In a decade or so, the strange, sad, and slightly humorous saga of how 80,000 cans of silly string made their way to Iraq will be a poignant reminder of the U.S. military's sometimes Quixotic battle against improvised explosive devices. Just to recap, last year, a soldier's mother -- after hearing about how silly string could be used to detect wires leading to IEDs -- began a campaign to ship the stuff of children's parties to Iraq. It took some time, but she finally succeeded:
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After months of frustration, a mother of a soldier in Iraq has found someone to ship about 80,000 cans of Silly String to the troops, who use the foamy substance to detect trip wires on bombs. *
Marcelle Shriver plays with Silly String as 80,000 cans of it are loaded for U.S. troops in Iraq.
"I am so happy right now, I am shaking. I just think it's awesome that it's finally going," Marcelle Shriver said as boxes were loaded into a truck Monday afternoon.
The thousands of cans of Silly String are boxed and addressed to individual servicemen and servicewomen in Iraq. But since the string comes in an aerosol can, it is considered a hazardous material, and only certain companies can ship it.
Thom Campbell, one of the founders of Capacity LLC, a New Jersey-based shipping company experienced in hazardous materials, heard about Shriver's problem and decided to help out.
Shriver and Campbell communicated for weeks by phone and e-mail but met for the first time Monday when the boxes were picked up. Each praised the other for making the shipment a reality.
The military claims there wasn't really any great need for the 80,000 cans of silly string. I'm sure that's true, but then again, it might yet prove more useful than a Rube Goldberg bomb zapper.
