The Curious Case Of Ahmed’s Clock Part II

The brouhaha over Ahmed Mohamed’s “clock” just keeps getting “curiouser and curiouser.”

In case you haven’t heard, Ahmed Mohamed, a 14-year-old Muslim high school student from Irving, Texas, has been hailed by many in the main-stream media recently as an “ingenious tinkerer” who was allegedly “unfairly” targeted because of his religious affiliation after bringing a digital clock “invention” that looked an awful lot like an improvised explosive device (IED) enclosed in a case resembling a small briefcase.

Mohamed claims he simply wanted to bring his “invention” to school to show his teacher. The MacArthur High School teacher he originally approached with his improvised device told Ahmed that it looked a lot like a “bomb.” The teacher advised the young student not to show the contraption to any of the other teachers, lest they mistake the device for a bomb, too.

Via Top Right News:

But Ahmed then brought it into his English class, plugged it in, set an alarm to go off, and did not mention to the teacher who felt “threatened” by it that he already showed it to the engineering teacher, and to ask him about it … which could have easily resolved the security concerns.

Ahmed was detained and the police were called, until it could be determined what sort of device Mohamed had brought to school. Reportedly, Ahmed exhibited some strange behavior during police questioning.

The Dallas-Forth Worth-based WFAA News reported (via Breitbart.com):

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.

The WFAA report contradicts comments made by Ahmed Mohamed to the national media following his detention by local police. Mohamed claims he just wanted to show his “invention” to his teacher. If that is the case, why did he not reveal this claim to the police during initial questioning?

Despite it all, the ninth grader has been receiving accolades and gifts.

Via BizPac Review:

After his release, Mohamed became an immediate darling of the left, and received numerous internship and job offers, an invitation to visit the White House, and an Islamic prayer vigil that was held for him at his school.

A few electronic gurus and experts have been taking a closer look at Ahmed’s “invention.” Some of their conclusions regarding Mohamed’s clock are very revealing, and shed a lot of light on what Ahmed Mohamed allegedly “invented.”

Via Thomas Talbot:

This video shows that the supposed clock invention by a 14 year old is in fact not an invention. The ‘clock’ is a commercial bedside alarm clock removed from its casing. There is nothing to indicate that the clock was even assembled by the child. I suspect this was brought into school to create an alarmed reaction.

Another individual (aka “Anthony”), who claims to have an engineering degree, did his own research in an attempt to reverse-engineer Ahmed’s digital clock “invention.” Like Talbot, Anthony claims Ahmed’s clock is nothing more than the internal electronic components of a digital clock removed from its casing and stuffed into a pencil case.

Much of Anthony’s findings corroborate with Thomas Talbot’s analysis. But he goes further by stating he believes he has located the actual model and type of digital clock Ahmed used to build his “invention,” even going so far as to offer the type of pencil case observed in the official police images of Ahmed Mohamed’s “clock.”

“Anthony” writes:

For starters, one glance at the printed circuit board in the photo, and I knew we were looking at mid-to-late 1970s vintage electronics. Surely you’ve seen a modern circuit board, with metallic traces leading all over to the various components like an electronic spider’s web. You’ll notice right away the highly accurate spacing, straightness of the lines, consistency of the patterns. That’s because we design things on computers nowadays, and computers assist in routing these lines. Take a look at the board in Ahmed’s clock. It almost looks hand-drawn, right? That’s because it probably was. Computer aided design was in its infancy in the 70s. This is how simple, low cost items (like an alarm clock) were designed.[…] There’s also silk screening on the board. An “M” logo, “C-94” (probably, a part number – C might even stand for “clock”), and what looks like an American flag. More about that in a minute. Point for now being, a hobbyist wouldn’t silk screen logos and part numbers on their home made creation. It’s pretty safe to say already we’re looking at ’70s tech, mass produced in a factory.

So I turned to eBay, searching for vintage alarm clocks. It only took a minute to locate Ahmed’s clock. See this eBay listing, up at the time of this writing. Amhed’s clock was invented, and built, by Micronta, a Radio Shack subsidary. Catalog number 63 756.

If Thomas Talbot and “Anthony” are correct—and they do provide a convincing and dispassionate assessment—then what exactly did Ahmed Mohamed even invent? And why would he take an alarm clock and just put it in a pencil case? There is nothing at all impressive about that—besides not electrocuting himself while doing it. Removing the innards of a digital clock and stuffing it in an alleged pencil case does not require any considerable talent or skills.

And let’s not ignore the obvious: Why would you put a clock in a pencil case? Is that a particularly novel or useful “invention”? Furthermore, why did he decide to bring it to school?

There is another rather curious aspect concerning the Muslim “whiz kid” from Texas. Ahmed Mohmed is the son of Mohamed Elhassan Mohamed, a Sudanese immigrant who is no stranger to making the headlines over the years.

TheConservativeTreehouse.com reports:

… Aside from his presidential bids, [Mohamed Elhassan] Mohamed also made headlines for his bizarre role in Rev. Terry Jones’ incendiary Quran trial. In 2012, when the Florida pastor made good on his threat to burn a Quran in his Gainesville church and put the Quran on “trial,” Mohamed, who refers to himself as a sheik, was apparently the one Muslim willing to play along as the defense in the mock trial. “[The church] put an ad on their channel: ‘Whoever feels in himself he has the power to defend Quran is welcome,’” he told the Dallas Observer. (read more)

Interestingly, Islamic scholar and author Robert Spencer debated Mohamed Elhassan Mohamed back in 2011:

Via Robert Spencer at Jihad Watch:

Here is video of my May 2011 debate with Mohamed Elhassan Mohamed, the father of Ahmed Mohamed, the 14-year-old boy who was arrested for bringing a clock that looked like a bomb to school, in an instance of zero-tolerance overreaction or “Islamophobia,” depending on your point of view.

Mohamed Elhassan Mohamed and I debated on the topic, “Does Islam Respect Human Rights?” The results were so bad for him that after the debate, The American Muslim pleaded with Muslims not to debate me. In any case, this debate is one indication that Mohamed Elhassan has been trying for several years to make his bones as a warrior against “Islamophobia.”

The debate starts at 31:48, after an interview with Walid Phares.

Recently, the ninth grader appeared on MSNBC with Chris Hayes. Ahmed did not appear with his mother or father, or even a lawyer, but instead was accompanied by a representative from the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), an organization declared an unindicted co-conspirator in the 2008 terror-finance trial against the Holy Land Foundation and its former officials. CAIR was also designated a “terrorist organization” by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2014.

Once again, as far as the media narrative goes, it appears we are dealing with another “the facts don’t matter“ scenario—only the politically correct narrative: “if you see something, say something” … that is, unless you see a Muslim doing something suspicious … then you just best keep your damn mouth shut, you Islamophobic RAAAAACIST!

Related:

• The Case of Ahmed’s Clock
• Video: A Closer Look at Ahmed’s Clock