Users who Dugg This
Steven Woodcock
1164 Followers
Rudra Ranjan Singh
487 Followers
bcole83Feb 16, 2012
Poor field testing. Plain and simple. MRAP vehicles (mine resistant, armor protected) vehicles used by the ARMY made locking its doors fool proof and near impossible to open from the outside...combat lock the door by pushing the handle all the way down.
You would think the same concept would be incorporated in this expensive piece of junk...non-combat mined engineers designing vehicles like this one could be why this agent is dead and multiple VIPs at risk.
iwantbatteriesFeb 16, 2012
They had an interview with the CEO of the company that modifies them into armored cars on NPR yesterday, he blames it on operator error for relying on the built in door locks and not the deadbolts that were installed aftermarket. I say, you are right in a situation like that you must have the simplest solution be the most protective. Combat engineering is not just enabling capabilities, but making those capabilities work in a chaotic situation.
clitniblr036Feb 17, 2012
"You would think the same concept would be incorporated in this expensive piece of junk."
Oh, I NEVER think that. My first thought is always what ass-backwards, bottom-line thinking, cost-cutting measures implementing jerk-off did the company hire to cut corners to save a couple of extra bucks.
Passenger safety and customer satisfaction are pretty much a concept from a by-gone era where quality was something to be proud of NOT disparaged for being "just a little too pricey."
hillsfarFeb 17, 2012
Auto manufacturers today treat us all like idiots.
My wife's GM vehicle doesn't even have an option to turn off the headlights at night. They automatically go on when the sky is dark. Gee, if you ever need to make an unobtrusive getaway...
To this day, I still like my truck with the manual windows and manual locks and manual headlights control. You never know when you'll WISH your window wasn't stuck in the open position due to motor problems. Or WISH you could roll down your window or open your door when you are under water to escape.
lemonrindFeb 16, 2012
What are American law enforcement officers doing in Mexico?
iprintallFeb 16, 2012
Another facet of the drug war, the ability to occupy (for lack of a better term) another country under the guise of "aid".
sleeplessFeb 16, 2012
After reading the first few paragraphs of the article I can't help but remember an episode of Seinfeld where he faced a similar situation...
Jerry: Because...I spent my money on the Clapgo D. 29, it's the most impenetrable lock on the market today...it has only one design flaw: the door...[shuts the door] must be CLOSED!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ol4ukdjxdUM
Mark_LincolnFeb 16, 2012
When the 'War' keeps making things worse, it is time to end the war.
pivenFeb 16, 2012Submitter
They were prohibited by Mexican law from carrying firearms to protect themselves.
archerxFeb 16, 2012
Well maybe the American Gov shouldn't have given the cartels a s**t ton of guns?
eraptorFeb 16, 2012
I agree, but that wouldn't have stopped the Mexican cartels from arming themselves to the teeth. As long as they have the money, there always be some a-hole willing to sell them whatever they want.
superkendallFeb 16, 2012
How do you know? The weapon that shot him WAS one of the ones the government provided.
FrankLuskaFeb 16, 2012
Maybe he just knows most of the guns in Mexico come from countries to the South. There is no doubt that the gun that killed Zapata was indeed acquired under the F&F program from the US government, but he could have just as easily been killed with one of the hundreds of thousands of guns that came from another country.
eraptorFeb 17, 2012
Do you know how easy it is to purchase guns in Texas, the midwest or most places in the U.S.? Weapon purchasing agents aren't all Hispanic.
FrankLuskaFeb 17, 2012
Why yes i do, really no easier then any other places i have lived, with the exception of the fascist state of NY.
The fact remains, from the weapons the ATF has received during their study, 80% of those "identified" came from the USA, problem is, they could not identify over 80% of the total, because they did not originate from the USA. Guns made, shipped too, sold in, the USA are required to have identifying marks.
The vast majority of weapons did not, do not, come from the US.
And what has that got to do with Mexico's vast corruption and the USA's desire for cheap drugs?
Why do you think we have so many illegal immigrants trying to come here?
It ain't all peaches and cream down in Mexico.
Funny how people, not saying you are, love to ignore the real problems. Mexico's Corruption and the Drug War.
eraptorFeb 17, 2012
Just so we're clear, I'm not defending ATF's missteps in this case. They should have never pursued that weapons "tracking" program when it was initiated during the Bush years.
How do I know about drug cartel weapon acquisition capabilities? Two reasons:
First, history...gun running didn't start the moment Obama was elected. It's a practice that goes WAY back in time.
Second, I've lived in Central and South America long enough to know the region's history, predominant language AND culture. Part of that history included living in Colombia as the drug trade emerged. Most Americans have NO idea what they're really dealing with when tangling with drug cartels, culturally speaking. They live by a very different set of rules. As long as Americans insist upon tying their own hands with "civilized" behavior, the cartels will continue to win the battle.
As proof, consider the fact that Colombians were ONLY able to take down Pablo Escobar's cartel after taking off Los Pepe's (secretive paramilitary force) "gloves" and going to war with him using HIS rules. Had Colombians not done so, he would STILL be in business terrorizing them and us.
FrankLuskaFeb 17, 2012
The only way to slow down a black market, is to legalize it. If not, you will have a never ending battle. You clean one area, it will just move to another. History is on the black markets side.
And even if you do legalize it, you will always have a small group doing it anyway just to survive and eck out a meager living in this thing we call a world.
YachtRokrFeb 17, 2012
The best approach to legalizing drugs would be by legalizing the least harmful element of it...Marijuana alone. As Mexican cartel members have admitted, this product generates the vast majority of the money they use to fund the drug trade. Choke off that source of income, concentrate enforcement efforts on the other drug sources and the majority of the drug trade would die on the vine.
Will this kill the Heroin, Cocaine, meth or other drug trades completely ? No, but it would diminish their ability to function in a significant manner by depriving them of vital financial resources.
jsnchmpnFeb 16, 2012
Perhaps we shouldn't even be there.
angrycat70Feb 17, 2012
Engineering is the art of not just idiot-proofing but near-idiot-proofing too.
Sometimes the worst technology mistakes are made technologically savvy individuals that get too c**ky to read the damn manual.
FrankLuskaFeb 16, 2012
Operator Error! RTFM! A child can set the doors to stay locked when the vehicle is placed into park, Read the owners manual,
The company who armored the vehicle should have set it to stay locked, but GM set it this way to keep stupid customers from complaining.
Does technology and laziness go hand in hand?
DiggPiggletFeb 17, 2012
Yep, engineers today are too lazy to study contingencies.
Maybe the modern computer software culture is to blame. "Opps, OK I'll patch it later. My bad."
jasongbcFeb 16, 2012
There would be less people dying and less organized crime if the Murkin Gov't would let people get their cocaine the civilized way. This man's government sent him to die just as they have thousands of men before him.
razorsfuryFeb 16, 2012
"Had the door locks not opened at that moment, “Zapata would probably still be alive today,” said Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Tex.)"
yeah... it was the car that got him killed and not the idiotic drug war...
caseycooldFeb 16, 2012
Yeah it was the drug war not the guys with the guns....
razorsfuryFeb 16, 2012
yeah it was the drug war ass... there wouldn't be guys with guns there if there wasn't a drug war.
caseycooldFeb 16, 2012
And the car wouldn't have to worry about unlocking if there weren't guys with guns right there. Do you not see your error yet?
razorsfuryFeb 16, 2012
You are obviously an idiot. If there was no war in drugs then Jaime Zapata would have never been in that situation. Do you see how stupid you are?
rixar13Feb 17, 2012
"— the first U.S. officer to die in the line of duty here since 1985 — is described by American officials today as a watershed in the U.S.-backed drug war and proof that the United States is paying in blood as well as treasure. "
Just say No, to the "War on Weed"...Problem solved....
theghoulFeb 16, 2012
This war on drugs is stupid. Rest in peace agent Zapata.
http://www.odmp.org/officer/20745-special-agent-jaime-j-zapata
scottyeaFeb 16, 2012
it's not armour; it's just mathematics
hillsfarFeb 17, 2012
My wife's GM vehicle doesn't even have an option to turn off the headlights at night. They automatically go on when the sky is dark. Gee, if you ever need to make an unobtrusive getaway...
To this day, I still like my truck with the manual windows and manual locks and manual headlights control.
oaa123comFeb 16, 2012
Who built it
dallen201181Feb 16, 2012
Wow. incredible
nerabFeb 16, 2012
http://electronics50.blogspot.com/
nerabFeb 16, 2012
very nice
http://electronics50.blogspot.com/
FrankLuskaFeb 17, 2012
Hey Spam Boy or Girl or It, spam somewhere else.
Closed AccountFeb 16, 2012
http://separatedinmath.blogspot.com/2011/08/return-to-source-philosophy-matrix.html