75/85 Shut down at 14th Street (Marietta, Boston: 2014, crime, safe)

[Gulch]

Originally Posted by MattCW

And that's where you're wrong, government has limits, the police have limits, this trend of thinking the police are superheroes that will always save us if we just let them have their way is silly, ridiculous, and has to stop.
Life isn't without risk, even deadly risk. We shouldn't be hurting ourselves trying to bring risks down to 0 when it's impossible.

Wow. You actually think the cops taking precautionary measures to secure a potential bomb is "silly and ridiculous?"

[sedimenjerry]

Geez I rather have Mathman in this thread...

[MattCW]

Originally Posted by JMatl

Well, then obviously you are not as risk-averse as the general population.

Thankfully, you don't get to dictate you desires onto the rest of us.

If you mean "not as risk-averse" as "being adult enough to recognize we don't live forever and it's not worth being so paranoid as to not live at all" then yes, guilty as charged. Maybe one day you'll realize how short life really is to not be worried about every little thing.

Originally Posted by Gulch

Wow. You actually think the cops taking precautionary measures to secure a potential bomb is "silly and ridiculous?"

I'll be generous and say that this car was probably borderline, but yes, to the extent they did, it was certainly overblown. Risk analysis doesn't mean use a sledge hammer to tack down an errant staple as they did here, it means analyze the risk of a lower response vs the cost of a higher response. In this, as in most cases like this one, there was no analysis, and they grabbed the sledgehammer. These are the same cops that boast about seeing inside people's houses, or tracking everyone's moves. If they can do all of that, then they can analyze a potential threat without taking hours.

[PKCorey]

Originally Posted by sedimenjerry

Geez I rather have Mathman in this thread...

[PKCorey]

Originally Posted by MattCW

Hopefully he'll give the apd a bad time by suing them for destruction of property. Good grief have we become such cowards that we're so afraid of dying that we don't let ourselves live? Total overreaction by everyone involved! (and yes, just to make the trolls happy, the police chief should be fired if they condone this kind of thing, I'm sorry that I expect public officials to behave appropriately)

[ATLTJL]

The real terrorism is the ability to shut down the main thoroughfare in a major city by taping a tube to a bridge.

I hope you're listening, terrorists. You don't need fancy flight schools and CIA training to destroy America, all you really need are a few guys who are able to duct tape wrapping paper tubes to structures. Shoot, you can shut down every major city every day with just a few bucks!

If only there was some precedent, something that has happened in our past that could serve as an example of how ridiculous our paranoia has become. Oh well, I'm sure we'll figure it out some day.


Hi!

[atler8]

ATLTJL hit the nail on the head here above! I've been saying the same thing regarding this incident & previous ones here in Atlanta.
And I've also noted that this type of incident is not peculiar to only Atlanta.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

If only there was some precedent, something that has happened in our past that could serve as an example of how ridiculous our paranoia has become.

How about the backpack that blew up at Centennial Olympic park?

Don't get me wrong -- I understand the aggravation of how the threat of terrorism can cause so much hassle.

At the same time, if you're in charge, how do you respond?

[ATLTJL]

Great question, arjay.

Because I think the point you are trying to make is if it blows up and takes out part of the bridge, the outrage would be why wasn't this obviously suspicious device dealt with properly?

I think the answer is in moderation. Maybe we'll never know what was in this tube, but was gunpowder detected? Why did the package have to be wired up and detonated? Could't some device with a grasping claw on it just have grabbed it, ripped it off the structure, and placed it in a big bin for authorities to examine? I mean, I saw the size of that tube...it would have had to have been nuclear to do any real damage to the bridge.

I understand doing everything you can to keep people safe, but I also think that covering your own behind is getting out of hand and we have to temper it with reason.

To answer your question about the backpack in Olympic Park, to me it would have been fine if the little robot just grabbed the bag, stuck it in a lead box, and then carted it off. I don't think they would have needed to completely clear the park for 3 hours while the bag was wired up and detonated.

[onemanarmy]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

Great question, arjay.

Because I think the point you are trying to make is if it blows up and takes out part of the bridge, the outrage would be why wasn't this obviously suspicious device dealt with properly?

I think the answer is in moderation. Maybe we'll never know what was in this tube, but was gunpowder detected? Why did the package have to be wired up and detonated? Could't some device with a grasping claw on it just have grabbed it, ripped it off the structure, and placed it in a big bin for authorities to examine? I mean, I saw the size of that tube...it would have had to have been nuclear to do any real damage to the bridge.

I understand doing everything you can to keep people safe, but I also think that covering your own behind is getting out of hand and we have to temper it with reason.

To answer your question about the backpack in Olympic Park, to me it would have been fine if the little robot just grabbed the bag, stuck it in a lead box, and then carted it off. I don't think they would have needed to completely clear the park for 3 hours while the bag was wired up and detonated.

The problem with that assertion is that you have to identify other risk. You have to take in consideration multiple explosive devices as well. You have to clear the park/bridge or wherever to ascertain the threat level. You can't assume since there is one suspicious package on a bridge, that you have identified them all. Let's leave this to real professionals and not Monday morning quarterback decisions that involve lives.