Pretty scary, eh?
Electronic light boards featuring an adult-cartoon character triggered bomb scares around Boston on Wednesday, spurring authorities to close two bridges and a stretch of the Charles River before determining the devices were harmless.
The devices displayed one of the “Mooninites,” outer-space delinquents who make frequent appearances on the cartoon, greeting passersby with a raised middle finger. Nine were reported around Boston on Wednesday, sending police bomb squads scrambling and snarling traffic and mass transit in one of the largest U.S. cities.
The discovery of nine of the devices around metro Boston led state, local and federal authorities to close the Boston University and Longfellow Bridges, and block boat traffic from the Charles River to Boston Harbor.
In addition, the Pentagon said U.S. Northern Command was monitoring the situation from its headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colorado, but said none of its units were sent to assist.
Yes, terrorism requires every possible [fill in the blank]. These ad boards have been in place around the country for two or three weeks from New York and Philadelphia to Los Angeles and San Francisco. I watched the “suspected IED” at Sullivan Station — being blown up by the bomb squad — live and in living color on MSNBC.
Did the Boston Cops overreact?
What they showed on the local news in Boston was even photoshopped to remove an offending finger.
http://tinyurl.com/3y43lg
Then of course, Boston police went and arrested the artist that this. Probably to “save face”.
http://tinyurl.com/2kx9e3
Berdvosky’s lengthy resume boasts a 2005 bachelor’s degree “completed with distinction” at the Massachusetts College of Arts, his second place finish at the 2004 Massachusetts College of Art All School Show, and a merit scholarship he received from MassArt in 2000.
Police State !
// Glad to be Canadian
I would love to have one of these!
Politicians, pundits and pea-brains prate, “Everything’s changed since 9/11.”
Yup. Our nation has gotten stupider!
We are turning into a bunch of sissy-mary pantywaist ‘fraidy cats that piss ourselves the moment something goes out of whack in our oversupervised and stylized lives.
Don’t the guys on the bomb squad have any brains? Don’t their supervisors?
I really fear for our country when the government and police act this stupidly.
Talk about taking it WAY too far.
>>Did the Boston Cops overreact?
Yes!
I heard the Boston police chief say they are charging these guys for planting a false bomb. How absurd.
Look at that picture — does that look like a bomb to you? Or the work of a terrorist?
It’s absurd to charge someone with planting a false bomb when what they “planted” was not intended to be mistaken as a bomb nor did it even look like a bomb.
Yep, the worst part is this poor guy who put them up is being going to be charged with some ridiculous sentence because the officials responsible for the mess have to justify their overreaction.
This reminds me of a Twilight Zone episode where aliens were causing a mass panic by simply messing with people’s electricity in their neighborhoods.
Apparently these devices were in Boston and 9 other cities for a couple of weeks now. City officials, who obviously did not think before overreacting, are now patting their selves on the back for “a job well done” and are seeking someone else to place blame on. Your tax dollars at work.
You have to wonder with overreactions like this, have the terrorists archived part of their goals?
Steve
Meanwhile, these same incompetent officials do nothing to protect the public against all those highly suspicious artefacts with red, yellow and green lights on them that have been planted all over the country, especially at intersections. Shouldn’t they be out there, blowing up all these obvious bombs?
the really sad thing about this is that the terrorist now can have a new tactic. just place some psuedo-device somewhere, and while the the local cops are acting out of proportion to it, they can then carry out their real attack.
on the other hand what’s with these marketing people? look anyone who’s going to which the hunger force is already a fan and/or heard about it already.
Similar to the two 16 year old girls who got arrested in Ohio for placing replica Mario Blocks (from Supoer Mario Bros.) around the neighborhood. They were charged, then it was dropped. They were threated with having to pay for the expense of the hazmat teams and blowing the blocks up. City officials said things like “since 9/11 they should know better…” Yep, history keeps repeating itself. Good ideas disappear like dust in the wind, but stupidity never goes away.
Oh, and #10, its to bring attention to the Aqua Teen Hunger Force Movie, not the show.
Ok, someone needs to speak here from the point of view of the police. If terrorists (who allways look for novel ways to deliver their goods) used cartoon character boards to deliver bombs,… well everyone here would be booing police for not noticing and checking these devices. Never happened? During the war in Bosnia American arm forces caught group of Iranian terrorists preparing bombs in toys… To be left in public places… And do their harm… Actual devices were found. (Based on news article published in Newsday (LI, NY) at the time). Small, wouldn’t kill many (if any) but would CAUSE TERROR.
Idiots in this case are the Turner Network and two cooks (sorry, no way I’ll call them artists) who stuck objects at places of significant interest to terrorists (ex. not on some bilboard, but underneath the bridge on the support column). Their actions and comments above testify that people in the USA haven’t learned enough.
“Oh, that is just an ice-cream truck broken down on the Golden Gate Bridge…” was a good reaction in the 20th century not in the 21st.
In my town, a local TV station is airing a story tonight about how they left moving trucks outside of the Courthouse, Arch and other public places and nobody took notice.
Of course, such a vehicle had been used for the Oklahoma City bombing–and there was little reason for a vehicle of that type to be in those places for so long–yet police and others walk by without concern.
However, in Boston a number of flashing signs with a faces on them illicits a near city-wide shutdown and the ruining of several innocent lives due strictly to the embarrassment of a bunch of incompetents.
No LED Frylock?
#12: So we should fear any type of expression? Is the 21st century about giving in to fear? If so, then the terrorists have won. The President claims they want to destroy our freedom, well these types of faux pas prove they have. My guess is you are a conservative. I say that because this administration and its supporters have used fear to keep us supporting them. Even in the state of the union the prez reminded us of recent near attacks on US soil (that mostly was made up). As Grand Moff Tarkin in Star Wars said: “Fear will keep them in line.”
I can’t wait for his next speech when the prez announces he has stopped a credible threat from the Mooninites, an al-queda sect.
The only way the Boston response could look more ridiculous would be if they had projected a “Bat Signal” into the night sky and posted wanted posters for the The Joker. You have to go back to Johnny, the freaked out control tower guy from “Airplane” in the 1980s, to find this kind of grace under pressure.
#12: Extrapolating that logic, just about anything on the street could be a bomb, so should the police/army blow up everything, just in case?
Story of the year.
Oh My God!.. You blew up the Aqua Teen Hunger Force.. You Bastards!!!
Can’t wait for the t-shirts, someone is going to make a killing on these.
Then again, Boston spent a lot of money “deactivating” these things.
How much you want to bet they spend twice as much trying to “figure out what happened” and a so called trial(s).
Lots of interesting comments, both pro and con the “overreact” notion…
Let me point out some information that has been well covered in the Boston area, but seems not to be so prominent elsewhere (I am from Boston, and have talked to NY area relatives last night and today.)
– the devices on the bridges and perhaps others as well, were often in direct sunlight which washed out the lights. it has been reported that a police officer recognized the cartoon character when one of the devices was being removed, and was moved into shadows thus making the colored lights visible.
– not just the Boston Police reacted- also the State Police AND federal authorities.
– Boston estimates the cost of the response was $500K, and made public their intent to seek recovery of that from TBS, et al. That is rational if the courts deem the local and federal response to be ‘reasonable.’ So, if they believe their response was reasonable, they had no choice but to arrest the so-called perps. (My guess, though, is that they get a slap on the wrist, and the real penalties -big fines- get applied to TBS and the marketing firm.
– Over reaction or not, Boston was severely affected with traffic shutdowns, etc. And, local reaction goes mainly along the lines of “How stupid do you have to be to put strange looking electronic devices on bridges and hospitals and not expect to cause a major post 9/11 like response?”
Adult Swim on the Cartoon Network announced several weeks ago they were doing this and even showed a picture of the device(s) in question.
The real question is why did the bomb squad initially identify the devices as bombs. I don’t think most sane person would look at the pretty flashing LED’s and think that it is a bomb. In fact, those devices have been on the streets in cities across the country and no one who saw them thought they were bombs. It took one scared and stupid person in Boston to think it was a bomb and call it in, but the bomb squad should have taken one look at the device and seen that they were not bombs. I mean come on where exactly on the devices would the explosive have gone.
Just watched the two “terrorists” and their press conference after arraignment. I think they were too subtle; but, one obvious component of their reaction to the brouhaha has been contempt for what passes for journalism in this blindered land.
Their attorney was there and announced they couldn’t discuss the charges. That meant nothing to the flacks on hand — nor did it mean much to the dweebs covering the press conference and commenting at CNN and MSNBC [ain’t DVR’s wonderful?].
So, the perps offered to discuss their hair. They launched into a discussion of the hair styles of artists and non-conformists back through the centuries.
The “reporters” on the scene never figured out their were being sent up. The lead anchor-types at CNN and MSNBC were even worse. Their only response was obvious confusion — as you expect, I guess, from loyal and obedient serfs.
James — you will fill us in on what Rush and Bill have to say. Right?
#12 – Ok, someone needs to speak here from the point of view of the police.
No they don’t.
But what would you do. End all cultural life? End movies and concerts and public art? From now on, citizens are to be in thier homes at all times unless they are at work. No more shopping in malls. No more walking in parks. In fact…. Let’s ban the use of color outdoors. Let’s ban fashion. Let’s ban sports. It’s for our safety. I, for one, look forward look forward to living in my new cell under the loving protection of my new prison guard.
The ONLY thing that has changed in America since 9/11 is that i am now in greater danger from my own government and I enjoy less freedom because of my government.
Idiots in this case are the Turner Network and two cooks (sorry, no way I’ll call them artists)
You’ll never hear me defend TV executives, so call them idiots if you like… And you don’t have to say that these artists were artists. But they are and there is no debate on that. Whether or not you appreciate or get it is a subjective matter, and not in any way important. Art is far to great a thing to relagated to the confines of a frame.
I for one think the light bright thing is clever.
From the article posted: “I just think this is outrageous, what they’ve done … It’s all about corporate greed.” – Boston Mayor Thomas Menino
My open comment to the mayor.
This campaign is a public art / marketing campaign to promote a product. You don’t get to levy taxes and make blustering speeches about the glory of America and liberty and the free market economy and then turn around and rail on corporate greed. How big is your house? Who contributes to your campains?
Corporate greed is just the new phrase for American Dream.
Post 9/11 Thoughts
When it comes to terrorist activities, I am just as safe now as I was before 9/11. But when it comes to government activities, I was safer before 9/11.
Israel has been dealing with terrorist activities for a very long time. They have built walls and most citizens must serve in the military. Israel has laws, rules , regulations and a small geographic area to apply them. But Israel stills has terrorist activities.
If Israel can not stop terrorist activities, how is the US suppose to with its large geographic area and nut job politicians?
If you haven’t seen a box with blinking lights under a bridge before, don’t worry the sky is not going to fall.
The only bomb that was around was the “F” Bomb
The police would have been negligent not to react as they did. Lock up the people who planted them, the marketing executive that approved them, and fines all around large enough to negate any publicity they gained from this terrorist act. This sort of vandalism should be severely punished in every way possible. It doesn’t matter if some unknown entity made note on some unwatched tv show, that is not sufficient warning.
Hmmm
Wonder if …
….anybody noticed a “strange looking” transistor radio on PanAm flight 103 and walked away?
….anybody wondered what the strange looking bags were on the trains in Madrid?
….thought it was strange that those guys were loading all of that fertilizer into the rented Ryder truck in Oklahoma City?
Hey, dude, like….what’s on the Cartoon Channel tonight?
#27: You and the media seem to think that they planned this to blow up like this, as if in meetings they decided to create a terrorist scare to get ratings. It is obvious they didn’t mean for it to get out of control, but I guess sh-t happens. So throwing the book at them is not right. I think its funny that MSNBC called them “hoax bombs” today. They are not hoax bombs. They look nothing like bombs. Call them what they are: ads that went wrong.
yeah mooninites are scary