Spring Break
'ATHF' is the bomb
Feana Kotter
Issue date: 2/7/07 Section: Opinion
- Page 1 of 1
The now infamous stunt by the Adult Swim program "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" has - aside from turning the entire city of Boston upsidedown with fear of a terrorist attack - brought an interesting question to light: Should there be consequences for those involved, or have we all just become too paranoid?
When an unknown package was left outside Sherman Hall last year, the building was closed down. Nearly half the day went by before it was discovered to be some video equipment returned by a student who stole it from the library. Even here in quiet west-central Illinois, we expect anything out of the ordinary to be dangerous.
That being said, it really isn't a shock that such frenzy was caused by the Boston boxes. It's a sad reminder of the times in which we live. A simple prank is blown out of proportion, and before opening the box is even considered, we're hearing the words bomb and terrorism.
Were the pranksters just being thoughtless, or were they trying to show us how ridiculous we all are?
In a time when everything is suspect, those pranksters should have known the boxes would stir up the media and law enforcement agencies, right? How foolish does that make those same people look when they open a box, only to find a cartoon character inside? Is Frylock now on the same list as real terrorists?
We could all learn from the stunt. Turner Broadcasting, the network that carries Adult Swim, has already issued apologies and probably fired the people who came up with the idea. The next time the network wants to promote a program, chances are they'll stick to billboards and the Internet.
Maybe everyone else will realize that it's OK to laugh at stupid pranks; not every stray box is dangerous. Finding a picture of a Mooninite in a box believed to have a bomb would be a little confusing, but a little funny as well. We're all afraid to laugh at each other these days. If we can't laugh, what else is there?
Perhaps the people involved didn't think about the reactions the boxes would get. Even so, Fox News didn't need to treat the incident like it was a terrorist attack long before anyone knew what was going on. Speculation can be our own enemy sometimes, it seems.
Hopefully, we can all get a decent chuckle from the situation and put it behind us. More importantly, we should remember to postpone our predictions on an event until we know for sure exactly what is going on.
On a less serious note, does this mean the people of Boston hate "Aqua Teen?"
When an unknown package was left outside Sherman Hall last year, the building was closed down. Nearly half the day went by before it was discovered to be some video equipment returned by a student who stole it from the library. Even here in quiet west-central Illinois, we expect anything out of the ordinary to be dangerous.
That being said, it really isn't a shock that such frenzy was caused by the Boston boxes. It's a sad reminder of the times in which we live. A simple prank is blown out of proportion, and before opening the box is even considered, we're hearing the words bomb and terrorism.
Were the pranksters just being thoughtless, or were they trying to show us how ridiculous we all are?
In a time when everything is suspect, those pranksters should have known the boxes would stir up the media and law enforcement agencies, right? How foolish does that make those same people look when they open a box, only to find a cartoon character inside? Is Frylock now on the same list as real terrorists?
We could all learn from the stunt. Turner Broadcasting, the network that carries Adult Swim, has already issued apologies and probably fired the people who came up with the idea. The next time the network wants to promote a program, chances are they'll stick to billboards and the Internet.
Maybe everyone else will realize that it's OK to laugh at stupid pranks; not every stray box is dangerous. Finding a picture of a Mooninite in a box believed to have a bomb would be a little confusing, but a little funny as well. We're all afraid to laugh at each other these days. If we can't laugh, what else is there?
Perhaps the people involved didn't think about the reactions the boxes would get. Even so, Fox News didn't need to treat the incident like it was a terrorist attack long before anyone knew what was going on. Speculation can be our own enemy sometimes, it seems.
Hopefully, we can all get a decent chuckle from the situation and put it behind us. More importantly, we should remember to postpone our predictions on an event until we know for sure exactly what is going on.
On a less serious note, does this mean the people of Boston hate "Aqua Teen?"
Be the first to comment on this story