# Get off my lawn! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 1, 2008, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-off-my-lawn/470571 "2008-11-01T14:09:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2008, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-off-my-lawn/470571/1 "2008-11-01T14:09:30Z")
[Here.](http://www.shortnews.com/start.cfm?id=74434) > [@](#): > > A 9-year-old boy from North Carolina received the shock of his life when he decided to tamper with a McCain-Palin campaign sign in the yard of a local resident. > > Shawn Turschak of Chapel Hill grew tired of the campaign signs in his yard being stolen, so he rigged one up to the power source of an electrical fence commonly used to deter pets from leaving the property. He also rigged up a surveillance camera. > > Following the boy receiving a jolt from the sign, his father showed up at Mr. Turschak’s door. The local authorities arrived shortly afterwards. The boy’s father claimed that the child only wanted to see how it was assembled. No charges are expected. Except for electrical ones, of course! ---
**Author:** ![3acresandatruck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/3/e79b87/32.png) [@3acresandatruck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/3acresandatruck)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2008, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-off-my-lawn/470571/2 "2008-11-01T14:50:00Z")
I guess they mean a hot-wire fence, as opposed to a shock-collar setup for pets. My neighbor has a hot-wire around his pasture; that sucker’ll make you jump. Now, if I had been the kid in question and had been stupid enough to tell Dad I’d been shocked, it would have been more like: 3acresDad: (smacks 3acres) what were you doing!? 3acres: I just wanted to see how it was put togeth- 3acresDad: (smacks 3acres) don’t give me that crap! (smack) what were you doing!? 3acres: (in a rush) I wanted to steal it and put it in Mr K’s yard, because he supports Obama and he’d have a fit 3acresDad (stops right before smackifying 3acres again): OK, that’s funny. (smack - a little less harshly now) but wrong. (3acresDad marches 3acres over to Mr Turschak’s house to apologize.) Mr Turschak: ha, it _would_ have been funny to watch Mr K after finding the McCain sign in his yard. 3acresDad: (sternly) Son, don’t mess with other people’s stuff…you got what you deserved. 3acres: (silently resolves to wear rubber gloves and keep his mouth shut next time) Mr Turschak: goes inside and turns the power to the sign back on (No police involved.) ---
**Author:** ![Rapier42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/90db22/32.png) [@Rapier42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rapier42)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2008, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-off-my-lawn/470571/3 "2008-11-01T15:47:36Z")
> [@3acresandatruck](#): > > I guess they mean a hot-wire fence, as opposed to a shock-collar setup for pets. My neighbor has a hot-wire around his pasture; that sucker’ll make you jump. Now, if I had been the kid in question and had been stupid enough to tell Dad I’d been shocked, it would have been more like: > > 3acresDad: (smacks 3acres) what were you doing!? > 3acres: I just wanted to see how it was put togeth- > 3acresDad: (smacks 3acres) don’t give me that crap! (smack) what were you doing!? > 3acres: (in a rush) I wanted to steal it and put it in Mr K’s yard, because he supports Obama and he’d have a fit > 3acresDad (stops right before smackifying 3acres again): OK, that’s funny. (smack - a little less harshly now) but wrong. > > (3acresDad marches 3acres over to Mr Turschak’s house to apologize.) > Mr Turschak: ha, it _would_ have been funny to watch Mr K after finding the McCain sign in his yard. > 3acresDad: (sternly) Son, don’t mess with other people’s stuff…you got what you deserved. > 3acres: (silently resolves to wear rubber gloves and keep his mouth shut next time) > Mr Turschak: goes inside and turns the power to the sign back on > (No police involved.) This. And it’d be the same with my kid if he pulled something like this. I might have a talk on the side with Mr Turschak, though. Whats the risk here to a kid with heart trouble or a similiar ailment? ---
**Author:** ![Heffalump\_and\_Roo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heffalump_and_roo/32/7691_2.png) [@Heffalump\_and\_Roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heffalump_and_Roo)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2008, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-off-my-lawn/470571/4 "2008-11-01T22:52:15Z")
[This story has fuller detail.](http://www.newsobserver.com/news/story/1274504.html) It sounds like the boy wanted to see how it was constructed because his Obama sign didn’t have the parts to put it in the ground, but the camera showed the boy with the Obama sign to replace it with. It also sounds like the sign was stolen a few hours later by some other woman.