Posted on 12/29/2005 7:59:33 AM PST by MeneMeneTekelUpharsin
Unless you have sworn off television sets over the holidays, you have probably seen Monday's tense standoff in New Orleans that ended with a knife-wielding suspect being gunned down by the police. The camera reveals only so much of this tragic event, though my first thought was how differently this situation could have turned out if the cops has been armed with Tasers (Nasdaq: TASR) instead of handguns. The traditional media approached the story from sensationalist angles. Did the officers overreact? Were their lives being threatened? Could New Orleans survive yet another black eye?
I live in Miami. It's a Taser town. I have read about cops sedating a school child who was cutting himself in the principal's office with shards of glass from a picture frame he had smashed to bits. The media played it off as an abuse of force, but if you dig into the finer details of the case, you find a situation that could have been far more heinous if a Taser hadn't been discharged. Tasers aren't toys. However, deadly cases involving a Taser being discharged in the act of policing have been rare. For the New Orleans police force, which was just starting to live down a separate (and non-fatal) confrontation caught on film three months ago, a Taser may be as good a response as possible in a city looking for answers.
Financially speaking, Taser's had a rough year. But like its weaponry, the results haven't been lethal. The company remains profitable. Next year, it's looking to earn $0.13 a share on a 31% spurt in revenue. Tasers aren't perfect. But, with my apologies to the Smith & Wesson (AMEX: SWB) fan base of investors, they are certainly a more effective form of suppressing suspects than firing a round in their general direction. Taser is a Rule Breakers pick even though it certainly hasn't lived up to its billing as an ultimate growth stock at this point. Some of the stocks that have been discussed in the newsletter service's active forum for subscribers include other defense-oriented technology stocks such as Ionatron (Nasdaq: IOTN), with its laser-guided directed-energy weapons, and Metal Storm (Nasdaq: MTSX), with its electric-powered ability to fire stackable bullets.
Still, through feast and famine, Taser has been the face of non-lethal weaponry. The company has been busy trying to clear its good name by issuing favorable press releases and suing media companies that don't get the facts straight. Maybe this would be a good time for Taser to make a public appeal to New Orleans, offering to arm a precinct or two with Tasers. It would be a great way for two distressed entities to win their way back into the media's good graces. Pardon the pun, but it's at least worth a shot. Want to learn more about Rule Breakers investing? Kick the tires for a month as part of a free trial subscription. Fools, now is the time to open your hearts and wallets to worthy causes! Please support our five Foolish charities at www.foolanthropy.com.
Longtime Fool contributor Rick Munarriz lives in Miami, which really is a Taser town. He does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned in this story. The Fool has a disclosure policy. He is also part of the Rule Breakers newsletter research team, seeking out tomorrow's ultimate growth stocks a day early.
My comment is that the proliferation of non-lethal force options causes police to be all-too-ready to drop the hammer on people.
Non-lethal force is still force, and it can still be both objectionable and abused.
Unless you have sworn off television sets over the holidays, you have probably seen Monday's tense standoff in New Orleans that ended with a knife-wielding suspect being gunned down by the police.
Hmmm, I have 5 TV's in the house and havn't seen this video.
Does anyone here not know , that when you pull a weapon on a man with a gun you will probably get your dumb A$$ shot !!!!?
Maybe Darwin was right after all?
Me neither. I only use the "tube" for DVD & VHS movie watching nowadays; waaaaaay too much trash elsewhere.
I haven't seen it either..... but if a policeman had a gun pointed at me, I would certainly drop the knife.
Also, think of the scars. I mean, if you shoot a guy in the forehead with a .40 he's going to die and have an ugly scar to cover up for the funeral. However, if you shoot him with a Taser in the forehead, he may also die--yet the mark left can easily be covered up with makeup for the funeral. Just looking out for the feelings of the relatives at funeral time.
Fewer people dead; more people oppressed.
See, I'm always looking for the police-state angle since it's quite clear American freedoms are rapidly devolving.
They didn't need Tasers, they had guns. Enough said.
A perp with intent to kill will eventually find a victim. A murderer sentenced to life will find captive victims.
How many are murdered in prison by convicted murderers who should be executed?
The rules have changed a bit. Maybe we can apply those rules to modern warfare? Um, yo, you over there with the AK-47...are you going to shoot or talk? Kind of like the movie "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" where Tuco told the guy, "If you're going to shoot, shoot. Don't talk." or something like that.
Just looking out for the feelings of the relatives at funeral time.
If they get upset, tazer them.
This is a guy stuck with a lot of Taser stock.
But why? You have the RIGHT to wave a knife around and threaten people. Don't you?
..or an ongoing recommendation to buy.
How many times can you fire a taser? are they done after one shot?
A man after my own heart. Or, pepper spray them. Or, both. Hey, send in the dogs too.
Yeah - if they used a taser and the guy died, they would be raked over the coals for using the taser. If he didn't die, he would be suing them for treating the poor demented knife-wielding victim too roughly.
I like Tasers...
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