Skull and Bones Member Burns American Flag
By now you've probably heard about those crazy Yalies who burned that flag. In brief: Three Yale students -- Said Hyder Akbar '07, Nikolaos Angelopoulos '10, and Farhad Anklesaria '10 -- were thrown in jail after setting alight an ol' Star Spangled that was still attached to a New Haven residence. The backstory that's got everyone so huffy, though, is that Akbar is from Pakistan and his dad is a former governor of a province in Afghanistan and adviser to Hamid Karzai. But wait! The juicy little morsel that the YDN, the New Haven Register, and the New York Times forgot to include?
Akbar's in Skull and Bones.
Can you imagine what will happen when Akbar and President Bush meet up at the next Bonesman retreat to Deer Island? Awwwwwwkward!
We only have one source on this, but until we can confirm, we want to believe our inner conspiracy-dar. One of the trio has already posted bail -- can't Akbar get a presidential pardon or something?* And my-dad's-an-Afghani-governor notwithstanding, the guy's got the overachiever resume to back up a tap: translator in Afghanistan, not to mention he's on pace to write more memoirs than Kissinger, from his book to his NPR dispatch to this series he did for Slate.
Taking a step back, though, the fact that Akbar is a Boner only ripens the tale. From what little info we've gleaned (and as the Times points out, there's not much to glean), this isn't a story about politics. It's about idiocy so supreme that these dudes should start hoping it becomes a free speech case. Just look at the chronology laid out in the YDN:
[Police spokeswoman Bonnie] Posick said police officers first encountered the students when they passed the trio while driving down Chapel Street into Fair Haven. The students flagged the officers down, she said, asking them how to get back to campus.
The students told the officers they had been visiting a friend and had gotten lost while returning home, she said.
Later, when the officers were driving back down Chapel Street to see if the students had found their way back, they saw that a flag hanging off of 512 Chapel St. was engulfed in flames, Posick said. While one officer removed the burning flag, the other officer stopped the students, who were further down the street.
Just to be clear: These intellectual rockstars decided to flag down a police vehicle in the middle of the night, then burned a flag on the same street shortly thereafter. While it was still attached to a house. Put away the picket signs, First Amendment fans, and forget the paddy wagon, neocons. These guys need to be put on the short bus.
*Correction: This article originally stated that Akbar had posted bail. He has not.
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April 5th, 2007 at 1:08 am
angelopolous posted bail
April 5th, 2007 at 1:33 am
“…driving back down Chapel Street to see if the students had found their way back…”
pssh. they saw two arab-looking guys suspiciously out late at night and followed their asses.
April 5th, 2007 at 1:41 am
Nobody ever mentions that they were drunk.
April 5th, 2007 at 1:42 am
Nobody ever mentions that they were drunk.
April 5th, 2007 at 9:21 am
akbar? it’s a trap!
April 5th, 2007 at 9:49 am
The non-citizen kids are screwed. Arson can get you deported.
April 5th, 2007 at 10:37 am
yeah i got drunk once and i lit my leg hair on fire so i understand how it could happen
April 5th, 2007 at 10:41 am
I hope these haters get shown the door, not as quickly as the Mexican’s, but still as soon as possible. Akbar’s an idiot.
April 5th, 2007 at 11:07 am
Haha! It’s a trap!
April 5th, 2007 at 11:11 am
This should have more to do with arson than free speech. Throw them in jail.
April 5th, 2007 at 11:19 am
Hyder has done more for humanity than all of you fools will ever do in your life. The man made a drunken mistake. This type of vandalism happens to much worse degrees on all college campuses. I hope the racist courts don’t politicize this and make an example out of poor Hyder.
April 5th, 2007 at 11:20 am
Hyder has done more for humanity than all of you fools will ever do in your life. The man made a mistake. This type of vandalism happens to much worse degrees on all college campuses. I hope the racist courts don’t politicize this and make an example out of poor Hyder.
April 5th, 2007 at 11:59 am
it’s true about Akbar being in Skull & Bones.
April 5th, 2007 at 11:59 am
quit posting twice! IvyGate, I got that annoying “wait for your comment to be approved” thingy again. More importantly though HOW DO YOU KNOW AKBAR’S A BONESMAN?
April 5th, 2007 at 12:06 pm
Calm down Roslyn. Nobody here said anything inflammatory against him, so save your venom. It is a pity, though, that his bright future may be irrevocably marred by this incident.
April 5th, 2007 at 12:55 pm
ok, first of all, akbar may have done a lot, but don’t be idiotically hyperbolic. number two, he made a mistake that involved three different crimes. my mistakes usually involve cleaning the vomit off the toilet bowl in the morning. let’s just notice the degree of mistake. finally, the “racist courts” don’t need to politicize this issue. non-us citizens committed a federal crime (flag-burning) as well as another crime (arson). they should be deported, to prove that the law is the law whether you’re a yalie or not.
April 5th, 2007 at 1:35 pm
Jesse – Inflammatory? Pun not intended, right?
April 5th, 2007 at 1:35 pm
It is sad that people try so much to politicize this issue. If you know Hyder, he’s the greatest guy ever. Granted, it was dumb, but I know frat kids who have done MUCH WORSE stuff when drunk, so lets not get a moral high horse. And please, hes an American! Your calling for him to be deported is in the very least racist. And I bet he has done more for the US than any of us ever will. So lets chill out and let him get a fair trail for the charges leved
April 5th, 2007 at 1:48 pm
thanks, y07, for continuing the hyperbole. i was in fact aware that akbar’s a US citizen. it’s the two ‘10′ers who aren’t, and i think that the law should simply be served. if there are extenuating factors other than being drunk and stupid, let’s hear them. and who’s on the moral high horse, anyways? Frat boys who’ve done MUCH WORSE! my GOD! then they should be punished too.
April 5th, 2007 at 2:03 pm
The charges for the two internationals will be dropped. As William Dow said (the lawyer),only Hyder did it, the other guys had nothing to do with it. They just happened to be with him. Sorry, they will still be at Yale..
But God that was dumb!
April 5th, 2007 at 2:36 pm
Haha, no, not intended. It is quite fitting though . . .
April 5th, 2007 at 3:05 pm
jesse, your comments are foolish. bout time for you to go back to school
April 5th, 2007 at 3:16 pm
y08, you’re a fucking idiot. Why don’t you actually learn the law before you start mouthing off about federal crimes. There’s nothing illegal about burning an American flag; it becomes illegal if you burn an American flag that belongs to someone else, ie PRIVATE PROPERTY. It was a thoughtless and reckless act, and they have already suffered the consequences of it. Keep your ignorance to yourself.
April 5th, 2007 at 3:25 pm
jesse hurry up and respond u bitchass nigga. ur punkass doesnt even go to school. fuck it i might burn a flag while im waitin
April 5th, 2007 at 4:37 pm
I second that – y08 you’re one hell of a fucking moron. Plenty of foreigners know more about basic American notions like freedom of speech and expression than you do. You ought to be deported together with Akbar for your civic ignorance.
BTW, all of them stand a chance of getting the charges dismissed because nobody actually saw them light it and because they probably confessed before being Mirandized. Besides, if Vayner got off the hook that easily with fraud and all, what’s to say about a bunch of drunkards? The bigger question is why Yale has admitted so many people with ties to Afghanistan that are out and making trouble and damaging Yale’s reputation. As if the Hashemi fallout wasn’t enough…the public must think Yale is some kind of safe haven for …
April 5th, 2007 at 4:50 pm
You know what makes me proud of my school? Ad hominem attacks. You’re right- my bad, the flag burning amendment wasn’t passed, not a federal crime. I guess I am a fucking moron, huh? The arson charges stand, though, huh? So they’re still charged with a crime, huh? So… forgive me if I am incorrect… but technically, if you’re in the US on a visa and you commit a crime… they bounce your ass out of the US. That’s what happens to legal migrant workers who jay-walk in Texas, anyways. What I’m arguing is that they should NOT get off because they go to Yale, not that they’re horrible human beings. Also, getting drunk and doing something that could have caused serious harm is NOT A FUCKING EXCUSE. If you’re drunk and you kill someone, still homicide. if you’re drunk and you light something on fire, still arson. You don’t get to choose what’s a crime and what isn’t.
So anyways, I’ll keep in mind I’m a fucking idiot. Coming from the man who talked about raping Harvard girls, that’s almost a compliment.
April 5th, 2007 at 4:52 pm
this is why I didnt waste my time going to yale
April 5th, 2007 at 5:03 pm
Well, y08 shouldn’t hold out for a tap in these coming weeks.
April 5th, 2007 at 5:29 pm
For y08
Well, I actually read from some article the initial charge was reckless burning, but the prosecutor upped it to arson, (cuz she saw a career case). And that will screw her. The two kids will walk, Hyder might get a suspended sentence at most,and ‘funny’,it will suck for you cuz you will have to find new excuses as to why you didnt get in.
Secondly y08, do some research before you speak. Being charged with a criminal offense on a student visa wont get you thrown out. If you get a jail term of over a year, then you get deported, so they are still going to be at Yale, cry me a river
April 5th, 2007 at 5:39 pm
wow y08, thank you for your very articulate and well thought out contribution; i can’t tell you how relevant my fuck harvard song is to the recent flag burning episode. you seem to have a very warped idea about the actual facts of the incident. i’m not going to waste my time educating you any further. no one even insinuated that they should get off because they go to yale, you pulled that right out of your ass. if you want to talk about justice, you know who the fuck i am because i’m not hiding behind a combination of letters and numbers, so stop being a coward and man up. in the meantime, you can take your xenophobic garbage and go fuck yourself.
April 5th, 2007 at 8:32 pm
everyone and their cousin already knew that this guy is in Skull and Bones, and that they’re all tards. More important question: what was a senior doing with two random freshmen and no car in Fair Haven on a Monday night?
April 6th, 2007 at 7:24 am
uh, guys, as long as you’re attacking others for not having their facts right
Who said these guys were drunk?
None of the stories I’ve seen have said that and one said specifically the opposite.
April 6th, 2007 at 7:30 am
In fact, considering that they are Muslim, it would be kind of odd if they pick alcohol as their defense.
April 6th, 2007 at 9:46 am
I will sacrifice my bagina in the service of these fine, upstanding American men! Come penetrate my womanliness in the name of free speech and national service, you gorgeous anarchists!
April 6th, 2007 at 10:53 am
for some reason this incident (and y08’s ranting) bring to mind another incident in which a group of patriotic men actually threatened a girl (coming to her door and beating on it with wood panels) for hanging her flag upside down. Perfectly within her rights. Fire is dangerous, but don’t tell me that drunk frat boys are paragons of safety. I’d bet my entire salary that if a crop of drunk, “AMERICA!”-chanting frat boys out on campus saw an upside down flag hanging, they would do something similarly stupid.
http://www.yaledailynews.com/articles/view/7621
April 6th, 2007 at 11:07 am
“I’d bet my entire salary that if a crop of drunk, “AMERICA!”-chanting frat boys out on campus saw an upside down flag hanging, they would do something similarly stupid.”
-
How is the possibility drunken frat guys can do something stupid a defense of these guys? Does it work both ways? If these guys get off, can another group of drunk guys (again, though, where’s the indication they were drunk when they did this?) use that as a defense? According to the report, the fire had reached the house’s awning by the time the cops drove by. If the police hadn’t driven by, these guys would have burned a house down with people in it–attack other people all you, but it doesn’t provide much of a defense for them.
April 6th, 2007 at 12:16 pm
thanks, WAL. I was simply trying to explain that citizenship (assuming all drunken frat boys at yale are US-born, of course) should really not weigh into an individual’s propensity to commit a crime. And bumping the charge to “arson” seems like it’s going a little too far, perhaps based on the supposed motive of the crime or the ethnic background of the suspects. Unless, of course, those boys that threatened the girl were charged with assault (which they weren’t. Instead, one was elected captain of the football team).
Lastly, I wouldn’t believe everything you read in “police reports” particularly those written up by New Haven cops. I’d be interested to see phyiscal evidence/fire damage. I realize this may scream “conspiracy theorist” but police officers have been known to either make false statements or omit information in order to book criminals.
April 6th, 2007 at 12:21 pm
and before you ask, the reason I think arson is a bit extreme is that arson implies willful and malicious intent. Willful, I can see–malicious, not so much. And, the property is generally considered a building or other structure. The boys likely willfully intended to burn the flag, not the actual structure of the building.
April 6th, 2007 at 12:44 pm
Ivygateblog rocks. The title? “Skull and Bones Member Burns American Flag,” not “Pakistani” or “Muslim” burns American Flag. Here’s to hoping more media outlets pick up on that fact to emphasize. I’d bet the act had nothing to do with his ethnicity or religion, but from him being a pompous frat boy who was feeling invincible, since if he’s hanging out in a rich white elitists’ club and getting drunk, doesn’t seem like he identifies much with his ethnicity or religion. I have no sympathy for Akbar, because if he chooses to perch in an oasis of hereditary white elitism in an increasingly meritocratic world, it says a lot more about him as a person than any of his activities like the book he wrote. I hope he gets the law laid down on him. And, it’s probably too much to wish for, but I hope this embarrasses Skull and Bones.
April 6th, 2007 at 1:31 pm
For what it’s worth, S&B is hardly the “rich white elitist’s club” it once was, or that you think it is. Only 7 (not including Hyder) members of this year’s class of 15 are white.
April 6th, 2007 at 1:43 pm
Listen “09muslim”, you have no idea what the fuck you’re talking about. I’m tired of you bitches taking the “holier than thou” stance on this shit. You don’t know what skull and bones is now, and you certainly don’t know Hyder. A man who has done what Hyder has done makes one mistake and opportunist fucks like you jump on the chance to make themselves feel better about themselves and their devotion to “the cause”. How about next time you try to attack someone with inadequate information, think twice. I know its fun to feed your ego, but to be honest you make yourself sound as foolish as you claim Hyder was when he burnt the flag.
April 6th, 2007 at 1:58 pm
So, is Johnson a current member, or just a Deke hopeful? Only time will tell.
April 6th, 2007 at 3:21 pm
09 muslim says :”The title? “Skull and Bones Member Burns American Flag,” not “Pakistani” or “Muslim” burns American Flag.”
And yet s/he labels himself not as yale ‘09 or columbia ‘09 or whatever, but as 09muslim. glad we agree that defining someone solely on one aspect of their identity is frowned on…
not to mention you then went on to criticize Akbar simply for being in skull&bones with no more reason attached.
that said, i think the three kids are douchebags for burning the flag, vandalising property, being stupid enough to talk to the cops before committing their crimes, and for going to yale. all of the without any reference to their elite social memberships, non-citizen status, ethnicity, religion, or anything else.
April 6th, 2007 at 3:35 pm
Nah NB, I’m a senior at Yale. Not affiliated with any fraternity or society. Looks like you are just as ridiculous as 09muslim, making assumptions without anything to back it up.
April 6th, 2007 at 3:46 pm
Dear Yale,
Hope you enjoy the attention from the Fox News Channel. Maybe they’ll finally lay off of the good ol’ University of Havana North since they’ll be too busy harassing your school instead.
April 6th, 2007 at 5:48 pm
you all fucking wish you knew what it looked like inside our tomb, but you will never see it. hyder burned a flag, big FUCKING WHOOP, stop riding his ass. you are all just jealous because he is one of the most powerful men in America and this incident will not even put a slight damper on his ride straight to the top. WHAT YOU KNOW ABOUT THAT?
April 6th, 2007 at 6:55 pm
i’m a senior in yale, and yes, akbar is in skull and bones. i tipped the national review and the nyt off on that a couple of days ago, but it’s common knowledge around here, as most society rosters are.
April 6th, 2007 at 7:04 pm
Well, there’s your problem. I tipped off Ivygate, and now there are 48 comments! Lesson: aim lower.
Also, I bet I know who Bonesman07 is.
April 6th, 2007 at 7:27 pm
More assumptions, NB?
Plus, why do you all get off on “tipping off” various papers and such…does that make you feel special?
April 6th, 2007 at 7:37 pm
More like jokes. Why so humorless, hon?
April 7th, 2007 at 12:20 am
Gabe Hernandez, just because you’re an illegal mexican, doesn’t mean you know what you’re talking about when it comes to US law. y08’s comments were pretty damn accurate.
April 7th, 2007 at 11:33 am
I see no one is interested in servicing my patriotic bagina, so I’d just like to remind everyone that JEWS DID 9/11, MOTHERFUCKERS!
I’ll just be over in the corner masturbating if anyone needs me.
April 7th, 2007 at 12:51 pm
yo d’08, u better watch what u say before u get ur ass beat. dont matter whether ur hidin behind a name or a hood ull get got u racist punkass
April 7th, 2007 at 1:29 pm
Peoples, peoples…the law here is not simple. The fact that Akbar admitted to the act doesn’t get the other guys off the hook; they are at least accomplices, and most likely shared princpals who can be punished just the same as the person who committed the act. Malice can also be proved by recklessness; they didn’t need to purposefully set the flag on fire with the intention to burn down the house. As long as their actions were reckless enough to have ignored the reasonable inference that the house could have caught fire, they can be convicted of arson. And bonesman07: as a fellow society member (albeit not of bones), you should know that society selections are more dependent on who you know than any nebulous standard of merit. Don’t be so smug; I don’t give a damn about what’s in your tomb, and if Akbar becomes a leader, it will be because he is a good person with political acumen, not because he was a member of your petty club.
April 7th, 2007 at 1:59 pm
Where all the white women at?
April 7th, 2007 at 4:25 pm
“as a fellow society member (albeit not of bones)… I don’t give a damn about what’s in your tomb”
hahaha
yes you do, you totally do
April 7th, 2007 at 10:52 pm
none of you bitchasses are gonna be tapped
April 8th, 2007 at 2:52 am
Skull and Bones is a joke
April 8th, 2007 at 6:57 pm
Nat Turner, all I can say is go back to the ghetto, dumbass. Hahahah, obviously being in a good school is making you feel like a small pre-pubescent girl who needs to act tough.
April 8th, 2007 at 11:40 pm
yale 06, if the societies are petty, then why did you join one?
April 9th, 2007 at 7:10 pm
Haha, I like cock.
April 13th, 2007 at 11:08 pm
They were trashed. The arson charge suffices. I don’t support the desecration of the U.S. flag, but hey, we’ve all done things we’re not proud of while under the influence.
I saw a report of this on CNN. It’s really not that big of a deal. If the two were U.S. citizens and non-ethnic, I doubt this would be as big of a deal. The sentiment from the locals is that we let Arabs into our country and this is how they thank us, so clearly, they must be terrorists.
April 14th, 2007 at 12:32 pm
Arabs? Not one of these people is Arab, and only one is Muslim. Let’s assume all 3 were Arab or Muslim though. What’s the big deal? The blatant racism and Islamophobia has to stop. Hyder Akbar has done so much for Afghanistan’s people and has helped American troops in a greater way than any of you ever could have.