02-15-2008, 05:53 PM
I think gun vs. taser is apples and oranges. Law enforcement should never wield a gun against an unarmed individual, period. Taser is more comparable to the baton. To me, they are six of one and half dozen of the other. Taser takes the physical superiority issue off the table to some extent.. in that regard they are indeed like firearms. It did appear in this video that the officer was not in need of any of these things. I think the lady in this case could have been tackled (for lack of a better word) and cuffed, but then she would have been kicking and screaming and it would still end up on You Tube as supposed police brutality. It must be hard to "negotiate" with someone who is trying to run away from you.
Am I the only one who still considers the possibility that this lady was in fact a thief? Back when I was a youngster working at K-Mart, I had a situation where a customer managed to get some petty stuff for free by writing a bad check while their partner casually took the bag and walked out. Her photo ID matched the check and everything. They probably had plausible deniability if they got caught, and assumed the store won't run the investigation needed to recoup so little cash? It seemed so stupid at the time that I remember it years later.
Credit card declines are rare, and usually happen for a reason (not activated, not paid, etc). What are the odds of getting an emergency phone call right when you are checking out, and having your credit just happen to get declined? Combine those odds with the officer just happening to be there with a taser, and this must be the worst run of luck at a Best Buy since the day the Wiis sold out.
Am I the only one who still considers the possibility that this lady was in fact a thief? Back when I was a youngster working at K-Mart, I had a situation where a customer managed to get some petty stuff for free by writing a bad check while their partner casually took the bag and walked out. Her photo ID matched the check and everything. They probably had plausible deniability if they got caught, and assumed the store won't run the investigation needed to recoup so little cash? It seemed so stupid at the time that I remember it years later.
Credit card declines are rare, and usually happen for a reason (not activated, not paid, etc). What are the odds of getting an emergency phone call right when you are checking out, and having your credit just happen to get declined? Combine those odds with the officer just happening to be there with a taser, and this must be the worst run of luck at a Best Buy since the day the Wiis sold out.