Tasers are being Phased

     In a report made by the San Antonio Express-News, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) has been recently under fire for the use of Tasers in Texas’ schools. The use of Tasers and other non-lethal weapons such as the use of pepper sprays are being argued by some to have no place in our schools and should be banned from use.

     Most recently back in November of 2013, a Bastrop County student was shot with one of these Tasers resulting in the student being in a coma for 50 days coming from his head hitting the ground after being zapped with up to 50,000 volts. In addition to being comatose for almost 2 months, the student Noe Niño de Rivera could suffer lasting brain injuries.

     The author expresses that some of the opponents are saying that such weapons should not be used on students especially with all the options law enforcement officers have today. But both the author and the opponents fail to mention some of these other tactics that can be used when needed only saying that pepper foams are less likely to affect bystanders. However they do go on to say that the use of such weapons can be acceptable in a life or death situation but never acceptable as a method of controlling students.

     While I do agree with the author when it comes to alternatives for some of the non-lethal weapons currently being used in schools, I must respectively disagree that these weapons should be banned completely. Rather, I believe that training should be improved for the officers that are placed in these schools. After all it’s not the Tasers pulling the trigger. With better education officers can react and respond to situations that contain students (kids, not adults) in a manner that is more acceptable to educators and most importantly the parents.

You Need Fast Cash?

     Houston Mayor Annise Parker proposed an ordinance back in November that if passed, would heavily restrict payday and auto-title loans, making Houston the fifth major city in Texas to do so. Since Houston is the biggest city in the state it only makes sense that it also has the largest number of payday and auto-title stores. All combined, these stores did more than 1 billion dollars in business in 2012.

     These businesses made their money preying on vulnerable folks to make an absurd amount of profit, with annual percentage rates that often exceeded 500%. These practices are driving consumers deeper into debt by making it difficult to pay off their principal amount with all the fees and interest accumulating at a rapid rate.

     If passed, consumers would be limited in the amount of a loan they can receive that is dependent upon their monthly income or a percentage of what their car is valued at. Mayor Parker initially wanted a “Houston only” measure, but soon realized that joining the other 4 major cities that already passed restrictions on these loans would only strengthen the proposal. Without a doubt it’s interesting to see these “loan” stores bowing out, and some of the larger and more well- known stores pulling out of the state. To see a list of the other major cities that have already passed ordinances or to see which company is pulling out all their 28 stores from Texas, click here.