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posts about #cops more →
Tasers Are Safer Than Fists and Batons, Less Safe Than Not Beating People Up
Texas Cops Break Out the Taser on a 72-Year-Old Woman for Being Old and Curmudgeonly
Now Just What In the Hell Is Going On Here
CoolCop Is a Hose That Runs AC Right Into Your Shirt, But Only if You're a Cop
Does This Look Like a Gun to You ?
Google Street View Gets Ticket, Captures Self Getting Ticket On Google Street View
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Taser Axon: Cops Goes FPS
Cops Get Bored at Work Just Like You and Me
Thor Shield Taser-Proof Vest Coming to Protect Your Torso from the Man

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P3nnst8r
11/17/09

In reply to Tasers Are Safer Than Fists and Batons, Less Safe Than Not Beating People Up
DON'T TASE ME.... Oh, really? Well, go ahead then, bro. #tasers
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Coolmodo
11/17/09

In reply to Tasers Are Safer Than Fists and Batons, Less Safe Than Not Beating People Up
I'm shocked by the results of this study.
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Edited by Coolmodo at 11/17/09 7:27 PM Coolmodo was starred Coolmodo was unstarred

jacobestes
11/17/09

@Coolmodo: This doesn't make any sense...beating the shit out of somebody with a baton is more dangerous than using a taser? What about when they used guns? Wait a second. What if they are handcuffed and the officers take turns hitting them? Jeez I really don't get this. #tasers
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Nathan Obbards
11/17/09

@jacobestes: It's barbaric and stunning that the punnery was lost upon you. #tasers
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jacobestes
11/18/09

@Nathan Obbards: ...I was making jokey joke?
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Hello Mister Walrus
11/17/09

In reply to Tasers Are Safer Than Fists and Batons, Less Safe Than Not Beating People Up
Since we're talking about this, is there a study on the relative dangers of candle wax, whipping and voluntary asphyxiation? You never know when you might... uh, run into unexpected situations. #tasers
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Gundem
11/17/09

@Hello Mister Walrus: oh lawdy #tasers
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badhatharry
11/17/09

@Hello Mister Walrus: I just started dating this super-hot goth girl, so I will have an exhaustedly researched study in a few weeks when I get tired of her and move on to something new. #tasers
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00000000
11/17/09

@badhatharry: Pics or it didn't happen <3 #tasers
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badhatharry
11/17/09

@00000000: Here. #tasers
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Kaiser-Machead
11/17/09

@badhatharry: That's what Guillermo Del Toro will look like if he goes to hell. #tasers
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00000000
11/17/09

@badhatharry: Love the hair! <3 #tasers
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nutbastard
11/17/09

In reply to Tasers Are Safer Than Fists and Batons, Less Safe Than Not Beating People Up
on star trek, it's "don't phase me, bro!"

in colleges, it's "don't haze me, bro!"

for native americans, it's "don't maize me, bro!"

you could threaten a snot rocket: "don't nase me, bro!"

or try to shave them against their will:
"don't raze me, bro!"

in an art museum: "don't vase me, bro!"

when dealing with an unaccepting orphan:
"don't raise me, bro!"
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Edited by nutbastard at 11/17/09 6:49 PM nutbastard was starred nutbastard was unstarred

Lite: hates Illinois Nazis
11/17/09

If you're an indentured servant is it: Don't enslave me bro? #tasers
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HeroOfTomorrow
11/17/09

@nutbastard: While being insane, it's "don't craze me, bro!"

While being hit in the face, it's "don't daze me, bro!"

While being Steve Jobs, it's "turtlenecks ARE TOO 2009!" #tasers
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Nathan Obbards
11/17/09

@nutbastard: And if a streetwalker gets the tazer it's: ''Don't taze me, ho!'' #tasers
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nutbastard
11/17/09

In reply to Tasers Are Safer Than Fists and Batons, Less Safe Than Not Beating People Up
"Taser use reduced the overall risk of injury by 65 per cent."

so what, they miss 65% of the time? because as far as i can tell, getting tased has a 100% chance of causing injury.
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Edited by nutbastard at 11/17/09 6:44 PM nutbastard was starred nutbastard was unstarred

Nathan Obbards
11/17/09

@nutbastard: No broken bones, bruises, head trauma, internal injuries, etc. When you have to violently subdue someone vs. tazing them, you run the risk of inflicting damage on them. While some cops do get taze happy and taze too much, I can guarantee you that if a cop has to use physical force, there will be much more force than is needed to take you down. I have no intention of being tazed, but I would much rather be tazed than have my ass handed to me. #tasers
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nutbastard
11/17/09

@Nathan Obbards:

true true. cops and football players have a tendency to give 110%. #tasers
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Nathan Obbards
11/17/09

@nutbastard: I think it has to do with adrenaline mixed with anger more than anything. Cops do not like to have to resort to physical confrontations as they are dangerous to them. If they do have to, that adrenaline mixed with anger at the end is likely to result in some cheap shots. Is it right? By no means, but at the same time, it is incredibly hard to control at any level of training. #tasers
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nutbastard
11/17/09

@Nathan Obbards:

i agree. it's impossible to dial in the right amount of force, and when it's your ass on the line, you tend to err on the side of excess, since the alternative could get you killed. #tasers
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phool
11/17/09

@Nathan Obbards: I don't know, everything else I've ever have handed to me hasn't been so bad.

"'Scuse me, sir? I think you dropped this."

Oh, my. Thank you. It would have been a very long flight. #tasers
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phool
11/17/09

@Nathan Obbards: I'm not so sure about how I feel about the "... at any level of training." I've always felt like humanity should in general be better at controlling emotion and response, but more than that anyone with the right training I think should be expected to avoid "cheap shots." Those are for you and me in a bar, not for people with "potentially violent confrontation" in their job description. #tasers
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Nathan Obbards
11/17/09

@phool: I agree that they should be able to harness their emotions better, but it can be hard. Honestly, my stance is that if we actually started treating cops with more respect, it would be reciprocated, but if you are treated like shit day in day out by people, it can be hard not to let it get to you. There are some truly great cops out there and there are some people who should be behind bars, not putting people behind bars. I do stand by that claim though, that in the heat of the moment, no matter how well you are trained, it can be hard to know when to stop. I also think that, though understandable, cops who take cheap shots should be reprimanded, and not in the ''take a paid week off'' kind of way. #tasers
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IUHoos
11/17/09

In reply to Tasers Are Safer Than Fists and Batons, Less Safe Than Not Beating People Up
I hear hippies burst into smoke when tased. #tasers
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badhatharry
11/17/09

@IUHoos: But it's marijuana smoke. Or patchoulli. #tasers
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lostarchitect
11/17/09

In reply to Tasers Are Safer Than Fists and Batons, Less Safe Than Not Beating People Up
I know my girlfriend's super pissed at me when she looks at me like I'm a total ass and says, "Use your words". #tasers
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DustyButt™
11/17/09

In reply to Tasers Are Safer Than Fists and Batons, Less Safe Than Not Beating People Up
There are... Four lights!, bro. #tasers
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:negated:
11/17/09

In reply to Tasers Are Safer Than Fists and Batons, Less Safe Than Not Beating People Up
It's all fun and games until someone pokes an eye out. Then it's fun and lawsuits. #tasers
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Evangelion
11/17/09

In reply to Tasers Are Safer Than Fists and Batons, Less Safe Than Not Beating People Up
Don't taze me bro! #tasers
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Jrsy Devil's Advocate®
11/17/09

In reply to Tasers Are Safer Than Fists and Batons, Less Safe Than Not Beating People Up
The expression on his face is pure, "Don't fist me bro!" #tasers
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Nathan Obbards
11/17/09

@Jrsy Devil's Advocate®: But before that, he was looking all stabby, shooty, killy. #tasers
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bleek
11/17/09

@Nathan Obbards: And then its "Please taze me bro" #tasers
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Unspellable
06/17/09

In reply to Texas Cops Break Out the Taser on a 72-Year-Old Woman for Being Old and Curmudgeonly
Hey Adrian,

I guess, since a taser was used, that this is a suitable post for a gadget blog.

But, sarcasm aside, it wasn't a 'Travis County cop', just a deputy constable (they're separate offices and chains of command - just do a little research on it).

From the post: "...you could toss her in a cop car with one arm tied behind your back if you wanted to..." That's pure conjecture, especially since you've never tried to do that to someone hyped up on stubbornness and adrenaline (regardless of age): you have no idea what she was capable of - she might have hurt herself while resisting physical restraint - which could be concluded she would have resisted. Did you notice how she snatched her arm out of the hand of the officer? Besides, she was offended that she, an old lady, was pushed. It's like she choose the alternative for the cop.

Also, what would have been 'horrific' would be if, while the cop spent several minutes trying to get the granny to comply while she was still in the relative safety of her truck, he would have been struck by a passing motorist. Or, if the lady, while still being uncooperative, was struck while trying to get back in her truck.

"The best part-the cop actually expected her to put her arms behind her back after being tased." ...and she did after the being tased a SECOND time.

And finally, Adrian, here's the kicker quote for you: "At the end of the day that officer went home to his kids uninjured and that woman - although she spent a night in the Travis County Jail - she did it uninjured. She didn't have to go to the hospital."

Do you understand how important those two goals are?
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Garrett Brooks
06/17/09

@Unspellable: This entire ramble is "pure conjecture".... If you watch the snippet from the begining of what is shown, the officer is in the wrong, he already is yelling at her and pushing her without any sort of retort from her patiently leaning at the end of her truck. A different path could've been taken that could be considered, "by the book". Frankly he many paths and options, and ran himself firmly down this one. I've always been told ignorance is bliss, and I can only assume you are proudly happy with your response.
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GitEmSteveDave_ForgotNametag
06/17/09

@Garrett Brooks: When she was out of the car, she was being placed under arrest, as she had just committed a crime(not signing the ticket for speeding through a active construction zone 15mph OVER the limit). As for her "patiently leaning on the truck", this was after five minutes of the cop trying to get her to sign the ticket, according to the time stamp on the dashcam. She also dares him to taze her and was already using abusive language.
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GitEmSteveDave_ForgotNametag
06/17/09

@Garrett Brooks: Plus, she had already lied repeatedly to the public and news reporters saying everything shown in the dash cam which was listed on the police report was "a lie". As soon as this video was released, she cancelled all interviews and referred everyone to her attorney.
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MikeK
06/17/09

In reply to Texas Cops Break Out the Taser on a 72-Year-Old Woman for Being Old and Curmudgeonly
1) Yes, you're going to hell.

2) My mother is of a similar age. She is not a jackass like this woman is, but she also can't put her hands behind her back because she's had shoulder surgery. I hear her pretty clearly saying that she's unable to comply, so I question whether he should really be tasing her again at this point.

3) She was clearly belligerant, but he was clearly frustrated (look at how he acts when he pulls out his cuffs), so I'm thinking he's not totally blameless in this one.
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GitEmSteveDave_ForgotNametag
06/17/09

@MikeK: If you check the longer videos, five minutes elapse from when he tries getting her to sign the ticket until he pulls her out to arrest her(It's against the law in TX to not sign a ticket, from what I have read). After five minutes, I'd be frustrated too if this lady was saying the same shit she was saying such as daring him to taze her.
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TonyRockyHorror
06/17/09

In reply to Texas Cops Break Out the Taser on a 72-Year-Old Woman for Being Old and Curmudgeonly
Tasering the elderly is probably a bad idea in general, right? I mean, there's a fairly good chance that they have pacemakers, right? It's my understanding that zapping the shit out of old folks with electrically sensitive equipment keeping them alive is probably a bad idea.

Tasering was a bad idea. Cuffin' and stuffin', as Roscoe P. Coltrane would say, would have been a better one.
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GitEmSteveDave_ForgotNametag
06/17/09

@TonyRockyHorror: A pacemaker can withstand a defibrillator. A tazer put nowhere NEAR the power out that a defib does. You can hold a person being tazed. You can't hold a person getting defibbed. Which is why they say "CLEAR!!" before doing it.
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eriklindemann
06/16/09

In reply to Texas Cops Break Out the Taser on a 72-Year-Old Woman for Being Old and Curmudgeonly
This cop went by the book. If you actually watch the video you'll see that she makes her way closer to the road numerous times, putting both her and the cop in danger. Also, if he were to force her arms into place to cuff her, he could have broken her bones.

The best thing to do was to immobilize her and cuff her.

Also, she was being an unruly bitch. Never be an unruly bitch to someone with legal power over you in front of a video camera. If she does press charges, she will lose because it was her own damn fault.

And those of you advocating pepper spray, have you been pepper sprayed? It burns like hell. Pepper spray is far more brutal than a TASER.
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GitEmSteveDave_ForgotNametag
06/17/09

@eriklindemann: I agree. I have said here MANY times that if you are calm, and the tape is shown in court, then guess who wins? Remember the football player who's Mother In Law died? He was calm throughout and he got an apology. But he also didn't fight with the cop like this lady did. If you watch the video in the comments above, you can see 5 minutes of tape tick by as he tries to get her to sign the ticket before her pulls her out. 5 MINUTES?!?! That's A LOT of slack the cop is cutting you. Then she goes on TV and LIES ABOUT IT! Of course, since the tape was released, she has not spoken. Hmmmmm
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