Small Town Values

From the town of Oregon, in rural Northwest Illinois, we get this shocking story:

OREGON -- Students throughout Oregon High School heard rumors that bombs
were being made, but no one came forward with the information before it was too
late, police say.

Three Oregon High School students are in custody today as officials piece
together how two homemade bombs exploded midmorning Wednesday outside the
school, sending 600 students across the street while police and bomb squads
descended on the campus.

No one was hurt and nothing appeared damaged, but investigators found a
large pipe bomb in a second-floor storage room and a backpack full of pipes in a
locker.

Another report says the unexploded bomb on the second floor was huge:

Investigators say a fourth bomb found on the second floor of the building
was about the size of a mortar shell. It was about 14 inches long and four
inches in diameter.

Oregon's police chief, Tom Miller, says that device would have blown the
roof off the school if it had detonated.

That's some serious ordinance. Neither story has much to say about why these kids did this. In fact, the only explanation given came from another student:

"A lot of us think they did it just to get attention," Oregon freshman Tia
Kressin said Wednesday afternoon.

That's probably about right, sadly.