When I first heard about a teenager in Texas arrested because of a clock, my first thought was the zero tolerance police have struck again. It brought to mind too many other instances of overreaction by school officials, such as the boy suspended because of a pop tart, and a 6 yr old for kissing a girl. Thus, when I heard the stories about the clock issue, I thought it was a big brouhaha over nothing. I mean really, how cool is it that a 14 year old decided to build a clock?!!  I’ll admit, I was thinking of clocks like this:

Building one of those as a 14 year old, and have it actually work, is quite a feat! However, there is much more to the story than overreacting to a 14 yr old’s engineering prowess. You see, its not just that he took his “clock” to school and showed off for his engineering teacher, it’s that instead of keeping it in THAT classroom he toted it around in his Vaultz pencil case (which really looks like a briefcase) for the rest of the day.

That’s not all. Ahmed brought his reengineered digital clock to school, one that didn’t have a digital display or conventional clock face and Plugged. It. In. during his English class. When questioned:

Officers said Ahmed was being “passive aggressive” in his answers to their questions, and didn’t have a “reasonable answer” as to what he was doing with the case. Investigators said the student told them that it was just a clock that he was messing around with.

“We attempted to question the juvenile about what it was and he would simply only say it was a clock. He didn’t offer any explanation as to what it was for, why he created this device, why he brought it to school,” said James McLellan, Irving Police.

Yes, I understand that a 14 yr old would be freaked out about being pulled out of class and questioned by the authorities. But I wonder… Was he building a cool new digital clock for another competition? Was he hoping for extra credit in his engineering class? Was he showing off for a girl? We don’t know because he hasn’t answered any questions nor provide any real reason for his actions that day. What we do know is the entire country went nuts about this story w/all sorts of people rallying around Ahmed:

Cool clock, Ahmed. Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It's what makes America great.

— President Obama (@POTUS44) September 16, 2015

Assumptions and fear don't keep us safe—they hold us back. Ahmed, stay curious and keep building. https://t.co/ywrlHUw3g1

— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) September 16, 2015

“Ahmed, if you ever want to come by Facebook, I’d love to meet you,” Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote in a post that went up on his personal page today. “Keep building.”

But let’s not question Ahmed. We can’t. We aren’t allowed to step back and think…hmmm something ticking in a briefcase might be really bad news. We aren’t allowed to consider, as Jim Hanson of the Center For Security Policy pointed out during his broadcast and on Facebook, that Ahmed’s little “clock” bears a strong resemblance to many of the IED’s that harmed or killed many American soldiers.

Was this “clock” a matter of concern? Given the fact that it was brought to school in a type of briefcase, given the fact that it was plugged in during class, and given the fact that Ahmed wouldn’t answer questions, my conclusion is YES. While I’d be the first to admit that there was some overreaction, given today’s climate and the timing of Ahmed’s bringing the clock to school, those at the school and police department were wise to err on the side of caution.

Was this a set up? Perhaps so, perhaps not.  This entire episode is in fact a teachable moment, but not quite the way that Josh Earnest says it is.

The lesson learned from the Texas "It's not a bomb, it's a clock" episode: If you see something – don't say something.

— toddstarnes (@toddstarnes) September 17, 2015

While Ahmed enjoys his 15 minutes of fame and Muslim victimhood from groups like CAIR kicks into high gear; many are learning an important lesson. Whatever you see or hear, no matter if its a real clock or a bomb that might be a clock; DON’T say anything. If you do and it’s not, you might be a racist instead of a concerned citizen. And if that bomb happens to be the real deal? Never mind.