preston song, “Here we go ’round in circles…..”.
16 Matt // Dec 20, 2007 at 6:30 pm
I think your point is good…I know some good cops as well, and know some bad cops; what’s the big deal? The big deal is that even the bad cops get to carry Taser guns and shoot you with them lol. I’ve had bad teachers but at least I wouldn’t be shocked full of voltage unless you count my dads belt
17 Selene // Jan 5, 2008 at 12:31 am
I bet if you put a hundred cops under the needle of truth, nine out of ten would admit to enjoying torturing people with tasers.
And it’s all fine and good to say that a person deserves what they get from a cop, because they were doing wrong anyway, until you find yourself twitching on the ground, wet with your own urine, writhing in excruciating pain because someone misidentified you and you didn’t realize that the cop meant you when he was shouting something about “the ground”, but it came out all garbled because you were on the cell phone and had no idea what was coming. Then, you know… the prospect of that just being okay to do to someone in order to make sure they hit the ground in a period of time that is comfortable for an officer… it just doesn’t seem quite as right. Ya know? Then, you know what you get when they realize they made an oopsie? Flowers? A fruit basket? Your medical bills? Nope. You get: An Apology.
If I ever mistook a cop for someone threatening (he had a gun, after all) and electrocuted them in self-defense, how many seconds do you think it would require for them to assist me toward my future as the property of BOP for assaulting an Officer of the Pristinely Infallible Law? Oh, but wait, couldn’t I just apologize, maybe? No?
Tasers are way too easy to use, and so tempting. I know, I’ve used them. You push a button and the bad man falls down. No blood, no brains and teeth flying out of the back of the head. It’s just like a video game. Push the button, lots of agony for the Bad Person. Whether he was actually bad or not can be sorted out later. After he’s finished twitching and pissing himself. This is because the comfort of a cop is paramount. Let’s give them more buttons to push. I love being part of a country of volunteer masochists.
18 Michelle // Jan 12, 2008 at 5:17 pm
“The use of these weapons causes acute pain, constituting a form of torture,” the UN’s Committee against Torture said.
“In certain cases, they can even cause death, as has been shown by reliable studies and recent real-life events,” the committee of 10 experts said.)
~gasp~
Say it isn’t so!
Then again, I’ve heard that being shot with a gun can hurt too. And I think maybe one or two people have died from that.
In all seriousness, if you try to find incidents where a taser actually killed someone you will find they are very few and far between. Although you will find the stories of those who died after being shot, autopsies often conclude the death was not as a result of the taser. I know cuz I went looking.
19 Ty Schor // Jan 18, 2008 at 2:14 pm
I have started a petition and met with my county councilman, gave him the UN report on tasers being torture devices. I also showed him how they are unconstitutional in that they are 1cruel and unusual punishment 2degrading to human dignity 3used in an arbitrary fashion 4a form of slavery 5 often deadly while at the same time prone to indescriminate use I’m still waiting to hear back from him, its’ been a week so guess I’ll be making another appointment to meet with him next week again. I’m not going to give this up, hope to end their use here in Hilo Hawaii and then the state and then the whole Country.
20 Michelle // Jan 19, 2008 at 6:45 pm
A form of slavery?!
Oh brother …. just when you think you’ve heard it all.
Yeah, first I taser you and then I threaten to do it again unless you bring one of those fancy drinks with the pretty pink umbrellas.
21 Ty Schor // Jan 24, 2008 at 1:01 pm
Michele, you must be a cop!? Of course it is slavery when the cop says stick out your right foot or I’ll taser you again. Or a cop chases a woman around a car as she tries to crawl away from her torturer and he tells her get up or I’ll taser you again ( and again and again) as she can’t stand up because she just got tasered. It is ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTING to watch the countless videos of people being robbed of their freedom by over zealous cops out of control and abusing US with TORTURE DEVICES time for all out anarchy , I’ll never respect a cop with a torture device, why not give him/her pliers and nipple clamps or even a dildo to gain “COMPLIANCE” of the victim.
22 Michelle // Feb 12, 2008 at 8:12 am
Beep. Wrong answer. No cop here. Nor married, nor related to one. But shall I guess that you are one of those Americans who indiscriminately label just about everything they see as ‘torture’?
So what do you call it when a cop yells “Stop or I will shoot!”? As in, shoot their gun. Is that torture too? Because if so, I suppose we could just literally handcuff each officer’s hands behind their back and send them out their to “protect” us. I wonder if you would appreciate the police having access to some form of deterrent if some creep were laying on top of your wife, girlfriend of mother or if the police caught someone breaking into your home? Or should they just say “Stop that! Pretty please.”?
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