Just a lighthearted joke from the TSA folks -- as indeed it was. But still. Anyone up for more normalizing?

We. Are. Going. To. Die. We must restore hope in the world. We must bring forth a new way of living that can sustain the world. Or else it is not just us who will die but everyone. What have we got to lose? Go forth and Fight!—Xan

Exactly. Just tase 'em all! Evidently ZAAAAAP is short for "sir, please lie down on your stomach."

Maybe it's that universal language you always hear about in New Age music.

But I still believe
And I will rise up with fists!!

The time from police arrival to use of force was less than 30 seconds; Mr. Dziekanski had put up his hands and didn’t appear to be any real threat to the four officers, to himself or to anyone else. Most damning, that the police lied in their statements demonstrates “consciousness of guilt.” Absolutely terrible behavior by these RCMP, there appears to be no plausible excuse for their actions.

Up-to-date coverage by the Vancouver Sun is here with a PDF timeline and airport facility schematic here.

A lot of unanswered questions remain, such as: What was he doing wandering around the baggage claim from 4PM to 1030PM? Did no one from airport security notice? If he was calm and coherent enough to get help with his baggage at 1030PM and clear secondary Immigration at 1230AM, what happened to make him irrational by 120AM? Autopsy results showed no drugs or alcohol, and no trauma or obvious cause of death. What was wrong with him when the RCMP showed up? He was sweating profusely, shouting and swearing, moving around aimlessly, destroying equipment – Why?

Whatever happened, it was almost certainly not the taser that caused his death. However inappropriate its use in this setting, the barbs struck his arm; the current would not have passed across his chest at all. Additionally, from the Globe and Mail:

For some, the mounting toll [in Canada] - 18 deaths in custody involving tasers since the devices were introduced earlier this decade - is a simple equation. If someone dies shortly after being tasered, the device killed them.

But some physicians and coroners say a heart attack induced by electrical shock should be nearly instantaneous, not come minutes or hours later. "If it's more than two seconds, he didn't die from the taser," said David Evans, Ontario's regional supervising coroner for investigations.

A far more likely cause was compression of his chest and neck by the officers as they struggled to put on handcuffs. There is a vague sort of syndrome called “excited delirium” that is associated with a high percentage of deaths in custody, and this poor man shows all of the symptoms. Regardless, these police should have spent a great deal more time than they did trying to calm him down before resorting to force. Blame for this death almost certainly belongs with the police; the taser itself was incidental.

Lambert, to make your day please be aware that cell phone users can download a “Don’t Tase Me Bro!” rap-mix ringtone. Rumour is that Ashley has one, and she’s looking for you.

And I bet I'm not the only one who feels that way, either.

Fortunately, the moral test seems to be whether I'm pro or anti-technology, and as a jamming advocate, I'm definitely pro-technology.

We. Are. Going. To. Die. We must restore hope in the world. We must bring forth a new way of living that can sustain the world. Or else it is not just us who will die but everyone. What have we got to lose? Go forth and Fight!—Xan

Welcome to the Mouth of Sauron.

No Hell below us
Above us, only sky

What I found equally disconcerting was that, at least until the end of the video which was a significant amount of time, no one attempted cpr on the man.

Aragorn?

Unfortunate if fact-based electrophysiology conflicts with your mythological technophobic constructs.

Confusing malicious actors with the equipment they employ is, IMHO, a tactical error. Tasers are not the issue; they are a distraction. The real problem is with the individual bad actors and the system that fails to adequately screen them out in the first place, fails to effectively detect them once they are in, and fails to adequately sever and discipline them once they are detected. Depriving legitimate law enforcement officers of a useful, safe, non-lethal tool does nothing to address the real causes of police brutality and corruption.

Nor does namecalling further interactive conversation, but then perhaps that isn’t a goal either.

but if it's unavoidable I think I'd rather have a taser taken to me than a baton.

If you live thru the incident to start with, the beating takes longer to get over.

Way back in the dim past of the "Don't tase me, bro!" permathread, CD commented that although tasers were technically non-lethal, they had lowered the bar to the use of some violence, and were now used for compliance, where previously the police would have used more socially ept or adept methods.

So, while I understand the argument that it's better to be tasered than shot or clubbed, I think (to quote) Dodd, it's a false dichotomy.

I feel--without statistics, I grant--that we are seeing the normalization and routinization of small acts of violence by authority figures. Surely that must concern all who love liberty?

We. Are. Going. To. Die. We must restore hope in the world. We must bring forth a new way of living that can sustain the world. Or else it is not just us who will die but everyone. What have we got to lose? Go forth and Fight!—Xan

And fell into the hands of police and airport security who were either indifferent or malicious in their treatment of him. A terrible, terrible thing to have someone so vulnerable be so badly abused, and the widespread Canadian antipathy for foreigners – much worse than here in the US – surely didn’t help.

I was shocked at how quick the RCMP used a taser on the victim.

Over 300 persons (that we know about) have died after being tasered by police. It must be able to kill.

The human heart is operated by electrical impulse. Some, (less than 0.1%), humans are more susceptible to an electrical shock than the average person.

Having worked with the RCMP I understand the protocol of the tasering procedure. The victim had already showed violence by throwing items. MOST persons don't know that resisting arrest can be verbal, which can justify a physical response by the police. The lack of patience of the police is a normal response to the pressures of working in big cities.

The biggest problem to me was the lack of anyone doing CPR on the victim. It is the RCMP's responsibility to start CPR. They are all trained in CPR and first aid. I have seen firefighters and nurses refuse to do CPR on a victim and wait for an ambulance. Unfortunately, once the police control the scene NO ONE else can enter and assist without permission.

The arrogance of police is very common. They did not get away with it because it was RECORDED on a video.

Issuing a TASER gun to police causes the bean counters to justify the cost by stating we can hire fewer police. Thus, causing a quick decision by the constable to taser a potentially violent person. Of course, when you see how quickly and easily tasering works, it justifies it's use.

There are many factors to the causes leading up to this tragedy. HOW did the airport allow a person to wander around for 10 hours. Of all the employees at the airport why didn't anyone do CPR? Did the RCMP know the background of the person they were arresting? Did the airport have sufficient staff in the area? His mother was at the airport when he arrived. They sent her home. It's the management style and the lack of personnel that causes these situations.

The RCMP were the best of the best police force in the world. The shortage of staff is making them like the rest. The RCMP have lost a lot of credibility around the world due to this incident.

I wonder rather if it isn't the perception of increased "normalization and routinization" of small acts of violence by law enforcement that has taken hold, a result of the ready communication of images. Akin to what has happened with stranger abductions and molestations and murders, incessently broadcast 24/7 in a way that drives an irrational fear of the "unknown other" when in reality the greatest danger is from someone we know and trust.

I'm not arguing that abuse under color of authority never happens, it does and it is wrong and needs to be stamped out, but I think there is really not an increase in incidence but rather in reportage.

The taser is an interesting case (if you like this sort of thing) where a technology intended for one use has found another. It was initially proposed as an alternative to lethal force but it isn't a good one, since the range of use is less than 25 feet and that is too close for comfort against a knife, almost useless against a gun. While there are unusual circumstances where it has been used against weapons, most of the time deployment is to disable or coerce someone who is persistently or violently noncompliant. The other, older choices are fists, boots, clubs, pepper spray and guns. All of those endanger either the suspect or the police or both, much more so than a taser.

We could all do with a lot less violence. Tasers are the least of the matters that need fixing.

jr too writes: Over 300 persons (that we know about) have died after being tasered by police. It must be able to kill.

Sloppy logic. Multiple studies have concluded that tasers are not a primary cause of death in police custody. If they were, we'd be seeing a sharp uptick in police related deaths and we are not. If you have data to support your allegation, please reference. Otherwise, you're just promoting a rumor.

And: The human heart is operated by electrical impulse. Some, (less than 0.1%), humans are more susceptible to an electrical shock than the average person.

Do you have a reference for this claim that includes a demonstrable mechanism involving the output of a taser? If so, please share. Otherwise, you’re just promoting rumor.

And: The RCMP were the best of the best police force in the world. The shortage of staff is making them like the rest. The RCMP have lost a lot of credibility around the world due to this incident.

All true and there are the real problems; short staff, low pay, and poor training.

You'll hurt yourself, or your reputation anyway.

You can take that ad and hominem with it all you like.

You are absolutely obsessed with your delusion point about "harmless" tasers.

Current passing through the heart to a ground source or to complete a circuit kills. Every time.

You betcha they're not designed to do that. You betcha the best designs screw up. If it can go wrong, it will.

They are designed to produce excruciating pain. Which, last time I looked, can and does kill people with preexisting medical conditions. But tasers don't kill people, do they bro'?

Tasers are part of the culture of cruelty that is in the process of destroying this country. Then there are the complacent who view their own acceptance of cruelty part of the natural order of things.

No Hell below us
Above us, only sky

The authority of the state to inflict excruciating pain at any time is simply accepted by BIO, because after all, if you don't go into cardiac arrest, no harm's done.

Torturing someone into submission is OK as long as it stops a hair short of organ failure... hmm... man, where have I heard that one before?

But I still believe
And I will rise up with fists!!