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Silly String Goes to War Against IEDs

Posted by samzenpus on from the silly-to-serious dept.

Luban Doyle writes "In an age of multimillion-dollar high-tech weapons systems, sometimes it's the simplest ideas that can save lives. Which is why a New Jersey mother is organizing a drive to send cans of Silly String to Iraq. American troops use the stuff to detect trip wires around bombs, as Marcelle Shriver learned from her son, a soldier in Iraq."

5 of 460 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Government should pay by drinkypoo · · Score: 0, Troll
    1. Why isn't the military just shipping crates of silly string over there themselves?
    2. I found the following quote from the FA particularly chilling:

    "If I turn on the TV and see a soldier with a can of this on his vest, that would make this all worth it," said Shriver, 57, an office manager.

    Talk about being a television-programmed drone. Personally, I think it would be all worth it if you saved a life. Seeing it on television means jack shit, just like seeing that one video of a bomb going down a chimney that we saw replayed about 3495235927 times during desert storm.

    Obviously, this doesn't detract from what the woman is doing, but it's frightening nonetheless. It's not real unless you saw it on television.

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    "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  2. Re:New in the war on terror by Broken+scope · · Score: 0, Troll

    WHOA! SOmeone not claiming our soldiers are morons, on this site? Thats new.

    Anyways. You do have to give it to them, they will improvise when they need to. It has happened in every long-term conflict that the US has been involved in. Soldiers will come up with their own small was to thwart the enemy.

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    You mad
  3. Re:IED? by Simon80 · · Score: 0, Troll

    The reason for the acronyms is that they make the idiots at the White House sound more competent and knowledgeable than they actually are, expecially when they are forced to explain that troops are being killed by booby traps.

  4. Re:Government should pay by soft_guy · · Score: 0, Troll

    As an Air Force member I take the cost of items I request and approve very seriously. Hey, I would too if I were buying a $500 toilet seat.
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    Avoid Missing Ball for High Score
  5. Re:Slashdot tipping of the insurgents ;) by GReaToaK_2000 · · Score: 0, Troll

    you know... Silly string doesn't just disappear after you have sprayed it out of a can. It wouldn't be hard for insurgents to see the left over silly string and figure it out. I am not saying that these posts can't tip off insurgents but seriously... That's as bad as Newt saying we need to "curb" Freedom of Speech on the internet and media to protect our troops. There are more leaks in our government then there should be.

    I think it's brilliant and clever, more power to our troops and their creative ways to protect themselves. Lord knows our government isn't as focused on their protection as they should be.