A flash mob is when a whole bunch of people congregate briefly in an area to do something wacky, then immediately disperse, confusing the hell out of the general public. They're normally organised underground on the internet, to make sure that the location remains hush-hush and so that no-one can tip off the authorities or try to stop it.

But is it art? Or just a bunch of bored students looking for an excuse to bunk lectures?

The good news is that Durban has it's own flash mob crew, and they're actively organising events so you too can partake in the pointlessness! So far, there have been two events which were recorded and put up on YouTube - and it looks like it could be a lot of fun.

The first one was a big water fight at a park somewhere in the city, maybe Botanic Gardens or Mitchell Park, but I'm not sure...

Good times!

It certainly has more of an effect when there's a massive turnout: according to the Daily Mail the record is 3500 people in London's Paddington station, who created a dancefloor by raving to the same song playing on their headphones. Here's the pic of that little shindig:

The second Durban event was held in the Pavilion, and dubbed the “Silent Swiss Standoff”. I'm not sure exactly what that means, but it's definitely ranked high on the weirdness scale:

There have been some other great mobs in SA too, especially from the Capetonians who had a big outdoor pillow fight that appeared to go down extremely well.

But it's the use of flash mobs to spread awareness that really gets me excited, especially for worthy causes like making a political or social statement. In Romania, a flash mob was organised which had all the participants duct-tape their mouths shut and run on the spot, a reference to a Romanian expression which translated means “shut your mouth and do as you are told”. It was a protest against the lack of press freedom.

You may argue that trying to make these kind of statements takes the fun out of it, but it does seem like an ideal opportunity to get a bit of mainstream press attention and really get the message out there.

So how about this one: a flash mob where everyone arrives with toy cap-guns, and starts firing at each other. When you're out of caps, you lie down on the ground and play dead. It would be a noisy affair, and a perfect statement about violent crime.

A good place to hold it would be in a public spot with lots of space and people around... say for instance, on one of the grassy banks at the beach during the Mr Price Pro... just an idea!

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