why does the US Forest Service need 700 tasers? that's 700

[donsu]

http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/primenewswire/126937.htm


United States Forest Service Purchases 700 TASER X26 Electronic Control Devices


-snip-

"We are excited about this new additional federal agency purchasing TASER technology to protect life," said Tom Smith, Chairman and Founder of TASER international. "Traditionally, we have focused law enforcement sales at the local and state level, but we are now seeing acceptance of TASER technology at various federal law enforcement agencies."

"We have seen a continual marked increase in TASER technology purchases at the federal level following our initial U.S. military approval of a five-year indefinite delivery indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract. We are proud that law enforcement within the Departments of Defense, Justice, Homeland Security, Interior, and Agriculture are now relying on TASER devices to protect life."
-snip-
------------------


so, "protecting life", is the role of the taser.

bunch of f--k words

tase them rowdy hikers and campers

tase those violent farm workers

[mitchum]

1. They've got toprotect those pic-a-nic baskets from the pantless bears

[KeepItReal]

2. Ha ha ha!!!

That was very Colbert of you!

[itsrobert]

4. whoops, I'm too late

You beat me.

[mitchum]

7. That's because you took the time...

to put on your pants :)

[itsrobert]

3. Well, there's Yogi, Boo Boo and the gang

on Yogi's Ark. They are all out there floating on an ark trying to save the environment. Mr Ranger may need to use the tasers on them.

[Turbineguy]

5. "I know you're a tree...

confess!"

[Starbucks Anarchist]

6. Because Smokey is a tough old bastard.

[Kip Humphrey]

8. One word: Tree-huggers!

[SteveM]

9. Right.

[donsu]

10. sadly, yes. protesters, life-lovers

nt

[Canuckistanian]

11. "I swear, those squirrels were charging me!"

"I need life-saving protection!"

[Nailzberg]

12. Lots of drug traffic and cultivation done on public lands.

[Fierce]

14. Yup.

Remote areas, good land, logging roads...you're absolutely right.

[Lucinda]

28. Yup. n/t

[Hangingon]

32. Eco terrorists

[Xithras]

33. Yep. A couple years ago a guy was kidnapped and held in Yosemite.

He was hiking in a remote area and stumbled into an Mexican grow. He was beaten and held at gunpoint until they could clear out.

FWIW, violent crime in national parks and forests in skyrocketing. Rapes, assaults, and even murders are getting to be more common. I don't know about the other parks, but Yosemite actually has its own federal court and judge to handle the cases, because there are so many of them.

People who think that our parklands are a refuge from the ills of modern society are deluding themselves. There is a damned good reason why I'm always armed with SOMETHING when I'm hiking (handgun in the national forests, and a big friggin knife in the national parks where guns are illegal).

In my experience, most patrol rangers are just as heavily armed as cops nowadays.

[tekisui]

13. Is it possible to "ground" yourself, making a taze ineffective?

[donsu]

15. or make the tase reverse- I'm curious for answers too

nt

[NV Whino]

20. Turn that tinfoil hat into a vest!

Bounce those tasers right back at 'em.

[tekisui]

30. Check out this taser suit--reverse the charge!

http://www.news.com/Polyester-fabric-neutralizes-stun-gun-jolt/2100-1008_3-6057801.html

[DemGa]

25. Of course if a way could be found to make the taze ineffective

it would be made illegal.

[Xithras]

34. Line your clothes with copper foil

The impact of a stun gun is caused by the current flowing through human flesh. Electricity always takes the path of least resistance, and water (the primary conductor in the human body) is a fairly poor conductor. If you place a superior conductor between your body and the stun gun, the voltage will jump to that instead of you.

Lining the inside of your clothes with tinfoil is one way to do it. Sandwiching a layer of copper mesh between the cloth layers is another way. Of course, this isn't very practical unless you expect to be tased. I don't see us all putting on copper lined suits just to protect against the odd abusive cop.

It might be worth considering if you're planning on attending a protest though.

[Flabbergasted]

16. It's only 14 per state and considering the fact some people using some of the 193 million acres.....

of public land, may be a threat to other people it's not uncalled for.

Well on the other hand we should just shoot the assholes or break their skull with a baseball bat.

:sarcasm:

[donsu]

17. or talk to them - or use tried and true police tactics to bring

out of control people under control. tasering should be RARE - crazy people, drug crazed people, etc. not to get a young person away from a mic, not to torture a woman.

you know tasers will be used to torture women

you know there will be parents that will tase their kids.

animal owners tasing their animals. (lrg. animal owners on occasion need an electric prod)

if tasers are on the market for cops, you know the general population will get them too through various methods.

[Flabbergasted]

18. No one ever says "Taze first ask questions later."

[Rosemary2205]

19. Tasering IS rare.

that's why it makes the news.

[malakai2]

26. That's a good idea

When I'm out working miles from the nearest road and some drunken/tripping/otherwise irrational individual decides to attack me, it's better to assume he's not in said state and is willing to talk. Only after he's proven himself a threat to my safety by maiming or killing me should I consider the use of a taser to put him down.

Most Forest Service personnel out in the field (or BLM, FWS, etc. on Fed land) do not or cannot carry firearms. That's generally not a problem with users on the land...most are law-abiding, and loud grumbles about trail closures or that sort of thing is the worst we get. There are, however, people on these lands that are violent for whatever reason, and given how remote Federal land can be, this makes some semblance of self-defense necessary for the biologists/silviculturalists/researchers/etc. who are out there, whether alone or in small groups.

Tasers should just be a start, or not even in the equation. In most areas, every work crew should carry a firearm. In areas along the Mexico border, or where pot plantations or meth labs on Fed lands have become a problem, every member of a work crew should carry a firearm. Tasers are better than nothing I guess, but if I had to work in Coronado NF (illegal immigrants/smugglers), Sequoia NF (pot plantations), or Mark Twain NF (meth labs), for instance, I'd insist on a bit more personal protection.

[Thothmes]

37. How much of that 193 mil acres is U.S. Forest Service Land.

[Nailzberg]

39. All of it.

US Forest Service manages 193 million acres

[Ravy]

21. I am not shocked...

but then, I don't go in the woods much.

[tekisui]

24. I guess you should stay out of the woods to avoid a shock.

[hedgetrimmer]

22. For the rabid squirrels, of course! n/t

[Thothmes]

38. More like rabid citizens.

[DemGa]

23. Sounds like TASER technology has a lobby on par with the

drug testing industry.

[bobbolink]

29. By george, I think you've got it!

"Follow the money....."

[mitchum]

35. Yes, THAT is the correct answer (n/t)

[NuttyFluffers]

40. aww, i thought it was because it made fishing easier.

*zap* "dinner!"

[BlooInBloo]

27. Because everybody wants to be Sgt. Kickass, just like the fucking cops.

[MUSTANG_2004]

31. Rangers also do law enforcement

Many rangers already carry guns, since they can encounter dangerous criminals in remote areas (conducting drug deals, growing marijuana, poachers, etc). Giving them tasers simply gives them an alternative to using deadly force.

While I think LEO's overuse tasers, I think overall encounters with LEO's are less dangerous when they have a (usually) non-lethal weapon to fall back on.

[spanone]

36. hippies in the woods.....very dangerous