Friday, October 05, 2007

I was an MIT professor: The Richard Jenkins Story

Well, no. But an MIT professor writes about the Star Simpson story with a headline that looks to provide insight.

I posted the following comment but it never got approved. It's possible that his blog software sucks (it took me three tries to not get a 500 error, although the last time explicitly said I was successful). I was mostly annoyed by the poor logical arguments, which wouldn't bother me so much from some random joe, but I think that professors from my alma mater shouldn't say things that are silly on their face.

This is mostly a mini-rant and I probably would've left it alone in the comment section there, but when I saw other comments posted later than mine being approved, I just decided to post it where I could.



Would Playdough by itself be sufficient to trigger a police response?

Should I tell them not to carry [circuit boards] to the airport?

... my late mother used to wear a broach to holiday parties which looked like a Christmas tree, lite up, and was battery powered. A star is not that removed from a Christmas tree, after all. Would such a device have been read as a bomb in the current climate?

You are right that no individual component was at all threatening by itself.

However, there is a much different picture when all those elements are taken together.

I'm not saying that the State Police acted appropriately (although I do not wish to be in their shoes). But your analysis is not becoming of an MIT professor.

Oh, and where do you get off titling this "I was a Teenage Terrorist: The Star Simpson Story" when you are not Star Simpson, and didn't even talk to her about the incident, and acknowledge that you've probably never even met her?