ATHENS, Ohio -- Authorities in Athens said that they were investigating a mountain bike that put the Ohio University campus on high alert Thursday morning.

Athens Acting Fire Chief Ken Gilbraith said that the bike had a sticker on it that said, "This bike is a pipe bomb." He said the university police discovered it overnight, parked outside a campus restaurant.

OU closed four buildings, police blocked streets around the Oasis restaurant, the fire department brought in off-duty firefighters, and the Columbus fire department's bomb squad was called in.

Gilbraith said the bomb experts attacked the bike with a high-pressure spray of water, then pried it open with a hydraulic tool and found no bomb inside.

It was later discovered that the sticker was advertising for a Florida-based band called This Bike Is A Pipe Bomb.

The university remained in session throughout the incident. The four buildings were reopened by 9 a.m.

Paranoia strikes deep
Into your life it will creep
It starts when you're always afraid
Step outta line, the men come, and take you away

Quote:

Original post by Andrew Russell Question: How many pipe bombs, or objects containing pipe bombs, are labeled "This is a pipe bomb"?

Quote:

Original post by Andrew Russell Question: How many pipe bombs, or objects containing pipe bombs, are labeled "This is a pipe bomb"?

Quote:

Original post by Andrew Russell Question: How many pipe bombs, or objects containing pipe bombs, are labeled "This is a pipe bomb"?

Quote:

Original post by Michalson A person going into a crowded room, closing his eyes, and then firing a gun in random directions is guilty of a crime, even if he had no intent to kill anyone.

Quote:

Original post by Michalson It is actually very frequent that the bomber advertises that they have planted a bomb. Most common occurance being that they phone in and tell someone they've planted a bomb, or they put the bomb in a public place and label it (or call in and say exactly where the bomb is).

Quote:

Original post by LessBread Paranoia strikes deep Into your life it will creep It starts when you're always afraid Step outta line, the men come, and take you away

Quote:

Original post by furby100 Quote: Original post by Michalson A person going into a crowded room, closing his eyes, and then firing a gun in random directions is guilty of a crime, even if he had no intent to kill anyone. In this example, the crime would be murder, not manslaughter, since this is a clear example of recklessness.

Quote:

Original post by Michalson So as long as it's a sticker for a badly named garage band, any phrase advertised in public without warning or disclaimer is ok? There is a usual example for explaining the limits of free speech - specifically that calling out "fire" (when there is none) in a crowded threater is crossing out of the free speech arena, and into using words to assault more then just a few individuals personal taste.

Quote:

Malicious intent is not required for a crime to be committed - in some cases we even have special names for when a specific type of regular crime is committed without actual intent, i.e. manslaughter ("The unlawful killing of a human being without malice or premeditation, either express or implied"). A person going into a crowded room, closing his eyes, and then firing a gun in random directions is guilty of a crime, even if he had no intent to kill anyone. What consitutes a crime even without original "intent" is that a "reasonable person" should have realized the consequences (that firing a gun blind in a crowded room could injure or kill someone). In this case, a "reasonable person" (or someone that wasn't a doped up college student listening to crappy bands) would realize that a sticker proclaiming an object to be an explosive device (there are no common alternative meanings for "pipe bomb". You don't say "that movie was a pipe bomb") would consistute a threat to public safety - in much the same way that shouting "fire" would.

Quote:

Original post by Stonicus Manslaughter still implies you were doing something you shouldn't have been (drunk, stoned, speeding, etc...). .... And, I just disagree. I think anyone who sees a sticker on a bike that says "This Bike Is A Pipe Bomb", and really thinks it's a pipe bomb, will be in the minority. Oh, and they're an idiot too.

Quote:

Original post by StonicusAnd, I just disagree. I think anyone who sees a sticker on a bike that says "This Bike Is A Pipe Bomb", and really thinks it's a pipe bomb, will be in the minority. Oh, and they're an idiot too.

Quote:

Original post by Michalson In this case, a "reasonable person" (or someone that wasn't a doped up college student listening to crappy bands) would realize that a sticker proclaiming an object to be an explosive device (there are no common alternative meanings for "pipe bomb". You don't say "that movie was a pipe bomb") would consistute a threat to public safety - in much the same way that shouting "fire" would.

Quote:

Original post by joanusdmentia Quote: Original post by Michalson In this case, a "reasonable person" (or someone that wasn't a doped up college student listening to crappy bands) would realize that a sticker proclaiming an object to be an explosive device (there are no common alternative meanings for "pipe bomb". You don't say "that movie was a pipe bomb") would consistute a threat to public safety - in much the same way that shouting "fire" would. Without seeing a picture of the sticker in question, you simply can't say that. If this was a peice of torn out paper with "this bike is a pipe bomb" scrawled on it, then maybe. If this was a standard bumper sticker or similar, even if it only had these words and nothing else on it, then this is total rubbish. Any "reasonable person" will instantly recognize a bumper sticker, regardless of what it said. When's the last time a terrorist used a glossy plastic sheet with adhesive on one side and professional print? *Assuming* this was a normal bumper sticker or similar, then the response of the university police was nothing more than paranoid idiocy.

Quote:

Original post by bytecoder This is exactly like yelling out "fire" on an airplane--the medium on which it is presented is irrelevant.

Quote:

Original post by joanusdmentia Quote: Original post by bytecoder This is exactly like yelling out "fire" on an airplane--the medium on which it is presented is irrelevant. So if someone walked in the cinema airplane wearing a shirt that said 'This building plane is on fire', would you run out screaming?

Quote:

Original post by AnonymousPosterChild Quote: Original post by joanusdmentia So if someone walked in the cinema airplane wearing a shirt that said 'This building plane is on fire', would you run out screaming? THE PLANE IS ON FIRE? OH GOD!

Quote:

Quote: Original post by LessBread Paranoia strikes deep Into your life it will creep It starts when you're always afraid Step outta line, the men come, and take you away Nice; although 'afraid' and 'away' don't really rhyme.

Quote:

White print on green glossy plastic, doesn't look particularly threatening to me.

Quote:

Original post by Avatar God Ouch. You did not just insult Buffalo Springfield, did you?

Quote:

Original post by joanusdmentia Quote: Original post by AnonymousPosterChild Quote: Original post by joanusdmentia So if someone walked in the cinema airplane wearing a shirt that said 'This building plane is on fire', would you run out screaming? THE PLANE IS ON FIRE? OH GOD! Yeah, but since when were you considered a "reasonable person"?