Taser Related Incidents Continued..

In Lorain Ohio, a town about 40 minutes away from my home a cop Tasered a 12 yr. old boy on a school bus while an angry crowd attacked the bus, pounding on it and demeaning the cop for stunning the 12 yr. old and demanding that they leave the boy alone. Apparently the boy was breaking a rule on the bus and the police responded to a call to remove him from the bus. He evidently “cursed at an officer and threatened to kill her”. The cop (a woman) said he “hit her on the jaw” as well. Well, he got the crap shocked out of him for his infractions. The police officer is still on the job.

The school district is investigating, and when classes begin in the fall, the boy may be suspended or expelled. Police charged him (12 yr. old) with robbery, assault on a police officer and resisting arrest. They said nobody was hurt in the incident. Yeah right, tell that to his Mom and Pop! I’m all for discipline but blasting a 12 yr. old with a Taser is not on the list. They should have sent a big strapping officer out there and not a woman who sounded panicky and trigger happy. And yes, she was probably dazed from the severe punch in the jaw! (”nobody was hurt in the incident”)

Here’s a real beauty on Tasering and beating down a woman here. You’ll need your Media player and speakers on!

Here’s two more Taser related deaths this year from Akron, Ohio one of my old sales territories. I’m glad I’m long gone now!

Doing a Search on Taser Related Deaths…some headlines:

“Healthy 18 year old dead: had been stunned with a Taser gun”

“Lakeland cop used Taser on students”

“Fla. deputy suspended after using Taser on girl”

“Police Taser 6-Year-Old”

I could go on copying and pasting the headlines for hours without mentioning reported torture by Tasers, having been alleged several times.

When the Taser was under fire, from various Human Rights organizations, CEO Rick Smith issued a statement. Why? To make more money! CBS News reported that “40 people in police custody had died after being stunned by a Taser gun”. Smith, in his “press release”, called the 40 deaths “unexpected” and “unforeseen,” and approximately a month later, Smith told CBS News: “If the Taser had not been used, all 40 of those people would still be dead today. In every single case these people would have died anyway.”

What a moronic, cold blooded, retort regarding this serious issue could be made? And by the CEO himself, it inspires me to disrespect them more than I already do, if that’s possible.

Look, let’s be reasonable, I offer no “hard data” just common sense, reading the news, and viewing it as well. In “pre-Taser days” officers carried a baton or nightstick, then a canister of pepper spray and still later they added a traditional high power stun gun (the kind that you must touch against the assailant) to stun them. Of course their sidearms have changed with the times from .38 police specials, to .357 magnums, .44 magnums, and now the beloved high capacity auto-loaders like Glocks and Berettas.

The war against Air Taser continues and thanks to activist groups and some city officials – Mayors – etc. the use of Tasers will be scaled down and hopefully some day be banned altogether.

Taser Slipping After Continuing Related Deaths

They can say what they want and post their “spin” on the mounting pile of bodies, but Air Taser isn’t fooling people like they used to regarding the safety of their product. Continuing controversy surrounding the death of suspects, after being shot with a Taser, has not only stirred up a mounting wave of anger and incredulity from “Human Rights” activists and societies, but now it is reflected in the only thing Taser International understands..their bottom line!

Not only has the death toll been steadily rising from use of the Taser in the line of subduing criminals for arrest. There seems to be a second use/abuse of Air Tasers by sadistic police officials to torture citizens for the smallest resistance, while they gleefully send series after series of 50,000 volt bursts into pre-school age children, teenagers, old ladies and of course a favorite target, their genitals! No, cops are not all “good guys” and the days of telling little Johnny to “run to the police they’re our friends and will protect you” are over in some neigborhoods!  Generally they are to be applauded  for their work.

Now it is my opinion, knowing a few police officers and encounters with others, that they will “usually treat you with the same respect you give them”. Don’t be a “sap” and believe it all goes down like the “COPS” episodes, all video taped, with the police acting like good Samaritans in blue uniforms. If you think the behavior depicted is S.O.P. then you’re beyond help and should stop reading this right now!

Gone are the days of the normal stun guns, as we know them. Now they aren’t enough? Everything is “fly by wire” which makes Air Taser a natural for most cops who don’t want to have to actually exert themselves, to get that old lady or kid to calm down, “it’s Taser time” as one officer so blatantly stated to a lady who reached for her cell phone after being detained by the police officer.

As I mentioned above the “bottom line” is showing a slump in earnings this year and I hope it “slumps” into oblivion. I hate Tasers, sorry, personal bias. It was reported that “Taser shares plunged $1.45, or 12.1 percent, to $10.55 during pre-market activity. The stock, one of the most heavily traded on the Nasdaq, has lost nearly two-thirds of its value from a late December high of $32.59.” Great news!

I have a ton of material that I’d like to synthesize into one more post concerning some cases of deaths related to the use Of Tasers in the normal course of duty, and the “crazies” who have tortured old, young, and helpless victims with their electronic toys. So, let’s say for tonight, to be continued……….

Personal Alarms continued…..

We discussed the efficacy of handheld and pocket size personal alarms earlier. I described a couple of the very best for face to face confrontation. I’d like to interject that the right personal alarm for you fits your needs. That is to say, all personal alarms are not copies of a singular design, but many incorporate unique features, that may work for your particular needs more than another model.

I posted mainly on a type of personal alarm that combines light and sound to draw the attention of passing citizens to the aid of a victim under attack or the immediate threat of attack. There are some pretty cool personal alarms that have other hidden features. I mentioned one in my last post that doubles as a personal alarm and a door knob alarm. By simply hanging it from your door knob and activating the unit, it will react to the turning of the knob, or jiggling it as well, and sound the alarm. Now that’s a nice combination.

I particularly like a little unit I’ve handled and played around with. This small personal alarm is 130db when the carrying strap is pulled out. It comes with a small spring loaded “trigger device” that plugs into the unit. This is inserted into a space under the door, or under a window and sounds the alarm if someone opens either entrance and releases the trigger. Highly portable and great for travel, you can use it in hotels, dorm rooms and apartments! This is a great buy at about $10 bucks!

Another new, and very nice unit is a 130 db personal alarm with a flashlight. This little alarm is only 3.5″ x 2.5″ x 0.5″ or about the size of a pack of cigarettes. It’s perfect for walking in dimly lit parking lots or entering a dark home. It will help you get around in total darkness, and check out any dark areas before stepping into a dangerous situation. Going for about $15 bucks and up, I’d call it awfully cheap insurance.

As mentioned in the previous post: “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”. Recall the last question posed in the previous post as well? How much is your life worth? If you feel that you or a loved one is at risk of being mugged, raped, or robbed, then “pony up” a few dollars and buy one of these inexpensive personal alarms. They sure beat shouting for help, or not being able to shout at all!

Personal Alarms Stop Attackers

In a study I read today, the use of personal alarms may reduce your risk of being assaulted, mugged, kidnapped or raped to below 20% when compared to cases where no self defense deterrent of any type was carried.

Personal alarms with sirens and flashing lights, such as the KC45 keychain alarm or the Mace Sports Strobe sports alarm are voted on the top of the heap. These two use a combination of light and sound to draw attention to a situation, and cause criminals to flee immediately.

There are several other excellent personal alarms that may be purchased for a mere $20 and even less, that afford other neat little features, such as doubling as door and window alarms. Another pretty cool one, is a “personal carry alarm” that also hangs on the doorknob and sounds if it is jiggled – it’s very cool what technology is offering us these days for just a few bucks.

There is something so wrong with folks who don’t prepare themselves for such eventualities, and end up as statistics. Some never even survive a violent assault. You know the old saying: “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”? That would definitely apply to those who walk the streets of our cities, alone and afraid or to cars parked in empty, dimly lit, parking garages. If this sounds like you or someone you know, then get with the program and pick one of these babies up right away!

How much is your life worth? Pick one up for yourself or that special someone today and show that you really care about their safety!

We still have more personal alarms to look at and review….so, let’s devote another post to the best of the rest…to be continued soon!

Strong Medicine for Aggressive Dogs!

I have been interviewed several times about potentially dangerous encounters with dogs and asked for recommendations. I had questions posed like: “what do you recommend to stop a pit bull that almost chewed me and my dog up”, “we have dogs that run wild in our neighborhood and attack our dog on walks, showing aggression towards us”, “what’s the best thing to stop a dog from attacking me”, and many other variations of the same question?????

I have been ridiculed as a “scoundrel” heh heh after one such interview the “nice lady” posted my remarks on her (”we love all God’s creatures but won’t give a homeless person a buck for a cheeseburger”) forum.

In the Labrador section (she had a chewed up lab) they thought my recommendations of a telescopic steel baton a bit “heavy handed” and doubted the efficacy of pepper spray (due to adverse weather – breezes), even in a “stream” delivery model, feeling that “Foo Foo” might experience mild cross contamination of 10% OC pepper spray.

God forbid she got a small amount of floating particulate pepper in her eyes after spraying the Rottweiler that was having her for his entree. You know, the kind of folks who call legs = arms and paws = hands (you have to listen). They were mildly interested in the suggestion of a stun baton for defense, but some were worried that it was too much for the offending dogs, while others worried that it might not be enough…”oh what will we do”. Trust me a stun baton works as an aggressive dog deterrent!

Finally, for every dog owner, anxious walker or jogger, families having children with roaming dogs in the area: I just checked out the latest Patent Pending offering from Mace Security. It’s Mace Pepper Gel 10% OC pepper in a stream delivery model! This baby shoots to 18 feet, 2 to 3 times further than any little pocket model of any brand, sticks to the target like glue, and is guaranteed “no cross contamination”, being safe to use inside a room, home, office and of course, outdoors!

Now, you can finally blast the offending mutts that you meet on an evening’s stroll, or the Pit Bull who loves assaulting your dog. The dog/s may be entering your property, containing children and other loved ones. This packs a serious punch, precision, pinpoint accuracy and even has a marking dye, making it easy to identify the offender to the authorities! There are no downsides to this model, it has it all.

The construction and features of this new product address every dog owners fears of accuracy, potency and ZERO cross contamination to other dogs. Pull out your Mace Pepper Gel and it’s all over but the howling!

Man’s Best Friend?

Will that be charbroiled or breaded and deep-fried?

“In Phnom Penh, a Cambodian dog thief who gave up his family rather than stop stealing dogs, was beaten to death by a mob of angry neighbors, after authorities failed to persuade him to change his criminal ways, police said on Wednesday.”

Wow, how’s that for animal rights activists? I always believed that these folk were a bit “over the top”, but this is an absolutely amazing account of sticking up for our canine buddies.

“The district police chief, Chum Chhoeun, said Bun Rin, 35, had become famous in the area as a serial dognapper. Rin became so famous for his professional and prolific theft of local canines for the dog-meat trade, that he was dubbed ‘the king of dog thieves’ by local media.” Now that would have to be quite a handle to live up to!

“He was known as a very professional thief. He stole chickens, pigs and dogs, but he stole dogs, in particular, day and night, and it seems his neighbors lost patience and a mob beat him to death,” Chum Chhoeun told the press. Truly, hallmark “scores” of a professional!

It seems that this man got into the dog meat biz by selling to his wife, a dog meat vendor, who could not move the weight of dog and other meats that Rin stole, forcing him to widen his scope of operations and begin to supply multiple vendors. The police described the atmosphere in the village, on the night of the fatal beating, as “tense”. That may have been due to the fact that every living creature in the village was methodically stolen by Rin to feed his vices of liquor and women!

Rin, married and the father of a 7 yr. old son, was so addicted to his trade and the accompanying lifestyle (see above), that he completely ignored his family’s warnings to stop, and eventually left them. I never knew chicks dug guys who stole dogs, cats, chickens etc. as being “down” with the whole “thug lifestyle”. He must have showered often.

I mean, this took place in a country where about every thug carries butterfly knives, or a fixed blade knife. The police and many rural country folks carry longer “rattan” versions of our telescopic steel batons called a “lathi”. I suppose that given his reputation (”the guy who steals my dogs”), and his potential to inflict injury, the small community went “ape-shit” and beat this man to death – literally!

Well, chalk up a brutal “W” for the animal rights folks! An aside: How ironic that the king of dog thieves had the handle of “Rin” as in the 50’s TV show “Rin Tin Tin” – bad karma is not without a sense of humor.

Survival in The Politically Correct America

I suppose I’m spamming my own blog, but my teacher Shihan Will, sent me this short forward that salves my frustration in the new politically correct America. This is not the USA (philosophically speaking) that I was raised in. I think this addresses the way it was, not so long ago, and leaves you wondering about why things have progressed to the way they are today. You may even get a good laugh as I did!

TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED the 1930’s 40’s, 50’s, 60’s and 70’s!!

First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they carried us.

They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can, and didn’t get tested for diabetes.

Then after that trauma, our baby cribs were covered with bright colored lead-based paints.

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets, not to mention, the risks we took
hitchhiking.

As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags.

Riding in the back of a pick up on a warm day was always a special treat.

We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle.

We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and NO ONE actually died from this.

We ate cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank soda pop with sugar in it, but we weren’t overweight because

WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!

We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on.

No one was able to reach us all day. And we were O.K.

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into the
bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem.

We did not have Playstations, Nintendo’s, X-boxes, no video games at all, no 99 channels on cable, no video tape movies, no surround sound, no cell
phones, no personal computers, no Internet or Internet chat rooms……….WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!

We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents.

We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us forever.

We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays, made up games with sticks and tennis balls and although we were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes.

We rode bikes or walked to a friend’s house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them!

Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn’t had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that!!

The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law!

This generation has produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever!

The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.

We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned HOW TO DEAL WITH IT ALL!

And YOU are one of them! CONGRATULATIONS!

You might want to share this with others who have had the luck to grow up as kids, before the lawyers and the government regulated our lives for our own good. And while you are at it, forward it to your kids so they will know how brave their parents were. Kind of makes you want to run through the house with scissors, doesn’t it?!

Abuse of Patients in Mental Hospitals

I was looking for something different and found a topic that hasn’t been heard in the public media of newspapers, radio and TV talk shows. That is the abuse of patients that are incarcerated in mental institutions and nursing homes. There is a very different set of rules when dealing with the medical community. Don’t believe it? How about the man who was ordered a shot of pain killer and was given a fatal dosage by one the staff nurses who appeared at the time she gave the injection, as being tweaked on meth, coke or some kind of “GO – GO – GO drug”. The patients family were paid off, all of the Dr.’s fees and hospital expenses were magically dropped, by a signature and the erasure of the records. As if the man had never been there at all!

How about this from the UK:

“The families of two women, who died after failures at a hospital already being questioned about patient safety, say their deaths were needless. Mary Niersmans, 81, and Peggy Cotter, 80, both died after ‘unacceptable care’ at Cardiff’s Whitchurch Hospital. Mrs Niersmans suffered with two broken legs which were undiagnosed for four days. Her son Allan said: “We complained about it (her treatment) and it wasn’t liked. My biggest regret is leaving her in that hospital. A hospital investigation agreed with many of the family’s complaints, although it said Mrs Cotter’s cancer, which was undiagnosed at the time, would also have contributed to her decline.”

That’s double-speak for “the patients were so badly cared for that it led to their ultimate demise”.

What I Was Told

It reminds me of an evening 22 yrs. ago at the home of a friend who happened to be a biker, and who’s home was always filled to the point of bursting with grizzled bikers, and their “mommas” or women. I had sat on the sofa for awhile and some very petite young woman sat next to me and began a conversation. She was a hard little broad and had a mouth like a sailor. Ordinarily I would have excused myself, but she had such an engaging way about her, that I hung in there and continued to have a long talk with her.

It turned out that she had just moved into our area from a city I was raised in and that was all the common ground I needed to be comfortable and continue having dialogue with her. As she became more and more drunk, I asked her what she did for a living. She told me that she worked at XYZ State Hospital (insane asylum) which I was very familiar with, after driving by it a 1,000 or more times over the years. When asked what brought her up this way, she replied that she had been fired from her job unjustly and now had no reason to stay there, and had rode on the back of some willing biker’s “iron” to get here. That’s puzzling I thought?

I asked her what she had been unjustly terminated for, and she very cheerfully told me that it was because her and two friends (who helped her administer lumps to the insane people) were fired, for beating patients in their charge. Needless to say, I was horrified, but not to be deterred, I asked her exactly “well, what did you guys do that they consider you to be such an immediate and dangerous threat to patient security”? She replied (as her visage took on a demonic glow), that “some patients are idiots and just look like such a**holes, so we would slap them in the face a lot (continuously), punch them, restrain them and then hit, pinch and slap them for the fun of it”! This 21 year old girl was a true monster, I could see in her eyes that she was as hard as a rock and delighted in her wickedness. She looked so happy and detached as she described some of it to me. I was sickened by her story as she became more excited, cheerful and satisfied. She was pure evil and content with it. She carried herself as if she were a normal person.

I got up to get a Pepsi (can I say that Mr. Pepsi Cola?) and hauled out of there, sick in my spirit from listening to her, and from knowing that she was one of millions of abusive people who walk the streets around us everyday. Some may be our friends or acquaintances! How would you know? She seemed so normal until drugs and alcohol loosened her lips and I was there to ask the wrong questions at the wrong time…again! So upsetting, that 22 yrs later I can see her across the sofa from me and telling me her tales of torture and torment.

Look what atrocities were committed against Arab prisoners at the hands of our finest troops right? So by comparison, her tale is not that out of line. There are a lot of sick, violent, mean spirited people out there. Be on the lookout if you have a family member in a mental hospital, or a nursing home. Talk to them if possible and try to find out how they are treated when they are alone without visitors (if they are able to communicate). Otherwise, look them over for signs of trauma or mental distress, and demand an explanation for anything you are told or observe that appears out of order. Don’t be afraid to call Human Services, or whatever overseer of these matters in your community might be called, and report anything untoward immediately! Who else will protect the helpless?