# Is this stewardess aiming a Taser at a passenger? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 20, 2016, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241 "2016-12-20T16:37:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2016, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/1 "2016-12-20T16:37:58Z")
Apparently a dangerously “disruptive” passenger was [klutzily handled on a flight](http://radio.com/2016/12/20/richard-marx-subdues-deranged-passenger-on-plane/). Is that a taser? She’s holding it like a pistol, but if it is one it looks like a contact one. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2016, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/2 "2016-12-20T16:46:07Z")
> [@](#): > > “On our flight from Hanoi to Seoul a guy sitting in the next row from us got crazy & started attacking the flight attendants & passengers,” she wrote in the caption. “When he started pushing the female staff and pulling them by the hair @therichardmarx was the first to help subdue him. This went on for FOUR hrs. I feel horrible for the abuse the staff had to endure but no one was prepared for this. They never fully got control of him. **They didn’t know how to use the taser & they didn’t know how to secure the rope around him (he got loose from their rope restraints 3 times)**. I’ll be posting some of the video after our next flight.” \*\*(Bolding mine.) \*\* Assuming Rickard Marx is familiar with tasers, then yes. ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2016, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/3 "2016-12-20T16:48:15Z")
Yep. Compare to [this](http://www.thehomesecuritysuperstore.com/self-defense-stun-guns-low-voltage-stun-guns-phazzer-enforcer-shooting-stun-gun-855700000-eblk-p=3951) one. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2016, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/4 "2016-12-20T17:20:57Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > \*\*(Bolding mine.) > > \*\* > Assuming Rickard Marx is familiar with tasers, then yes. Sorry. The article definitely ranked as “look-at-the-picture-dont bother reading-becuase SD and maybe **LSLGuy** or the other airheads would have something to say.” Gotta stop doing that. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2016, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/5 "2016-12-20T17:28:20Z")
> [@Folly](#): > > Yep. Compare to [this](http://www.thehomesecuritysuperstore.com/self-defense-stun-guns-low-voltage-stun-guns-phazzer-enforcer-shooting-stun-gun-855700000-eblk-p=3951) one. Watched the video. How much do they pay that guy to demonstrate the effects each of those damn modes? What’s his contract look like? Doesn’t OSHA have anything to say? ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2016, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/6 "2016-12-20T17:37:43Z")
He was subdued by the singer Richard Marx. He should have known better. ---
**Author:** ![quimper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7c8e57/32.png) [@quimper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/quimper)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2016, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/7 "2016-12-20T17:44:59Z")
Tasers, huh. I wonder if Korean Air started carrying those before or after the [nut rage incident](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nut_rage_incident). ---
**Author:** ![JHBoom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/13edae/32.png) [@JHBoom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JHBoom)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2016, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/8 "2016-12-20T18:12:38Z")
Went on for 4hrs? Interesting… Also interesting that no one on the airplane knew how to… I don’t know… TIE A DECENT KNOT. Note to self: Add Korean Air to the personal no-fly list. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2016, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/9 "2016-12-20T18:14:46Z")
In this day and age, I’m frankly a little surprised to still see Marxist struggle coming out of Hanoi. ---
**Author:** ![JHBoom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/13edae/32.png) [@JHBoom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JHBoom)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2016, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/10 "2016-12-20T18:41:47Z")
I just had a realization… Richard Marx is married to Daisy Fuentes. Holy crap. > [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > In this day and age, I’m frankly a little surprised to still see Marxist struggle coming out of Hanoi. Well played. ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2016, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/11 "2016-12-20T19:15:15Z")
> [@Leo\_Bloom](#): > > Watched the video. How much do they pay that guy to demonstrate the effects each of those damn modes? What’s his contract look like? Doesn’t OSHA have anything to say? Looking at it again, it looks like the air crew was trying to use it like a barbed projectile taser, but they don’t have the cartridge installed in the front that gives it that functionality. ---
**Author:** ![DinoR](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dinor/32/2821_2.png) [@DinoR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DinoR)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2016, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/12 "2016-12-21T00:07:59Z")
> [@Leo\_Bloom](#): > > Watched the video. How much do they pay that guy to demonstrate the effects each of those damn modes? What’s his contract look like? Doesn’t OSHA have anything to say? I was in a unit that served as trainers on nonlethal weapons systems. On a strictly volunteer basis I’ve ridden the lightning twice. I probably also saw a couple hundred volunteers take a ride that they didn’t have to. It sucks but it’s a concentrated suck that gets over in 5, seemingly very long, seconds. Taser, the actual company not the one providing the system linked, had a generic legal release for voluntary exposure. I’d assume that wouldn’t exist if there was some other legal or regulatory issue that OSHA would have had a cow over. That part didn’t really apply to me, though. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2016, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/13 "2016-12-21T01:14:46Z")
> [@DinoR](#): > > I was in a unit that served as trainers on nonlethal weapons systems. _On a strictly volunteer basis_ I’ve ridden the lightning twice. I probably also saw a couple hundred volunteers take a ride that they didn’t have to. It sucks but it’s a concentrated suck that gets over in 5, seemingly very long, seconds. > > Taser, the actual company not the one providing the system linked, had a generic legal release for voluntary exposure. I’d assume that wouldn’t exist if there was some other legal or regulatory issue that OSHA would have had a cow over. That part didn’t really apply to me, though. [ital added] Is this as in the military “you, you’re volunteered?” ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2016, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/14 "2016-12-21T10:01:54Z")
> [@JHBoom](#): > > Went on for 4hrs? Interesting… > Also interesting that no one on the airplane knew how to… I don’t know… TIE A DECENT KNOT. > > Note to self: Add Korean Air to the personal no-fly list. Pretty much any Korean airline - Asiana is also on my personal no-fly list after two of their pilots more or less admitted they were incompetent to fly an airworthy airplane VFR in perfect weather, after having demonstrated exactly that by crashing their airplane in San Francisco and killing a few of their passengers. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2016, 10:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/15 "2016-12-21T10:09:58Z")
> [@JHBoom](#): > > Went on for 4hrs? Interesting… > Also interesting that no one on the airplane knew how to… I don’t know… TIE A DECENT KNOT. > > Note to self: Add Korean Air to the personal no-fly list. Theres two issues: the staff don’t want any other passengers out of their seats, particularly don’t want a lot of people helping them. and, to make it work, the ropes have to be painfully tight, which is normally inappropriate for 4 hour confinement. But why were they trying to use ropes? They think it’s a good idea to carry a taser, but they don’t carry handcuffs or even cable ties? ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2016, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/16 "2016-12-21T18:30:32Z")
> [@JHBoom](#): > > I just had a realization… Richard Marx is married to Daisy Fuentes. Holy crap… Umm…significance? I hate to see an SD realization go unappreciated. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2016, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/17 "2016-12-22T04:38:28Z")
> [@Leo\_Bloom](#): > > Sorry. The article definitely ranked as “look-at-the-picture-dont bother reading-becuase SD and maybe **LSLGuy** or the other airheads would have something to say.” > > Gotta stop doing that. **Moderating** I’m going to assume that by “airheads” you mean people interested in airplanes and flight. Since this has been reported several times as an insult, I should point out that “airhead,” as in empty-headed, is almost always used insultingly. **Leo,** please take more care with your word use to avoid misunderstandings. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2016, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/18 "2016-12-22T06:23:26Z")
Huh. It never occurred to me. People actually reported _my_ post (read it that way?)? Wow. Better not call Stranger a space cadet. Maybe it’s one of those things where pilots can use the a-word among themselves, but only them. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2016, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/19 "2016-12-22T13:44:38Z")
> [@Melbourne](#): > > and, to make it work, the ropes have to be painfully tight, which is normally inappropriate for 4 hour confinement. Not really. It’s just that most people don’t know how to tie others up. If the knots are made really tight, the loops around the wrist don’t actually have to be painful. People also use too long of ropes and wrap them around the arms which doesn’t help. Using many short sections is much better than using one long rope. The rope they are using is too thick. A thinner rope would be easier.\* \*We played around tying each other up and trying to get out as kids. This experience doesn’t come from any illegal activities and no animals were hurt during the process. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2016, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241/20 "2016-12-22T13:48:37Z")
Also, it should have been possible to tie him to the seat. But handcuffs would work better. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-stewardess-aiming-a-taser-at-a-passenger/775241.md?page=2)