A bag sits on the sidewalk as people are held behind a police line at Times Square in New York, July 10, 2007. A section of New York City's Times Square was closed down briefly Tuesday as police investigated what they described as a possible bomb scare, but the suspicious bag was later found to be forgotten luggage. (Brendan McDermid/Reuters)


A suspicious bag is inspected by a police officer after the area was closed off in New York, July 10, 2007. A section of New York City's Times Square was closed down briefly Tuesday as police investigated what they described as a possible bomb scare, but the suspicious bag was later found to be forgotten luggage. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid (UNITED STATES)


A suspicious bag is emptied by a police officer after the area was closed off in New York July 10, 2007. A section of New York City's Times Square was closed down briefly Tuesday as police investigated what they described as a possible bomb scare, but the suspicious bag was later found to be forgotten luggage. (Brendan McDermid/Reuters)


A heavily armed member of the New York Police Department patrols Times Square Friday, June 29, 2007 in New York. New York strengthened its already-tight security as a precaution after police in London's bustling nightclub and theater district on Friday defused a bomb that could have killed hundreds after an ambulance crew spotted smoke coming from a Mercedes filled with a lethal mix of gasoline, propane and nails, authorities said. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

:eyes:

And Bushler is helping him.

Thank you! Thank you! My only reward is your applause and your generous donations. Without them, I could not continue my street performances.

for a du-zy

business.

And that means unattended bags and packages especially. The police overreaction is another question, but citizens pointing out unattended luggage is what we're instructed to do and not a bad idea considering what's happened here.

Reporting an abandoned bag in the middle of Times Square is not an intrusion on anyone's privacy. It's not discourteous to mention to a cop that a bag is sitting there on the street unattended. Maybe you forgot, we had some actual, serious attacks in Manhattan. Then we had anthrax. Since then we've had a gillion terror alerts. I hope nobody keeps their mouth shut if they see something that's potentially hazardous in midtown Manhattan. I hope they report it and let the cops figure out what it is. Mind your own business? WTF? Is the BAG entitled to its privacy? What if it DID have a timed device set to got off in the midst of the throngs of tourists in Times Squaare? You think that couldn't happen? Were you born yesterday?

minded my own damn business.

Sorry, it's just the way I was raised.

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You had the luxury of living somewhere terrorism was not always present. Now we have to be a little more aware. I wouldn't let it affect the way I live, but I'm always aware of my surroundings. Stay alert, stay alive.

Living in Europe during the '80's, we were always aware of unattended bags. These were blown up all the time in Paris without much fuss. I remember one time they stopped traffic entering the airport while they blew up a bag. 10 minutes later, we were moving along again. It was no spectacle

This shit is real and can happen. All the trash cans in some cities have either been removed or sealed up to prevent anything from being thrown in the trash and blown up.

I think instead of opening this bag, they should have thrown it in the bomb disposal vehicle and blown it up. No fuss, no muss.

delete

And since the feds are whipping up the hysteria, I don't blame the cops for going overboard.

Are you telling me that if you saw a burning house, you would keep driving because it's better to mind your own business? Are you saying that it's not possible that some fanatic would place a suitcase bomb in the middle of Times Square, the place where all the tourists cavort? Then I say you are quite naive. And it seems apparent that while you would decline to alert a cop to a suspicious package, you have no problem alerting the mods to a response you don't care for. Quite ironic.

paralyzes a city

:scared: :hide: :banghead:

"Ah...Honey, You know that bag that I asked you to pick up for me?....Come..
...into the TV room, I've got something to show you..."

ON EDIT: Looks like it's "Sleep on the Couch Night" :rofl:

I would have single-handedly financed the entire bomb squad robot industry by the time I was twelve.

UNDERPANTS! UNDERPANTS! UNDERPANTS! UNDERPANTS! UNDERPANTS!

They may even be most emailed pics by tomorrow.

:rofl:

snapped a few shots of the mosaics in the station. Some woman comes up to them and screams at them for doing so, bringing in 9.11 and the whole lot, while the poor guy was trying to explain he was just taking a shot of the mosaics. "Well you know what happened on 9/11? People get scared about that stuff!!" she goes.

Sheesh. This was 5 years later, btw, in 2006. I was embarrassed...imagine what they must think of us now.

It's just gawdawful, from being the focus of every freaking red alert BushCO can dream up, to the fascistic crackdowns by Bloomberg (check out the new city regulations forbidding groups of more than 50 people to assemble without a permit - hello! - US Constitution??? - Right to Assemble????), to the explosion in "Luxury" housing all over the goddamn place while ordinary people have no place to live. I'm over it. I'm ready to leave, and most of my friends are too. NYC is no place for artists anymore. Only the wealthy need apply.

check out the new city regulations forbidding groups of more than 50 people to assemble without a permit

So you need a permit just to have a party?

but really the new rules are just a pretext for arresting protesters.

http://www.nysun.com/article/47847

NYPD Imposes New Rules For Gaining Parade Permits
By BRADLEY HOPE
Staff Reporter of the Sun
February 1, 2007

The police department has more narrowly defined the rules that allow protesters and other groups to parade in New York City, according to a notice of the changes published in the City Record last week.

The new rules require groups of 50 or more — whether on foot, bicycle, or other "devices moved by human power" — to apply for a permit before they can march on any street or roadway, the notice says. The old rule did not designate a numerical limit, an ambiguity judges used to throw out criminal cases against participants in the monthly Critical Mass bicycle rides.

Civil liberties advocates and activist groups said yesterday that they would fight the changes, which they said should be promulgated by the City Council. The new rules encroach "arbitrarily" on the right to assemble instead of clarifying the law, the head of the Assemble for Rights coalition, Mark Taylor, said.

The department gave notice in July that it was planning to define the rules more narrowly. An earlier proposal by the department required groups of 30 or more to apply for a permit, but after a public hearing in November, the department changed the number to 50.

I don't think it's been seriously tested yet. I keep dreaming about a protest where we break into groups of 49 with different colors or signs or something, and then tell the cops, "they're not with us." The thing is, if you DO get a permit, they'll build a little fenced in First Amendment pen for you and you can protest to your heart's delight in your own little public prison cell.

That would be a sight.

:D

-Hoot

Maybe a good therapist can run for president and we can do weekly group sessions on the teevee.

Well it might actually be toxic waste, so perhaps precautions are in order.