Tiny Ohio town freaked out by Mario prank
by Vladimir Cole 
{ Apr 2nd 2006 at 5:18PM }
The residents of a tiny Ohio town called the bomb squad
when they started discovering "suspicious packages" littered throughout the town on April 1st. It turns out
that the packages were the result of an April Fools prank in which five girls from Ravenna, Ohio (a town of
approximately 12,000 residents) placed 17 cardboard replications of the iconic Super Mario Brothers power-up
cubes throughout town, according to news stories carried in local papers (1,
2).
- How friggin' ridiculous is it that a town of 12,000 residents is scared that Osama bin Laden snuck in overnight and placed bombs wrapped in gold wrapping paper in highly-visible public places?
- How long until Ravenna Police Chief Randall McCoy makes a run for mayor on the back of his successful defense of the town against teenaged terrorists? McCoy was quoted as saying that the Mario-themed blocks "could be deadly," (according to the Record Courier). His office "will be working with the Portage County Prosecutor's Office regarding possible criminal charges" according to the Beacon Journal.
- Why were other fun-lovers throughout the country able to carry off successful versions of the same exact prank without some opportunistic politician-cum-police chief making a bomb scare out of it?
In response to the Record Courier's story, Ohio resident Janice Cochran wrote, "I think these girls are old enough to no [sic] better than to pull a joke like this with all that is going on in the world today. Leaving suspicious packages is enough to scare the dickins [sic] out of anyone."
[Thanks for the
tip, Adam]
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Reader Comments (Page 2 of 3)
Soothsayer @ Apr 2nd 2006 9:48PM
Small towns are usually most scared of terrorism. Why else do you think NY went Kerry, but President Bush won the deep south in Election '04?
(Flame on!)
lostzenfound @ Apr 2nd 2006 9:48PM
They're going to get charged with littering. I'll bet $5.
jordan @ Apr 2nd 2006 9:49PM
can you imagine the terror that would have been if they had made bob-ombs?
mike @ Apr 2nd 2006 10:04PM
#1: I bet Fed-Ex doesn't get much business there : )
Spencer @ Apr 2nd 2006 10:05PM
Just be happy they didn't try to re-enact "Bomberman."
Tom Hayden @ Apr 2nd 2006 10:11PM
First of all lolersticks,I don't think this was an april fools joke. Those news reports look pretty legit to me.
Second, don't blame the townspeople. I mean what the hell do you expect them to do. The media has been so busy fear-mongering that this kind of reaction is inevitable. I imagine that someone who was unfamiliar with Mario might get a wee bit concerned by a strange looking package just chilling out in a random place in their town. Especially with constant news reports of the imminent danger that we are all in from terrorists. When we cultivate a culture of fear, scared people is what we get.
HotShotX @ Apr 2nd 2006 10:13PM
I can see it now:
"Terrorist drops bomb down chimney. Christmas is now cancelled."
~HotShotX
Zweibel @ Apr 2nd 2006 10:21PM
Holy hecks, I knew I couldn't go through these comments without getting political stuff. Oh well, "wellcom 2 teh intranets," as they say.
Anyway, this is incredibly silly. I see no need to hand out criminal charges to the girl. Nobody was hurt save for those who might have missed out on life because they were afraid to leave their houses. If anything, give the girls a slight slap on the wrist and send them home. They've already been dealt enough punishment as a good deal of the town will not forget this prank. If you've ever lived in a small town then you'll know what I'm talking about. =/
Zack @ Apr 2nd 2006 10:31PM
Ohio is a nice state really...
Videogames are popular, people are generally nice other than some small crazy towns like this one. Just get rid of the Republicans and we're all perfectly nice...
B1gC72 @ Apr 2nd 2006 10:32PM
i live in a little town in MD with 3000 people in it. i think this kind of over-reaction is just part of the small town mentality. i guess people in small towns just want 2 b included in the mayhem of the big cities 2. i often watch our local news and wonder exactly y people in small towns get scared when something like this happens.
"Today in world news: Terrorist were arrested after placing bombs in a San Francisco subway." and then it is always, ALWAYS, followed by the classic small town question, "Could we be in danger as well?".
hell no, we dont even have a subway, hell we barely have a bus, so y would terrorist wanna attack us. they should just let the girls off cause they more than likely didnt mean any harm by it. just a harmless April Fools day prank.
Dave @ Apr 2nd 2006 10:48PM
Their heads should be chopped off as an example to other children. Kids have to know that we can't allow them to have fun--not when adults are busy playing pretend.
Our lives are in DANGER! American Idol is IMPORTANT! The government ISN'T corrupt! Everything will be fine once these girls are PUNISHED!
Sydney Carton @ Apr 2nd 2006 10:53PM
I understand how people could get riled up about stuff like this, the whole "report any suspicious packages" thing has become a part of national culture. Especially in small town america. I know people who are convinced that Osama has it in PERSONALLY for their own desolate all-american hole-in-the-wall. Silly and irrational, of course. While I don't nessesarily blame people for getting nervous about this, I do think that it's a sign that fear mongering in the media has gotten way out of hand (and is it really going to help us in any sort of real terror attack?). And also that Americans just need to take the sticks out of our asses. We can't laugh at anything anymore.
Conn @ Apr 2nd 2006 11:58PM
"Girl recieves mysterious box on birthday. More at 11."
JRM @ Apr 3rd 2006 12:46AM
Tomorrow, people in the town will start asking why the government's National Security didn't prevent this act from happening. LOL!
Chris D @ Apr 3rd 2006 1:57AM
I find it totally rediculas that you charge 16 and 17 yr old people with Criminal charges for Leaving Empty Box's with Question marks on them around town.
Regardless that people might have felt uneasy with seeing these things all over the place.. the fact of the matter is I don't see any criminal charge they can be charged with other than Trespessing and perhaps littering.. Other than that this is complete BULLSHIT. I think that MARIO STYLE BOX's with Question marks on them are Funnier on April first than most of the tired jokes people do year after year.
How many times have you herd....
"theres a bug on you, your clothing, your food..
ect.."
"splat ' faaaarrrrtt" as you sit on a whoopeee cushion.
"dude your girl is cheating on you..."
All these and more... APRIL FOOLS..
Some accepted jokes that get recycled i feel are more harmful or SCARY than this...
I really don't see what the big deal is... The fact that some ASSHOLE called the bomb squad or emergency services shows how much of a redneck, lame, clueless some people are.....
Now if there were phone threats or a terror alert or something... OK I see how this can cause panic.. but hey empty box's with gold wraping paper and a Question mark on it... NO threats, no warning.. nothing... This isn't even Terroristic or could be mis construed as a terror action
Just looking at someething like that "knowing about mario bros game or not" Should make you laugh... not get scared... Even if you are 60+ and never seen mario or herd of Mario... Just a ton of Question marked box's is quite funny... I've seen more harmful senior pranks than this and they all got laughed at..
Sometime people go just a bit too far....
Threating or persuing legal action against these girls is just rediculas...Stupid and PLAIN WRONG
Tell them (the girls) they can email me.. I'll be glad to stand up in court and point out how obsered and Twisted it is to use Laws like this against them.
They did nothing wrong other than possibly leave 17 pieces of litter around town.... But hey .. people still staple dog lost signs to poles.. thats litter too.. Hang up decoration during holidays on pubic places. Tie Crap to a fence to Spell things like MADD or SENIORS RULE, or HAPPY HOLIDAYS, or EVEN WOrds that are INSIDE JOKES TO THE PEOPLE WHO DID IT. SO this was a Box with a ? mark.. is there really any difference?
OK they went onto Privte property Probibly to leave a few of these box's... OK trespessing... But then again.. People who leave periodicles and other UNSOLISITED material on my front porch... i don't call emergency services and demand they be arrested for Trspessing and or littering.
At most they should all have to do a few minutes (YES MINUTES)of community services (non legal binding - another wards.. a gentlemens agreement here.. nothing on paper from the country, govt ect..) and Perhaps write up an appology for alarming people... Thats about it.. but even that may be going too far perhaps...
I guess in a free land and a free country - comedy is a Crime... No matter how you slice it up Everything can be a crime.. I think the law is getting a little rediculas....
Fuck the OHIO Law people.
Fuck the people who didn't this this was funny
Fuck anyone who thinks there was something LEGALLY DONE WRONG HERE..
And FUCK YOU if you don't like my opinion...
Chris D
Daryl @ Apr 3rd 2006 2:41AM
Tell the girls they can email me too, but I'm not going to court with them.
Ken Edwards @ Apr 3rd 2006 3:19AM
I am sad to say that my home town in Ravenna. I even know people who work at the Record Courier. I will have to keep on top of this and see what happens to those girls. I sure hope they do not get arrested and charged with anything.
Anni @ Apr 3rd 2006 4:29AM
Okae!! Hellloooooo people!!! What the hell is wrong with America!?!?! This is why people suck in America and this is why so many people are losing faith in humanity in America. I've lost faith in humanity and my faith in society and anything else that is political! So a few teenage girls decided to have some fun! Who cares!!! I remember when I was a teenager we used to run around t.p.ing peoples cars and what nots and it wasn't a threat! How could you possibly think that an ICON out of the 80'S could be a threat!? Obviously these people that took offensence and were scared by this, are self-absorbed, little bitches that need grow the hell up and realize that the WORLD IS NOT OUT TO GET YOU BECAUSE YOU'RE SMALL AND WE AND NO ONE CARES!!!! Get over yourselves and come the the realization that it is no all bad in this world. And just 'cause a few people have f***ed up our prospective on things doesn't mean that everyone else we know and have come to love has done the same. You're blaming the majority of people for what has happened, instead of the few. And I bet that if you really looked into it, the few girls that did this...you probably knew and now you feel like a boob for freaking out like you did. Good job America. Good job. And just so you all know, I come from a tiny town in Washington State much, much smaller than yours. And I can tell you for a fact, if someone did that in my town, we're down to Earth enough to know, that is not really. Grow up. You're the one's that are the terrorists..against you're own country. Grow the hell up.
terrorist @ Apr 3rd 2006 5:55AM
Actually, I think it's quite valid they think it's could potentially be a threat. If I was going to bomb a small town, I should do it like that. According to you kids, no intelligent person would suspect them of being anything ;D, and thus my bombs would go ignored until it's too late ;D.
Southup @ Apr 3rd 2006 7:07AM
Ok hmmmm........Yes it was a joke and yes it could have been seen as a terroristic (yes I know that is not a word - give it some time) action. BUT it was not and it was a joke!! After 9/11, people took a long time to laugh and have fun. I guess you should always think before you do something "would I find this funny" (and I find it very creative and funny!). I'm just pissed that it was Ohio. I'm from Campbell, and it just had to be Ohio that goes nuts AFTER finding out that they were boxes. Every state has peeople from smart to stupid, every color, and nationality - The problems comes in when they don't look past all that and try to work together.
CheekyLee @ Apr 3rd 2006 7:33AM
So, I guess I'm the only one here who has read this and thought "Cool! I am SO gonna do that!"
RCagent @ Apr 3rd 2006 8:26AM
I don't know what's sadder, the fact that they want to press charges, or the fact that one of the news sites doesn't realize or say that the blocks are from Mario. All they mention is that they are trying to play some sort of "game" by doing. They aren't playing a damn game, it's called a joke. I can understand not getting All your Base are belong to us, but this is freaking MARIO people. If they press charges I'm going to lose all faith in humanity.
stingraze @ Apr 3rd 2006 8:39AM
Man.... April Fools that got too far...? or is it that these authorities were dumb...
Anon @ Apr 3rd 2006 9:26AM
Too late to do any good, perhaps, but about 5 min. of research shows the following:
Ravenna is not geographically isolated; it is 18 miles northeast of Akron, 35 miles southeast of Cleveland. http://www.ci.ravenna.oh.us/City_profile.htm
Ravenna is in Portage County, OH. In the last presidential election, 53.2% of Portage County voted for John Kerry. It is a "blue county". http://www.usatoday.com/news/politicselections/vote2004/PresidentialByCounty.aspx?oi=P&rti=G&tf=l&sp=OH
The Record-Courier news story cited has one source: the police chief. Most journalists would do more. The majority of the comments to the article, presumably at least some of which are Ravenna residents, do not support the view that the girls should be punished.
I find little value to sweeping assertions about ignorant small towns or the climate of fear/lack of sense of humor in America. Perhaps these are true statements, perhaps not. However, might I suggest that an uninformed opinion is not worth having? You may benefit others through reason and evidence, but not unsupported conjecture.
SlayerX @ Apr 3rd 2006 9:34AM
6. That's it we are now relocating all the people of Ravenna to West Virginia. "Better yet Canada."
Keep your own stupid residents. =)
Reijin @ Apr 3rd 2006 9:36AM
The problem is, not that they might have been bombs, but that this happens all the time. The 24-hour news stations and news all around reports on these types of bogus stories all the time. Bomb threats like this are almost a weekly thing in America, however, instead of calmly approaching the obstacle in question, we waste tax dollars bringing out these bomb robots and gather all of enforcement officials in one area for a bogus cause.
It's just sad to see how incompentant our own police and fire officials are, and instead of learning from their mistakes, and improving their skills of detection, they pass off the blame on those who have far less a chance to defend themselves for such an act. And, of course, the actual news story tells us jack, they just spit out whatever the police tell them.
Cerixus @ Apr 3rd 2006 9:43AM
@#7
_________________________________________
...almost as well-known as Pong...
...it is absolutely wild that there's a huge amount of game-playing kids that have no idea what Pong is!
_________________________________________
[sarcasm]Good one.[/sarcasm]
Vejadu @ Apr 3rd 2006 10:07AM
It's just as likely that this would have happened if this prank was pulled in Manhattan.
For some reason, it's deemed safe to insult freely are people from the south or the midwest. Mock anyone else and the ACLU is on your front door the next day, but redneck jokes are fair game.
The assumption that people from small towns are uneducated hillbillies is simply ignorant. Graduation rates in rural areas far surpass the national average.
I went to a small, rural (literally, the school was three miles from the nearest town) high school and in my graduating class of 38 students, most of my classmates went to college (those of us who didn't remain on the farm) and they're now doctors, pharmacists, scientists, Website designers, stockbrokers, computer programmers and bankers.
Case @ Apr 3rd 2006 10:12AM
#5 "Cardboard boxes should so be banned."
Also freedom. Don't forget freedom!
#48 "(Flame on!)"
Oh, I wouldn't worry about being flamed, the groupthink going on here will overwhelm just about anyone ready to defend the deep south / bush supporters / etc.
That being said, I agree that these people are idiots to suspect these boxes of having bombs in them (for all reasons already stated), and assholes for trying to use flaunt their authority around ('you could go to jail for this serious offense' kind of thing).
#43 "Were these boxes blowing in the wind, as they appear to be? [empty boxes]"
lol, I hope they were, because that would be damn funny.
Kotaku "What seems like harmless fun to Super Mario Bros. loving nerds like you and me, becomes serious business when the fire department, Hazmat team, and police get involved."
Cant be sure, but are these guys implying that it's the girls' fault that these people were so unthinkably stupid they had to 'call in them Hazmat fellers'?
These people are so dumb that if terrorists actually did enter their town, it would be disintegrated before the police even noticed anything.
Gonzo @ Apr 3rd 2006 10:14AM
When I first saw this on the news I thought that it was about time they start blaming SMB for the series of bum burnings that took place in the 80s. I know those bums never would've burned if not for the deranged mind that invented the fire flower and the deranged teens who ate them.
But no this was it.
I thought it was set up by the same guys who did the live action Katamari.
Martin @ Apr 3rd 2006 10:16AM
Just be glad they didn't try to replicate GTA and leave dead hookers all over OHIO!!!!
WedgeTalon @ Apr 3rd 2006 10:16AM
Unless your small town does/did something similar to mine ( http://www.cortn.org ), then for SOME reason, I don't think you need to worry much about them terr'rist.
mocax @ Apr 3rd 2006 10:37AM
Bet the town don't do Christmas decorations.
Or Halloween.
Pumpkin bombs! It's the Green goblin!
sgtfubar @ Apr 3rd 2006 11:49AM
The next thing you know, terrorists will be sneaking into the country under cover of cardboard boxes, because they got the training from metal gear solid. I declare a war on cardboard, with a sizeable budget that we can sneak in under some non-important legislative bill.
Ed Mack @ Apr 3rd 2006 12:14PM
If the people are scared this easily, then the terrorists have by definition succeeded. The war on terror is futile when the terror is on your own soil.
Tucker @ Apr 3rd 2006 12:38PM
I agree, what's with the rag on "small towns" when part of Pittsburgh was evacuated like a WEEK ago because people panicked when they saw a guy with a BB gun. OMG NOEZZZ A SNIPERRRR.
Anyway, the point is these *were* "suspicious packages." The authorities had every right to investigate. Criminal charges? That's a bit steep, but I can't tell you how many times I was in London that one part of the tube or another was shut down because of a "suspicious package."
I think the "War On Terror" is just as bunk as some of you do, but the facts are that authorities around the world aren't pulling any punches. Just because it's not LIKELY that something's going to go down in a small town doesn't mean that it's NOT. Personally, I would rather have the cops go nuts over a little prank than have them say, "aw, fuck it, it's just a box/gym bag/whatever, leave it be" to a real explosive.
It's a shame that our government has tainted its image so badly in the last few decades that even when it does do something to serve us, we bitch.
brandon @ Apr 3rd 2006 12:43PM
"PLEASE, just know what you're talking about before putting in your two cents. the problem spoken about in this article isn't a redneck thing or a small town thing.. it's a stupid people thing."
From Rare Hare
Yeah. I grew up near Ravenna. This definitely IS a Redneck thing. Repeat: definitely Rednecks.
D Headley @ Apr 3rd 2006 1:36PM
This story saddens me to no end. It makes me truely understand that the US has indeed lost the war on terrorism already. The American way of life has been lost in so many little ways and it can never be regained.
I remember when i was a teen. growing up in Ohio btw, that I was involved in many scavenger hunts with my churches youth fellowship group, my high school for fund raising, and local clubs and charities. They would put simular boxes in varrious locations all over town and the person or team that figured out the riddles and collected the most boxes in a set time was the winner. Truely sad that out country is so thoroughly gunshy in this day and age that people in a small town in the middle of nowhere would actually jump to the conclusion that a colorful box that looks like a pre-school craft project would be considered a terrorist bomb to be defused by emergency services.
Komrade Kayce @ Apr 3rd 2006 1:49PM
All along, I figured it was some communist plot. Hear me out.
Even before that joke site came out calling Mario a communist for his red clothes and ideals behind defeating the popular koopa government. I just had a hunch that the Communists were behind Nintendo. Now I have proof.
Nintendo is breeding a new generation of terrorists. People trained to worship a false idol in red suspenders. Terrorists who place multiple mysterious looking boxes that could contain really anything, hence the question mark on them. This is a security threat, people, these are people who are being allowed to threaten the safety and sanity of buttfuck nowhere America.
As well, if I've done my research correctly, some of them could actually contain POISONOUS mushrooms that when eaten, would either kill or shrink the victim. This cannot be tolerated. I will not allow my fellow man to eat strange purple mushrooms from question mark blocks that could possibly kill him. America, we must make a stand, right here, right now.
...
Jack Thompson, you're the only lawyer I can think of who would possibly take this case. Together, we can beat those Terrorcommies at Nintendo who promote violence through violent game imitation (cmon, you're favourite topic!). Quickly, before someone gets stomped on or people start kicking bridges into the water to kill city officials.
Lets do this.
Some Random Poster @ Apr 3rd 2006 2:08PM
I find it amusing that folks are going "Duh! It's Mario, ya stupid redneck" while having the luxury of being informed that it was a prank hours after the incident occurred. Hindsight is always 20/20, you know.
I'd be surprised if the bomb squad was NOT involved if this incident occurred in any city, regardless if it's looks like.
minus_273 @ Apr 3rd 2006 2:17PM
when you play a prank you should be ready for the consequences if it does not go over well. Judging from the reaction on this board, one can only assume that if you find a strange package somewhere in the city, it can only be harmless. Grow up folks, not everyone had played SMB. Leaving strange packages around town is no joke esp when there are "gorwn ups" involved.
Seriously, can anyone here gurantee that the next ? box the find does not have a pipe bomb in it?
unknown @ Apr 3rd 2006 2:29PM
I wonder what would happen if you carried a large empty cardboard box into an airport.......
polly @ Apr 3rd 2006 2:54PM
Bah. Ridiculous. Had I seen one around town I would have had a friend snap a picture of me jumping Mario style at it. The last thing on my mind would be "Hey, maybe there's a bomb in there." Puh-leez. And if it was that 1 in a million chance where it actually was a bomb and it killed me, I hope my friends and family would say, "He died doing what he loved. Smashing things with this head."
That town is seriously farked up if they press charges.
Scooby Doo @ Apr 3rd 2006 3:14PM
I think there's a divergence here that is causing such a drastic split in people's reactions. With all the new security laws that have been enacted since 9/11, you have to ask yourself a basic question: What is the cost of my freedom?
Since 9/11...however this was happening in other small ways before...we have been sacrificing our own personal freedoms for security. Think about it. When we saw a lot more plane hi-jackings, they started screening people to get on a plane, yet America was founded on a principle that your person or property cannot be searched without just cause. Very soon, I will not be able to go to Canada without my passport, a country that many Americans and myself feel proud to call neighbor and has a very noted role in U.S. History. Little by little, our rights have been taken away by the fear of others and politicians capitalizing on that fear to push their own legislation. (Does anyone actually think the Patriot Act could have made it out of Congress if there wasn't a 9/11?)
There isn't a simple answer to this problem. When does the government cross the line, and does living with my own freedom mean that I could be in danger because everyone else has those same freedoms? While I have my own personal opinion on the matter, how do I make that mother of three who lost her husband during the NYC World Trade Center incident feel the same way? Should I even try?
America is still trying to find the right balance now that we are no longer 'invincible'. Polarizing the issue by getting on one side of the argument does nothing to help bridge the gap and help those who are afraid overcome their fears.
drrd32 @ Apr 3rd 2006 3:59PM
Too bad that the residents of that town don't realize that, if there's a magic mushroom, a fire-flower, or a magic star inside those boxes, that might actually save them from Osama.
And even if there isn't a mushroom or flower, they'd at least get pieces of gold... and who doesn't like that?
soren @ Apr 3rd 2006 4:06PM
someone needs to be taken out of office if that's a criminal offence. plus, plenty of other people get away with this, so I see no reason to go psycho
Geo dude @ Apr 3rd 2006 4:31PM
Ridiculous.
No offense to the fair minded people of Ravenna, but I've lived in the nearby area and worked with some Ravenna folk and let me tell ya there are a few "small-minded" and what I call "backwards" people living there for sure. Yeah it's right next to Kent State, but the city definately is not progressive-minded and I wouldn't lump it in with Portage county and call it blue if you have to define things like that. It's not known for it's tolerance, either. This doesn't surprise me at all.
Lane @ Apr 3rd 2006 6:00PM
Now if someone actually wanted to bomb that town all they would have to do is use a Mario question mark box!
Pata Hikari @ Apr 3rd 2006 7:08PM
The stupid America bashing in these comments disgust me.
Mr. Neil @ Apr 3rd 2006 8:12PM
It's times like that I'm most embarrassed of this country. We are now easily terrorized by cardboard boxes, and we press charges on teenagers who committed no crime other than inadvertantly scaring stupid people. Punishing these girls has nothing to do with serving and protecting the community. It's disgusting when retribution finds its way into law enforcement.