Boston Bomb Scare

[BigV]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

That was my first thought.

[soapbox] Don't be so quick to condemn the mayor and all the city agencies that responded to this. They're doing their job. They're doing what we want them to do for a change.... protect the public. They have to respond to any unknown with maximum caution.
Just because they are within it's range and not watching on TV from a thousand miles away, dictates extreme caution.

How do you know the next terrorist bomb won't have blinky LED cartoon characters on it? Once the bomb is placed, that would be a way to attract the maximum curious people close.

So there's no reason to break their balls for doing their job the way they have scripted and rehearsed it. [/soapbox]

As you were and thank you for your attention.

Dear xoB:

Once again, you display the wisdom and calmness for which you are known. You're right on target. The public agencies *are* expected to respond. We all agree on that. But I think I may not have made my point clear.

I don't condemn the public safety officials for responding to the physical threat. I **do** condemn those officials who made statements about prosecuting people for what happened here. That is not right. This is no act of terrorism, I don’t care how freaked out somebody got.

Somebody was suspicious, there was a call, there was a response and it turned out to be a big false alarm. I called 911 once and nobody had to go to the hospital after they came. I said I was sorry I overreacted, I was scared, I didn’t know what to do, so I called. The first responders, the fire truck full of firemen and the aid car full of emt/paramedics, said “No problem. You did what you were supposed to do.” And I didn’t get charged for the trip or the call, I didn’t get arrested and prosecuted for guessing wrong about the seriousness of the situation.

We’re well past the panic phase of this event. It’s not an emergency anymore. There’s no need to respond with force, to speed through town lights and sirens blazing. There is no crime here, so why is there all this talk of prosecution? THAT’S what I’m chapped about.

If it’s “the law”, then the law is w-r-o-n-g. If it’s a judgment call on the part of the prosecutor, then his judgment is wrong. It’s over, nothing to see here, move along people, as you were, etc, etc. Jail?! Why? Explain why this is an act of terrorism.