Big shock

Or a bigger shock. Or, to be technically accurate, more shocks. AP for January 21 reports that

Taser International Inc. has changed how one of its stun gun models delivers its electric charge after some police officers said some combative suspects had been able to regain partial mobility while they were being stunned, the company said Friday.

The change will make the X26 stun gun about 14 percent more powerful, The New York Times reported.

Apparently, the device now gives a rapid series of shocks lasting two seconds followed by a slower series for two seconds. The change will result in the rapid series of shocks continuing for the entire five seconds.

Laughably, even though the result will be to subject victims to a greater number of shocks and is specifically intended to prevent the possibility of someone "regaining partial mobility" during the attack, the company denied this was a case of making the device more powerful, likening it to a "software upgrade." I wonder if anyone reminded the company flack making the announcement that software upgrades are frequently described as making the application "more powerful."

Footnote: Taser Inc. is the target of various probes.

The Securities and Exchange Commission and the Arizona Attorney General have said they are looking into claims Taser has made about safety studies for its stun guns. The SEC also is reviewing a $1.5 million, Dec. 31 sale by Taser to a firearms distributor that some analysts have questioned because it appears to inflate sales to meet annual projections.

That last item interests me because it carries the implication that the buggers aren't selling as well as the corporate honchos expected, which I would regard as good news.