Even living as close to Boston as I do, I don’t always get the news about happenings in and around Boston until much later. So more than a week after it happened, I find out about yet another stupid bomb scare, this time at a high school in Newton, Mass.
Sofia Loginova, 17, a senior at North Quincy High School, started a social networking Web site, b4class.com and two weekends ago gave away some 2,500 backpacks bearing her Web site address, mostly around Faneuil Hall, according to news reports.
The next Monday morning, April 9, three of them show up hanging from trees and a fourth from a fence at North Newton High School.
School officials called in the police, who promptly called in the bomb squad.
Yes, they’re still being that stupid.
State Police bomb squad technicians took down the backpacks using a robot and discovered that they were filled with shredded newspaper and that they bore the logo of a social networking website called b4class.com.
Officials called the incident reminiscent of a publicity stunt that threw Boston, Cambridge, and Somerville into turmoil in January. Roads and bridges were shut down as authorities investigated 38 small light-up devices that turned out to be part of a guerrilla advertising campaign for a Cartoon Network show. — Boston Globe
Loginova denies any involvement in the placement of the backpacks.
Loginova’s brother-in-law, Eric Friedberg, who has helped develop and market the site, said www.B4Class.com never directed anyone to plant the backpacks at the high school.
“The only thing I can think of is if someone took the bags that we gave and tried to do a joke on us,” said Friedberg, president of Framingham-based marketing firm CFA.
Newton police said the matter is still under investigation. “We’re not rushing or jumping to any conclusions at this point,” said Newton police spokesman Lt. Bruce Apotheker. — Boston Herald
On January 31, Boston officials terrorized their own citizens by shutting down the city over harmless light boards being used in a cartoon promotion after they had already determined the boards posed no threat. And at the end of February, officials in Boston blew up a traffic counting device installed by the state.
At least they didn’t blow up the harmless backpacks this time, so perhaps they’re learning, ever so slowly.
This is a good time to remind everyone that I can’t read every bit of news that’s generated everywhere in the world, so Homeland Stupidity relies in large part on tips sent in from readers. If you see government bureaucrats doing something stupid, please contact us.
(Thanks to Bruce Schneier.)
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9 Comments
It’s time to send copies of Chicken Little to everyone in Boston.
the city who cried bomb.
Actually I have to disagree with the comment at this one was mishandled. Think about it. Certainly a back pack can contain a rather large amount of explosives, a great deal more than could have been packed in the aforementioned signs. These were also placed in ideal locations for high casualties, ie: where there would be a large number of people including children walking (cars would actually present some protection and the signs were in locations where most people would be in cars). So certainly an investigation would be in order.
I do wonder if they contacted the web site as a first step in this investigation. BUT!!! since the people there knew nothing of this that would not have helped in this case.
Then also seem to have handled it in a reasonable manner. They used a robot. No since risking people even where there is a low risk. Also the more practice people have with the robots the better they will do with them when in counts. They looked at the contents and DIDN’T BLOW THEM UP.
Seems like a reasonable response. It is a little like our locality. There was about 5 incidents where a “mysterious” “white powder” was found in the mens bath room on a flat surface two of whom were changing tables. In all these cases it was baby powder from an apparent dad changing a diaper. This was dumb. The one case where a white powder which also turned out to be baby powder was found on the table of the main council chambers from it turns out another baby changing, now a response was reasonable. In the same way this was a reasonable response to the information presented.
>
Clearly we need a ban on all things the size of backpacks.
Because, ya know, the studious bomber is OBVIOUSLY going to hang their wares high up in a tree where EVERYONE’s gonna see ‘em…
Got it! Ban backpacks and trees….. someone call the White House urgently and the King and his Dick right on this!!!
Insert “get” after “and”. Thank you for patience.
Regarding:
“Because, ya know, the studious bomber is OBVIOUSLY going to hang their wares high up in a tree where EVERYONE’s gonna see ‘em…”
If the device is a fragmentation device then hanging in a tree is the most effective place for it to be to cause the greatest “effect”. So while it might draw attention, the location would be perfect for a weapon. So a close examination would be in order. Hey and they didn’t blow it up. I don’t see the problem.
Lemme tell you about some similar craziness that’s happened at the high school in my town. There, it’s almost become a pastime for students to write “Bomb Threat” on the walls of the bathroom stalls. The fact that the school has actually taken this obvious dumb gag seriously on many occasions is incredibly insane. They’ve actually closed down the entire school several times due to this BS. If someone was really considering planting a bomb in the school, they’d at least have the common sense not to tell everyone about it–unless they’re just plain stupid.
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