#IStandWithAhmed

[amsunshine]

Dude, I can't compete with the appeals to emotion and ad hominem. "Ripping" on a 14yo? Really? My posts were "ripping" on him? Discussing the objective fact of whether or not he actually did what everyone has put him on a pedestal for is ripping on him? And the sentiment that it doesn't actually matter if he did what he claims he did? I think I'm in bizarro land. Maybe it's a participation trophy culture thing?

 

A kid should not get arrested for putting a clock in a box, but I don't know if it is exactly worthy of being invited to the white house, either. Especially since, as all of you are stating about your own kids, young people everywhere are playing with circuits, arduinos, clock components and actually making their own stuff.

 

This is actually sort of hilarious. The first part of the thread was everyone joking about how dumb it was to not be able to see it was just a clock. Now it is a horrible insult (racist, even!) to say, oh wow it is just a clock and he didn't even build it himself. How bizarre that they arrested him for that. Why would his engineering teacher not just have kept it in the engineering classroom?

 

Is just a clock, and you're dumb if you can't see that, but you're also a horrible person if you talk about it as anything less than amazing for a kid to put a clock in a box. Right.

You either don't understand or you are refusing to see that he was not invited to the White House because of anything he did. He is not being put on a pedestal at all. What he did was not extraordinary. In fact, what he did was quite ordinary for a 14 year old kid What he was subjected to was extraordinary. That's why he got the invite.

[ktgrok]

I don't know any school where those things are allowed to be out and/or making noise during class to the point that the teacher would notice them. When I was in school, if any gadget made noise during class you'd get a warning and/or have the item confiscated. Are kids in high schools really allowed to use their phones and ipods in class these days? Or if it starts ringing and disrupts class that's totally fine?

 

He didn't have it out, it was in his backpack. The alarm went off (as sometimes happens with people's phones or actual watches) and he shut it off. Fine, take it away. But I've never heard of anyone being arrested for having a watch alarm go off, or their cell phone buzzing. All of those have wires and circuits too.

[ktgrok]

I do think it's a bit weird that he was invited to the White House since there have been other kids who have had similar things happen (including getting arrested), but I think that was the President (or maybe someone who runs his Twitter feed) writing the first thing to come to mind, not necessarily the President clearing his schedule for this kid.  He was specifically invited to the astronomy night at the White House.  It doesn't appear they are going to fly him out on taxpayer dollars to shake hands with the president.  https://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2015/09/16/we-stand-ahmed-and-we-hope-hell-join-us-astronomy-night

 

 

Middle *and* high schools here.  They aren't allowed to ring.  They have to be on silent.  The middle schools are more strict.  Phones can only be out at lunch, passing periods, and if they are being used in class (it's crazy how much smart phones get used in class here - some classrooms have their own QR code to go to the teacher's website).  In high school, there are time listening to music in class (with headphones) is okay.  Texting is pretty much constant.  It's at the teacher's discretion so if he or she thinks it's not a disruption it's allowed.  The year my daughter was in public school she texted me several times every single day.  She is regularly texting with her friends in public school during the school day.  So, yeah, I know a whole bunch of schools where electronics are allowed to be out.  If they make noise, the student gets a warning to cut the sound off, but its not confiscated (unless of course the kid refuses to turn the sound off).

 

True. My son did public school for part of 9th grade and they were instructed to use their phones to take photos of the assignment list on the blackboard. 

[EmseB]

He didn't have it out, it was in his backpack. The alarm went off (as sometimes happens with people's phones or actual watches) and he shut it off. Fine, take it away. But I've never heard of anyone being arrested for having a watch alarm go off, or their cell phone buzzing. All of those have wires and circuits too.

Right. I have stated repeatedly, in almost every post I've made in this thread, that he should not have been arrested.

[idnib]

Is just a clock, and you're dumb if you can't see that, but you're also a horrible person if you talk about it as anything less than amazing for a kid to put a clock in a box. Right.

 

You're assuming he was invited to the White House because he put a clock into a pencil case. He was invited because he put a clock into a pencil case and then was handcuffed and arrested and it went viral on social media.

[ChocolateReignRemix]

You're assuming he was invited to the White House because he put a clock into a pencil case. He was invited because he put a clock into a pencil case and then was handcuffed and arrested and it went viral on social media.

And many feel that he was singled out for this treatment due to the color of his skin and his religion.

[EmseB]

You either don't understand or you are refusing to see that he was not invited to the White House because of anything he did. He is not being put on a pedestal at all. What he did was not extraordinary. In fact, what he did was quite ordinary for a 14 year old kid What he was subjected to was extraordinary. That's why he got the invite.

Ah, I did miss that. I thought he got invited, yes, as a result of what happened, but mainly for his cool clock ahs to talk stem. I mean, many kids have been subject to zero tolerance abuses but have not been invited to the White House, so I thought it was the science thing that was the focus of the invite.

[Pam in CT]

...

A kid should not get arrested for putting a clock in a box, but I don't know if it is exactly worthy of being invited to the white house, either. Especially since, as all of you are stating about your own kids, young people everywhere are playing with circuits, arduinos, clock components and actually making their own stuff.....

:iagree: .

 

 

Here's the thing, though:

 

 

 

You're assuming he was invited to the White House because he put a clock into a pencil case. He was invited because he put a clock into a pencil case and then was handcuffed and arrested and it went viral on social media.

 

 

 

...he was not invited to the White House because of anything he did. He is not being put on a pedestal at all. What he did was not extraordinary. In fact, what he did was quite ordinary for a 14 year old kid What he was subjected to was extraordinary. That's why he got the invite.

 

It bears repeating and bolding and font-increasing:

 

What he was subjected to was extraordinary.

 

He wasn't invited to the White House because he (re)built a clock, he was invited because of what he was subjected to.  (Ruby Bridges isn't famous because she walked six blocks to first grade, either.  What's the big deal with that!?  Nothing -- what she was subjected to made her extraordinary.)

 

 

And also, as Butter said, it's not like the President is clearing the Pope or the Chinese head of state off his calendar in order to meet him.  They've invited him to join Astronomy Night.

 He was specifically invited to the astronomy night at the White House.  It doesn't appear they are going to fly him out on taxpayer dollars to shake hands with the president.  https://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2015/09/16/we-stand-ahmed-and-we-hope-hell-join-us-astronomy-night

 

It's cool, for sure, but along the lines of being invited to the Easter Egg hunt on the White House lawn.  There's a process, so many people get invitations.  He got one to this.  Rock on.

 

 

 

 

ETA: I just saw your last post; I think we were writing at the same time.  I agree, the clock would not merit an in depth STEM discussion with the President!   :laugh:

[amsunshine]

Ah, I did miss that. I thought he got invited, yes, as a result of what happened, but mainly for his cool clock ahs to talk stem. I mean, many kids have been subject to zero tolerance abuses but have not been invited to the White House, so I thought it was the science thing that was the focus of the invite.

 

Yes, because kids in general -- but especially minority kids -- should not be subjected to the humiliation he was for doing something that exhibited his desire to learn!  So yes, science had something to do with it, of course.  But you are misinterpreting the situation when you say he was being put on a pedestal, etc.  

[Spryte]

:iagree: .

 

 

Here's the thing, though:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It bears repeating and bolding and font-increasing:

 

What he was subjected to was extraordinary.

 

He wasn't invited to the White House because he (re)built a clock, he was invited because of what he was subjected to.  (Ruby Bridges isn't famous because she walked six blocks to first grade, either.  What's the big deal with that!?  Nothing -- what she was subjected to made her extraordinary.)

 

 

And also, as Butter said, it's not like the President is clearing the Pope or the Chinese head of state off his calendar in order to meet him.  They've invited him to join Astronomy Night.

It's cool, for sure, but along the lines of being invited to the Easter Egg hunt on the White House lawn.  There's a process, so many people get invitations.  He got one to this.  Rock on.

 

 

 

 

ETA: I just saw your last post; I think we were writing at the same time.  I agree, the clock would not merit an in depth STEM discussion with the President!   :laugh:

 

This needs to be repeated.  Again and again, apparently.  The Easter Egg Roll comparison came to my mind as well.  There are many invitations given out.  Many.  Getting one does not confer great prestige, but it can mean that one will have a fun night!  

 

The White House invitation is nice, it's a nice gesture.  But it doesn't mean someone thinks this is The. Most. Brilliant. Child. Ever.  It means that through being subjected to something so extraordinary, as a result of his STEM interest, he came to the attention of someone on the White House staff.  Sure, lots of other kids do similar things, but they're not all subjected to the same miserable experience as a result, and they don't all come to the attention of the POTUS.  Astronomy Night will be fun for him, but it doesn't mean he's being touted as a great young mind.  

 

I don't know Ahmed, but I think he's probably a pretty normal kid, with interests similar to lots of other kids.  In fact, I could see my own kid doing the exact same thing.  That's what makes what happened to him so very extraordinary.  It wasn't Ahmed who was extraordinary at all.  It was the adults.  

 

ETA:  I'm going to amend the above.  Ahmed did do something extraordinary, actually.  He stayed calm in the face of hysteria from adults.  He repeated the truth ("It's a clock.") and he asked for his parents.  For a 14 year old, I think he did handle this extraordinarily well.

 

(And now I'm off to take a rest from using the word extraordinary, as I think I've hit my yearly quota.)

[ktgrok]

After this all happened my husband made this with the kids, and tweeted about it. 

[Lanny]

Apparently this was a hoax. Apparently Ahmed took apart an old Radio Shack (?) item and the he claimed that he had designed and invented something. If that is true, he is a deceitful young man... 

[Slojo]

After this all happened my husband made this with the kids, and tweeted about it. 

 

Cool! we were thinking of putting together a clock over the weekend and tweeting something similar.  

[kitten18]

After this all happened my husband made this with the kids, and tweeted about it.

I don't know, looks pretty dangerous.

[Word Nerd]

Apparently this was a hoax. Apparently Ahmed took apart an old Radio Shack (?) item and the he claimed that he had designed and invented something. If that is true, he is a deceitful young man... 

 

It was not. a. hoax. He claimed it was a clock. It was a clock.

[myfunnybunch]

Apparently this was a hoax. Apparently Ahmed took apart an old Radio Shack (?) item and the he claimed that he had designed and invented something. If that is true, he is a deceitful young man... 

 

Oh, for heaven's sake. I don't care if he went to school and pretended to have invented TIME itself. The words that he used to describe putting the clock together are not the issue.

 

He did an electronics project at home. He took it to school to show his engineering teacher. He told the engineering teacher and the English teacher and the school administration and the police that it was a clock.

 

He was arrested. Not because he used the word "made" to describe his clock, but because the adults around him insisted that he intended to pretend that it was really a bomb. AND ARRESTED HIM. That is complete and utter idiocy.

After this all happened my husband made this with the kids, and tweeted about it. 

 

I bet you didn't even genetically engineer the lemon, or smelt the ore for the copper wires.  "Made" a clock, indeed!

[Slojo]

:iagree: .

 

 

Here's the thing, though:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It bears repeating and bolding and font-increasing:

 

What he was subjected to was extraordinary.

 

He wasn't invited to the White House because he (re)built a clock, he was invited because of what he was subjected to.  (Ruby Bridges isn't famous because she walked six blocks to first grade, either.  What's the big deal with that!?  Nothing -- what she was subjected to made her extraordinary.)

 

This needs to be liked over and over again. I am going to quote you: Ruby Bridges isn't famous because she walked six blocks to first grade, either.  What's the big deal with that!?  Nothing -- what she was subjected to made her extraordinary.  It would be disingenuous to suggest that she received a Presidential Citizens Medal merely for walking six blocks - though I'm sure there are individuals who have tried to make such a claim.  Honestly, I don't understand individuals who are so multi-dimensional in their ability to grasp great depths of complexity and nuance in other areas of life, are somehow just 'challenged' when posed with a fairly simple social situation, and the understandable outpouring of support in defense of a kid. Let Ahmed enjoy his astronomy night - unless you're opposed to him learning even more about STEM -- as some would suggest, he apparently NEEDS the exposure, as simple as his clock was and all (or maybe they only want those amazing opportunities for them and theirs, or some abstract "more deserving kid" -- which seems to "NEVER" in some folks minds be the "Ahmeds" of the world (always some "they're not-so-amazing, sour grapes tasting" reason the "Ahmeds" should not receive such opportunities). 

 

Bravo for him (even if one doesn't get what all the "accolades" are about), I was raised to believe that there's enough sunshine for all of us, so whatever opportunities Ahmed gets don't take anything away from me. 

[MinivanMom]

I don't know any school where those things are allowed to be out and/or making noise during class to the point that the teacher would notice them. When I was in school, if any gadget made noise during class you'd get a warning and/or have the item confiscated. Are kids in high schools really allowed to use their phones and ipods in class these days? Or if it starts ringing and disrupts class that's totally fine?

 

Our district has a BYOD policy (Bring Your Own Device) in the high schools where students are encouraged to bring their laptops, ipads, or any other electronic "tools" to school to use during class time. This includes their "smart phones", which they can have out and in use pretty much whenever they wish. The idea is to encourage students to use technology in the classroom.

 

I've heard a few stories about kids failing classes, because they spend all their time texting or posting on Facebook. We are in a pretty affluent, competitive school district, though; most kids care enough about their grades and class rank to use their technology responsibly.

[Word Nerd]

A kid should not get arrested for putting a clock in a box, but 

 

The bolded is the key point here. It's such a major, glaring point that I would personally put a full stop after it instead of continuing the sentence. Anything that comes after the but is secondary or a red herring. You can keep adding more buts if you like, but realize that it's likely going to come across as arguing for the sake of arguing.

[zoobie]

After this all happened my husband made this with the kids, and tweeted about it.

Oh yeah, well did he invent that lemon? WHAT A HOAX!

[SKL]

Oh, for heaven's sake. I don't care if he went to school and pretended to have invented TIME itself. The words that he used to describe putting the clock together are not the issue.

 

He did an electronics project at home. He took it to school to show his engineering teacher. He told the engineering teacher and the English teacher and the school administration and the police that it was a clock.

 

He was arrested. Not because he used the word "made" to describe his clock, but because the adults around him insisted that he intended to pretend that it was really a bomb. AND ARRESTED HIM. That is complete and utter idiocy.

 

I think his point was that if the boy was dishonest about that, perhaps his credibility is in question as far as other things he said.  And this is important since we know the school cannot provide its side of the story.

[zoobie]

:iagree: .

 

 

Here's the thing, though:

 

 

 

 

 

It bears repeating and bolding and font-increasing:

 

What he was subjected to was extraordinary.

 

He wasn't invited to the White House because he (re)built a clock, he was invited because of what he was subjected to. (Ruby Bridges isn't famous because she walked six blocks to first grade, either. What's the big deal with that!? Nothing -- what she was subjected to made her extraordinary.)

 

 

And also, as Butter said, it's not like the President is clearing the Pope or the Chinese head of state off his calendar in order to meet him. They've invited him to join Astronomy Night.

It's cool, for sure, but along the lines of being invited to the Easter Egg hunt on the White House lawn. There's a process, so many people get invitations. He got one to this. Rock on.

 

 

 

 

ETA: I just saw your last post; I think we were writing at the same time. I agree, the clock would not merit an in depth STEM discussion with the President! :laugh:

Yes! Plus, by inviting him, it brings more attention to the fact that the 14 year old Muslim child is NOT a national security threat.

[Joker]

I don't know any school where those things are allowed to be out and/or making noise during class to the point that the teacher would notice them. When I was in school, if any gadget made noise during class you'd get a warning and/or have the item confiscated. Are kids in high schools really allowed to use their phones and ipods in class these days? Or if it starts ringing and disrupts class that's totally fine?

 

All students in middle and high school here are issued iPads to use in class. They are also allowed to carry their phones and they are allowed to use them at certain times (lunch, study hall, if there's nothing going on in a class, etc.). They're just supposed to keep them the phones on silent.

[amsunshine]

Apparently this was a hoax. Apparently Ahmed took apart an old Radio Shack (?) item and the he claimed that he had designed and invented something. If that is true, he is a deceitful young man... 

 

OMG.   :banghead:

[DesertBlossom]

Apparently this was a hoax. Apparently Ahmed took apart an old Radio Shack (?) item and the he claimed that he had designed and invented something. If that is true, he is a deceitful young man...

I read this as well. Is it possible that he took apart another electronic device and stuck in a box intending for it to look suspicious so that he could cry out "but it's just a clock" when they called him out on it? If he didn't build it himself from scratch, was he being dishonest about his engineering abilities, or was he intentionally being provocative?

 

FTR, I think the handcuffs were out of line. But instead of him being some picked-on Muslim engineering prodigy, maybe he's just an obnoxious 14 year old who was trying to get a reaction out of people.

[DesertBlossom]

OMG. :banghead:

Care to elaborate? Do you know for certain it was his own creation?

[Butter]

Apparently this was a hoax. Apparently Ahmed took apart an old Radio Shack (?) item and the he claimed that he had designed and invented something. If that is true, he is a deceitful young man... 

 

Did you read the thread?  Yes, he did indeed take existing clock innards, took them apart, and put them back together and they still worked as a clock.  Yes, he called it an "invention."  We've been through this already.  He also called it a creation.  The school claimed he intended it to look like a bomb and called it a hoax bomb (IOW, they knew the whole time it wasn't a bomb).

[ktgrok]

I read this as well. Is it possible that he took apart another electronic device and stuck in a box intending for it to look suspicious so that he could cry out "but it's just a clock" when they called him out on it? If he didn't build it himself from scratch, was he being dishonest about his engineering abilities, or was he intentionally being provocative?

 

FTR, I think the handcuffs were out of line. But instead of him being some picked-on Muslim engineering prodigy, maybe he's just an obnoxious 14 year old who was trying to get a reaction out of people.

 

 

Except he showed it to his teacher and said, "this is a clock." And if it is just a clock stuck in a box, how is that a hoax bomb? It's a clock. He said it was a clock. The police said there was no evidence of a hoax. 

[amsunshine]

Care to elaborate? Do you know for certain it was his own creation?

 

 

If you read my previous posts, you will find I've expressed my views already.  I am tired of hearing the arguments that amount to a smear campaign against this child, and it's disheartening to see people being swayed by it/them.

 

In addition to what I've said earlier, though, I think Make Magazine's article today was right on point.  

[Butter]

Care to elaborate? Do you know for certain it was his own creation?

 

His own creation as in he took something apart (which made it no longer work) and put that something back together (so it worked again).  He never claimed to have invented clocks.

[DesertBlossom]

Except he showed it to his teacher and said, "this is a clock." And if it is just a clock stuck in a box, how is that a hoax bomb? It's a clock. He said it was a clock. The police said there was no evidence of a hoax.

And I remember being a kid. I remember saying stupid things and feigning ignorance. I know, I know. He said he was a clock. But that doesn't mean he didn't know it looked more like a bomb than a clock. (even if it didn't look much like a bomb either)

 

I guess instead of seeing this kid as a STEM hopeful, I wonder if maybe he was trying to be stupid and get a rise out of people. I'm sure he didn't expect to be blown out of proportion like it did. Maybe he thought somebody might accuse him of it looking like a bomb and they'd all have a good laugh out it. Maybe he never expected anyone to actually take him seriously. But maybe, just maybe, he did it on purpose. Calling the cops and arresting him was definitely not the right reaction. But instead of heralding the kid as some sort of hero, maybe he needed a (figurative) smack upside the head.

[idnib]

I keep thinking of the "I invented Post-Its" scene from Romy and Michelle's High School Reunion.

[idnib]

And I remember being a kid. I remember saying stupid things and feigning ignorance. I know, I know. He said he was a clock. But that doesn't mean he didn't know it looked more like a bomb than a clock. (even if it didn't look much like a bomb either)

 

I guess instead of seeing this kid as a STEM hopeful, I wonder if maybe he was trying to be stupid and get a rise out of people. I'm sure he didn't expect to be blown out of proportion like it did. Maybe he thought somebody might accuse him of it looking like a bomb and they'd all have a good laugh out it. Maybe he never expected anyone to actually take him seriously. But maybe, just maybe, he did it on purpose. Calling the cops and arresting him was definitely not the right reaction. But instead of heralding the kid as some sort of hero, maybe he needed a (figurative) smack upside the head.

 

I'm pretty sure Muslims are getting enough grief without deliberately bringing it upon ourselves for hijinks.

[LucyStoner]

Good grief. To paraphrase a wiser woman than me, ain't nobody got time for this.

[Butter]

And I remember being a kid. I remember saying stupid things and feigning ignorance. I know, I know. He said he was a clock. But that doesn't mean he didn't know it looked more like a bomb than a clock. (even if it didn't look much like a bomb either)

 

I guess instead of seeing this kid as a STEM hopeful, I wonder if maybe he was trying to be stupid and get a rise out of people. I'm sure he didn't expect to be blown out of proportion like it did. Maybe he thought somebody might accuse him of it looking like a bomb and they'd all have a good laugh out it. Maybe he never expected anyone to actually take him seriously. But maybe, just maybe, he did it on purpose. Calling the cops and arresting him was definitely not the right reaction. But instead of heralding the kid as some sort of hero, maybe he needed a (figurative) smack upside the head.

 

I would say you could possibly be on the right track IF the only teacher who saw it was his English teacher.  That's not what happened, though.  He brought it to school and happily showed it to his Engineering teacher.  When he showed it to his engineering teacher he said right from the start it was a clock.  He seemed surprised when his English teacher said it looked like a bomb to her.

[happi duck]

After this all happened my husband made this with the kids, and tweeted about it.

*squirt*

MY EYE!! MY EYE!!!

[December]

And I remember being a kid. I remember saying stupid things and feigning ignorance. I know, I know. He said he was a clock. But that doesn't mean he didn't know it looked more like a bomb than a clock. (even if it didn't look much like a bomb either)

 

I guess instead of seeing this kid as a STEM hopeful, I wonder if maybe he was trying to be stupid and get a rise out of people. I'm sure he didn't expect to be blown out of proportion like it did. Maybe he thought somebody might accuse him of it looking like a bomb and they'd all have a good laugh out it. Maybe he never expected anyone to actually take him seriously. But maybe, just maybe, he did it on purpose. Calling the cops and arresting him was definitely not the right reaction. But instead of heralding the kid as some sort of hero, maybe he needed a (figurative) smack upside the head.

 

But there is absolutely no evidence to support your theory.  It is based on pure speculation.  So why should a kid be "figuratively smacked upside the head" based on nothing more than speculation?

[DesertBlossom]

I'm pretty sure Muslims are getting enough grief without deliberately bringing it upon ourselves for hijinks.

I wouldn't assume a 14 year old would even take that into consideration when trying to play a prank. I could see a kid of any color or nationality doing the same thing.

And I am confused as to why this has been turned into a muslim thing. I think it has more to do with the "no tolerance" policies that leave no room for common sense. I think the adults have totally over-reacted in this case. However, I guess I just don't assume this kid is so innocent. I mean, 14 year olds don't always think things through. But that doesn't mean he wasn't trying to be obnoxious.

[DesertBlossom]

But there is absolutely no evidence to support your theory. It is based on pure speculation. So why should a kid be "figuratively smacked upside the head" based on nothing more than speculation?

Everything about this is pure speculation. No one, besides the kid, knows what his true motive was.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I really really hope that all of our kids have kind people in their lives who are there to encourage them instead of looking for conspiracy theories.  I really really really hope this.  

[ktgrok]

And I remember being a kid. I remember saying stupid things and feigning ignorance. I know, I know. He said he was a clock. But that doesn't mean he didn't know it looked more like a bomb than a clock. (even if it didn't look much like a bomb either)

 

I guess instead of seeing this kid as a STEM hopeful, I wonder if maybe he was trying to be stupid and get a rise out of people. I'm sure he didn't expect to be blown out of proportion like it did. Maybe he thought somebody might accuse him of it looking like a bomb and they'd all have a good laugh out it. Maybe he never expected anyone to actually take him seriously. But maybe, just maybe, he did it on purpose. Calling the cops and arresting him was definitely not the right reaction. But instead of heralding the kid as some sort of hero, maybe he needed a (figurative) smack upside the head.

 

Exlpain to me how it looks more like a bomb than a clock????? 

 

And if he was trying to make it look scary, why put it in a colorful pencil case with a picture of a tiger on the front? Why show it to his teacher? Why then put it in his backpack when told not to show ti to anyone else? How is any of that trying to scare people?

[justasque]

I read this as well. Is it possible that he took apart another electronic device and stuck in a box intending for it to look suspicious so that he could cry out "but it's just a clock" when they called him out on it? If he didn't build it himself from scratch, was he being dishonest about his engineering abilities, or was he intentionally being provocative?

 

FTR, I think the handcuffs were out of line. But instead of him being some picked-on Muslim engineering prodigy, maybe he's just an obnoxious 14 year old who was trying to get a reaction out of people.

 

• Picked-on, yes - just read this thread.  
• Muslim, yes.  
• Engineering prodigy - we don't have enough information to decide.  He does seem to have an interest in "how stuff works", and "how to make stuff", which is common in kids who go on to be engineers (either prodigy-type engineers or garden-variety ones or even hobby-variety ones). 
• Provocative?  I don't see any evidence of that.
• Obnoxious?  He seemed more bewildered to me.
• Trying to get a reaction?  Yes, he apparently brought his creation to school to show his teacher, presumably because he thought the teacher would be interested and would react positively, in the same way an English student might show his teacher a poem he wrote, or an art student might show his teacher a drawing or painting he did at home. 

 

And I remember being a kid. I remember saying stupid things and feigning ignorance. I know, I know. He said he was a clock. But that doesn't mean he didn't know it looked more like a bomb than a clock. (even if it didn't look much like a bomb either)

 

I guess instead of seeing this kid as a STEM hopeful, I wonder if maybe he was trying to be stupid and get a rise out of people. I'm sure he didn't expect to be blown out of proportion like it did. Maybe he thought somebody might accuse him of it looking like a bomb and they'd all have a good laugh out it. Maybe he never expected anyone to actually take him seriously. But maybe, just maybe, he did it on purpose. Calling the cops and arresting him was definitely not the right reaction. But instead of heralding the kid as some sort of hero, maybe he needed a (figurative) smack upside the head.

 

To people who know a bit about how things work, Ahmed's creation looked like the inner workings of an electronic clock with an LED numeric display, mounted in a box.  It is fairly normal for people who tinker to create containers or housings for their creations, especially electronics.

 

It is certainly possible that a kid (general kid) could create a "hoax bomb" and bring it to school to "get a rise out of people".  However, there is absolutely no evidence in any of the news stories that have been posted here that Ahmed did that.  Nothing he did or said at school pointed to a "hoax bomb" intention.

 

I don't see Ahmed as a hero, and I don't think the public reaction is framed that way.  I think that geeky adults recognize that "there but the grace of God go I", and have reached out to Ahmed to say, "It's normal to tinker with stuff, and it's not normal or ok to get arrested for it.  We know it is HARD to be a geeky kid in a school/community that doesn't understand you, or worse, sees you as a threat.   Hang in there.  You'll find your tribe.  You're one of us.  It gets better.".  

[abcmommy]

To my 10 yr old it looked like a clock.  This has become so tiresome.

 

Its SO VERY CLEARLY related to his name and religion that it is LAUGHABLE.

 

See also a former #2 GOP candidate for political office said this weekend he would not support a Muslim holding the office of the presidency.  #religioustestfail 

 

Islam apparently is not compatible with the U.S. constitution, according to popular schools of thought.

 

I mean w...t.....    

[justasque]

I wouldn't assume a 14 year old would even take that into consideration when trying to play a prank. I could see a kid of any color or nationality doing the same thing.

And I am confused as to why this has been turned into a muslim thing. I think it has more to do with the "no tolerance" policies that leave no room for common sense. I think the adults have totally over-reacted in this case. However, I guess I just don't assume this kid is so innocent. I mean, 14 year olds don't always think things through. But that doesn't mean he wasn't trying to be obnoxious.

 

It's an intersectionality thing.  This kid is different than his local peers in several ways - he is Muslim, he is brown, he is an immigrant/foreigner (a first-generation-in-America kid), he is African, he comes from a household where English isn't the first language, and he is a geeky/nerdy/maker kid.  All of those things can make life just a little bit harder for him.  Those who identify with one or more of those groups have some empathy based on their shared experiences.  If you are not any of these things, you may not understand all of the baggage that goes with any one of them; thus you may not understand the connection the adults are feeling.  

[December]

Everything about this is pure speculation. No one, besides the kid, knows what his true motive was.

 

So why should people err on the side of punishing this kid?  There is no evidence he had any ill intent, yet you still want to see him punished (or figuratively slapped upside the head, whatever you want to call it).  I just don't understand WHY.     

[DesertBlossom]

So why should people err on the side of punishing this kid? There is no evidence he had any ill intent, yet you still want to see him punished (or figuratively slapped upside the head, whatever you want to call it). I just don't understand WHY.

No, I don't want to see him punished. A figurative slap upside the head doesn't mean any more to me than saying "That was stupid. Don't do it again."

 

I'm honestly just surprised this thread is 13 pages long. To me this is more about the idiocy of "no tolerance" policies than this being about a muslim kid being targeted. There are numerous examples of the "no tolerance" policies that went overboard besides this one that had nothing to do with race.

[Slojo]

And I remember being a kid. I remember saying stupid things and feigning ignorance. I know, I know. He said he was a clock. But that doesn't mean he didn't know it looked more like a bomb than a clock. (even if it didn't look much like a bomb either)

 

I guess instead of seeing this kid as a STEM hopeful, I wonder if maybe he was trying to be stupid and get a rise out of people. I'm sure he didn't expect to be blown out of proportion like it did. Maybe he thought somebody might accuse him of it looking like a bomb and they'd all have a good laugh out it. Maybe he never expected anyone to actually take him seriously. But maybe, just maybe, he did it on purpose. Calling the cops and arresting him was definitely not the right reaction. But instead of heralding the kid as some sort of hero, maybe he needed a (figurative) smack upside the head.

Sure - but did you say stupid things, and feign ignorance. every. single. time. you had a human interaction, or were at least some of your interactions genuine? Because the latter is much more normative, and should be generally assumed unless there's good reason not to. Otherwise, it's just too tiring to get through life. I mean, maybe just maybe my husband really doesn't love me and have been spending all these thirteen years living a double life, maybe he's a spy and has a whole espionage network behind him that I have no clue about (I've always loved that movie True Lies). Maybe my son really doesn't like Legos and building toys, but wants me to think he likes Legos - because kids just get crazy ideas like that -- and actually when I'm not looking pays his best friend to build the Lego sets and passes them off as his own creation. Maybe my old college buddy really doesn't have cancer but is doing so to garner all this attention on herself -- she has an ever-so-slight bent to her personality in which she often finds herself the center of attention...  You never know about any of us. Maybe, just maybe... my head's going to explode.

 

It's a kid. It's a clock. Adult overreach. Resonated with the public. End of story. Please tell me you are not that d*** cynical in real life.

 

I wouldn't assume a 14 year old would even take that into consideration when trying to play a prank. I could see a kid of any color or nationality doing the same thing.

And I am confused as to why this has been turned into a muslim thing. I think it has more to do with the "no tolerance" policies that leave no room for common sense. I think the adults have totally over-reacted in this case. However, I guess I just don't assume this kid is so innocent. I mean, 14 year olds don't always think things through. But that doesn't mean he wasn't trying to be obnoxious.

Okay - not quite end of story.  You really shouldn't be too confused about "the Muslim thing." It's a thing - kind of been a thing, most notedly since 9/11. Not that hard to understand. Yes, a "zero-tolerance" policy that "knows no color" is in place, but at this point, I think we've gotten report after report about disproportionate minority contact with authorities and authoritarian policies. Yep, it's about zero tolerance policies, but given the context - it's also about religion and race. It's kind of like suggesting that "whites only" water fountains were only about public health concerns and water conservation. 

[BrookValley.]

Apparently this was a hoax. Apparently Ahmed took apart an old Radio Shack (?) item and the he claimed that he had designed and invented something. If that is true, he is a deceitful young man... 

 

Lanny. Dude. C'mon man, I know you can get U.S. news from more than one *cough*Fox*cough* source in Colombia. 

 

So, firstly. In order for this to be a hoax, you'd have to be able to prove there was intent to pass the clock off as a bomb. Which, according to the information we have, you just can't do. Someone trying to pretend something is a bomb to scare, intimidate, cause chaos, etc., doesn't 1) happily introduce the thing as a clock to their first-period engineering teacher; 2) Bring the thing to their English teacher later in the day when the alarm goes off, and explain that it's a clock; and 3) continue to maintain that it's a clock when interrogated (perhaps illegally so?) after the cops get involved. All without, to the best of our knowledge, a history of troublemaking or disruptive behavior at school. 

 

Meaning, at no point did the situation resemble anything like a hoax. 

 

Secondly, how the hell else is a 14-year old supposed to build a clock? How the hell else do kids learn by tinkering? They pull stuff apart, and they put it together again, sometimes exactly how it was before they pulled it apart, sometimes slightly different, sometimes radically different. It's already been discussed that "invention" may be the wrong word choice, but he's FOURTEEN. We're really going to skewer the kid because he called his cobbled-together clock an invention a couple times? And how do we know he wasn't trying to build a clock that had, say, a fancier type of alarm than the original clock he pulled apart, or something else interesting? We don't. Maybe he was just trying to show his engineering teacher that he pulled a clock apart and was able to put it back together in a functional way? How is that deceitful?

 

Oh good grief. I've seen (not just here) far too much grasping at straws with this one. Are we really so eager to paint the brown Muslim kid as willing to terrorize that we now must attack the merit of his "invention" or his character in general?

 

Don't answer that.

 

I've seen post after post (again, not just here) about how his project wasn't all that smart or that we don't really know that he wasn't trying to cause some trouble. Really? Who cares how genius his project is or isn't? And there's no indication that this kid wants to cause trouble. None at all. Seems quite the opposite, actually. Seems like a kid trying to fit in somewhere and seeking validation. By all means, though, let's tear him down for that. 

[Corraleno]

My 13 year old likes to watch how-to-draw videos on youtube. The next time she shows me one of her drawings, I'll be sure to "smack her upside the head" and tell her that she didn't actually draw that, she just copied it, and she clearly has no original talent and should stop showing me these "hoax drawings."

 

:banghead:  :banghead:  :banghead: