# Is there "Flashmobbing" in the United States? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 2, 2003, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122 "2003-09-02T13:33:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/1 "2003-09-02T13:33:15Z")
I’m not sure if GQ is the best place for this, but it seemed the most logical. I was just reading [this article](http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/09/02/1062403492254.html) about a case of so-called Flashmobbing in New Zealand. Apparently what happens is this: > [@](#): > > About 200 people piled into Burger King in Auckland’s Queen Street and mooed like cows at lunchtime, the New Zealand Herald said, reporting the country’s first “flashmob”. > > As they arrived, staff quickly prepared 100 buns, 10 chickens, eight baskets of fries and four trays of meat patties, but nobody ordered anything. > > The crowd mooed like cows for a minute, then gave the staff a cheer and round of applause before leaving as quickly as they arrived. > > The manager said the extra food had to be discarded, the paper said. The most intriguing part of the story to me, however, was this part: > [@](#): > > The “flashmob” phenomenon, **which is sweeping the United States and Europe** … Well, i don’t know about Europe, but if this phenomenon is sweeping the US then i must have missed a memo. Has anyone else heard about this? ---
**Author:** ![rsa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/839c29/32.png) [@rsa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rsa)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/2 "2003-09-02T13:37:23Z")
I have seen it featured on CNN here in the states. I’ll try to find a link. ---
**Author:** ![Antiquarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Antiquarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antiquarian)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/3 "2003-09-02T13:38:45Z")
Ok so they all coordinate, run into said fast food joint, moo like cows and make the staff think they need to make all this food, then leave? Without buying anything? To what end? or purpose? to make the fast food place waste a bunch of food? Seems quite petty, immature don’t you think? ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/4 "2003-09-02T13:43:56Z")
I believe it started in New York. ---
**Author:** ![rsa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/839c29/32.png) [@rsa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rsa)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/5 "2003-09-02T13:44:05Z")
Here is one story about the deal here. [http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20030808/od\_uk\_nm/oukoe\_life\_mob\_2](http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20030808/od_uk_nm/oukoe_life_mob_2) ---
**Author:** ![troub](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troub/32/14802_2.png) [@troub](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/troub)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/6 "2003-09-02T13:44:53Z")
I guess you missed the memo. It [happens](http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/News/St.+Louis+City+/+County/4BB04A3C43FDEB0886256D780031827F?OpenDocument&Headline=MOB+SCENE+GRIPS+U.+CITY&tetl=1) quite a bit here. Postings are usually made to blogs, message boards, or email lists that determine the place, time, behavior, etc. I actually found notices of several upcoming ones with a simple Google search (so it’s not quite as underground as some of the stuff that goes on via IRC, or whatnot). ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/7 "2003-09-02T14:00:31Z")
Considering the amount of time i spend watching the news, reading the news on the web, etc., i’m surprised i haven’t heard of it. Thanks for the links, etc. Now i’m gonna go and read them ad see exactly why people do this! ---
**Author:** ![eburacum45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eburacum45/32/8690_2.png) [@eburacum45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eburacum45)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/8 "2003-09-02T15:50:08Z")
All we need now is teleportation booths and we will have the Permanent Floating Riot Club as seen in Larry Niven’s stories… [http://www.fictionwise.com/ebooks/eBook4449.htm](http://www.fictionwise.com/ebooks/eBook4449.htm) * * * SF worldbuilding at [http://www.orionsarm.com/main.html](http://www.orionsarm.com/main.html) ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/9 "2003-09-02T15:55:54Z")
Not just that, **eburacum45** , but with G3 we can now transmit news directly to the TV channels from our phones. I wonder if Flashmob was actually based on Flash Crowd? ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/10 "2003-09-02T16:09:49Z")
One is rumored to be operating in the Nashville area. ---
**Author:** ![Iteki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/eada6e/32.png) [@Iteki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iteki)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/11 "2003-09-02T17:20:06Z")
[http://www.flashmob.co.uk/](http://www.flashmob.co.uk/) Has links to US sites in the left menu. ---
**Author:** ![Janx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Janx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Janx)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/12 "2003-09-02T20:17:41Z")
It has been happening here in São Paulo, mostly on Aveineda Paulista (the major high street here, think 5th Ave) usually some youths hang around a crosswalk and tell other youths “Psssst, flash bomb, tomorrow, here 1pm!” At the time a crowd gathers and when the light turns to “WALK” they all flood out into the street, whooping it up, some lay on the ground and flop around like fish others dance to non existent music etc. when the light changes they all take a bow run to the other side of the street and disburse. Kinda like mooning. At this point it is harmless, but it is very disconcerting because there is a phenomenon here where large groups of nogood-nicks gather on a given beach and all at once go charging en mass through the crowds ripping off anything they can get their hands on, knowing that not all of them will get caught. So flash bombing is frownde upon as a security risk. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/13 "2003-09-02T20:56:22Z")
Had an incident here in the past week or so. A group got together in one of the downtown squares, knelt down around a large wrought iron globe and made some weird noise, got up and left. No harm done. ---
**Author:** ![bluecanary](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bluecanary/32/3614_2.png) [@bluecanary](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bluecanary)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/14 "2003-09-02T23:17:14Z")
This happens quite a lot in the UK. The Daily Mail (a middle-market tabloid here) picked up on it and organised one of their own at the London Eye. I thought it originated here but maybe not. ---
**Author:** ![bonzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/45deac/32.png) [@bonzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bonzer)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/15 "2003-09-02T23:44:04Z")
Some of the coverage has been linking the phenomenon to Howard Rheingold’s idea of [smart mobs](http://www.smartmobs.com/book/index.html). ---
**Author:** ![plain\_jane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@plain\_jane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plain_jane)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/16 "2003-09-02T23:56:15Z")
It happened in or near Toronto, Canada, as well. (Heard it reported on 680 News out of Toronto.) ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2003, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/17 "2003-09-03T01:38:36Z")
There was some mention of in the news here, along with the comment that if 200 people gathered in McDonalds here, folks would be wondering why the place was so empty. ---
**Author:** ![Muldoon\_s\_Squishiness](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/13edae/32.png) [@Muldoon\_s\_Squishiness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muldoon_s_Squishiness)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2003, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/18 "2003-09-03T02:06:03Z")
It’s the newest incredibly retarded, pointless and mindless _happening_ and _with it_ thing to do among the vapidly stupid ilk that are also known as Hipsters. :rolleyes: :rolleyes: There have already been “_counter flashings_” and it has been said that the whole _scene_ :rolleyes: :rolleyes: has been utterly ruined by outsiders. I don’t wish for much, but just a minor outbreak of the plague among the Hipsters at one of these mobscenes would be quite nice. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2003, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/19 "2003-09-03T03:15:55Z")
A form of it has been going on for years during frosh week, with e-mails or text messages going out to hundreds of college students. A bunch of kids dropping to the ground at the same time and pretending to fry like bacon- interesting, maybe even funny in theory, incredibly obnoxious , maybe even dangerous, in practice. ---
**Author:** ![Space\_Vampire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Space\_Vampire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Space_Vampire)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2003, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122/20 "2003-09-03T04:14:27Z")
A couple in Hong Kong. There was one that appeared to be all foreigners dancing with napkins, and everyone said it was stupid. Then there was another by locals that I heard about in advance and thought about observing but didn’t bother. Apparently it wasn’t that well attended as most people are too practical here to spend their time that way. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-flashmobbing-in-the-united-states/199122.md?page=2)