WWTBAM Bored

http://home.lausd.net

An electronic threat was sent into LAUSD around 5 AM regarding backpacks and packages involving "multiple schools".
All district schools are closed and will be searched.
640000 students are being kept home.

No snow days in LA, but we get bomb days


- Tim H.

I got a phone call at 6:45 a.m. alerting me that Sparky's school (not all schools) was being closed and to keep him home. But he was already on his way by then and (as usual) his phone was off, so he'll probably get all the way to school before being turned around and sent home. --Bob

It wasn't me. My organization still uses newspaper clippings and glue sticks to make threats...

NYC schools got the same threat. They decided it was a hoax, possibly by someone obsessed by the TV show Homeland, and kept schools open. The incident reinforced New Yorkers' impression of California.

Here's an even more bizarre school closing story, from Virginia:

Security concerns close county schools Friday

A high school geography class got this assignment: "Here is the shahada, the Islamic statement of faith, written in Arabic. In the space below, try copying it by hand. This should give you an idea of the artistic complexity of calligraphy." Rednecks complained that it was Islamic indoctrination. Others pointed out that social studies classes everywhere teach about other religions. The debate got so heated that officials locked down schools on Thursday and will keep them closed Friday. Hopefully, everyone will calm down over vacation, and the school will make the incident into a learning experience.

jarnon wrote:NYC schools got the same threat. They decided it was a hoax, possibly by someone obsessed by the TV show Homeland, and kept schools open. The incident reinforced New Yorkers' impression of California.

As I understand it, New York was aware of the threat to Los Angeles schools when New York made its decision, and the close similarity of the language of the two threats contributed to their conclusion that the threat was a hoax. But that information was not available to Los Angeles schools when they made their decision to close.

I'm not saying that I necessarily agree with the decision to close Los Angeles schools. But this is an area where I'm inclined to cut officials a fair amount of slack, particularly given that they had to make a decision under very tight time constraints. --Bob