I was told there would be no critical thinking.

Actually, that's a pretty good teacher to have around.

Yeah, there are no merits at all to such an exercise.

Why would you want anyone to understand the thought processes of terrorists? What their limitations are, the overarching goals are, where a society's vulnerabilities lie, and thereby how they might be combated?

I mean, if these kids realize that terrorists out there trying to create maximum panic and let the screaming hordes do the _real_ damage, then they don't seem quite so horribly scary and then these kids won't be so apt to scream on cue and hide under their beds worrying about when the brownskinned bearded guys are going to come blow them up, like all healthy well-adjusted children should!

Understanding your enemies is bad, bad, bad, bad, bad!

horse-pheathers: Understanding your enemies is bad, bad, bad, bad, bad!

Didn't you know that there are only three possible responses to every situation: public fellation, apathy bordering on rudeness, and open warfare?

Occam's Chainsaw: Didn't you know that there are only three possible responses to every situation: public fellation

I wish to subscribe to your...wait. Public fellation. Is that when I let the guy with the absurdly large hat cut in line in front of me because an old lady is looking at him reverently and he has fewer items?

apathy bordering on rudeness

Uh, gee. Lawrence Welk kicked ass, and, uh, that Pac Man sure had a pattern. I followed. Fark this, lets go have babies.

horse-pheathers: Yeah, there are no merits at all to such an exercise.

Why would you want anyone to understand the thought processes of terrorists? What their limitations are, the overarching goals are, where a society's vulnerabilities lie, and thereby how they might be combated?

I mean, if these kids realize that terrorists out there trying to create maximum panic and let the screaming hordes do the _real_ damage, then they don't seem quite so horribly scary and then these kids won't be so apt to scream on cue and hide under their beds worrying about when the brownskinned bearded guys are going to come blow them up, like all healthy well-adjusted children should!

Understanding your enemies is bad, bad, bad, bad, bad!

i'd have more respect for this if it was done as a project, rather than a two minute drill. there was no critical thinking or in-depth analysis going on here, just a bunch of kids being told to draw imagined acts of terrorism in 120 seconds

I'm starting to think every total farker lives in Denver.

i'd have more respect for this if it was done as a project, rather than a two minute drill. there was no critical thinking or in-depth analysis going on here, just a bunch of kids being told to draw imagined acts of terrorism in 120 seconds

Maybe this was just a kind of brainstorming way to start the project.

Ask anyone who works in security (physical security, online security, anti-shoplifting, anything) and they will tell you that the ability to think like a criminal is absolutely crucial to their job. You don't make bad guys go away by sticking your head up your butt and pretending they don't exist.

Sounds like a good teacher who wants his students to learn to think. Dumbass tag belongs to Subby here!

Megain: i'd have more respect for this if it was done as a project, rather than a two minute drill. there was no critical thinking or in-depth analysis going on here, just a bunch of kids being told to draw imagined acts of terrorism in 120 seconds

Just to nitpick, it doesn't really say if the assignment was supposed to take 2 minutes total or if the child only allocated 2 minutes towards it(before going off to play their XBOX, dance, etc.)

I do think this is a good assignment, however. Understanding your enemies and all that jazz. The teacher should be praised, not punished.

I have absolutely no problem with this assignment. I actually encourage it. Teaching children to think like the enemy is an important life lesson. If you wanted to keep America safe from Terrorism wouldn't you first want to predict where Terrorists would target?

It would be one thing if the teacher encouraged the children to carry out their plans or if there was underlying sympathy for terrorism through out his daily lesson plans. This assignment is in and of itself benign, and if nothing else a positive learning opportunity.

moar funny pictures

FTFA

Fischer says, "To ask them to use their creative energies to come up with a plot for an act of terrorism is very ludicrous."

Didn't we start paying creative people to come up with potential plots after 9/11?

/outraged parents give parents a bad name

I'm reminded of the pre-9-11 high school assignment I got of 'How To...' paper. I decided 'How To Blow Up Local Mall Name'. That helped cement my reputation as a weirdo. Which had it's good sides, the weirdo clique was damned fun to hang with/talk to.

I'd would've loved to have had a teacher like that. But since I would be the only one that would find this shiat interesting and come up with some "realistic", non-cookie cutter, plot. I'd probably get far to many strange looks and a meeting with the administration.

/hold on, knock at my door

Because thinking like the enemy won't help you understand their tactics, motivations, and goals. If you shoot them enough they'll just give up.

My only problem with the assignment is the 2-minute time limit. That would have been one of my favorite projects ever, back in school. Good fun, and a great assignment.

sgilman: I'm starting to think every total farker lives in Denver.

We're all just family members pimping the Bad Astronomer's column. Did you see his review of Star Trek?

Bonus points for the use of thermite.

Lots43: I'm reminded of the pre-9-11 high school assignment I got of 'How To...' paper. I decided 'How To Blow Up Local Mall Name'. That helped cement my reputation as a weirdo. Which had it's good sides, the weirdo clique was damned fun to hang with/talk to.

Yeah, back in high school, the local resident freak / Highlander wanna-be sidled up to me one day and begged me not to put him on my kill list. Many lulz were had.

/My principal also asked me to not wear my trenchcoat to school post-Columbine.
//My reply? "It's freaking MAY. Why the hell would I wear a long coat?"

When I was in high school, we had to design a WWII execution camp as a social studies project.

The goal of the project was to show how even though how terrible the connotations, people still gladly designed horrible machines to efficiently kill groups of people.

That actually sounds fun.

I love how "mock outrage" allows the average prole boob to express some sort of righteous indignation and thus self importance in the media for 15 minutes.

Lots43: I'm reminded of the pre-9-11 high school assignment I got of 'How To...' paper. I decided 'How To Blow Up Local Mall Name'. That helped cement my reputation as a weirdo. Which had it's good sides, the weirdo clique was damned fun to hang with/talk to.

When I was a senior in high school in 2000 the last paper I wrote for my english class was titled: "Terrorism: Winning the Shadow War"

It discussed the rising threat of terrorism and how the NATO countries could combat it. I would have been a farking sage a year and a half later if I hadn't focused on the terror groups left without support since the fall of the Soviet Union instead of crazy religious nuts. I guess I just had the wrong dogmatists... too bad.

What does that have to do with anything, you ask? Nothing. I'm drunk and thought I'd share.

Come up with an act of terrorism in 2 minutes?

"You take bomb, go in there, go boom!"
"I take bomb, go in there, come out, go boom?"
"No, take bomb in, go boom."

Wow, I remember homework being harder when I was in school. I think if this had been a more in depth assignment it would have been carried a little more merit, which would have created even more outraged parents. Seriously. Not only would the students be better for the experience, it would have made better Fark.

Douche Canoe: That actually sounds fun.

It really kinda does. Maybe this should have been a voting thread. Best terror impact, least materials and risk of detection wins.
/not that I want to be on a no fly list
//or worse

My project would consist of thin bright light-up posters with a popular cartoon character on the front and a miraculously thin high-tech explosive on the back. Foolish authorities would ignore the posters and assume they were ads or somesuch. It could never fail.

Have any of us honestly not come up with a method of delivering a horribly effective terrorist attack? I think it's a sign of stability and intelligence to know the obvious weaknesses in the many ridiculous procedures and checkpoints which we face. Typically those familiar with the world they operate in know many ways around it. The methods these people could employ but conscientiously do not are far different (and would be far more effective) than anyone with a motive for harm - that's why these people receive our trust. Those with motives for harm approach their targets as outsiders, and raise flags for such very obvious reasons.


/Don't kill people.
//Seriously, anything else.

DarkSkyForever

My history class had to formulate a way for the Nazis to defeat the allied landings on D-Day.

Putting the Panzers in the personal control of the local commander, sea mines two miles off the entire french coast, plant forests of trees just behind every conceivable landing beach with enough trip wires and mines to send a squirrel to meet its maker.

We concluded that the germans had our years to set up a defense, but did a crap job of it.

We thought about how to kill lots of allied troops, but learned more about how wars are fought.

DarkSkyForever: The goal of the project was to show how even though how terrible the connotations, people still gladly designed horrible machines to efficiently kill groups of people.

Screenwriters do that on a regular basis. We could probably point fingers at them and accuse them of being horribly sick people, but we're too busy complaining that Terminator 4 only scored a lousy PG-13 rating. We demand mile-high fountains of blood and shredded flesh in our killer robot movies, dammit!

Jz4p: Have any of us honestly not come up with a method of delivering a horribly effective terrorist attack? I think it's a sign of stability and intelligence to know the obvious weaknesses in the many ridiculous procedures and checkpoints which we face. Typically those familiar with the world they operate in know many ways around it. The methods these people could employ but conscientiously do not are far different (and would be far more effective) than anyone with a motive for harm - that's why these people receive our trust. Those with motives for harm approach their targets as outsiders, and raise flags for such very obvious reasons.


/Don't kill people.
//Seriously, anything else.

Interesting point, some nuke plant engineer would have a better chance of getting a critical event to happen than some guy of the street, but he doesn't because he is in the system and happy with it.If not he's fired.

tinfoil-hat maggie:

Interesting point, some nuke plant engineer would have a better chance of getting a critical event to happen than some guy of off the street, but he doesn't because he is in the system and happy with it.If not he's fired.

ftfm

r1niceboy: DarkSkyForever

My history class had to formulate a way for the Nazis to defeat the allied landings on D-Day.

Putting the Panzers in the personal control of the local commander, sea mines two miles off the entire french coast, plant forests of trees just behind every conceivable landing beach with enough trip wires and mines to send a squirrel to meet its maker.

We concluded that the germans had our years to set up a defense, but did a crap job of it.

We thought about how to kill lots of allied troops, but learned more about how wars are fought.

That made me think of an old game I used to play called Utah Beach in the V for Victory series. I used to reconstitute the German armor and mech units into 2 or 3 panzer divisions give them full supply and pincer the Utah beachhead.
/Good times

The school district has decided to collect the assignment from students and destroy them.

Uh, doesn't that mean that they also have to destroy the children, since the terrorist plots still exist in their minds?

BillaBong: The school district has decided to collect the assignment from students and destroy them.

Uh, doesn't that mean that they also have to destroy the children, since the terrorist plots still exist in their minds?

I thought the same thing when I read this. Lazy English... I hope... or they really are planning on destroying the children.

tinfoil-hat maggie: r1niceboy: DarkSkyForever

My history class had to formulate a way for the Nazis to defeat the allied landings on D-Day.

Putting the Panzers in the personal control of the local commander, sea mines two miles off the entire french coast, plant forests of trees just behind every conceivable landing beach with enough trip wires and mines to send a squirrel to meet its maker.

We concluded that the germans had our years to set up a defense, but did a crap job of it.

We thought about how to kill lots of allied troops, but learned more about how wars are fought.

That made me think of an old game I used to play called Utah Beach in the V for Victory series. I used to reconstitute the German armor and mech units into 2 or 3 panzer divisions give them full supply and pincer the Utah beachhead.
/Good times

Iron Storm for the Saturn. That game was a slut, but if you played the Germans and did well, you would eventually invade Britain, followed by the US mainland.

You want to know the terrorist high-schoolers mind? Take a look at the dickwad in 2002 who flew a Cessna into a bank building in Tampa (who sympathized with the 9/11 attackers). Not to mention the Columbine killers who planned on killing hundreds of students, drive to the airport, fly a plane from Denver and crash it into New York City.

That's your high school terrorist mind. Is the teacher, in an age when a squirt gun will get you expelled, goin to say "no, this is how you should do it?"

LessO2: You want to know the terrorist high-schoolers mind? Take a look at the dickwad in 2002 who flew a Cessna into a bank building in Tampa (who sympathized with the 9/11 attackers). Not to mention the Columbine killers who planned on killing hundreds of students, drive to the airport, fly a plane from Denver and crash it into New York City.

That's your high school terrorist mind. Is the teacher, in an age when a squirt gun will get you expelled, goin to say "no, this is how you should do it?"

I damn sure would. Helping teenagers have some sort of grounding in reality is one of the highest forms of public service, and saying, "No, that couldn't possibly work because of X," also exposes them to the kinds of protections and countermeasures we already have in place.

/Want to know how to run an insurgency? Ask me how.

Occam's Chainsaw: tinfoil-hat maggie:

That made me think of an old game I used to play called Utah Beach in the V for Victory series. I used to reconstitute the German armor and mech units into 2 or 3 panzer divisions give them full supply and pincer the Utah beachhead.
/Good times

Iron Storm for the Saturn. That game was a slut, but if you played the Germans and did well, you would eventually invade Britain, followed by the US mainland.

That sounds a lot like Panzer General for the PlayStation 1. I love playing war games. My older brother used to use me to prove he was smart he was in old chit based boardgames like Squad Leader, and Panzer Blitz.
/Then computers became available
//Although I really don't feel that old

Occam's Chainsaw: LessO2: You want to know the terrorist high-schoolers mind? Take a look at the dickwad in 2002 who flew a Cessna into a bank building in Tampa (who sympathized with the 9/11 attackers). Not to mention the Columbine killers who planned on killing hundreds of students, drive to the airport, fly a plane from Denver and crash it into New York City.

That's your high school terrorist mind. Is the teacher, in an age when a squirt gun will get you expelled, goin to say "no, this is how you should do it?"

I damn sure would. Helping teenagers have some sort of grounding in reality is one of the highest forms of public service, and saying, "No, that couldn't possibly work because of X," also exposes them to the kinds of protections and countermeasures we already have in place.

/Want to know how to run an insurgency? Ask me how.

Exactly, if a kid says I'm going to get 50 or 100 people to secretly attack target x. The educator(teacher) can explain how operational security is very difficult. As well as supplies and logistics. It's not training terrorism is using a topical subject to teach kids how to realize the pros and cons of everything they do.

tinfoil-hat maggie: Exactly, if a kid says I'm going to get 50 or 100 people to secretly attack target x. The educator(teacher) can explain how operational security is very difficult. As well as supplies and logistics. It's not training terrorism is using a topical subject to teach kids how to realize the pros and cons of everything they do.

Plus there's an outside chance that they'll graduate knowing that Red Dawn wasn't a how-to, and possibly pick up a small dose of healthy skepticism. It'll come in handy the next time the MSM rolls out a new OMGPANIC! scenario.

Occam's Chainsaw: tinfoil-hat maggie: Exactly, if a kid says I'm going to get 50 or 100 people to secretly attack target x. The educator(teacher) can explain how operational security is very difficult. As well as supplies and logistics. It's not training terrorism is using a topical subject to teach kids how to realize the pros and cons of everything they do.

Plus there's an outside chance that they'll graduate knowing that Red Dawn wasn't a how-to, and possibly pick up a small dose of healthy skepticism. It'll come in handy the next time the MSM rolls out a new OMGPANIC! scenario.

LOL :D , The line "Red Dawn wasn't a how to manual" on Fark makes me so happy.

Doesn't the government PAY people to do just this type of thing? Why the problem?

Occam's Chainsaw:
Also yes I would like "to know how to run an insurgency".
/just for educational purposes, of course

tinfoil-hat maggie: Occam's Chainsaw:
Also yes I would like "to know how to run an insurgency".
/just for educational purposes, of course

You've already failed at it.

Rule #1: Don't f*cking tell anyone. The appearance of normalcy is your best defense.

Every bestselling Tom Clancy book involves the same damn concept of thinking like a nutjob. It's kind of a useful skill to think out of the box; doesn't mean you will carry out every imaginative conception

It's not a dangerous assignment. What is dangerous is making a big deal out of stupid shiat

class in question...

Occam's Chainsaw: tinfoil-hat maggie: Occam's Chainsaw:
Also yes I would like "to know how to run an insurgency".
/just for educational purposes, of course

You've already failed at it.

Rule #1: Don't f*cking tell anyone. The appearance of normalcy is your best defense.

That's a good answer. My brothers and the kids in the neighborhood had plans for if the "Russkies" ever invaded this was back in 84 so I think it predated Red Dawn. The plan was to ....yea, you thought I was gonna tell yea ha.
/yes that's why I found you Red Dawn commit a riot

bachdog: Every bestselling Tom Clancy book involves the same damn concept of thinking like a nutjob. It's kind of a useful skill to think out of the box; doesn't mean you will carry out every imaginative conception

It's not a dangerous assignment. What is dangerous is making a big deal out of stupid shiat
Good point but, Clancy's only real good book was when he teamed up with another person to do Red Storm Rising.

did you know that a good deal of Homeland security dollars go to people who try to come up with creative ways to commit terrorist acts.

the student who complained is a loser who thinks most people are on the verge of doing something horrible. her parents are attention whores

i hate this sort of story