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-   -   And the Foot-in- Mouth Award goes to.... (https://britishexpats.com/forum/usa-57/foot-mouth-award-goes-204066/)

tony_2003 Jan 22nd 2004 9:45 pm

It's up to her to know the laws in place in a foreign country, ignorence is not an excuse. There is a larger picture than just "a silly thing to say" had she said it on the plane she would have created hysteria. Had the officials NOT taken her "joke" seriously then I can guarentee that people would have refused to get on the plane. It's also disrespectful towards the victims of 911 and Lockerbie. I watched a BBC web broadcast of her after her bailing and she was still laughing about it and saying "it was a silly thing to say" etc...my guess is that she has been told she will probably get off with a warning. I wonder how much the bail for an Arab would have been?

Taffyles Jan 22nd 2004 10:14 pm


Originally posted by tony_2003
It's up to her to know the laws in place in a foreign country, ignorence is not an excuse. There is a larger picture than just "a silly thing to say" had she said it on the plane she would have created hysteria. Had the officials NOT taken her "joke" seriously then I can guarentee that people would have refused to get on the plane. It's also disrespectful towards the victims of 911 and Lockerbie. I watched a BBC web broadcast of her after her bailing and she was still laughing about it and saying "it was a silly thing to say" etc...my guess is that she has been told she will probably get off with a warning. I wonder how much the bail for an Arab would have been?
It was disrespectful and stupid, I agree. But I don't believe everybody is as hysterical as you seem to think, I doubt very much if anyone would have refused to get on a plane because a 21 yr old kid said , in a joking tone, "be careful there's 3 bombs in there". But that's beside the point, since when has making a disrespectful and stupid "joke" been a crime??? With a 15 year jail sentence?? A swift warning from one of the officials would have been enough to put her down and shut her up, don't you think? Her bag was going through screening- they knew there was nothing in it. Their reaction is more scary than a young twit fooling around. I'd have more confidence in the security if they concentrated their efforts on finding things that real terrorists hide and don't announce.
I think she's been punished enough with having to spend a night in an American jail, with the possible lifetime consequences of never getting a visa again. When this comes to court, I hope the judge just gives her a ticking off and throws the case out.
I just heard that Richard Branson has offered to pay for her defence.

tony_2003 Jan 22nd 2004 10:25 pm

I agree that 15 years is a bit harsh, I seriously doubt if she will receive this though. I also think that a warning from a security guard is too little. Personally I wouldnt have gotten on the plane unless she was removed, but that's my opinion.

dunroving Jan 22nd 2004 11:29 pm

I'm wondering how people would feel if they were standing in line at a bank and I walked in and shouted, "I've got a gun! This is a stick up!"

Then a little later said, "Just kidding, haha".

I'd expect to get locked up if I did that, and I'm not sure the "bomb" joke is that far removed. Being stupid is not a crime, I agree, but if being stupid causes you to commit a crime or to be reckless, a few days in lock-up is probably justified.

What if some little old man or weak-hearted pasenger keeled over in shock and had a heart attack? It didn't happen, but it could easily have.

Yes, I think joking is a crime if it's the kind of joke that could give someone a heart attack.

Pulaski Jan 23rd 2004 12:41 am


Originally posted by dunroving ....
What if some little old man or weak-hearted passenger keeled over in shock and had a heart attack? It didn't happen, but it could easily have. .....
Or what would have happened if she had said the same thing on a plane? One word from the pilot and there would have been a couple of F15's dispatched, armed, and with authority to shoot the plane down. :scared:

Saying "There's a bomb in my bag" is no longer something to joke about in America.

Patrick Jan 23rd 2004 12:57 am


Originally posted by Pulaski
Or what would have happened if she had said the same thing on a plane? One word from the pilot and there [b]would[b] have been a couple of F15's dispatched, armed, and with authority to shoot the plane down. :scared:

Saying "There's a bomb in my bag" is no longer something to joke about in America.
I don't think it has ever been, its that old thing about Freedom of Speech being Freedom of Speech with responsibiliy! You can say what you like but you can't shout "Fire" in a Movie Theatre as this is irresponsible. Same with this girl, I do feel sorry for her but then again she is a white middle class british woman, the chances of her doing any real time is less than zero!

Patrick

supernav Jan 23rd 2004 9:00 am

>the chances of her doing any real time is less than zero!

You'd be surprised. It's all up to the judge, and most judge's are professional enough to not take race, age, nationality into consideration.

-= nav =-

Taffyles Jan 23rd 2004 11:16 am


Originally posted by dunroving
I'm wondering how people would feel if they were standing in line at a bank and I walked in and shouted, "I've got a gun! This is a stick up!"

Then a little later said, "Just kidding, haha".

I'd expect to get locked up if I did that, and I'm not sure the "bomb" joke is that far removed. Being stupid is not a crime, I agree, but if being stupid causes you to commit a crime or to be reckless, a few days in lock-up is probably justified.

What if some little old man or weak-hearted pasenger keeled over in shock and had a heart attack? It didn't happen, but it could easily have.

Yes, I think joking is a crime if it's the kind of joke that could give someone a heart attack.
Well she joked with an airport policeman and if he's got a dodgy ticker he shouldn't be on the job- if any other passengers heard what she said, it could only have been a handful in close proximity. She didn't go into the airport and shout "I've got three bombs in my bag"...that would have been threatening behaviour, a crime, and would have caused mass panic. From all I've read, other passengers weren't disrupted at all and not even aware. The security police knew there were no bombs in her bag otherwise they would have evacuated the airport and called in the bomb squad. I think they handled it badly- if they had warned her immediately that she was breaking a State law by saying that- she might not have repeated it twice - which, in their words, "left them with no choice".
I'm not condoning what she did- it was childish and stupid- but I think the reaction was way OTT.

Taffyles Jan 23rd 2004 11:31 am


Originally posted by supernav
>the chances of her doing any real time is less than zero!

You'd be surprised. It's all up to the judge, and most judge's are professional enough to not take race, age, nationality into consideration.

-= nav =-
It depends on how much she can afford for a lawyer. A good lawyer could get her off- but they cost big bucks.

dunroving Jan 23rd 2004 12:21 pm


Originally posted by Taffyles
Well she joked with an airport policeman and if he's got a dodgy ticker he shouldn't be on the job- if any other passengers heard what she said, it could only have been a handful in close proximity. She didn't go into the airport and shout "I've got three bombs in my bag"...that would have been threatening behaviour, a crime, and would have caused mass panic. From all I've read, other passengers weren't disrupted at all and not even aware. The security police knew there were no bombs in her bag otherwise they would have evacuated the airport and called in the bomb squad. I think they handled it badly- if they had warned her immediately that she was breaking a State law by saying that- she might not have repeated it twice - which, in their words, "left them with no choice".
I'm not condoning what she did- it was childish and stupid- but I think the reaction was way OTT.
OK, maybe my analogy was too far off because she didn't shout.

I'll make my analogy closer, then. If I walked into a bank and quietly handed a note to the teller saying "I have a gun and this is a stick up", I'd expect to get arrested and put in the clink for several days - even if it was a joke, and no-one else in the bank saw the note.

I think she got exactly what she deserved. If I'd done the same thing as her I wouldn't be expecting to get out of jail for a few days.

veryfunny Jan 23rd 2004 5:29 pm

What a Goat, £2,700 could go to better use.

veryfunny Jan 23rd 2004 5:30 pm

Another one
 
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/e...ar/3424037.stm


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