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Aqua Teen Art 'Terrorist' Describes His Ordeal 212

Posted by Zonk from the funny-is-in-the-eye-of-the-beholder dept.
destinyland writes "Boston police arrested artist 'Zebbler' for installing L.E.D. devices that promoted Aqua Teen Hunger Force (after police mistook them for bombs). He's finally shared the real behind-the-scenes story about his arrest and release. He describes his interrogation ('My interrogator gave me nothing but carrots to eat') and remembers a surreal exchange with a police officer. ('My daughter is a huge fan of you ... So, did you really mean to blow up Boston?') Now his latest project is a cool high-definition/surround sound installation for an event called RIP.MIX.BURN.BAM.PFA."
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Aqua Teen Art 'Terrorist' Describes His Ordeal More

Aqua Teen Art 'Terrorist' Describes His Ordeal

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  • Hmm... (Score:5, Funny)

    by FF8Jake ( 929704 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @02:31AM (#21387989)
    Considering the amount of explosions in ATHF, I consider the threat to be completely valid. Remember everyone, terrorists clearly mark the bombs with flashing lights, to be widely apparent to everyone, so that they have a chance to observe the bomb before it explodes.

    • Re:Hmm... (Score:5, Insightful)

      by FredFredrickson ( 1177871 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @03:39AM (#21388201) Homepage Journal
      Just because it alarmed the public, didn't mean he knew it'd happen. I think intent should have a lot to do with things. Anyway, people are just retarded. I was in Boston that day. I wish I had seen it!

    • Re:Hmm... (Score:5, Interesting)

      by pcgabe ( 712924 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @07:09AM (#21388965) Homepage Journal
      It's funny you mention that. We had a similar incident not too long ago at my university.

      The cleaning staff for the computer/engineering building saw some creepy guy going through the building at 5:30am, way earlier than people normally show up in the morning. They didn't really think anything of it, until they got to the third floor.

      On the third floor, displayed in the window of one of the offices, was a timer. And it was counting. Up.

      Wires could be seen coming off of it, but nobody could tell where they went.

      Campus security was called, the police were called, bomb-sniffing dogs were called in, the building was shut down.

      It turned out (of course) to be just a diagnostic display. The "wires" leading away from the device went up to a curtain rod. They were holding it up.

      The funny thing was, it had been there for weeks. The cleaning crew must have seen it, but they didn't remember it being there. And why was it counting UP and not DOWN? We've all seen 24, we know which way timers are supposed to go.

      But in an outbreak of common sense, nobody was charged with a "hoax", nobody was arrested, and nobody is in jail. The cleaning crew made a mistake (and apologized later!), and that was the end of that.

      And thank goodness, because that creepy guy was ME!
      • I think this is a good example of how things should work. Ideally a strange device like that ought to be reported if there is a genuine concern about it. I suppose it could have hypothetically been a poorly designed bomb.

        But reporting the device really shouldn't automatically trigger anything beyond a short investigation,unless there are explosives found, or further evidence that it was intended to be dangerous.

        Just because in the case of the article, people from Boston are that ignorant overall and are try

      • Re:Hmm... (Score:4, Funny)

        by Anonymous Coward on Saturday November 17, 2007 @04:21PM (#21392335)

        On the third floor, displayed in the window of one of the offices, was a timer. And it was counting. Up.

        For future reference, timers that count up are commonly referred to as "clocks".

      • Re:Hmm... (Score:4, Funny)

        by RedBear ( 207369 ) <redbear.redbearnet@com> on Saturday November 17, 2007 @05:30PM (#21392917) Homepage

        that creepy guy was ME!

        And I'm sure you would have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for those meddling janitors!

        Rooby-rooby-rooooo!

      • Good ending to the story!
    • have you seen the Quad Laser? :)

      "There is no escape" "Yeah!" "OH SHIT! It's going backwards!"

  • A story worthy of Franz Kafka. (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Z00L00K ( 682162 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @02:31AM (#21387991) Homepage Journal
    It is so bizarre and still indicates the rigidness of the public service to go so over the edge that it can only be fully described as a work of surrealistic art.

    • It is so bizarre and still indicates the rigidness of the public service to go so over the edge that it can only be fully described as a work of surrealistic art.

      On the other hand, how do we know his account is true, and not a fictional work of surrealistic art? If it's truly Kafkaesque, there's at least the possibility it's fiction.

  • What are the police really like? (Score:5, Interesting)

    by whoever57 ( 658626 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @02:38AM (#21388011) Journal
    Over the past few years, I have come to consider the police as not-too-intelligent bullies. Actions reported can only be explained by a lack of rational thought (in favor of blindly following rules, or blind over-reaction), yet this extract from the article makes one rethink that assessment:

    I cooperated fully -- since I had nothing to hide -- but at times it was uncanny as to how convincing he was. He made me want to tell him my deepest secrets -- a genuinely weird feeling. I had to snap out of it a few times.
    It is required in the UK for recordings to be made of all interrogations. Why is this not the case in the US? If the police are following the rules, they would have nothing to hide, would they?

    • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

      by Anonymous Coward
      Watch Law & Order. It's an American crime drama that follows the police through the investigation to interrogation.

      Now, realize that this is a TV show and that they're putting the best possible spin on the way the cops behave. Watch the tactics they use. Realize that these are fictional tactics, spun in the best way possible.

      It's really quite scary. Americans EXPECT their police to act that way! They glorify it in their media!

      Another fun, more recent example was some video I saw of a bunch of Boston pol
      • Another fun, more recent example was some video I saw of a bunch of Boston police officers. It was night, and there was a large line of police officers in riot gear. Some were on horses. I was trying to figure out what was happening in Boston that would justify such a police response. The answer? The local baseball team had won the baseball championship. The police response was against fans, celebrating the victory in the streets. The Boston response to people celebrating a sporting victory is to call out t
        • "I don't know what American baseball fans are like, but in the UK, well... go to any Premiership football match and there are mounted police everywhere. Riot gear is unusual; they're mostly there for crowd control. Mostly. Go to a major game - let's say, oh... Liverpool vs Manchester United - and there'll be a serious police presence. Wherever you have tens of thousands of people in one place where emotions run high and a great deal of beer has been drunk, there's a danger of violence. And that's today; bac

      • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

        by Nephilium ( 684559 )

        The answer? The local baseball team had won the baseball championship. The police response was against fans, celebrating the victory in the streets. The Boston response to people celebrating a sporting victory is to call out the riot police. According to the reporter, the last time something like this happened, the Boston police actually killed a fan, using a "less than lethal" weapon that proved not to live up to its name.

        You mean to prevent stuff like the riots in Detroit when the Pistons won the champi

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by pembo13 ( 770295 )
      Why in the world would the police want that? I'm sure the good cops might not mind it, but that police as a whole.... I don't see that getting through.

    • Re:What are the police really like? (Score:5, Interesting)

      by CarpetShark ( 865376 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @03:44AM (#21388227)

      Over the past few years, I have come to consider the police as not-too-intelligent bullies.


      I used to have a lot of respect for the police. Then I actually had to try to reason with one. Now, I share that exact same assessment.

    • If the police are following the rules, they would have nothing to hide, would they?
      That is a very interesting point -- not least in light of the popularity of the government's "if you have nothing to hide, we're sure you won't mind us monitoring your every move" argumentation. Tit for tat, one might say.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by renoX ( 11677 )
      Hmm, remind me how long can the police hold someone in UK?

      If memory serves, it was something like two weeks if they suspect you of terrorism, two weeks is a very long time, I wouldn't be surprised that in two weeks the police can make you sign whatever they like..

      • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

        by meringuoid ( 568297 )
        Hmm, remind me how long can the police hold someone in UK? If memory serves, it was something like two weeks if they suspect you of terrorism, two weeks is a very long time, I wouldn't be surprised that in two weeks the police can make you sign whatever they like...

        It used to be that in England they'd keep you for seven long days; God help you if ever you're caught on these shores, though, because it's been extended to 28 days. Apparently they can't always extract a confession in this time, though, becaus

    • Re:What are the police really like? (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Mad-cat ( 134809 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @01:32PM (#21391163) Homepage
      I blame the paramilitary and militaristic mentality in most police forces. In fact, I would go so far as to say I don't even like the term "police force."

      I'm a police officer in Florida. There are several principles I follow which have resulted in my getting only two complaints against me in the past two years.

      1. I'm a peace officer, not a law enforcement officer. My goal is the peaceful resolution of conflict, using the law to do so.
      2. You cannot insult me. I take offense at nothing while on the job.
      3. I will never threaten to arrest someone: I will only warn them that they can be arrested for their actions and will give them several options for peacefully resolving the issue.
      4. I will always explain my reasons behind my actions to anyone who asks, so long as safety permits.
      5. I will never blindly follow the rules.
      6. When in doubt, ask myself if I could talk with my family about what I was about to do to someone without feeling ashamed.

      The military mindset is POISON to the civilian police service. If I could do only one thing to improve police relations with the community and performance levels, I would eliminate everything remotely resembling the military. No sergeants, no lieutenants, no military-looking uniforms. Cops should look, think, and act like the civilians they are.

      • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

        by Theaetetus ( 590071 )
        You seem to be a reasonable and responsible officer. You've recognized that the public has a growing dislike and distrust for your profession. Other than the excellent principles you stated that you follow, what are you doing to spread them further and repair the damage caused by your colleagues?

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by Sabriel ( 134364 )
          Other than...? If only more of our nations' leaders and public officials would do as much as this officer has: set a good example for others. :(

      • Re:What are the police really like? (Score:5, Informative)

        by rickwood ( 450707 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @03:33PM (#21392025)
        God bless you, officer. I wish more police officers understood this as well as you do.
      • We need more cops like you.
      • VERY well-said, Mad-cat. A recent event [google.com] involving the RCMP's inappropriate behaviour is getting a lot of attention these days.

        FOUR(!) fit-for-service officers needed to use a Taser against one unruly individual? Were they afraid of getting their facial make-up smeared in an actual physical confrontation?

        The RCMP *must* apologize (and compensate) for this sad event or risk losing worldwide respect.

  • I'm torn. (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Guppy06 ( 410832 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @02:45AM (#21388035)
    On the one hand, the police went overboard. On the other, I'm not going to shed a tear for an advertiser.
    • What other hand? It's irrelevant who's on the tail end of this, What is relevant is how it was handled by the authoritative figures and in this case it was handled poorly.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Guppy06 ( 410832 )
        "What is relevant is how it was handled by the authoritative figures and in this case it was handled poorly."

        I know, they released them back onto the street where they can continue to buy my personal information, jam my telephone, clog my mailbox, and harass me with dancing aliens to try to sell me life insurance/mortgages/penis pills I don't want. A pity.

    • Re:I'm torn. (Score:4, Insightful)

      by alienmole ( 15522 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @04:44AM (#21388387)
      Are you serious? He's an artist and a VJ who was doing an advertising gig. Assuming you actually work for a living, what kind of morally superior day job do *you* have?

      • He's an artist and a VJ who was doing an advertising gig.

        And I have exactly the sympathy for him that I'd give a prostitute who caught AIDS in 2005 from having unprotected anal sex.

        (Day job = university PFY admin)

    • I'm not going to shed a tear for an advertiser.

      The same thing would happen to anyone. The problem is not what they did, it's a paranoid interpretation of what they did that's the problem. A guerilla beautification squad installing boxes of flowers would have been arrested and vilified too.

  • So Boston was kinda, sort of, right to be... worried...

    On the flip side, the guy comes out after his "interrogation" and was so traumatized and in shock by it, that he does an improv on "hairstyles". I wonder how Orson Welles would've faired...

    (and ditto the above posters... what's up with the MIT chick? That was far more dangerous)

  • If it's not an American flag... (Score:5, Insightful)

    by mikesum ( 840054 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @03:42AM (#21388217)
    it must be a bomb.

  • Good to see.. (Score:5, Interesting)

    by insertwackynamehere ( 891357 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @03:58AM (#21388265) Journal
    I liked this guy's hair comments to the press way back and normally I'd see someone like him as a pretentious "artsy" douche.. you know, typical dreadlocked pothead graphic design/art major trying to look cool, but the fact is his "bomb threats" were blown out of proportion by the media. Do I think it makes sense it was investigated? Yes. Do I think it makes sense he was treated like crap when he was basically a adman (albeit an adman who resembles oldfashioned adman the way a Facebook engineer resembles an IBM engineer) that was hired to place ads for a well known product/company? No. I think it makes sense the lights were investigated and the men questioned but I think it's ridiculous that interrogation continued after they found out that their superiors were Viacom (okay not superiors per se but the people who outsourced to them). Viacom should have been the "target" of the authorities after this simple bit of information was found out.

    Anyway, that was a bit of a rant but my point is, I liked the way this guy handled the media way back (because the media, frankly, deserves that...I appreciate what they do, but every now and then they need to be reminded that they aren't the ones in control but the ones who document and their emotional manipulation and constant spinning deserves to be checked). But on this interview two quotes in particular made me realize he is separate:

    [Psychedelics] did not seem to offer a path to salvation, just a widening of perspective.
    and

    One doesn't need psychedelics to achieve those kinds of realizations however.
    I really think it was good of him to say that, because yeah, he's clearly someone who isn't a stranger to drugs but he offers a level headed view that's not overly self serving a biased. Too many people think drugs (especially psychedelics) answer all their questions and solve everything and sound like selfserving douchebags. They talk about discovering the answer while taking LSD and it's so pretentious and dickish and done to fit an image. Here's a guy who does them (no problem with that here) and then proceeds to say they helped a bit but they aren't necessary and maybe he enjoyed them but he's clearly not going to judge someone who doesn't do them. I've never tried psychedelics and I also no longer smoke marijuana, but I am most definitely not an anti-drug type; I just am glad to see someone saying drugs can be fun but they aren't necessary. People who do drugs and say that's the only way are almost worse than people who don't do drugs and say that's the only way because people who do drugs generally take pride in their self-described "open minds". So kudos to him for basically saying "yeah I used drugs but you don't have to and you can still get to the same point regardless of your choice."
  • Maybe they made such a big deal about it to get more Government funding? Lot'$ of taxpayer buck$ out there in the Homeland $ecurity biz.

    Conspicuous Hustle - A trick one of my former Chief Engineers used to make it look like he was doing something when the so called problem / issue was a no brainer. He'd make it look like a big deal, set up a "Tiger Team", expended lots of resources, got more budget, manpower, lots of visability, etc. and became the "Hero that saved the project". This was when I worked f

    • A trick one of my former Chief Engineers used to make it look like he was doing something when the so called problem / issue was a no brainer. He'd make it look like a big deal, set up a "Tiger Team", expended lots of resources, got more budget, manpower, lots of visability, etc. and became the "Hero that saved the project".

      Well, how else would he maintain his reputation as a miracle worker? I assume he also multiplied his estimates to fix the problem by four.

  • I'll wade into the lion's mouth (Score:4, Interesting)

    by edwardpickman ( 965122 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @04:55AM (#21388431)
    Admitedly terrorists are morons, thankfully, or we'd be in a lot more trouble. The point is say if I were trying to hurt a lot of people I wouldn't hide the weapon I'd want it to draw attention. Lets say you pull a trailer up and park it on a busy street and have a large sign that says to advertise your new mobile coffee francise you were giving away iPod Nanos to the first hundred customers that buy coffee. You're guaranteed a hundred people will be waiting at the mentioned opening time and probably a whole lot more. The Russians used the technique in Afganistan and went so far as to make explosives shaped like toys trageting kids. If you want to be sure to harm people you want to draw attention but the right type of attention so it seems perfectly normal. A trailer where you seemed to be selling coffee or ice cream wouldn't attract the attention of the police unless they wanted to check your permits but they wouldn't do that until you opened for business. Hiding a bomb in a display that is designed to draw attention does make sense. If they ignored them and they did blow up then people would be screaming. The police were doing their jobs being careful but they came down hard on them afterwards out of annoyance and the fact they felt foolish but what option did they have? Yes they shouldn't have tried to throw the book at them because it's an overreaction. They meant it as kind of a gorilla advertisement and gorilla actions like placing displays without permission or permits has some risk. The police handled the aftermath poorly but they had to know there was some potential for trouble. I'm sure they were expecting a possible fine not the third degree and a possible vacation at Gitmo.

    • Re:I'll wade into the lion's mouth (Score:5, Insightful)

      by meringuoid ( 568297 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @05:28AM (#21388583)
      A trailer where you seemed to be selling coffee or ice cream wouldn't attract the attention of the police unless they wanted to check your permits but they wouldn't do that until you opened for business. Hiding a bomb in a display that is designed to draw attention does make sense. If they ignored them and they did blow up then people would be screaming.

      So, if I were to go into business with a fleet of ice cream vans, and one fine summer's day my vans are driving around Boston giving away promotional ice cream and drawing quite a crowd, you would say the police ought to close down the roads, bring the whole city to a standstill, and arrest me on charges of perpetrating a bomb hoax, because my vans might be bombs?

    • You've failed to distinguish between attracting attention and attracting attention to something that looks like a bomb.

      The former is a perfectly evil way to draw a crowd which does not anticipate danger and hurt them. The latter is a really, really stupid tactic. Even if, for some reason, they were convinced that it would work as a means of reverse psychology, it obviously doesn't. I should also mention that the size and placement of the "devices" guaranteed that they would be useless as weapons. They w

  • He also has a reputation in Boston -- and increasingly around the world -- as a popular VJ, video artist, performance artist and painter. Sentenced to 80 hours community service for his crime, he made the most of it, painting a delightfully trippy mural for Spaulding (physical) Rehabilitation Center. He was also recently voted the #12 VJ in the world by London-based DJ Magazine and was named Boston's Best Artist by Improper Bostonian Magazine. Zebbler also recently appeared in Berkeley, Caliifornia where his surround sound HD projection set was part of the opening reception for RIP.MIX.BURN.BAM.PFA at the Pacific Film Archives -- an exhibit that "celebrates the cultural and artistic practice of remix."

    I also have a reputation in my home town - and increasingly around the world - as a popular commenter, flame artist and commiter, and recently visited another town to participate in a cultural and artistic celebration of trolling, where my computer was used in the opening reception. Furthermore, I was recently voted #11 train spotter, and was elected best train spotter by my local newspaper, and won 5 pounds of meat, which I donated to the community. If that didn't sufficiently impress you, my toenails are

  • dark age (Score:4, Insightful)

    by wikinerd ( 809585 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @07:36AM (#21389041) Journal

    If you get into a time machine and get back to the dark ages and you put an image of a dragon in the middle of a mediaeval city you can laugh as you watch the crowd getting crazy and paranoid... until they catch and burn you as a witch (and if you don't look like one, they will make you look like a witch, probably by comparing your weight with that of a duck).

    Now, fast forward to 2007. Modern enlightened age you think? Think again... If you install some electronic stuff in a modern US city, you can laugh as you watch the crowd getting crazy and paranoid... until they catch you. What happens next depends very much on how white your skin is, whether you have a beard, and whether your name sounds Muslim. An English name combined with white skin and no facial hair will result in you getting your freedom after some interrogation in a police station, but if you have the "wrong" demographic characteristics then you will end up in a nasty camp in Cuba (By the way I find it interesting how they chose to set up Guantanamo on the same island as a communist dictatorship).

    The same can happen if you get into an airport with an electronic nametag on your chest.

    Or, perhaps if you walk to enter a train with your iPod wires visible from your pocket.

    Welcome to a society where everything that deviates from what is considered normal is equated with terrorism. Very soon every kind of behaviour, from what you see on your computer screen (Treacherous Computing will help with this) to what clothes you wear will be controlled by formal bureaucracies by force of violence if you don't comply. Not really because your behaviour will constitute a real threat, but only because your behaviour is inconsistent with that of a slave.

    When (or if) this terrorism fear paranoia passes, future historians will discuss our post-911 age with great interest and will consider it as a prime example of how civilisations can sabotage themselves and self-destruct forgetting hundreds of years of societal and civil evolution.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by shalla ( 642644 )
      Think again... If you install some electronic stuff in a modern US city, you can laugh as you watch the crowd getting crazy and paranoid... until they catch you.

      Only in some cities. Remember, Boston was the only city to react that way to the Mooninites.

      Hell, the Pittsburgh bomb squad is pretty damn calm about bombs. "Oh, that's suspicious. Right. Let's direct people away from there and get it investigated and if we need to we can send in the robot."

      Most of the time I don't even know they've been somewhe
    • Modern enlightened age you think? Think again... If you install some electronic stuff in a modern US city, you can laugh as you watch the crowd getting crazy and paranoid... until they catch you

      Then maybe it is time you did some thinking.

      The legitimate advertiser calls the Boston transit authority and inquires about costs, liability, restrictions on the placement and mounting of devices, and so on.

      He knows that promotional stunts have gone sour before.

      The terrorist by definition doesn't play by the rule

  • people who watch a lot of cartoon network think everyone knows what's up with cartoon network and will laugh at athf
    people who watch a lot of fox news think everyone knows knows what's up with fox news and will yell along with oreilly
    people who watch a lot of letterman can't understand how new yorkers can't recognize rupert ji isn't a deranged waiter
    none of these assumptions are remotely universal
    misunderstandings are bound to happen
    one big one did

  • Either the Boston police are totally incompetent, or the police in all the other cities where these things showed up are totally incompetent (depending on whether there really is a threat or not). My bet is on the former.

  • And Somewhere John Adams is weeping for Boston (Score:4, Insightful)

    by gadlaw ( 562280 ) <gilbert@gad l a w.com> on Saturday November 17, 2007 @10:28AM (#21389999) Homepage Journal
    Educational standards and common sense standards for police and elected officials in Boston certainly have fallen since Revolutionary War times when John Adams and others in Massachusetts led the way for Independence and for the rights of man in society. Now Boston is known for ignorance, thuggery, incompetence and a place willing to take the rights of humans away for the false security afforded by uniformed idiots with their self presented jangling medals and uniform bling while they all whore their way in front of cameras at the least provocation to strut and self congratulate each other about how well they are doing. Boston is a joke and an embarrassment. That's my two cents.

  • I Wash My TV in Fear (Score:3, Interesting)

    by CaroKann ( 795685 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @10:41AM (#21390089)
    Zebbler had a good point in regards to the business of TV news. Fear prods people to watch TV. The newstainment companies take advantage of that. "I Wash My TV in Fear" is a video show he puts on consisting of the most fearful snippets of TV news recorded over a couple of days. I wonder if it might be possible to create a horror movie that way.

  • Oh, come now. Ordeal? (Score:5, Interesting)

    by hey! ( 33014 ) on Saturday November 17, 2007 @11:33AM (#21390407) Homepage Journal
    They made him eat carrots? Were they overcooked?

    The cops may well have believed it was all a misunderstanding, but their job is to gather evidence of any possible crime. After you've been Mirandized, it's a game in which they try to get as much information out of you as possible without overstepping their constitutional limitations. If they act hostile towards you, it doesn't mean they are actually hostile, any more than a friendly act means you can trust them.

    Good cop or bad cop, it doesn't matter, once they've brought you in for something they're going to try to get you to give them evidence of a crime, or if they have solid evidence of a small crime, to get you to give them evidence of a bigger crime. In this case, by the time these guys were being interrogated the cops knew the devices weren't bombs. The cops were trying to get the guy to say something like this, "We weren't planting bombs! We just thought if we could close the subways down we'd get a lot of free publicity for our movie!" Bingo, they've just promoted a case of advertising without the proper permits into the intentional creation of a public nuisance. Armed with this, they throw the small fry back in order to get the genius behind the stunt, which is good police work. The corollary of this is that when there is no larger crime, the small fry endure some tough and threatening sounding talk.

    While normally I think cops should be polite and deferential to citizens, this one process is inherently ugly and manipulative, which is why you want a lawyer present in a police interrogation, even if your conscience is clear. You don't want to admit to a crime greater than the cops have evidence for, just because they are threatening to pin an even larger crime on you. Without a lawyer present, the system is inherently unfair and dangerous to the innocent.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by MadAhab ( 40080 )
      Well put.

      "My daughter is a fan of yours... were you trying to blow up Boston" is just silly. You have to realize, innocent or not, that once the authorities get into their heads that you are guilty, they are going to try every asinine, stupid, and ridiculous theory and game they can come up with to box you into a "guilty" position.

      Once they've decided that you are a "bad guy", they generally don't apply logic or common sense except in pursuit of proving you to be a "bad guy". That's what the rules are for.
  • RIP.MIX.BURN.BAM.PFA is an exhibition at the Berkeley Art Museum/Pacific Film Archive. The idea is for artists to take two selected digital works and remix them how they see fit, in a real Creative Commons kind of way. The neat thing about this is that the public (i.e. us) is also invited to do the same.

    http://bampfa.berkeley.edu/digitalart/ripmixburn [berkeley.edu]

    I go to the PFA fairly often, but I regrettably still haven't been to the BAM, even after four years.

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