Irving 9th-grader arrested after taking homemade clock to school: 'So you tried to make a bomb?'

a reply to: neformore



Just saw this on Imgur, thought it was relevant here.

Being intelligent in this world can be a truly hellish experience for many, especially as a kid in school. Add in some bigotry, for good measure, I guess.

Perhaps he will learn the valuable lesson that such things are exceedingly commonplace, and even those who are justifiably upset about the idiocy are just as likely to participate in it next time 'round.

originally posted by: seagull
a reply to: Krazysh0t

you're probably more correct then all of us should be comfortable with.

That this is wrongful persecution, and yes, I used that word deliberately. This kid was profiled. Seems little doubt of that.

...and unfortunately, there will be a small minority, though a noisy one, that will support this travesty.

Yet another example of how much events of fourteen years ago have changed all too many of us, and not for the better.

Indeed, the terrorists may have won. If they, by their actions, have reduced all too many of us to this sort of stupidity.

I wanted to get back to your post. Agree. Your last line is especially haunting.
After 9-11, I had high hopes that we, as a nation, as we came together, would show our strength beyond our acknowledged military might. What makes us American would be made even stronger

Freedom. Equality. Democracy. Champion of the little guy. Helper of the oppressed. Defender against tyranny. Some of the other values are ingrained in our history and our belief in our future: Capitalism. Independence. Strength. Rightness and righteousness. Manifest destiny. God. Freedom of religion. Family. Wealth. Faith. Entertainment and happiness.

a list I found

Sadly, we have become a mockery, even to ourselves. And "The Land of the Free and Home of the Brave"? Not in Irving, Texas, for sure!

originally posted by: Vasa Croe
Yeah...that is messed up. What do they think is underneath the skin of all the devices they use daily....magic?

To most people, technology might as well be magic. Circuit boards are the magic wands while computer code is the incantation.

a reply to: Vasa Croe

So there are no adults in that school or police department? No supervision on these decisions to haul this kid away?

I am astounded no one stepped in and said 'wait a minute...this is ridiculous'.

If it went down like the story reads, it's actually a pretty scary example of the current state of affairs.

originally posted by: Krazysh0t
a reply to: seagull

I was pretty upset at first. Maybe even intolerant. I definitely was a bit intolerant while in the Army, but as Bush' Presidency started to wind down, I stopped having interest in the rhetoric and saw it for what it was. That is my experience being someone who lived through 9/11 without having known a Muslim.

It's just that I think that blaming Muslims for the actions that happened 3/4ths of a score ago is a little naive and wrong. Like I pointed out earlier in this thread, this poor kid was likely an infant when that went down. That means that 9/11 happened a whole generation ago.

I spend a lot of time with people in their young 20's, since I'm still in school in my 30's. Some of the more interesting ones to talk to have neat perspectives on this stuff. I can remember as a kid, my whole family walking up to an airport terminal, or walking through an airport without seeing soldiers with M16's patrolling the halls. I remember as a kid when I would get to go into the cockpit and hang out with the pilots. It's a different world now and I'm just old enough that I can remember the difference. Listening to the people who have only experienced the new America is a little depressing.

His father bringing pizza the media outside his home. He's playing it just right, good for him!

imgur.com...

a reply to: Swills

Idk, he is muslim. Are you sure those Pizza boxes are not loaded with exploding taste!?

How did he order those pizza? thru a walky talky?

So, soviet union eastern germany and north korean sitiuations have now arived in our westeren lands.

a reply to: luciddream

That pizza is guaranteed to at least give them heart burn. Damn that Muslim and his dirty tricks!

I wonder if he served only cheese pizza?

As ridiculous as all this is I wonder. I wonder, if the adults truly believed the device was a bomb or the makings of a bomb, and if they cuffed and arrested him for his and other students safety to you know, err on the side of caution, why was the school not evacuated? Unless it's a detail I've missed in the numerous articles I've read on this story, no evacuation took place. And I would think if safety was truly their first concern then it probably should have been.

originally posted by: desert
Making a digital clock is one of the required projects for students in my local high school's electronics class. What the hell is the matter with that Texas school? They need to evolve!

I doubt they teach evolution..
GitRdun!

originally posted by: DexterRiley
This is an image of the actual device.

Fox News

Not much to it really. The kid said he threw it together in about 20 minutes.

The image is not particularly conducive to relating scale. I would go so far as to say the lack of a frame of reference is intentional. Plus, there are the wires hanging about. The cops may well have dressed this photo up to make it look scary.

For reference, this appears to be a Vaultz pencil case. 8.25" x 5.5" x 2.5" according to Amazon.

If a state prosecutor goes along with this and makes criminal charges, he should be disbarred. This is truly insane. The state criminal justice system is in this for the money though, which is why it is so corrupt.. Every state included.

originally posted by: neformore
Texas.

No restrictions on firearms ownership.

14 year old kid gets arrested for a home science project, ostensibly because he's muslim.

That's some ass-backwards stuff right there.

Sort it out Texas. This stuff makes you look stupid.

It's always been a neck and neck race between Florida & Texas for the Just Plain Stoopid crown, but I never thought I'd see the day when they'd snag West Virginia's Inbred Idiots title o.O I'm not sure if congratulations on the achievement or apologies for it are in order for TX in this case.

That moron of a teacher would do herself a HUGE favor by simply changing careers. If you can't use common sense to determine that a simple circuit board, wiring & a power source isn't harmful, I seriously doubt you have the smarts to teach anything at all.
I can't say the brain-dead teacher phenomena is a new one, however. I had a science teacher angrily argue with me over an element her periodic table poster lacked. She wasn't very bright as it was, that poster & her defense of it made her a laughing stock for years.

a reply to: Greven

Very good point. If you don't look at it too carefully, it looks like a briefcase.

Here's another version where I've added some #2 pencils for scale. Length of #2 pencil is typically 7-1/2".

a reply to: retiredTxn

Sorry you aren't comfortable with broad generalisations. Neither was the 14 year old kid in handcuffs.

And while I get that this isnt all Texans, this thing has gone viral, it's worldwide and it must be embarrassing.

a reply to: neformore

Suggesting this speaks about all Texans is no better than blaming a race for the actions of one or two members. Not surprised though.

Geez will the fear mongering ever end?? what's more I feel especially saddened by the kid's experience because me and ma boys used build radios and primitive computers out of radio shack's parts for science lab and for the pure fun, I mean that could have been us, but we were along time pre 911 and our society and politicians wasn't this paranoid, good news is he is getting a lot of love from scientist and the general public encouraging him to stay in science . pls kilk the link see this kid in handcuffs look at the expression on his face wearing his NASA t shirt.
Not even eyeglass wearing geeks are safe anymore ..smh.
www.washingtonpost.com...

originally posted by: Glinda
a reply to: Krazysh0t

We really don't know that ALL evidence points to the kids innocence. We don't know WHAT (if any) comments this teenage boy may have said previously. Are they talking of the current events of refugee crisis in Europe? Did a classroom discussion of 9/11 cause him to make a statement that gave the teacher further cause of suspicion.

Being a teacher today IS different. You are not just entrusted w/academics and social aspects of students development, they are charged with student safety. Who among us would want to err the wrong way? To have an incident happen and NOT to have pointed it out and had others in the school get involved.

The teacher no doubt alerted the prinicipal who felt the need to call the local police who in turn acted. The question to ask is WHY they all acted as they did (and "dumb" public school union teacher, and dumb, Texas Islamophobe cops is the easy, yet equally bigoted answer). Allowing an investigation, a timeline, interviewing the other students all must come into the full story (which may or may not ever be told because the kid is a minor).

Jumping to PC conclusions is sometimes what is intended after all.

Did you read the full story at all? This is the stupidest thing ever. It shows a staggering lack of intelligence on the part of the teacher and whoever phoned the police, not mention a shocking failure on the part of the police. This is about a boy who build a homemade electronic clock who was then arrested by an idiot.