Remain calm, nothing to see here

12:23pm - The Georgia Tech emergency notification system sends out thousands of text messages, phone calls and emails saying "ATLANTA CAMPUS, EMERGENCY ALERT. Evacuate campus immediately and tune to local media for additional information."

12:30pm - The Georgia Tech emergency notification system sends out thousands of text messages, phone calls and emails saying "Disregard the Previous Message."

What did we do for seven minutes? We wandered around, asking each other if they got the message too, comparing how long it took to get it, which ways we got it, etc.

My coworker got the "disregard" text on his phone, immediately followed by the "Evacuate right now!" voicemail. :)

UPDATE: 12:39pm - we get a second text message telling us to disregard the evacuation notice. :)

UPDATE2: 12:47pm - we get a third notice telling us the evacuation was only for one specific building. Apparently there was an explosion or chemical spill there.

(no subject)

In what one FBI spokesman described as "almost an annual ritual," the bureau has obtained uncorroborated intelligence indicating al Qaeda would like to strike shopping malls during the holiday shopping season, two law enforcement sources said Thursday.

Holiday threats against shopping malls have become "almost an annual ritual," one FBI spokesman says. Those sources confirmed there is intelligence dating back to August that al Qaeda would like to attack malls in Los Angeles, California, and Chicago, Illinois.

Of course al Queda would like to attack malls at Christmas.  I'd like to fuck Angelina Jolie, but that doesn't mean anyone's warning Brad Pitt about me.