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alsetmusic a day ago

I remember this fiasco. We were peak see-something-say-something (or maybe just beyond that) in post-9/11 USA. Absolute paranoia. People who lived in the middle of nowhere were afraid of terrorist attacks, as though high population urban centers wouldn’t be the real targets.

See also: Freedumb Fries[0]

0. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_fries

alistairSH 16 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Somebody at my office printed and posted a pile of “Wombats are everywhere, if you see something, say something” posters, with an image of a wombat. People lost their shit over it and he got a reprimand. I thought it was hysterical. Wombats don’t live in DC. People are so over-sensitive.

bagels 15 hours ago | parent [-]

What's there to be upset about? Do they think this person controls the wombats?

alistairSH 12 hours ago | parent [-]

Beats me. I guess some people have no sense for the absurd.

vundercind 3 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> We were peak see-something-say-something (or maybe just beyond that)

My recollection is we were pretty solidly past that period by the time this happened, and that’s part of why it was so ridiculous. If this had happened in like ‘02 or maybe ‘03 I think folks wouldn’t have thought it quite so silly that the authorities responded the way they did.

garciansmith a day ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Yep. The Mario question blocks put up by some teenagers in Ravenna, Ohio, in 2006 was a similar situation. https://www.eurogamer.net/news030406marioprank

paulryanrogers 15 hours ago | parent [-]

A bunch appeared in our local park's hiking trail. Though I think it was an approved event based on some of the signage around at the time. It is a shame that unapproved ads can litter public spaces with little or no consequence, but not art.

dghlsakjg 9 hours ago | parent [-]

You should read the article you are talking about. It wasn’t an ad campaign.

It was a bunch of teenage fans doing something creative for fun. Ya know, art!

astura 11 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

This was dumb, but 2007 was many years past peak post-9/11 paranoia. Almost everyone who wasn't Boston PD or the media thought this was a gross overreaction to what was basically a Lite-Brite at the time. Don't forget, they were placed in other major cities across the country without incident.