Ahmed Mohamed, 14, arrested over clock mistaken for bomb. Reasonable precaution or massive overreaction?

I don't think like it has a this game to do with race. But if you're bringing something home made then clear it before bringing it in.

Would POTUS be as inviting if the students wasn't a minority?

Not making this about race, however if it was a white kid would it have garnered as much coverage?

I'm glad POTUS reached out. It shows that not all Muslims are evil.

Yes now it would

When I think of some of the breadboard projects I made in high school... Ah, well.

The good news is the kid's getting some good visibility, and already some pings from NASA, JPL, and others.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2015/09/16/istandwithahmed-scientists-and-the-public-surge-to-support-boy-arrested-for-homemade-clock/

Sounds like profiling.

if he's so gaddamned smart why did he bring a clock resembling a bomb to school? Just to get detained and cry discrimination and sue? Genius

School Teachers and school personnel are understandably fearful of the unknown. The recent history of school violence, the rule If You See Something Say Something, leaves educators with a sense of danger. The Police that arrived may not have been trained in bomb detection. If this was a bomb, when was it set to explode? This is not the first child mistakenly accused and he won't be the last. I suspect they all survive the experience. Are you willing to bet your life and the lives of the students you are responsible for to make sure you are correct.

I initially saw this story on Facebook and I was completely appalled at how this played out.
Is the teacher a complete moron or just a fearful dolt?
He brought it in and showed the teacher what it was and if the teacher had any concerns then should have been the adult in the situation.
To arrest this kid for a digital clock is beyond stupid.
I can say with 100% certainty that had this kid been white, black, Hispanic or Asian the teacher would have been more like "very good, nice to see you being creative". Sadly this kid is Muslim and the teacher and school immediately thought terrorist in the making. Even the police over reacted, they should have taken a moment to see what it was and react properly.
This whole situation sucks because of paranoia.

My initial reaction after reading the article, but before watching the video was 100% in favor of the student. After seeing what the clock looked like, I can see why he got in trouble, though their response was incredibly disproportionate. If I saw a box with a clock on it, I would be a little suspicious. You can't bring replica weapons to school. You're really not supposed to bring water guns to school, because just because it's florescent pink doesn't mean it's not a real gun. It seems silly, but that's technically the law. I can't act like a little white Texan boy would've been treated the same but this is the world we live in.

I would rather see over reaction rather than no action. I understand the law enforcement reaction. The way things have been in this country, you cannot blame them for treating every suspicion as a life threatening event. That is a sad commentary on the land of the free. The school is where I think the mishandling of the situation occurred. School used to be a place of learning. A student showing passion for a field would be encouraged not met with handcuffs and suspension. There are two elements to this story that compound the stupidity of the situation. First, once it was determined that it was harmless, why was the student still suspended from school? Second, why did the President feel that this warranted a trip to the White House? I will address that now.

Lets start with the easy one. Mr. Obama is a citizen of the United States as well as POTUS. He has the right as a citizen to stand up for what he believes in. He has a responsibility to temper that against his obligations as President. So while Mr. Obama the citizen may have been outraged by the events that occurred, President Obama should have not interjected into what amounts to a local civil matter. I would be fine with this young man being invited to the White House, under the right circumstances. If it was a young inventors event, future of America event, top young minds event, or some other event bringing bright young students to share ideas, I would be fine with it. I think it is a horrible idea to invite a person to the White House simply because they have been wronged by the system. If that was the case, he should be inviting every Veteran who is waiting for the VA to get their shit together and provide necessary services to the White House. This did not need to be a political matter, but because of how it was handled, it has become exactly that. Shame on you Mr. Obama.

The more difficult issue is the way it was handled by the school. I understand the need for student safety. I understand that when a student violates school rules, they need to be disciplined (though I have never understood giving time off for bad behavior). The teacher who reported this saw a student with something that was perceived as threatening. The teacher took the action deemed appropriate. What the teacher didn't do was bother to find out anything about the situation. Sometimes there is a need to drop the hammer, and sometimes there is a need to open a dialogue. A student carrying a gun, drop the hammer. That student has already gotten to a point where they are engaged. A student with a suspicious package, open a dialogue. Talk to the kid. Ask questions. Not just about what they are carrying, but about their mental state. I am really convinced that a five minute conversation with Ahmed would have defused the situation before it exploded. Additionally, Ahmed was suspended from school for this, WHY? Suspended for good time keeping? Suspended for being smart? Suspended for being creative? Suspended for being different? Suspended for being Muslim? Any way you look at it, none of those are valid reasons to suspend a child from school. I stand by my statement that once it was determined that there was no threat, Ahmed should have gone back to class.

I do feel bad for this kid. He is never going to live up to the events of the last two days. He has been made out as this genius engineer being persecuted for his ethnicity. He has become a symbol of everything wrong with our society right now. Why? Because he built a clock and wanted to show it off. I am not trying to take away from what he did. I think it is awesome that a fourteen year old kid is able to build stuff like that. I am simply concerned that there is going to be so much pressure on this young man that there is no way he is going to live up to the hype.

I really think that we are coming to a cross-roads in this nation. I think we are dumbing down, and softening people. When I was young we had toy guns that looked like the real thing. The closer to reality the more we liked it. We never would have thought about pointing it at a police officer. If we had, that would have gotten a butt whipping. Now if a child eats a pop tart into a shape that resembles a gun, they get kicked out of school. Kids get awards for showing up. We are teaching them that success is governed not by effort but by attendance. This is in that same vein. This student showed some intelligence, skill, and effort. He was rewarded for his display with handcuffs and suspension. Why not just post up: IF YOUR CHILD EXCELS, WE WILL TAKE ACTION TO BRING THEM DOWN. Worse still, between all of this, we are setting up the United States to fall. When our enemies no longer fear us, we no longer have the fortitude to stand up for our values, we don't have the heart or intelligence to realize it, we are setting up this great nation to be attacked, taken down, and occupied.

Massive over-reaction. My guess is that had this been a white kid named John Smith, his teacher would have been impressed.

Note that they arrested this kid, and questioned him for hours without his parents or a lawyer (in direct violation of state law) because "he might have a bomb"...but they did not evacuate the school, or bring in a bomb disposal unit, or really take any precautions that one would expect had they really believed this to be a bomb.

Way to show the Muslim world that America really is hostile towards them, and way to squash the kind of interest in STEM that is desperately needed in this country.