Being flipped off by a Lite Brite causes Bostonian meltdown

After it was discovered that Wednesday's bomb scare in Boston was caused by a middle-finger-flipping promotion for a cartoon, some people in the rest of the country wondered whether Bostonians had lost their sense of humor —- or their common sense.

And while indignant local officials pressed for payback, which included two arrests, bloggers marveled that so many people were out of touch with guerilla promotions like the campaign for Cartoon Network's "Aqua Teen Hunger Force."

Todd Mitchell at Shakespeare's Sister has a wonderful take on the rumpus.

Update: Via NTodd, Bruce Schneier:

The story is almost too funny to write about seriously. To advertise the Cartoon Network show "Aqua Teen Hunger Force," the network put up 38 blinking signs (kind of like Lite Brites) around the Boston area. The Boston police decided -- with absolutely no supporting evidence -- that these were bombs and shut down parts of the city.

Now the police look stupid, but they're trying really not hard not to act humiliated:

Governor Deval Patrick told the Associated Press: "It's a hoax -- and it's not funny."

Unfortunately, it is funny. What isn't funny is now the Boston government is trying to prosecute the artist and the network instead of owning up to their own stupidity. The police now claim that they were "hoax" explosive devices. I don't think you can claim they are hoax explosive devices unless they were intended to look like explosive devices, which merely a cursory look at any of them shows that they weren't.

But it's much easier to blame others than to admit that you were wrong...