"War On Terror" Board Game Confiscated In UK

An anonymous reader writes "The board game The War On Terror is a satirical game in which George Bush's 'Axis of Evil' is reduced to a spinner in the middle of the board, which determines which player is designated a terrorist state. That person then has to wear a balaclava (included in the box set) with the word 'Evil' stitched onto it. Kent police said they had confiscated the game because the balaclava 'could be used to conceal someone's identity or could be used in the course of a criminal act.' Balaclavas are freely sold all over the place in the area." Schneier has blogged this stupidity, of course.

Comments

Police thugs

[mlwmohawk]

All too often Police confuse "fighting crime" and "protecting the peace" with authoritarian "because I said so and I have a gun" mentality.

I refrain from a rant, but the more police I meet, the more I hate the police.

Re:Police thugs

[Bryansix]

I agree with you there. Sometimes Police take matters in their own hands when they should be busy enforcing the actual laws on the books. In addition many police just act above the law when off duty simply because they are police during the day. Really the police should be policed more rigorously then the general public.

Re:Police thugs

[pilgrim23]

I am older, and was raised to always trust a policeman.
As an adult, I rarely say this: My parents were wrong.
The Republic is now an Empire.. with the centurions carrying assault rifles
Rei Publicae Scutum no longer...

Re:Police thugs

[mlwmohawk]

it's just not a good enough reason to "hate the police."

I'm not going to go on my typical police rant, but this is not an isolated incident, but a general pattern of behavior seemingly for police everywhere.

I know a LOT of police. I have a step brother who is head of a police union. I have plenty of stories.

The police almost NEVER come to your door to "help" you. Even if they save your life, keep your mouth shut. In Boston the last few years we've had fairly peaceful celebrations after some sports wins, and the police are leading the homicide and injury count.

In dorchester and southie (Boston, MA) under-achievers became criminals or cops. The cops are worse.

Re:Police thugs

[TheGratefulNet]

I am older, and was raised to always trust a policeman.
As an adult, I rarely say this: My parents were wrong.
The Republic is now an Empire.. with the centurions carrying assault rifles

when I traveled to the UK, many years ago, I ran into the same sentiment - that 'ask a friendly policeman on the corner' if you need help or have a question. nice friendly guys (....)

that ship has sailed. now, the current wisdom is to never talk to cops (2) never talk to cops (1)

this is BOTH a copy AND a lawyer giving this advice!

clearly, they are not anymore representing 'the will of the people'. they are anti-freedom and you would be best advised to consider the huge risk by even talking to them, even if you are innoncent. a slip of a casual word CAN be used against you and there is never ever 'off the record' when you talk to cops.

Re:Police thugs

[damburger]

Since when did our police not have guns? The unarmed bobby on a bicycle toting a whistle is very much a thing of the past.

As one unfortunate Brazillian man found out, our police have guns and they are all too happy to use them.

Re:Police thugs

[Atheil]

According to the article "The satirical board game was confiscated along with knives, chisels and bolt cutters, from climate protesters during a series of raids near Kingsnorth power station, in Kent, last week." So they actually just grabbed a ton of stuff. It's not like the only thing they took was the board game. I agree that they probably should have been more selective, but generally they prefer to be on the thorough side, versus the nicer side.

Re:Police thugs

[Darkness404]

We have nothing to fear but the state itself

Re:Police thugs

[Atheil]

I don't disagree with this, they should be policed more rigorously than the general public, and they usually are. If a cop comes under investigation for a crime, it is a lot more likely to make it to Court than if it is a private citizen, at least in Canada anyways. The best solution to this problem is to allocate more money to police budget so that you have more people wanting to become police officers (since now you'll have an actual benefit to the amount of work they have to do) and can be pickier with who you choose.

Re:Police thugs

[sm62704]

I refrain from a rant, but the more police I meet, the more I hate the police.

I don't. Refrain, I mean; here's my rant from January- Police State: In USSA, cops hassle YOU! The police ought to serve a good purpose, protecting us from robbers, thieves, rapists, murderers, etc. But all too often the police themselves are the villians. The last link is about a cop here in central Illinois who was charged with 49 felonies including one count of obstructing justice, three counts of criminal sexual abuse, seven counts of criminal sexual assault, seven counts of armed violence, 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual assault, and 21 counts of official misconduct. He plead guilty to TWO MISDEMEANORS and got off. Anybody else would have been behind bars for the rest of their lives.

Re:Police thugs

[damburger]

Furthermore, some have suggested that the ridiculously gung-ho attitude displayed by the police on that day may in part be a result of having received counter-terrorism training from the Israelis, hardly renowned for respecting the civil rights of those they consider enemies of the state.

Of course, that hardly exonerates the officers in question, any more than 'we were obeying orders' exonerated Nazis.

Re:Police thugs

[kalirion]

There should also be an effort made to ensure that the Police are in fact aware of what the laws are.

Re:Police thugs

[Kamokazi]

To be fair, from TFA:

"The satirical board game was confiscated along with knives, chisels and bolt cutters, from climate protesters during a series of raids near Kingsnorth power station, in Kent, last week."

The game was one of the items they took along with the real dangerous stuff. They were presumably caught planning a break-in to a power plant (the article is scant on important details, and chooses to focus on the board game). It's still kind of stilly that they took the game, but realizing that they had knived and devices intended to break into and probably sabotage a power plant puts a whole different perspective on the situation. I would chalk it more up to police officers being overcautious (or clueless) and siezing anything that could possibly be considered evidence of their intentions. Had they has other baclavas, they probably would have siezed those as well).

Re:Police thugs

[TheGratefulNet]

go watch BOTH, videos, dude. its a cop AND a lawyer. no, its not someone who THINKS they are a lawyer, its the real deal and he's giving valid legal advice.

if you don't believe him, why would you reject the cop's view - it ALSO echo's the same thing. he goes into detail about how they are TRAINED to probe you for info and even an innocent statement can hang you by the 'nads.

this is not 'an interesting video' it should be REQUIRED READING/WATCHING in civics class. people must be taught that the state is now to be held with strong distrust. in fact, that was some of the basic operational concepts in the founding of america!

Re:Police thugs

[Anonymous Coward]

Though, I do worry a bit about the highly trained specialist Firearms Unit shooting *eleven* dumdum bullets at the guy on a busy subway train. Three of the bullets actually missed at close range.

It doesn't sound like the work of a trained marksman, it's the sort of behaviour I would expect of a scared lunatic.

Re:Police thugs

[damburger]

OK then you racist, authoritarian tosser, let me tear apart your idiotic rambling

1. His overstaying his visa has nothing to do with it. The punishment for that is not summary execution, outside your right-wing fantasies.

2. He was never given a warning to stop, you are simply lying. If you think otherwise, provide a credible claim for this source of stop pissing on the poor mans grave.

3. The idea that he ran in response to the presence of the police is absurd because the police who were tailing him were in plain clothes. He had no idea what was going on until they entered the carriage and murdered him. I challenge you to prove otherwise.

4. Shut the fuck up you BNP loving organ of the police state, and have some respect for an innocent victim of extreme police brutality.

Scum like you make me ashamed of Britian.

Re:Police thugs

[Aphoxema]

The only way law enforcement can truly hold any power over mind is if the command equal parts fear and admiration.

With this lack of discretion becoming more common, people are losing both.

Re:Police thugs

[damburger]

Bullshit. The guys who shot Jean-Charles de Menezes were ultimately only convicted of a health and safety violation. As Mark Steel dryly commented, shooting someone in the head 7 times is both unhealthy and unsafe.

Re:Police thugs

[Sockatume]

Indeed, the lofty positions and training of all involved just makes it worse. They're supposed to be the anti-terrorist elite, and they stalk some random guy around London for an hour, let him onto a train, and shoot him to bits in front of the passengers? Begging their pardon, but even if he had been a terrorist, their reactions would've showed a staggering degree of ineptitude. From investigation to execution, it was just plain bad policing.

Re:Police thugs

[Anonymous Coward]

He was shot by someone doing their job. If you're going to blame people, at least blame the right people. It was the superiors who made the mistake. If you're the member of a firearms squad and State Red is declared as you're running after a suspected terrorist who just got on a train, then you can hardly be blamed for shooting the person when he looks like he's about to blow himself up.

I'm not defending the intelligence services, but don't blame the person with the gun; blame the people who declared JCDM to be a threat that needed to be stopped.

[ Reference: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_depth/629/629/7073125.stm ]

Re:Police thugs

[fiannaFailMan]

I disagree. The GP makes a valid point about how the police need to be policed more rigorously than other citizens. When a 'normal' citizen steps out of line, that's one thing. When someone with the power of arrest and considerable other powers steps out of line, that's a very serious matter. Nothing undermines society more than corrupt officials who should be enforcing the rules.

Re:Police thugs

[jregel]

The problem with Stockwell wasn't with one individual getting it wrong; it was the entire intelligence operation that couldn't communicate properly and panicked in the aftermath of the 7/7 bombings. The result was a tragic mistake.

I wouldn't call the people who shot Jean Charles de Menezes morons. He/They got the wrong man, but they followed a man who they thought was going to be a suicide bomber down into the Tube to stop him. That actually calls for a fair amount of bravery.

Of course, this might all be completely off-topic because according to The Times, the "policemen" might have actually been Special Forces Military Intelligence (the super secret SRR).

Although the anti-Police sentiments seem to be popular on Slashdot, my personal, limited experience with the UK Police has always been postive. I find that if you are polite and show them respect, and don't automatically take a defensive position, they tend to be absolutely fine. YMMV.

Re:Police thugs

[EchaniDrgn]

Case in point: I sold a car (on a trailer) to an off duty police officer. When I said I'd tow the car to his place because the registration wasn't current he said he could just drive it home. I pointed out the expired tags and he said, "It's OK, if I get pulled over I'll just Badge 'em."

I wish I were lying.

Re:Police thugs

[jacquesm]

The person with the gun is the one that pulled the trigger.

Sure his superiors fucked up, and royally so.

But he was the one to make the call, and by the looks of it anybody with a coat on on a warm day is now subject to possible shootings by overzealous police officers.

I repeat, there was *0* and I really mean absolutely no evidence whatsoever that the person they were following was a terrorist. Whoever gets to follow the orders carries part of the blame, you can not be absolved for killing an innocent person by claiming to simply be doing your job, that sort of excuse went out the window a long long time ago, and for a very good reason.

The hand that pulls the trigger is connected to an arm that is connected to a brain, that is supposed to think for itself, not to blindly follow orders, especially not if they're coming from a group of people that have been known to err before.

The whole system of justice is based on evidence, that's not a thing to throw overboard lightly.

The person that was shot had not committed any crime, was not about to commit any crime, was not charged with any crime (regardless of whether they committed one), had no history of committing crimes that would require that person to be stopped with such force.

ESPECIALLY NOT TO BE SHOT IN THE HEAD FROM POINT BLANK RANGE.

Re:Police thugs

[Sockatume]

Even the police's official stance is actually that he was wearing a light demin jacket and jeans, walked the whole time, used his Oyster card to enter the station, walked down the steps, then ran across the platform to board the train before it left, and at no point did they identify themselves. Surprisingly this version didn't get nearly as much press coverage as the "parka-wearing lunatic dives across ticket barriers as armed police yell at him to stop" version. Guess the media are too busy to run corrections?

Re:Police thugs

[pluther]

"The real dangerous stuff" is "...knives, chisels and bolt cutters..."

I have all of those in my home, too. Along with even more dangerous stuff like shovels, hedge clippers, wire cutters, electronics tools, chemicals, an axe, a lawnmower and a couple of rakes.

I also have a good deal of satirical materials, including a card game about Nuclear War.

And I've even been involved in "climate protests" - there are even pictures of me online before the Iraq invasion carrying a mass-made sign proclaiming "Go solar, not ballistic".

Yet, it's never even occurred to me to try to "break into and probably sabotage a power plant". Not even when I lived near one.

Perhaps I'm safe because I don't own a balaclava?

Re:Police thugs

[Anonymous Coward]

In Canada recently a women's car was hit from behind by an off-duty cop in the wee hours of the morning, after being pulled over by an on duty cop.

The off duty cop was returning from a cop party, he was not given a sobriety test and all the cops who were asked to testify as to his soberness declared that they could not recall.

This is just one example from many.

I totally distrust the police. The only attitude to take is us vs them. We are expected to testify against offenders but the police will *never* testify against their own.

Re:Police thugs

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm curious how closely you've dealt with the Military. I used to work loss prevention for AAFES and I've gotten a pretty good glimpse into Military Justice. I'd say that if anything the majority of the time the Military is harder on their people than civilians. On top of all the punishments that come at a soldier from civilian court they face further discipline up to and including loss of their career for their actions.

If crimes are committed on post they may be relegated to the command to handle and commanders can issue punishments including loss of rank, loss of pay, confinement and separation from the military. If the crimes occur off post the civilian courts get first crack followed by the commanders.

I have to disagree that it's likely to be dismissed out of hand.

Thanks
Eric

Re:Police thugs

[ozamosi]

We'll use the slashdot moderation system and let the public police the police that police the police.

What's great about this is that we already have a metamoderation system, so we can police the public that police the police that police the police.

Re:Police thugs

[jacquesm]

yeah, well I have some news for you too, look at these two photos side by side and tell me if you can tell the difference:

http://www.theage.com.au/ffximage/2005/08/17/menezes_osman_wideweb__430x253.jpg

The guy on the left is the guy that got shot, the guy on the right is the guy they were looking for.

Some other guy a bit further below posted an excellent link to an article in the register that details just how screwed up the situation really was. This should have *NEVER* happened. Really, there is absolutely no excuse for it.

Police apprehend, they certainly do not kill before having a positive id.

Re:Police thugs

[Shotgun]

You do realize this happened in the UK, right?

No federal government there. And no concept of by or for the people either.

Re:Police thugs

[99BottlesOfBeerInMyF]

I don't disagree with this, they should be policed more rigorously than the general public, and they usually are. If a cop comes under investigation for a crime, it is a lot more likely to make it to Court than if it is a private citizen, at least in Canada anyways.

Wow, that is certainly not the case in the US. In my state we actually have special exemptions in our handgun laws for police officers because normal people convicted of domestic violence are not allowed to carry concealed pistols... but so many police officers have such a conviction, they made sure to exempt them. My brother used to be a cop. When pulled over for excessive speeding, the police saw he was a cop, chatted a bit, and let him go with no mention of the speeding, not even a warning. I suppose a lot of that falls under the category of police not being investigated when they are likely suspects in crimes, but in general the police are not policed well in the US.

Re:Police thugs

[jacquesm]

Well, this is going to be based on what I can glean from the news, so it's biased at best, but just about all the cases involving the military that I can remember were pretty hard on the lower echelons but the people higher up almost always escaped real punishment.

Re:Police thugs

[k1e0x]

I don't disagree with this, they should be policed more rigorously than the general public, and they usually are. If a cop comes under investigation for a crime, it is a lot more likely to make it to Court than if it is a private citizen, at least in Canada anyways. The best solution to this problem is to allocate more money to police budget so that you have more people wanting to become police officers (since now you'll have an actual benefit to the amount of work they have to do) and can be pickier with who you choose.

Are you kidding me? You want to pay them MORE?? Are you insane?

Here is what happens.

1. Cops do something terrible. (Tazer a man to death, shoot an unarmed man at point blank range, raid the wrong house and shoot grandma, dump a quadriplegic out of his wheelchair, etc.)

2. The police department starts an official investigation.

3. The officers are suspended with pay. This is in effect a paid vacation.

4. After several months the department concludes that no wrong doing took place.

5. Police officers involved in the incident return to work, and sometimes are even promoted.

I can cite case after case after case of this happening.. search google for "police cleared of wrong doing" .. it will make you sick.

Re:Police thugs

[swb]

As a gun enthusiast myself and someone acquainted with a fair number of police officers, I will tell you that the average police officer doesn't have all that much interest in guns, either. Most cops shoot just enough to qualify (which doesn't involve much!) and don't know much about guns at all, including their own service weapons.

Generally speaking, though, you're right -- police officers tend to be blue collar (or light-blue-collar junior college types) and not terribly interested in making subtle distinctions.

But at the same time, having done ride-alongs and gotten to know some of them well enough, its easy to see why. There is a certain percentage of the population willing to believe that cops are always wrong and that crime is actually the rational response of the oppressed, the police bureaucracy in most larger departments is viciously political, and their job is entirely thankless.

Re:Police thugs

[lgw]

This confisaction happened at a protest rally, not in game stores. The police confiscated items which seemed likely to be used by troublemakers, including bolt cutters and balaclavas with the word evil stiched on them.

Still a horrible abuse of police power, IMO, but not the work of drooling idiots.

Re:Police thugs

[Hatta]

I was born here. I have every right to be here without consenting to any agreement whatsoever.

Re:Police thugs

[Anonymous Coward]

Oh, no, there's a slight difference:

Cops mostly have a similar mindset and agenda. The majority of people have had negative personal experiences with the police. The police force works as a unit to accomplish its goals and protect its members.

Black people are generally very diverse and may have a variety of motivations and agendas. The average racist has not had any negative personal experiences with black people and hates them based on assumption and hearsay. Lastly, there is no evidence of a vast racial conspiracy. The black community is notorious for its fragmented nature and black people rarely strive to do anything as a group.

Re:Police thugs

[pcolaman]

Beat me to it. In many states, transportation of a newly purchased vehicle is usually adequate reason to drive a vehicle with out of date registration, as long as registration is obtained within a reasonable period of time. In many cases if a ticket is given, updating the registration within a set period of time (in my state, 10 days) would adjudicate the ticket, as long as proof is brought to the courthouse along with the ticket.

Re:Police thugs

[49152]

Yes, in the US i suppose you would expect to risk your life. At least if I should believe guys like you on ./, what I read in the newspapers and what we see in American movies and television shows.

I still hope it is a bit exaggerated, and not really representative for the majority of cases.
If not I feel truly sorry for your people.

In most of Europe (in fact most of the world) the police would chase after you but will not open fire unless you start shooting back at them. If they have reason to believe you are dangerous they will still warn you, usually several times before opening fire.

And at least in my country I know for a fact they have instructions to shoot to disable and not to kill.

After all we are not barbarians and have done away with the death penalty a long long time ago.

BTW: The man in question here was unarmed and had nothing to do with the terrorist attacks or any other criminal activities.

It has also been established that he never ran from the police as they initially claimed. The police later issued an official apology after this fact leaked to the press.

He did however resemble slightly the man they were looking for. So does a lot of people in London.

The fact of the case is that the police officers in question were jumping the gun in this case. Perhaps understandable after the bombings but that is a poor excuse.

If we surrender our rights, freedom and justice system because of the threat of terrorist then the terrorist have won and we may be safe but not free.

One should also remember that the terrorist threat might be spectacular and frightening but in reality it is relatively trivial.

Many many more people die every year in traffic accidents than are being killed by terrorist.

In fact there is a much higher probability that either of us will commit suicide than become victims of a terrorist attack.

It is a sorry state of affairs but people seems to have lost all perspective about this.

Re:Police thugs

[name*censored*]

I have to disagree w/ your signature though. Taking guns out of the hands of law abiding citizens only lets criminals have a free reign.

*sigh*. Find a country that has more stringent gun control - but a higher gun-related crime-rate than USA, then maybe you'll have some credibility. Hell, I'd settle for a comparison between "crimes-thwarted-by-armed-joe-sixpacks" versus "crimes-committed-with-legally-purchased-guns" which favours the former situation (and no, don't tell me that the knowledge of armed victims scares would-be criminals into lawfulness, if it did you'd have less crime). Besides, any "law abiding citizen" can purchase a gun, and then become a "criminal" once they have it - it's not like would-be criminals are born with the word "DANGER" tattooed into their foreheads.

Ironic in so many ways...

[jayveekay]

One of which is that this is great publicity for the game and will surely increase sales.

Re:Ironic in so many ways...

[R_Dorothy]

Deserved publicity. I've played this several times and it's a great game. Never fails to cause humorous infighting with plenty of obvious parallels with current world politics. I'd highly recommend it to anyone with a sense of humour who likes Risk.

Free Publicity

[Nathan Boley]

I wonder how much did the board game creators paid the police 'confiscate' the game? Talk about cheap advertising.

They need another card.

[BitterOldGUy]

Terrorists can use special cards such as "suicide bomber", "plane hijack" and "WMDs" to advance themselves.

They need the "Police in free country crack down on their own people for idiotic reasons and abusing their authority thereby turning free country into a less-free country thereby aiding the terrorists" card.

Re:They need another card.

[blueg3]

They need the "Police in free country crack down on their own people for idiotic reasons and abusing their authority thereby turning free country into a less-free country thereby aiding the terrorists" card.

Actually, that's how the terrorist player wins the game.

Re:They need another card.

[T.E.D.]

That's kinda long-winded. How about an "Idiots Elected" card instead?

I don't understand?

[UberHoser]

Why would you wear a dessert on your head? I mean I can see it if the game was like "Spin the bottle" or something of that ilk...

fashion statement

[Chief_Wiggum]

Because when I think 'hijacking an airplane', I think about wearing a balaclava with the word EVIL stitched to my head.

Context, context

[Sockatume]

This was a raid (of uncertain provenance) on a protest outside a power station. The other items seized are "knives, chisels and bolt cutters". It seems to me that the police took the balaclava under the quite reasonable assumption that someone was going to put it on and break into the station using some of the tools. That it was part of a board game is entirely incidental.

If the police seize a pack of ladies' stockings from your home, that's absurd. If they seize a crate of ladies' stockings, bank plans, and a toy gun from your car outside a bank, that's reasonable.

Context

[Bogtha]

The satirical board game was confiscated along with knives, chisels and bolt cutters, from climate protesters during a series of raids near Kingsnorth power station, in Kent, last week.

Here's the thing: a bunch of people were protesting by chaining themselves to gates and generally impeding operations at a power station. The police came along, hauled them off, and took away the tools they were using. Knives, chisels, bolt cutters, and balaclavas.

It's got nothing to do with balaclavas being illegal, any more than bolt cutters are illegal. It's got nothing at all to do with the game itself. It's the fact that the masks were being used in the process of shutting down a power station.

Did anybody spot that most of the article was dedicated to describing the game and its distribution hopes, as if it were a game review, while the confiscation itself got just a single sentence in the article? This is a fucking advert. The creators, from Cambridge, heard about it, and got their mate at the local paper, in Cambridge to write about it as a favour. This is a local paper, and the event the article is supposed to be talking about happened in Kent, 100 miles away.

Bloody pigs

[damburger]

The UK police are a serious threat to liberty, and I say this as someone who used to work for them.

They are monumentally petty, generally taking the view that who they arrest should be based on who they don't like the look of rather than who has done something wrong, and then sort out the crime they are to be charged with later.

A common method is to approach people whose appearance suggests poverty (normally written down as "looking suspicious), and intimidating them until they do something that could be construed as resisting arrest or assaulting the officer, then haul them away and throw them in a cell.

They then whinge about having to do loads of 'paperwork' which basically translates to 'its difficult to pin crimes on everybody we haul in'. Having been on the paperwork end of policing I can safely say that if someone has be caught for a specific crime (rather than hauled in for wearing a tracksuit and leaned on) then it isn't hard to get them convicted.

The majority of policing in the city I worked in (where I saw every file that went through the local magistrates court, albeit briefly in most cases) consisted of protecting the property of city businesses, banging up drunks, and bullying chavs.

Also there are restrictions on the spinner device

[dilvish_the_damned]

Technically the spinner is a munition, developed specifically for US intelligence.

Re:Fascist state

[Ihmhi]

There's an interesting documentary on the subject called V For Vendetta.