Ignignokt Paralyzes Boston

[Gargoyle]

CNN is covering this like nuts (http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/01/31/boston.bombscare/index.html), so you may have already heard. If not - what happened is that in a marketing campaign, some glowing signs depicting a character from Aqua Teen Hunger Force (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aqua_teen) were misinterpreted as bombs, and Boston freaked the hell out.

They arrested the guy who put them up. No word on what they're charging him with. At most, his crime was akin to graffiti. The city is pissed that they spent millions of dollars responding to a perceived threat (and closed bridges and blocked traffic for hours), but it's not this guy or Turner Broadcasting's fault that the Boston authorities can't tell the difference between a Lite-Brite (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lite-Brite) and a bomb.

http://i.a.cnn.net/cnn/2007/US/01/31/boston.bombscare/story.cartoon.adultswim.jpg

Edit:
Fox News reports (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,249200,00.html) that "Peter Berdovsky, 29, of Arlington, was arrested on one felony charge of placing a hoax device, and one charge of disorderly conduct." He's now being questioned at Guantanamo. Okay, I made that last part up. Probably.

[RWB]

I saw that here (http://www.thebostonchannel.com/news/10890113/detail.html#)

Pretty nutty that the law enforcement considered the device to be consistent with a bomb.

[pseudonym]

Saw that earlier in the day but couldn't believe the real reason when I saw it tonight. If only a nerd was there in the beginning, none of this would have happened!!!

[RWB]

You know the bomb squad probably got a kick out of this... they all probably watch the show and knew it was just some bull****, but had to do their jobs anyways. I'd have kept one of them... hehe, and like 30 years later it explodes.

[Leonardo]

At most, his crime was akin to graffiti. Wrong. Don't assume everyone watches latenight, weird cartoons. Yeah, I watched Adult Swim a couple times out of curiosity, but it's target audience is not mainstream, but a very small niche market. Believe it or not, those "Lite-Brite" lookalike boxes set out at different locations, including a bridge abutment and a steel beam under a bridge!, have a lot of similar features to an improvised explosive device. Law enforcement MUST follow up such sightings. They MUST take precautions - it's their duty! The majority of bomb threats backed up with devices, functional or dummy, require extreme care from bomb squads. IEDs don't have labels that read, "Caution, Can Be Fatal: May Blow Up." Also, terrorists of all stripes and persuasions often obscure bombs in innocuous or common forms - bicycles, fruit baskets, and even toy stuffed animals. Sure some security elements may have overreacted in Boston, but I don't think the event was funny at all. Someone had a SEVERE lack of judgment in setting those things. In some third world countries, guerilla terror tactics have included loading electronic consumer devices and children's toys with explosives, and leaving them where pedestrians will find them. Such devices have killed and maimed thousands. Time-Warner marketing was way over the top on this one!

I can't find the picture of what I saw earlier, but it showed exposed wires on a black case with the lights in the middle. Perhaps in a more innocent time, this would have been a light-hearted prank. Not now, unfortunately.

[Gargoyle]

I can't find the picture of what I saw earlier, but it showed exposed wires on a black case with the lights in the middle. Perhaps in a more innocent time, this would have been a light-hearted prank. Not now, unfortunately.

I'm aware that in other countries bombs disguised as toys have killed and maimed, but if we're scared of them here, the terrorists have already won.

I was sick of news anchors making excuses for the Boston reaction by saying "In a post 9-11 world..." We shouldn't be scared of something simply because its electronic. I for one would rather die than live in fear.

[CB]

his story woke me up on NPR today. His crime is worse than Graffiti in the eyes of the DA.

The DA is seeking '2-5 years in prison per device' for instigating a public scare.

They have not, however, decided who to charge, since it was not a single person acting alone, but an act of the marketing department at Cartoon Network.

However, I could be wrong because I always here these stories between waking up and getting in the shower, during which time I might actually be a zombie. I'm not sure.

[tmh88]

Aqua teen is one of my favorite shows. The guy should have put boxy brown, vanessa the apple, Dewey the paper towel roll, and jeffy the garden hose beside ignignokt....maybe somone wouldve realized that it wasnt a freakin bomb then.

[Armo]

anyone remember war of the worlds? all wells had to do was apoligize to congress...

[Leonardo]

Gargoyle, my point was not that the moron who set out the props should get a prison term, neither was it that the press did not hype the incident, which they did. All I was trying to get across is that the promotion was poorly conceived and that those 'devices' could very well have looked like bombs from the viewpoint of a car or train passenger, especially where some of them were placed.

[Keebler]

http://facebook.com/group.php?gid=2233638174

[Buddy J]

I want all glowing red EXIT signs to be examined for possible terror links. Crosswalk signs, you're next!

[Leonardo]

Keebs, your link requires You must log in to see this page. That's pretty cheesy.:rolleyes:

[Keebler]

Sorry, it's just a Facebook group I created. I figured people without Facebook wouldn't care about it anyway... here's a screen grab.

[Nomad]

I personally think it's hilarious. There probably was some poor placement choices by the marketing campaign, but it's not worth sending them to prison for life.

[leishi85]

one of those things cost quiet a bit on ebay right now.

[pseudonym]

My favorite part is that the same things were up in other cities for over two weeks and nothing happened!! I'm also rather pissed at just about everyone in Boston politics for jumping on this and using these guys as scapegoats. They actually talk like the intent of the network and those two guys WAS to create a scare and get publicity from using hoax devices. I seriously hope that those guys walk scot free because any punishment they receive is ridiculous.

Also, thats not a hair question.

[Leonardo]

Sorry, it's just a Facebook group I created. I figured people without Facebook wouldn't care about it anyway... That's OK. Sorry for coming off so rude. Sorry, but I didn't know what Facebook was.

[Leonardo]

at just about everyone in Boston politics for jumping on this and using these guys as scapegoats. They actually talk like the intent of the network and those two guys WAS to create a scare and get publicity from using hoax devices. Well said. Time-Warner deserves much embarrassment for bad judgment, especially since they are the owners of Time and CNN and frequently come across as patronizing nannies, to steer the poor masses towards a more noble state. (No, I don't like Fox either.) But yeah, the guys setting out the signs were probably just following instructions. I haven't followed the Boston politics in the aftermath, but have no doubt that hollow politicians will exploit the incident for whatever purpose they think will benefit them personally. (I didn't used to be this cynical.)

[RWB]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iv9s_fz0K2I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zx2ytr2Oyv4

One word.

Fantastic.

I love seeing the media like this, these two guys have completely mocked the media... and they deserve it. If there is/was widespread panic, who do you think spreads it? The media.

[leishi85]

loving it.

[airbornflght]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iv9s_fz0K2I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zx2ytr2Oyv4

One word.

Fantastic.

I love seeing the media like this, these two guys have completely mocked the media... and they deserve it. If there is/was widespread panic, who do you think spreads it? The media.


That was hilarious.

[primesuspect]

funneh comic (http://www.dieselsweeties.com/archive.php?s=1675).

[LawnMM]

I'm aware that in other countries bombs disguised as toys have killed and maimed, but if we're scared of them here, the terrorists have already won.

I was sick of news anchors making excuses for the Boston reaction by saying "In a post 9-11 world..." We shouldn't be scared of something simply because its electronic. I for one would rather die than live in fear.

Been watching this thread since it started and I've stayed out of it but you're bringing me in with this post.

I work in Law Enforcement and I've heard some stuff over the radio that sounds less than funny when it comes out. Reports of middle eastern men in restricted areas of public events arenas that come with very detailed descriptions of what sounds to most of us like large IEDs.

We have to take ANY report of a potential explosive device seriously. It may look like a lite brite, it may look like a stuffed red "I love you" teddy bear for valentine's day but I'm certainly not going to be the poor SOB who guesses wrong and winds up a quadrapalegic for the rest of his life. Leo made the best point I've seen so far, its not so much the appearance of the stupid lite brite, its the location it was placed.

I've been to several homeland security funded terrorism response classes, I've got two more coming up this year. In most intelligence circles its pretty much accepted that our friends the terrorists WILL start conducting attacks here on American soil. Its a matter of time. You are kidding yourself if you don't think its a threat. There are CONFIRMED terrorist cells active within this country.

You say if we're scared of attacks then they've already won, I would suggest the opposite. They've already won because most people aren't afraid and are too naive to believe it will happen here. So when it does not only will we be unprepared and unequipped to properly deal with it, its probably going to be many times worse than it could have been had we accepted the idea and done something to prepare for it.

Would I jail these people for years and years, no, but thats not the point. Consider the resources devoted to actually clearing one of these stupid things as a non threat. Cops blocking the road both under and across the overpass. Calling out a bomb tech to clear it. These are people with more important things to be doing than dealing with some idiot's idea of a cool ad campaign. Exercise a little uncommon sense.

Unfortunately we do live in a "Post 9/11 World" and I would personally rather devote my time to dealing with a credible problem than a lite brite, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to take it seriously if I get sent to check one out.

[Clutch]

Boston took this out of control because they wanted to be on the t.v across the nation. Boston is a bunch of attention whores I tell you.

[airbornflght]

nvm

[Pterocarpous]

That's OK. Sorry for coming off so rude. Sorry, but I didn't know what Facebook was.
me neither... :confused:

[nonstop301]

Silly ad campaign altogether carried out by a couple of junkies.

They were purposely hired to place the lite brites during the night in those spots without caring whether they are breaking any rules and most likely without prior permission to put them up in those locations.

They deserve all the penalties they receive.

The reaction by the authorities in Boston was exaggerated since I'm sure most of the taskforce sent to "defuse" the devices realised what these things are when they dealt with the first few that were put up. In any case they had to do their job and they did it in the way they thought was most appropriate.

Hopefully popcorn makers will not cause such a stir because it's the Super Bowl on sunday and there will be a lot of popping going on in every home :)

[airbornflght]

What laws did they break? Fortunately, in the united states citizens are protected from being prosecuted for crimes they didn't commit. No one was hurt or injured in any way. The only thing that happened was the police blew something out of proportion. They basically cried over spilt milk. At the most I see it as defacement of property...but nothing more... I seriously think that the authorities need to take a chill pill. I hope these guys expose this stunt for the attention grabbing stunt boston is turning it into.

[RWB]

Silly ad campaign altogether carried out by a couple of junkies.

They were purposely hired to place the lite brites during the night in those spots without caring whether they are breaking any rules and most likely without prior permission to put them up in those locations.

They deserve all the penalties they receive.

The reaction by the authorities in Boston was exaggerated since I'm sure most of the taskforce sent to "defuse" the devices realised what these things are when they dealt with the first few that were put up. In any case they had to do their job and they did it in the way they thought was most appropriate.

Hopefully popcorn makers will not cause such a stir because it's the Super Bowl on sunday and there will be a lot of popping going on in every home :)

pft, they deserve a slap on the hand at most, if anyone deserves punishment it's who employed them. And are you calling them junkies because of how they look? Or do you have proof?

[nonstop301]

And are you calling them junkies because of how they look? Or do you have proof?

Their demeanor at the press conference shows that it is their intention to make people call them that so I'm only obliging :)

[DogSoldier]

I think these guys should take responsibility for their "guerilla marketing." Maybe a big fine to their parent company, and some community service work for the guys who placed those devices. Jail time would be a bit much in my opinion.

LawnMM, what happened with these reports of middle eastern men carrying, what looked like, IEDs? And these confirmed terrorist cells, why are they active? Which terrorist groups are we talking about.. Al Quaida? PETA, the ACLU, Greenpeace? If they are confirmed terrorist cells, shouldn't they be arrested?

And I agree with Gargoyle. The terrorists want nothing better than for us to live in fear. That's their primary goal. I don't believe that most people are too naive to believe it will happened here. It has happened, is happening now (Although, not by Islamic extemists but by the homegrown, domestic variety) and it will happen again.

[LawnMM]

LawnMM, what happened with these reports of middle eastern men carrying, what looked like, IEDs?

The report was forwarded to the FIBI, you'll have to ask them what happened from there. The bad guys were gone when we got there, they probably had left before the guy who thought he saw the whole thing called us.


And these confirmed terrorist cells, why are they active?

I don't think they like this country or its government much, but thats just a guess


Which terrorist groups are we talking about.. Al Quaida? PETA, the ACLU, Greenpeace?

Though this sounds like a baiting question, I'll answer it. Al Qaeda has cells here, thats confirmed. I've personally never run into PETA or Greenpeace. The only people the ACLU like to terrorize on a regular basis is the hard working people in law enforcement.


If they are confirmed terrorist cells, shouldn't they be arrested?

As much as I would like to, the way the law is written they actually have to do something illegal before they are arrested. Perhaps you could talk to the afore mentioned ACLU if that is not to your liking.

You might also consider yelling at your federal level agencies for their lack of information sharing. I'm on whats considered the front line and I've never received any information from any of the feds and I'm sure they have plenty that would benefit those of us in the trenches.


And I agree with Gargoyle. The terrorists want nothing better than for us to live in fear. That's their primary goal. I don't believe that most people are too naive to believe it will happened here. It has happened, is happening now (Although, not by Islamic extemists but by the homegrown, domestic variety) and it will happen again.

Of course they want us to live in fear, hence the Terror in Terrorist. I do believe most people are too naive to believe multiple coordinated attacks will happen here. Most of the country has already forgotten about 9/11, they all feel safe and secure, so its time to cut the budgets of the armed forces, intelligence, and law enforcement communities. If you are under the impression that aren't any Islamic extremists in this country planning attacks you might as well lump yourself in with the rest of the naive majority.