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"Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanlon%27s_razor https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanlo
by martincmartin 11y ago
"Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanlon%27s_razor https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanlon%27s_razor
- iwwr 11y agoStupidity is not an excuse for being an asshole.
- nathos 11y agoIn this case, we're dealing with malicious stupidity. Edge of the razor?
- vezzy-fnord 11y agoHanlon's razor doesn't apply to politics.
- jessaustin 11y agoThat's for dealing with authentic human beings, not with mindless order-followers.
- mbrutsch 11y ago"Two things can be true" - me
- sp332 11y agoStupidity does not adequately explain why they are considering bringing charges of a "hoax bomb", or sent this letter home with the other students: http://www.irvingisd.net/cms/lib010/TX01917973/Centricity/Domain/9/ParentLetter_SuspiciousLookingItematMacArthur.pdf http://www.irvingisd.net/cms/lib010/TX01917973/Centricity/Do... [PDF] Therefore, malice.
- lucozade 11y ago> Stupidity does not adequately explain why they are considering bringing charges No but embarrassment may explain quite a lot of it.
- s_q_b 11y agoOnce authority figures make a decision, they fear backing down from it, because they (unfortunately often correctly) believe that doubling down will force the far less well-funded citizen to fold, usually in exchange for a less severe "punishment."
- ojgeojgaew 11y agoThis isn't limited to authority figures. Most people, when faced with evidence that they were publicly wrong, try to save face by doubling down on their original convictions.
- cmurf 11y agostupidity + malice Calling it a hoax bomb is ass covering by shifting the blame to the person who happens to be the only adult in that bumfuck town's government.
- Avenger42 11y ago"I recommend using this opportunity to talk with your child about the Student Code of Conduct and specifically not bringing items to school that are prohibited." As a parent, can I see the list of "items... that are prohibited"? I'd be pretty shocked if "clock" is actually on there.
- austenallred 11y agoThat's the crazy part to me. They still seem to think and act as if it was a bomb.
- chrisdbaldwin 11y agoRelevant Rick and Morty: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6d6qDcPz7Uo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6d6qDcPz7Uo
- rm445 11y agoRemember the Boston Lite-Brite thing? (A more legit incident, since apparently quite a few people were spooked by the devices, but still a case where the authorities over-reacted and refused to back down). Sticking to the line that something was a 'bomb hoax' keeps the responsibility with the accused: they shouldn't have perpetrated a bomb hoax; not we shouldn't have over-reacted to an innocuous object.
- Frenchgeek 11y agoWell, the alternative is being wrong.
- jameshart 11y agoTo be fair, it wouldn't surprise me if 'replica firearm' was on there. Then again, this is Texas.
- hellbanner 11y agoIf the kids have any intelligence at all they're only going to grow up hating the bureaucracy.
- dynomight 11y agoSadly this is an important part of education.
- ChrisArgyle 11y agoIgnorance easily explains this unfortunate, embarrassing incident. The boy's father is from Sudan and is well known for being outspoken against anti-Islamic policies. To an unworldly south/midwesterner that spells "potential terrorist". It's not too much of a stretch to see that diagnosis extended to the son.
- sp332 11y agoHis father ran for President of Sudan, and came in fourth.
- Shivetya 11y agoIgnorance that was likely being exploited for political purposes. As in, his father probably encouraged his son to do this. The father knew that it would likely cause someone to freak out, student or teacher; that it beeped helped and even better that it was in a metal case. There was no reason to bring the item in, let alone a the week of 9/11. The school admins reacted as stereo typically badly as they could have hoped. It should have been assessed quickly and immediately removed from the school. Instead it just got stupid quick. So this father will now get images of himself with his son with our President. We get some immediate attention to the horrible plight of Muslims in America (there isn't any horrible plight other than some people don't trust them)....
- jodah 11y agoTrue, though stupidity is not seeing how much this is going to cost them, ultimately.
- masteryupa_ 11y agoI'd like to jump on the back of this and make the point that, referring to the clock project in question, it seems a lie to label the item as a "hoax bomb" as if it were actually intended to even be a bomb, let alone an article of the hoax variety. Not to mention the obvious claim of guilt by association that the prosecuting argument seems to imply, I would add that it also useful to distinguish the reality of the situation so as to ensure that "hoax bomb" doesn't catch on. "Clock thought to be a bomb" would be a more accurate representation of the situation.
- mostlystatic 11y agoNot sure if there's a formal definition, but this page distinguishes between a scare and a hoax: "Though city prosecutors eventually concluded there was no ill intent involved in the placing of the ads, the city continues to refer to the event as a "bomb hoax" rather than a "scare." - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Boston_bomb_scare https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Boston_bomb_scare
- cookingrobot 11y agoThey never thought it was real, or they would have evacuated the school.
- feedjoelpie 11y agoStupidity adequately explains the initial reaction. Bringing charges is merely after-the-fact butt-covering. The whole world knows you're stupid, but if you can get the entire legal system to be just as stupid, it's no longer your fault! Remember the Aqua Teen Hunger Force "bomb" scare in Boston? The city rigorously pursued legal action to spare their police department the embarrassment of having wasted millions of dollars carefully dismantling DIY Lite-Brites.
- deleted 11y ago[deleted]
- mattkevan 11y agoThere's a variant of Clarke's third law which applies here: "Any sufficiently advanced stupidity is indistinguishable from malice."
- masteryupa_ 11y ago@mattkevan could you provide a citation for this? A quick search nets Arthur C. Clarke's three laws, with the third reading: "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." - 1973, Hazards of Prophecy: The Failure of Imagination https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarke%27s_three_laws https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarke%27s_three_laws
- MiguelHudnandez 11y agoNo citation is necessary, they're just quoting a clever anonymous adaptation. It's not anything Arthur C. Clarke ever said.
- deleted 11y ago[deleted]
- stuaxo 11y agoHanlons 3rd law ?
- ryanlol 11y agoHanlon's razor is a pretty stupid quote here, there definitely is no need to distinguish stupidity from malice here. The people responsible for this mess should probably lose their jobs. (Based on the story as it was presented here)
- triangleman 11y agoYes but should the be fired on account of malice or stupidity? (Both valid causes for firing)
- caf 11y agoIt seems more like some kind of quiet collective insanity to me.
- boomlinde 11y agoHanlon's razor is bullshit when it comes to bureaucratic institutions shifting blame to cover their own asses
- tomjen3 11y agoPower corrupts. As such we should always assume malice when dealing with people in power.
- Lawtonfogle 11y agoA wise tool to be employed by the malicious.