Ahmed Mohammed Clock Is a FRAUD | Hacker News Reader

Ahmed Mohammed Clock Is a FRAUD

youtube.com

4 pointsausjke4 comments

http://toprightnews.com/uh-oh-this-is-what-happened-when-ahm...

I think the artvoice article is better, because it's focused in the thecnical details (linked from the article): http://blogs.artvoice.com/techvoice/2015/09/17/reverse-engin... ( https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10242524 (13 points, 17 hours ago, 6 comments ))

I suppose I could get by the point of the clock being reused, even if this does not make the reaction from the authorities any more excusable.

But damn, is that article a vociferous diatribe. It starts off in the first few paragraphs by poisoning the well quite unabashedly and finally "hints" (read: concludes) that "maybe, just maybe, this whole thing really was a hoax bomb after all" or as an Islamist provocation which does not follow from the premises supplied at all.

The author desperately needs to take their own advice of not "emoting online" or jumping to conclusions. I suppose what is meant is don't jump to the ideologically incorrect conclusions.

What it is an absolute disgrace is that it takes a visit to extreme right-wing ranters to discover alternate, more reasonable narratives than the outrageous, divisive, and inflammatory ones that have been recklessly and irresponsibly promoted by the media and public figures. Just because the President is slick, keeps his cool, and doesn't go off on "vociferous diatribes" doesn't mean he's any less ideologically driven and dishonest. One ideologically-driven liar is The President of the US, the other one is a no-name blogger that no one would know about if he wasn't one of the very few voices to show up in opposition to the original narrative. I'm inclined to give the random no-name blogger more of a pass on tone policing.

> "hints" (read: concludes)

This distinction is very important, because establishing reasonable doubt in favor the school and teacher who have been tried and found guilty in the court of public opinion is different from declaring Ahmed to be definitely guilty of a hoax which was definitely done to provoke a divisive scandal. "Hinting" offers an alternate narrative that is as least as plausible as the original one. We can thus retract the condemnation of school, teacher, and police without declaring Ahmed to actually be guilty of anything.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com