The Power of Stupid People in Large Groups

Every time I hear about something like this, it reminds me of the line from Tommy Lee Jones in Men in Black. I forget how it went, and don't really want to look it up, but he basically says a single person is smart. But people are stupid and panicky animals, and you know it.

Every once in a while, I hear about a story that reinforces that. I originally found this story on digg, but here's a samle of one of the original articles.

Five teenage girls allegedly playing a game they learned about on the Internet could face criminal charges after leaving 17 suspicious packages throughout Ravenna.

The first suspicious package was reported around 7:15 a.m. Friday when a passerby flagged down a passing officer regarding a strange box on the steps of Immaculate Conception Church, 225 S. Sycamore St., according to Ravenna Police Chief Randall McCoy. The box was wrapped in gold paper and had black question marks painted on the sides.


The package .. was opened by emergency response officials and was found to be empty, McCoy said.

McCoy said while the investigation was ongoing at the various scenes, a female juvenile and her parent came in to the Ravenna Police Department claiming responsibility for the packages, claiming they were just a joke. A total of five female juveniles - all ages 16 or 17 - are suspected of being involved, McCoy said.

“The girls found an Internet site called Mario Question Blocks which told you step by step how the game is played, along with instructions on wrapping the packages, just to see what kind of response you get,” McCoy said. “This game is evidently being played all over the country.”

McCoy said even though no harm was intended by the girls, they could face criminal charges for their actions.

Yeah, this one pretty much runs the list dry. A harmless and tasteful April Fool's joke pulled by a few witty girls is horiffically misinterpreted by idiotic small-town small-minded hicks. And instead of claiming responsibility for thier own ignorance, they transfer blame to the girls in the form of criminal charges. Whatever the terrorists wished to accomplish by installing fear into our country, this is certainly a huge victory for them. This makes me hate our media as well as our misinformed and uneducated public. It's just a sickening situation.

On a better note, here is the site where they found the idea. And it's a fantastic and hillarious idea. I plan on doing it myself.