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Art Project Causes Atlanta Police To Close Highway and Call Bomb Squad
McGruber writes: Yesterday, a ridiculously huge commotion and massive traffic jam occurred when Atlanta Police closed the downtown connector (Interstates 75 & 85) and called out the bomb squad to detonate a "suspicious device" taped to a bridge. Today, Georgia State University officials announced that the suspicious device was a student camera, "one of 18 used by students in an art project and deployed at various locations in the city." PetaPixel has additional information about Solargraphy, the style of pinhole photography apparently being done by the Georgia students.
Thing 1: Didn't anyone think to take a picture of the device and ask if anyone knew what it was?
1a) Doesn't anyone know what a pinhole camera looks like?
Thing 2: Where does GSU get off attaching private property to public infrastructure? That's a known no-no. At a minimum, you notify public works first so that things like this don't happen. There was no ass covering done here.
As a result, the bomb squad, the police, and the university all end up looking foolish.
A real terrorist would hide the bomb in any of the billions and billions of McDonald's bags littering the streets.
I notice those never get picked up or blown up for safety.
Hindsight is 20/20; what would you do if you were the police, in charge of keeping the public safe, and some hacked together package was duct-taped to a support on one of the busiest bridges in the city? I work a couple of blocks from there... I'm incredibly lucky to have been working at home yesterday and not have to deal with the ensuing traffic nightmare (it's already bad enough in that particular spot... maybe the police should spend more time ticketing the people causing gridlock).
Now, granted, I don't know if "blow it up first, ask questions later" is necessarily the right approach, but it's only an overreaction when it wasn't a threat... when it is we complain they did too little.
Stupid sexy Flanders.
True, but the odds are pretty much 100% that your art project request will be denied for liability reasons. People sue the hind legs off each other for anything nowadays, and rampant paranoia is the natural result. So if you want to do your project you just roll the dice and hope that no one notices your guerilla installation.
Oops, someone noticed? Now comes the part where you beg for forgiveness.
I think so. I don' t think any of the 911 planners knew who much their actions would kick into action deep seeded anti freedom views from inside western governments.
by TheSpoom (715771) Uncaring Linux user here. I have nothing to add to this but please continue. *munches popcorn*