# RO: This is totally going to kill Bring Your Clock to School Day **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 16, 2015, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454 "2015-09-16T08:35:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 43
**Author:** ![FXMastermind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fxmastermind/32/7289_2.png) [@FXMastermind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FXMastermind)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/841 "2015-09-24T18:48:13Z")
The reason I didn’t know he was on TV is simple enough. He’s on FOX, which I pretty much refuse to watch. Fucking hilarious. Now can we please get back to the amazing clock a 14 year old invented? And how stupid Texas is? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/842 "2015-09-24T19:47:09Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > Yes, you did you see the picture of the uncased clock in the briefcase? Yes, I saw the clock in question, in the pencil case. What about it? ---
**Author:** ![Punoqllads](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d2c977/32.png) [@Punoqllads](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Punoqllads)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/843 "2015-09-24T20:40:18Z")
> [@FXMastermind](#): > > Now can we please get back to the amazing clock a 14 year old invented? And how stupid Texas is? Pardon me, but I don’t recall anyone in this thread claiming that the clock was any kind of technological marvel or of insulting any Texans other than the principal, teacher, and cops involved in this imbroglio. Perhaps it’s my memory failing as I get older. Or perhaps your comment is a straw man. ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/844 "2015-09-24T20:44:17Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > This seems to be another of Obama’s “I don’t know the facts but…” scenarios. > > \*COOL CLOCK. Unfortunately, the exposed electrical connections makes your case-less clock a fire, and shock hazard. Would you like to bring it to the WH and start a fire, or scare the crap out of the Secret Service? > > - the Prez\* > [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Yes, I saw the clock in question, in the pencil case. What about it? Did you see the exposed electrical connections? Did you see the power transformer? Did you see the AC power cord? Are you aware that exposed electrical connections are both a fire and shock hazard? This timing device (aka clock) also has a 9vdc connector but no 9vdc battery connected to it. It’s been reported that the kid plugged his timing device/clock into an electrical outlet. That was when the English teacher heard it beep, and the beep is why the English teacher began asking questions. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/845 "2015-09-24T20:46:18Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > It’s been reported that the kid plugged his timing device/clock into an electrical outlet. No, it hasn’t. ---
**Author:** ![xenophon41](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xenophon41/32/253_2.png) [@xenophon41](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xenophon41)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/846 "2015-09-24T20:54:36Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > No, it hasn’t. Unfortunately, it has. The reporting has been pretty poor in detail about what happened at the school. The early report did say that Ahmed’s clock alarm went off while it was in his backpack after he had “plugged it in”. Sloppy reporting, because if he’d plugged it in during English class, he’d have to have it out of his backpack, open and near a wall outlet. Also, our brilliant piece of entryway hardware, **doorhinge** , is basing his “no battery” theory on the photograph posted by the city of the pencil case open on a desktop. Because obviously that must be an accurate reproduction of the state of the clock when it was in Ahmed’s backpack, right? Combination of lazy/stupid reporting and confirmation bias. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/847 "2015-09-24T20:55:30Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > No, it hasn’t. [http://www.wfaa.com/story/news/local/dallas-county/2015/09/15/irving-isd-student-detained-for-device-resembling-bomb/72339246/](http://www.wfaa.com/story/news/local/dallas-county/2015/09/15/irving-isd-student-detained-for-device-resembling-bomb/72339246/) Police said the student had the briefcase in his English class, where he plugged it into an electrical outlet and it started to make noise. [http://dailycaller.com/2015/09/16/cops-detain-high-school-freshman-ahmed-mohamed-after-officials-mistake-his-clock-for-a-bomb/](http://dailycaller.com/2015/09/16/cops-detain-high-school-freshman-ahmed-mohamed-after-officials-mistake-his-clock-for-a-bomb/) According to police, Mohamed plugged the wires in his Vaultz pencil box into an electric socket on a classroom wall during English class. > **[ItemFix - Social Video Factory](https://www.itemfix.com/?r=ll)** > > Social Video Factory In the sixth period he apparently, without the English teachers knowledge plugged the device into the wall with the intent to set off the timer on the device. ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/848 "2015-09-24T20:57:38Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > No, it hasn’t. \ Why do you argue against this stuff? [Local news](http://www.wfaa.com/story/news/local/dallas-county/2015/09/16/irving-police-chief-student-macharthur-high-school-bomb-scare/32501713/) says: > [@](#): > > On Tuesday, police said the student’s English teacher first noticed the clock when Ahmed plugged it in to an electrical socket and it began to make noise. **xenophon41** , what exactly are you basing the “must have been a battery” theory on though? We see a plug, we don’t see a battery, local news reports that the police say it was plugged in… I’m trying to find a full video of the press conference, but the 2 minutes that are out there make no mention of the beeping. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/849 "2015-09-24T20:57:49Z")
> [@xenophon41](#): > > Unfortunately, it has. The reporting has been pretty poor in detail about what happened at the school. The early report did say that Ahmed’s clock alarm went off while it was in his backpack after he had “plugged it in”. Sloppy reporting, because if he’d plugged it in during English class, he’d have to have it out of his backpack, open and near a wall outlet. > **[ItemFix - Social Video Factory](https://www.itemfix.com/?r=ll)** > > Social Video Factory Ahmed: um the teacher, the clock in fact was plugged in during the classroom, so it didn’t go off in my backpack, it was plugged in, and i set a timer on there and i showed a student next to me, and uh, it went off, and the teacher looked around and said “what was that noise”, and i just unplugged it immediately So - no, it was not beeping in his backpack. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/850 "2015-09-24T20:58:19Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > Did you see the exposed electrical connections? > > Did you see the power transformer? > > Did you see the AC power cord? > > Are you aware that exposed electrical connections are both a fire and shock hazard? > > This timing device (aka clock) also has a 9vdc connector but no 9vdc battery connected to it. > > It’s been reported that the kid plugged his timing device/clock into an electrical outlet. That was when the English teacher heard it beep, and the beep is why the English teacher began asking questions. Let’d try s little logic here. Remember the clock beeping in class. Said beeping drew attention to it? Do you think Ahmed plugged it in to a wall socket before he sat down, or used a 9v battery? Choose one. ---
**Author:** ![FXMastermind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fxmastermind/32/7289_2.png) [@FXMastermind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FXMastermind)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/851 "2015-09-24T20:58:32Z")
The stupid, it burns ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/852 "2015-09-24T20:58:44Z")
Ah, thanks Terr. So Ahmed admits it was plugged in. There you have it. eta: Furthermore the beeping wasn’t an accident, it was intentional. There was some debate about that upthread, now it’s been cleared up. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/853 "2015-09-24T20:59:12Z")
[quote=“Morgenstern, post:850, topic:731454”] > [@doorhinge](#): > > Did you see the exposed electrical connections? > > Did you see the power transformer? > > Did you see the AC power cord? > > Are you aware that exposed electrical connections are both a fire and shock hazard? > > This there > Let’d try s little logic here. Remember the clock beeping in class. Said beeping drew attention to it? Do you think Ahmed plugged it in to a wall socket before he sat down, or used a 9v battery? Choose one. As I showed you Ahmed admitted in his interview, he plugged it into a wall socket. ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/854 "2015-09-24T21:05:22Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > No, it hasn’t. Ahmed “the clock-making teen” Mohamed says it was plugged in. > **[United States | Today's latest from Al Jazeera](https://www.aljazeera.com/where/united-states/)** > > Stay on top of United States latest developments on the ground with Al Jazeera’s fact-based news, exclusive video footage, photos and updated maps. ---
**Author:** ![xenophon41](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xenophon41/32/253_2.png) [@xenophon41](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xenophon41)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/855 "2015-09-24T21:07:15Z")
> [@Terr](#): > > [http://www.wfaa.com/story/news/local/dallas-county/2015/09/15/irving-isd-student-detained-for-device-resembling-bomb/72339246/](http://www.wfaa.com/story/news/local/dallas-county/2015/09/15/irving-isd-student-detained-for-device-resembling-bomb/72339246/) Police said the student had the briefcase in his English class, where he plugged it into an electrical outlet and it started to make noise.[Cops Detain High School Freshman Ahmed Mohamed After Officials Mistake His Clock For A BOMB | The Daily Caller](http://dailycaller.com/2015/09/16/cops-detain-high-school-freshman-ahmed-mohamed-after-officials-mistake-his-clock-for-a-bomb/) According to police, Mohamed plugged the wires in his Vaultz pencil box into an electric socket on a classroom wall during English class. > > [ItemFix - Social Video Factory](http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=801_1443042484) > In the sixth period he apparently, without the English teachers knowledge plugged the device into the wall with the intent to set off the timer on the device. So he _did_ have it plugged in during English class. But it wasn’t in 6th period; that’s when he was called out of class. English was his second period. Teacher confiscated his device (as he should’ve due to the distraction) and it was “several hours later during 6th period” when police pulled him out of class. Gotta say, the more complete story doesn’t make the school administration or the police look any smarter. They say they cuffed him, took him to juvie and fingerprinted him because “He kept maintaining it was a clock but there was no broader explanation.” (Maybe they wanted an electronics lesson? Or they wondered where the big hand and little hand went to?) ---
**Author:** ![xenophon41](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xenophon41/32/253_2.png) [@xenophon41](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xenophon41)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/856 "2015-09-24T21:09:16Z")
> [@steronz](#): > > **xenophon41** , what exactly are you basing the “must have been a battery” theory on though? We see a plug, we don’t see a battery, local news reports that the police say it was plugged in… I have no such theory. I responded to **doorhinge** ’s theory that there was “no battery” which was apparently based on a photo taken after the incident. ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/857 "2015-09-24T21:17:25Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > Let’d try s little logic here. Remember the clock beeping in class. Said beeping drew attention to it? Do you think Ahmed plugged it in to a wall socket before he sat down, or used a 9v battery? Choose one. Tough choice. :rolleyes: I chose Ahmed “the clock-making teen” Mohamed, in the classroom, with the wall socket. What did I win? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/858 "2015-09-24T21:25:10Z")
He plugged it in?!? Oh my. A person could have fun going back through many assertions made in this thread that are now blown to pieces. If a person wanted to. ---
**Author:** ![xenophon41](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xenophon41/32/253_2.png) [@xenophon41](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xenophon41)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/859 "2015-09-24T21:31:20Z")
The added details about the use of the clock during English class, as admitted by Ahmed, make it clear the kid needed to be disciplined about the disruptive behavior. Behavior that was a little worse than just showing off a toy or game to other students; this was a home-built electrical device he had no business plugging in outside of a supervised lesson, much less in an unrelated class. So I kind of agree with a short suspension for that (I’d probably have gone with an in-school suspension, but even so, something more than a ‘talking to’). If my son had done something like that, I’d have expressed my own disappointment and exercised my own corrective plan. However, the cuffing and fingerprinting and trip to juvie are completely separate from the school discipline. As a father, all my anger and disgust would be transferred to the idiots who called the police and to the police who’d criminalized my son for the clock that he said was a clock and that they knew was a clock. And if my son had been brown skinned and named “Ahmed Mohamed” I’d for damn sure know why he was treated that way. ---
**Author:** ![xenophon41](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xenophon41/32/253_2.png) [@xenophon41](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xenophon41)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454/860 "2015-09-24T21:41:10Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > He plugged it in?!? Oh my. > > A person could have fun going back through many assertions made in this thread that are now blown to pieces. If a person wanted to. Assertions about the original _Dallas Morning News_ story posted in the OP? > [@DMN story](#): > > He kept the clock inside his school bag in English class, but the teacher complained when the alarm beeped in the middle of a lesson. Ahmed brought his invention up to show her afterward. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454.md?page=42) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-this-is-totally-going-to-kill-bring-your-clock-to-school-day/731454.md?page=44)