Differences between Crying Obsidian and Beds

It is well known that beds set your spawn point in the Overworld, but explode if interacted with in the Nether and End.  I'm thinking that Crying Obsidian in the Overworld likewise acts as a trap for those who attempt to use it to set their spawn in the Overworld, but in a different fashion.

I'm thinking that if one attempts to set their spawn point in the Overworld with crying obsidian, crying obsidian changes states for a brief time, during which time the energy stored in it would spread out over the immediate vicinity and act as the opposite of a conduit or beacon, killing and harming players and pets in the vicinity.  On the other hand, this same trap could be activated against hostile mobs in all dimensions (except for bosses and minibosses) by a redstone pulse of sufficient strength.

Addendum: Killing off hostile mobs with crying obsidian might possibly have the downside of not yielding drops or experience.  This would be so that actually fighting hostile mobs is rewarded as opposed to taking the easy way out.