Mission Statement - De-Spinning the Pro-Taser Propaganda

Yeah right, 'Excited Delirium' my ass...

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The primary purpose of this blog is to provide an outlet for my observations and analysis about tasers, taser "associated" deaths, and the behaviour exhibited by the management, employees and minions of Taser International. In general, everything is linked back to external sources, often via previous posts on the same topic, so that readers can fact-check to their heart's content. This blog was started in late-2007 when Canadians were enraged by the taser death of Robert Dziekanski and four others in a short three month period. The cocky attitude exhibited by the Taser International spokespuppet, and his preposterous proposal that Mr. Dziekanski coincidentally died of "excited delirium" at the time of his taser-death, led me to choose the blog name I did and provides my motivation. I have zero financial ties to this issue.



Friday, February 15, 2008

TASERS ARE ABUSED EVERY DAY

Link= Radio-Canada probe finds 11 improper Taser incidents

And these results are based on the Police standards (as opposed to reasonable more-informed standards). Their slack standards are in turn based on false assumptions about the 'perfect safety' of tasers. Once they realize that their X26 tasers aren't as perfectly safe as they've been led to believe, then their deployment standards would have to be tightened.

This force owns only 16 tasers. And they've misused them 11 times in two years. If we allowed them to issue tasers to all officers, then it seems reasonable to expect that there would be a massive wave of taser misuse.

I like this quote: "The documents say an average of six officers were present at all the Taser incidents." So much for the misleading propaganda of the lone brave officer struggling with the evil criminal, all the while resisting the natural urge to shoot him with his gun. The reality is a half-dozen police standing around and they decide to use the taser. Not exactly the image we had in mind.


Another recent news item:

Link= Witnesses: Shackled man hit with Taser

"...police officer used his Taser on a man who appeared to be mentally ill and was already in handcuffs and leg restraints..."

There are other details which can be summarized as illegal Pain Compliance.


I'm trying to not turn this blog into a news clipping service. That's not my point. I want to provide some analysis. The point here is the following:

There's an old saying, "To a man with a hammer, everything looks like a nail."

Equip the police with tasers, and they will be misused EVERY DAY.

If the level of misuse of tasers causes an increase in example of police brutality, then they must be banned no matter what the other theoretical advantages they purport to have. And the reality seems to be a disgusting reflection of the rosy propaganda being foisted by the proponents of tasers.

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