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Ahmed Mohamed will not face charges related to device [pdf]

irvingisd.net

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Re: Ahmed Mohamed will not face charges related to device [pdf]

#41
post #3

It's amazing how these assholes are incapable of admitting that they're wrong. "Attached is a picture of the device that shows it was suspicious in nature." I bet they don't even realize they just sound like idiots.

https://i.imgur.com/Z1WbwdB.jpg

it looks like maybe they suspected he wanted it to look like a bomb. it does kind of look like a bomb.

of course the cops totally overrreacted.

he's either a brilliant troll (the NASA shirt is perfect), or a nerdy kid with little social awareness. either way, bravo.

Re: Ahmed Mohamed will not face charges related to device [pdf]

#42

I'm glad Ahmed got all the support and encouragement he did but not one person of note/power, including Obama and Hillary Clinton (who offered their cute tweets) have talked of punishing, penalizing, or in the very least reprimanding the officers and teachers who put him through this. How is that? It's criminal to handcuff and interrogate a 14-yr old in front of his entire class and school when they found nothing to…

> These people are not only stupid (look at that 'suspicious' device), they are abusing power with no repercussions.

That's the part that bothers me the most - that they were too stupid to know what they were looking at. He was proud of his invention and wanted to show it off.

Re: Ahmed Mohamed will not face charges related to device [pdf]

#43
post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They knew it was not a bomb. They were bullying him. If the school or police had actually thought it was dangerous they would have: 1. Evacuated the school 2. Called the bomb squad

Their justification is in the linked PDF: "Under Texas law, a person is guilty of possessing a hoax bomb if he possesses a device that is intended to cause anyone to be alarmed or a reaction of any type by law enforcement officers."

But there was zero evidence of any such intent in this case.

Re: Ahmed Mohamed will not face charges related to device [pdf]

#44
post #5

The small metallic type suitcase/box may have been a perfect container 1) To cram in all the ugly looking wires inside while the outer appearance of the product looks polished 2) Nice platform to tether the circuit boards etc to keep them in place 3) Doubles up as a carry box to move around his project and display/show to friends , teachers etc On the flip side 1) There is subtle difference between timers vs clocks 2…

Can folks downvoting this comment explain what you're taking issue with?

I see this post as a thoughtful plea for context and consideration. What am I missing?

Re: Ahmed Mohamed will not face charges related to device [pdf]

#45
post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

By that measure, unless someone dies, nothing is important. Couldn't you conceive of a situation where he (let's say out of panic) acts weird and an officer shoots him dead on suspicion of a suitcase containing a bomb? Would that make it important enough?

Funny you should put it like that. Now that actual pictures of the "digital clock" are available, that is first time I have seen a clock built into a metal suitcase that, golly gee, somewhat resembles a bomb. Ya'll are being absurd. That kid new what he was doing, I did stupid shit like that when I his age...worse in fact, these days I would have made national headlines if I had been caught. So I know what I am talki…

Pssst: You do not live in a Hollywood movie or video game.

Here in the real world, he biggest recent terrorist incident in the US, the Boston Marathon bombing, used a backpack. But nobody is suggesting that kids be arrested for bringing backpacks to school.

And yes, the kid knew what he was doing: bringing in one of his hobby projects to show his teachers. Which is exactly what we want students to do. The problem is that the teachers didn't know what they were doing.

Re: Ahmed Mohamed will not face charges related to device [pdf]

#46
post #3

It's amazing how these assholes are incapable of admitting that they're wrong. "Attached is a picture of the device that shows it was suspicious in nature." I bet they don't even realize they just sound like idiots.

https://i.imgur.com/Z1WbwdB.jpg it looks like maybe they suspected he wanted it to look like a bomb. it does kind of look like a bomb. of course the cops totally overrreacted. he's either a brilliant troll (the NASA shirt is perfect), or a nerdy kid with little social awareness. either way, bravo.

The defining property of a bomb is that it contains an explosive. I don't see anything in this picture that suggests the presence of an explosive.

Re: Ahmed Mohamed will not face charges related to device [pdf]

#48
This should have included some introspection on the part of the school and/or police force involved. Instead they are digging in behind the narrative that their fear was reasonable and their reaction was justifiable, and that Ahmed somehow withheld information that would have changed their mind at some point.

This is classic school faculty behavior: do it our way or else. He could have 'played ball' and explained in detail the project he worked on, but he didn't. He shouldn't have to either. They can expel him or send him home, but they went further, to teach him a lesson for being 'smart'.

It's clear they didn't fear the device. As others have pointed out, the school wasn't evacuated. They knew it wasn't a bomb.

Re: Ahmed Mohamed will not face charges related to device [pdf]

#49
post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I'm glad Ahmed got all the support and encouragement he did but not one person of note/power, including Obama and Hillary Clinton (who offered their cute tweets) have talked of punishing, penalizing, or in the very least reprimanding the officers and teachers who put him through this. How is that? Maybe because the world has bigger problems than one police officer and a teacher acting out of line. It's a story the i…

Police culture is currently toxic and is a danger to all US citizens

I would say to all residents of and visitors to USA.
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