9th grader arrested on suspicion of bomb-making for showing teacher his home-made clock.

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**Frazzled**

daedalus wrote:
Frazzled wrote:

That looks like something that could go boom.

To me, it does as much as this does:

I swear I had one of those.

Just because something might look like a bomb, doesn't mean it can't be easily checked out and everyone go on their merry way.
-no established intent to harm or cause fear.
-established alibi
-said alibi item in no way involves a prohibited item
-mechanism can be easily checked (if it doesn't look less bomblike in person)

Not seeing an issue for the average nonliability terrorized person.
"They're all just STUPID."
-D. Trump's Hair.

**TheCustomLime**

It has wires and microchips and displays and stuff. And carried around by a scary Muslim no less. How else could it be anything but a bomb? Maybe if the kid filled in his bubbles on his standardized tests like a good American student and went home to play Minecraft he wouldn't be in this mess.

**Frazzled**

shasolenzabi wrote:
This is one of the many side effects of the post 9/11+Fox Fear mongering. Land the feeble, and home of the chicken

More land of the legal liability terrorized. This is an idiot who realized its better to make a scene than think and be "out of policy."

To be clear, I'm on the side that, even if it looked like a bomb at first glance, it could have been easily checked out in like five minutes. Then congrats on cool thinking for five minutes.Then some quality rum time for ten minutes...

They were following "policy." You can't get fired for following "policy." The PR is someone else's problem.

**Silent Puffin?**

Frazzled wrote:

I swear I had one of those.

You should, its the best watch money can buy.

**Relapse**

pretre wrote:
The town has already been embarrassed by the POTUS:

Why hasn't he spoken out for other kids who have been busted for more ridiculous things at school?

Automatically Appended Next Post:

Ouze wrote:
In America's defense, his name was Ahmed Mohammed. If he'd had an American name like Theodore, Timothy, or Eric, it clearly wouldn't have been a cause for an alarm.

Alarm? I see what you did there!

**-Shrike-**

I mean, to the many people who have no clue about electronics, it looks like a threatening bomb straight out of Hollywood. Turning it on doesn't help, because now you have a digital display with a time on, and that tells you that it's about to explode!

On the other hand, if more people could understand basic electronics, they would see that there are no explosive materials (except for capacitors), and it's a mains powered clock. I think this is a pretty silly case of limited understanding combined with a racial undercurrent, although your president is one hell of a guy!

**Relapse**

WrentheFaceless wrote:
Sadly if the kid's name was Joe Smith, they wouldnt have batted an eye, or probably given him some extra credit for the class

Plenty of white kids have gotten in trouble at school and suspended or charged for stupider stuff.

**Nostromodamus**

Relapse wrote:
WrentheFaceless wrote:
Sadly if the kid's name was Joe Smith, they wouldnt have batted an eye, or probably given him some extra credit for the class

Plenty of white kids have gotten in trouble at school and suspended or charged for stupider stuff.

Like eating food in a certain way or playing Cops and Robbers.

Never saw POTUS tweeting them to come over for a White House meal or a trip to Alcatraz.

**A Town Called Malus**

Relapse wrote:
WrentheFaceless wrote:
Sadly if the kid's name was Joe Smith, they wouldnt have batted an eye, or probably given him some extra credit for the class

Plenty of white kids have gotten in trouble at school and suspended or charged for stupider stuff.

The big problem with this one though, is the child was punished for showing an actual, outside of school interest in a subject, not just doing some random thing.

That's a different kind of stupid to a kid getting in trouble for throwing a stone pretending it was a grenade or playing with a poptart gun or whatever.

It's akin to a kid getting detention for reading ahead of the class so they're prepared for the lesson ahead of time.

**Ashiraya**

POTUS' tweet has reached over 250k likes and retweets.

I am not even American and I still fething love Obama.

**Nostromodamus**

Ashiraya wrote:
POTUS' tweet has reached over 250k likes and retweets.

I am not even American and I still fething love Obama.

You're welcome to him.

Automatically Appended Next Post:

A Town Called Malus wrote:

That's a different kind of stupid to a kid getting in trouble for throwing a stone pretending it was a grenade or playing with a poptart gun or whatever.

Kids getting suspended for taking a bite out of a poptart and playing with it still ranks as completely fething stupid.

Maybe a different kind, sure, but no less stupid.

**DarkTraveler777**

Wow, this became Obama's fault pretty fast! I am impressed.

**nels1031**

I liked the one boy who noticed that he accidentally broke school policy by brining a toy gun in, turned it in as he should, and still got suspended.

**-Shrike-**

DarkTraveler777 wrote:
Wow, this became Obama's fault pretty fast! I am impressed.

Nah, we managed a page. That's almost a new record!

**A Town Called Malus**

Alex C wrote:

A Town Called Malus wrote:

That's a different kind of stupid to a kid getting in trouble for throwing a stone pretending it was a grenade or playing with a poptart gun or whatever.

Kids getting suspended for taking a bite out of a poptart and playing with it still ranks as completely fething stupid.

Maybe a different kind, sure, but no less stupid.

Agreed. However it might be a less damaging kind of stupid, from an educational standpoint.

Being told off for playing with your poptart gun might put you off poptarts or playing with your food but is less likely to dampen your enthusiasm to education as a whole when compared to being told off and interrogated when you tried to show off your pet science project in order to show your enthusiasm for the subject.

**Chute82**

Muslim kid can't even take a home made clock to school anymore...thx Bin Laden

**cincydooley**

Ashiraya wrote:
POTUS' tweet has reached over 250k likes and retweets.

I am not even American and I still fething love Obama.

He's a huge fan of liberal college aged females. You're a match made in heaven.

**daedalus**

cincydooley wrote:
Ashiraya wrote:
POTUS' tweet has reached over 250k likes and retweets.

I am not even American and I still fething love Obama.

He's a huge fan of liberal college aged females. You're a match made in heaven.

I'm a huge fan of liberal college aged females.

**whembly**

daedalus wrote:
cincydooley wrote:
Ashiraya wrote:
POTUS' tweet has reached over 250k likes and retweets.

I am not even American and I still fething love Obama.

He's a huge fan of liberal college aged females. You're a match made in heaven.

I'm a huge fan of liberal college aged females.

I was going to say...

**A Town Called Malus**

daedalus wrote:
cincydooley wrote:
Ashiraya wrote:
POTUS' tweet has reached over 250k likes and retweets.

I am not even American and I still fething love Obama.

He's a huge fan of liberal college aged females. You're a match made in heaven.

I'm a huge fan of liberal college aged females.

According to sites which measure google searches, a lot of the US is.

**Relapse**

A Town Called Malus wrote:
Alex C wrote:

A Town Called Malus wrote:

That's a different kind of stupid to a kid getting in trouble for throwing a stone pretending it was a grenade or playing with a poptart gun or whatever.

Kids getting suspended for taking a bite out of a poptart and playing with it still ranks as completely fething stupid.

Maybe a different kind, sure, but no less stupid.

Agreed. However it might be a less damaging kind of stupid, from an educational standpoint.

Being told off for playing with your poptart gun might put you off poptarts or playing with your food but is less likely to dampen your enthusiasm to education as a whole when compared to being told off and interrogated when you tried to show off your pet science project in order to show your enthusiasm for the subject.

The kid was suspended, not just told off, but guns and white people are definitely not something obama, who sends multiple reps to muggers funerals, is big on.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/18/student-suspended-for-pop-tart-gun_n_2903500.html

**Ashiraya**

daedalus wrote:
cincydooley wrote:
Ashiraya wrote:
POTUS' tweet has reached over 250k likes and retweets.

I am not even American and I still fething love Obama.

He's a huge fan of liberal college aged females. You're a match made in heaven.

I'm a huge fan of liberal college aged females.

So am I. No problems with that.

**WrentheFaceless**

While a "Thanks Obama" In an ironic way is due, Obama is a bit off topic

**nels1031**

A Town Called Malus wrote:
Alex C wrote:

A Town Called Malus wrote:

That's a different kind of stupid to a kid getting in trouble for throwing a stone pretending it was a grenade or playing with a poptart gun or whatever.

Kids getting suspended for taking a bite out of a poptart and playing with it still ranks as completely fething stupid.

Maybe a different kind, sure, but no less stupid.

Agreed. However it might be a less damaging kind of stupid, from an educational standpoint.

Being told off for playing with your poptart gun might put you off poptarts or playing with your food but is less likely to dampen your enthusiasm to education as a whole when compared to being told off and interrogated when you tried to show off your pet science project in order to show your enthusiasm for the subject.

"Being told off" =/= suspended. Unless its slang for something different for foreigners.

Suspension is a complete removal from the educational environment,placing them into the care of their parents/guardians for however long the school chooses. This can place incredible pressure on a family, particularly if all parties usually work while the child is suspended. So yes, it can dampen ones enthusiasm to education as a whole.

And I say that as someone who was suspended once in middle school and again in high school.

**cincydooley**

Ashiraya wrote:
daedalus wrote:
cincydooley wrote:
Ashiraya wrote:
POTUS' tweet has reached over 250k likes and retweets.

I am not even American and I still fething love Obama.

He's a huge fan of liberal college aged females. You're a match made in heaven.

I'm a huge fan of liberal college aged females.

So am I. No problems with that.

Only under specific conditions, of which the detailing here would certainly result in my own suspension.

**Wyrmalla**

So has the school/ police department apologized, or are they letting this PR fiasco play out? Ironic if this actually pisses off people enough to throwing a fit over this given that that's what the school was paranoid of in the first place. =P

Speaks of people to think that a Muslim kid with a ticking suitcase is a legitimate bomb threat rather than something innocuous or (which isn't the case here) a kid playing a joke about stereotypes. If he was sitting there with a cartoon style bomb on his desk would the local police have still been called in over this I wonder?

**A Town Called Malus**

nels1031 wrote:

"Being told off" =/= suspended. Unless its slang for something different for foreigners.

Suspension is a complete removal from the educational environment,placing them into the care of their parents/guardians for however long the school chooses. This can place incredible pressure on a family, particularly if all parties usually work while the child is suspended. So yes, it can dampen ones enthusiasm to education as a whole.

And I say that as someone who was suspended once in middle school and again in high school.

He was suspended here, too.

So whilst the child being suspended for playing with a poptart gun is ridiculous, schools are not generally meant to encourage you to play with your food. They are, however, meant to encourage you to take an active interest in your learning and support you with that.

So you can apply the exact same punishment in both cases but it will be worse in the latter as the school is going directly against what it is meant to do.

**DarkTraveler777**

Wyrmalla wrote:
Speaks of people to think that a Muslim kid with a ticking suitcase

Airport Security Officer from Fight Club wrote:Narrator:
Was it ticking?

Airport Security Officer:
Actually throwers don't worry about ticking 'cause modern bombs don't tick.

Narrator:
Sorry, throwers?

Airport Security Officer:
Baggage handlers. But, when a suitcase vibrates, then the throwers gotta call the police.

Narrator:
My suitcase was vibrating?

Airport Security Officer:
Nine times out of ten it's an electric razor, but every once in a while...

Airport Security Officer:
it's a dildo. Of course it's company policy never to, imply ownership in the event of a dildo... always use the indefinite article a dildo, never your dildo.

Narrator:
I don't own...

**nels1031**

A Town Called Malus wrote:
nels1031 wrote:

"Being told off" =/= suspended. Unless its slang for something different for foreigners.

Suspension is a complete removal from the educational environment,placing them into the care of their parents/guardians for however long the school chooses. This can place incredible pressure on a family, particularly if all parties usually work while the child is suspended. So yes, it can dampen ones enthusiasm to education as a whole.

And I say that as someone who was suspended once in middle school and again in high school.

He was suspended here, too.

So whilst the child being suspended for playing with a poptart gun is ridiculous, schools are not generally meant to encourage you to play with your food. They are, however, meant to encourage you to take an active interest in your learning and support you with that.

So you can apply the exact same punishment in both cases but it will be worse in the latter as the school is going directly against what it is meant to do.

They are also meant to protect the children under their watch, so the English teacher, who thought the item was a bomb, was doing what she felt she was meant to do. The zero tolerance policies on guns in schools, there to protect children, is what the 7 year child was suspended for, not playing with his food.

**Psienesis**

WrentheFaceless wrote:
Sadly if the kid's name was Joe Smith, they wouldnt have batted an eye, or probably given him some extra credit for the class

Of course it would have ended differently:

http://www.rawstory.com/2015/09/white-kid-builds-nuclear-reactor-and-homeland-security-offers-help/