As an investigator, one of your best friends and most indispensable allies is a high quality, high volume cross-cut paper shredder. Not only will it keep your friendly neighborhood investigator on the right side of client confidentiality concerns, but shredding is also darn satisfying.

A friend who knows of The Daily Caveat's predeliction for sexy shred technology directed us to the fine people at SSI Shredding Systems, a company that in their own words has, since 1980 "relentlessly extended the limits of shredding applications."

My kind of people...

While their applications seem to be a bit, shall we say, industrial for the needs of Caveat Research, their website does have the most incredibly satisfying collection of shredding demonstration videos you will ever find.

If you feel the need to feed your reptile brain, click here for SSI's Watch it Shred page to scope out the variety of materials that you can watch meet their maker. Amongst my favorites:

• Oversize truck tires: They go down smooth and easy. Like sliding gently into swirling metal quicksand.

• Whole computers: Note, PCs only in this vid...no one would want to do this to a Macintosh.

• A washing machine: Respect the wash-tub. This is the only thing to seemingly give the shredder any trouble.

• Loose paper: I'm in love. Trying really hard to talk my partners into this one. But where the heck would we put it?

• A couch: This one is the best, if only because of the tenacity with which the couch seems to fight for its life.

• Medical waste: Includes a horrifying scene of some guy running his hands through the debris. Ick.
  

Hope you enjoy them.

Many thanks to Michael R. Levy for leading The Daily Caveat to this incredible place of zen.

-- MDT