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Flash Mobs: Peaceable Assembly for Spontaneous Fun

Schmendr1ck writes "The Orlando Sentinel is carrying a story on the growing trend of 'creating a crowd on a moment's notice for no particular reason' knows as a flash mob. Recent flash mobs (sometimes hundreds of people) have wandered into into an upscale NYC shoe store acting like confused tourists from Maryland, gathered at the Hyatt near Grand Central Station for 15 seconds of spontaneous applause, and converged on the Macy's carpet department to debate the quality of the rugs for sale. Check cheesebikini? for pictures and info on past mobs, as well as links to sites that organize these events. Sounds like a fun, harmless, and Constitutionally-protected way of blowing off a little steam."

38 of 543 comments (clear)

  1. I remember this! by Slime-dogg · · Score: 2, Funny

    Sounds like a bunch of hippies!

    Let's spontaneously "get together," if you know what I mean. It'll be fun!

    --
    You need to restart your computer. Hold down the Power button for several seconds or press the Restart button.
  2. Bunch of morons by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    How the hell do these people have enough free time on their hands for this shit?

    1. Re:Bunch of morons by nifboy · · Score: 4, Funny

      They don't waste their time posting on /.

  3. Eww, Flash! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Can't they program the mob in proper W3 approved HTML instead of Flash? Until they do this, I won't want to join, even if it's a CowboyNeal fan mob.

  4. Constitution? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny
    Sounds like a fun, harmless, and Constitutionally-protected way of blowing off a little steam.
    I thought they phased out that Constitution thing a few years ago.
    1. Re:Constitution? by EverDense · · Score: 2, Funny

      Yes, to paraphrase Homer:
      "The Constitution, is that thing still around"

      --
      http://jesus.everdense.com/
    2. Re:Constitution? by Large+Green+Mallard · · Score: 2, Funny

      "You just rubbed out the part which outlawed cruel and unusual punishment!" :)

  5. let me guess... by YllabianBitPipe · · Score: 5, Funny

    ... a lot of these people, especially the ones organizing on the web, are recently laid off techies, with copious amounts of free time on their hands.

    1. Re:let me guess... by spudchucker · · Score: 4, Funny

      Those who don't attend the mobs participate in a virtual one known as slashdot.

    2. Re:let me guess... by YllabianBitPipe · · Score: 5, Funny

      No, execs do set up pointless gatherings, but they're called "off-site strategy meetings" and usually involve Vegas, bar tabs and strip clubs. Hardly the same thing as these flash mobs.

    3. Re:let me guess... by happystink · · Score: 2, Funny

      How DARE you mention the word pointless in the same sentence as Vegas, bar tabs and strip clubs! You disgust me!

      --

      sig:
      See the "..for smart people" banners Wired runs here? Look elsewhere guys.

  6. Another name for it... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    People SPAM.

  7. Yes by ucblockhead · · Score: 4, Funny

    And it's probably all a crafty plan to meet chix0rs.

    --
    The cake is a pie
    1. Re:Yes by happystink · · Score: 4, Funny

      When you use the word chix0rs, the hopeless is basically implied.

      --

      sig:
      See the "..for smart people" banners Wired runs here? Look elsewhere guys.

  8. Knowing the hardware is one thing... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...but people who think assembly is fun are just weird.

  9. back when WE were kids.... by grouchyDude · · Score: 5, Funny

    In the old days. This was our best approximation. Back when I was a kid we'd get one or two people on side of the road, and each "team" would pull on an invisible (virtual/imaginary) rope across the road. Most cars would slow down or stop thining there really must be a rope there, they just couldn't see it. Then we'd just walk away.

    I guess we should have tried recruiting other mine-wannabes.

    1. Re:back when WE were kids.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      They called it streaking.

    2. Re:back when WE were kids.... by Lord+Zerrr · · Score: 3, Funny

      When your driving alog the road in a wooded area up in Maine and decide to pull over and point in to the woods, suddenly you have a lot of other cars joining you pointing and wondering what is going on. Then you leave quietly, and laugh at the herd.

      --
      "If the facts don't fit the theory, change the facts." -Albert Einstein
      Karma? There's a serial modder out there.
    3. Re:back when WE were kids.... by gosand · · Score: 2, Funny

      Heh. We had something in grade school we called the rock trick. I went to a Catholic grade school, run by the nuns. The side of our gymnasium was aluminum siding, and we used to have one kid stand against it, and another about 50 feet away. The kid against the building would have rocks in his hand. The other kid would pretend to throw things at him, and he would take a rock in his hand and while doing a dodging motion, would throw it against the siding to get the authentic "ping" sound. The illusion was that one kid was throwing rocks at another kid in a game like dodgeball. Every new substitute got introduced to the rock trick on playground duty. :-) We got in a lot of trouble. I won't even go into how we went into the basement of the convent and drank the beer in the nun's refrigerator.

      --

      My beliefs do not require that you agree with them.

  10. this isn't new by arashiken · · Score: 5, Funny

    flash mob, meet slashdot. ooo look! i see your server already knows us. don't worry, we'll be gone in 15 minutes.

  11. I hate to say this, by Daikiki · · Score: 5, Funny

    but it looks like the site has been. . .umm. . .flashmobbed.

    --
    I want the fire back.
    1. Re:I hate to say this, by danthedanish · · Score: 5, Funny

      or perhaps... flashdotted?

  12. Re:The Klan has been doing this for years by Platinum+Dragon · · Score: 3, Funny

    An old idea.

    The new twist seems to be that no one is getting killed.

    --

    Someday, you're going to die. Get over it.
  13. Party at SCO's and RIAA associations home tonight! by zymano · · Score: 5, Funny

    BYOB!

  14. Slashdotted... by greg987123 · · Score: 1, Funny

    "Sounds like a fun, harmless, and Constitutionally-protected way of blowing off a little steam."
    Looks like this site wasn't constitutionally protected from Slashdot. ;)

  15. Slashdotting = Flash mob on the web by SIGPrez · · Score: 4, Funny

    Seems like a real life representation of a slashdotting.

    Does the first one there yell 'FP!' ?

  16. One answer by SuperBanana · · Score: 2, Funny

    Why? What's the point?

    Because it's there. Jeez, pay attention!

  17. And... by Squidgee · · Score: 2, Funny
    And the "flash mob" that is /. brings down Cheese Bikini.

    I'll have pictures up shortly.

  18. A semi-related topic by iamdrscience · · Score: 4, Funny

    If you're ever at a concert or any event like that, get like ten people you know to start doing something that makes noise (applauding, chanting something, whatever). It will spread infectiously in a matter of seconds. This works in just general crowds sometimes too but at a concert or similar event it's almost ensured.

    I know this because I discovered it by accident once. For no particular reason I began clapping abnormally loud and in a pattern, long after people had stopped applauding. A group of my friends joined in as a joke and within say 20 seconds the whole room of people was clapping along. We tested this a couple other places as well.

    1. Re:A semi-related topic by clambake · · Score: 3, Funny

      Indeed, it does work. A group of myself and five friend once were able to generate and sustain a continuous "wave" at an Astros game for over an hour simply by never "petering out". Sometimes the wave would die out and only we were left, but eventually, after we started standing up at regular intervals and doing a tiny 5-person wave, the wave would start up again. It went like this on and off probably more than 100 times.

    2. Re:A semi-related topic by Rogerborg · · Score: 4, Funny

      That's true, there was this one time that me and my buddies Dick, John, Colin and Paul decided to invade Iraq, and before we knew it, 140,000 other people were joining in. Man, we laughed about that.

      --
      If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
  19. Re:Oh great. by AndroidCat · · Score: 2, Funny

    In retaliation, several flash mobs will coverge on the Slashdot offices. (They have offices right?)

    --
    One line blog. I hear that they're called Twitters now.
  20. Re:Party at SCO's and RIAA associations home tonig by HungWeiLo · · Score: 4, Funny

    BYOB! Is that Bring Your Own Bash_shell, or Bring Your Own Bandwidth?

    --
    There are a huge number of yeast infections in this county. Probably because we're downriver from the bread factory.
  21. My idea.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Crash Mobs. That's where a group of angry bystanders views a Flash Mob forming, and beats the living fuck out of each and every member. Problem solved.

  22. Re:Constitutional protection! Ha! by Heem · · Score: 5, Funny

    Would you mind it if a bunch of slashdoters came over and slashdoted your private property?

    I can just imagine the 4 guys peeing on your lawn, in the shape of the letters "FP"

    --
    Don't Tread on Me
  23. Re:Constitutional protection! Ha! by mcc · · Score: 3, Funny

    "Hey!! You kids!! .. What are you DOING? Hey, I don't know who you are or what the heck that is you're pouring into your pants, but get off my lawn..!! Yeah, you heard me, if you're going to be doing that do it somewhere else..!! ... wait, don't leave your trash here! ... HEY! .. stupid kids.. leaving behind their.. what the heck is this thing, anyway, looks like some kind of statue.. uhh..

    WTF, Is this supposed to be Natalie Portman??"

  24. Re:Constitutional protection! Ha! by ceejayoz · · Score: 4, Funny

    If you see 150 people doing a robot dance outside of a Sony store (as was seen in the Mall of America flash mob), it's fairly safe to assume that the guy in front of you doing a robot dance is involved in it.

  25. Flashing mobs (nudity) by Linuxathome · · Score: 2, Funny

    The title of the story had me confused. At first, before reading the article, I thought the story pertained to mobs getting together to see people flash themselves. Shucks, I was wrong.