It has come down to this. I kid you not. This is what law enforcement has become in the age of Bush. Falafel tracking (via CQ):
Like Hansel and Gretel hoping to follow their bread crumbs out of the forest, the FBI sifted through customer data collected by San Francisco-area grocery stores in 2005 and 2006, hoping that sales records of Middle Eastern food would lead to Iranian terrorists.
The idea was that a spike in, say, falafel sales, combined with other data, would lead to Iranian secret agents in the south San Francisco-San Jose area.
The brainchild of top FBI counterterrorism officials Phil Mudd and Willie T. Hulon, according to well-informed sources, the project didn’t last long. It was torpedoed by the head of the FBI’s criminal investigations division, Michael A. Mason, who argued that putting somebody on a terrorist list for what they ate was ridiculous — and possibly illegal.
A check of federal court records in California did not reveal any prosecutions developed from falafel trails….
“Domain management has been portrayed by the bureau as a broad analytic approach, not specific data mining activities,” says Amy Zegart, author of the much-praised recent book, “Spying Blind: The CIA, the FBI and the Origins of 9/11.” “It is a methodology to determine what is known about a problem, develop indices to measure it, and take steps to close knowledge gaps.”
Zegart said her recent interviews with FBI officials “suggest that domain management has been implemented in a spotty fashion; L.A. and New York appear to be ahead of the curve, but some other field offices are not using it and at least one had never heard of it.”
As ridiculous as it sounds, the groceries counting scheme is a measure of how desperate the FBI is to disrupt domestic terrorism plots….
So, listen up you San Francisco/San Jose area potential scary Iranian terrorists (or vegans or ethnic food lovers or foreign students or health food aficionados, or followers of low fat or low carb diets or people who shop at Whole Foods or Trader Joes or buy in bulk at Costco or…well, you know what I mean, you falafel lovers): They know who you are.
And that you are buying organic yogurt and cucumbers and perky tomatoes (YouTube) to make a nice accompanying sauce with your whole-grain pitas. Good lord, I wish I were making this up…
(H/T to Laura Rozen.)
PS — Egregious reminds me that it is election day in VA today, so please go and vote if you live there! Also, dakine says it’s election day in KY, so get yerself to the polls there, too! And in NY and IN. And TX and MI (bring your photo ID).
Related posts:
- Iran: Don’t Lead, Don’t Follow, and Instead Get Out of the Way
- Iranian Dissident Akbar Ganji: Praise for Obama’s “No Meddling” Pledge, but President Should Address Human Rights Abuses
- Late Night: Billo is a Giant Suppurating Anal Cyst. Oh Yeah, and He Says Some Things about Netroots Nation
- House Voting on Iran Resolution; Human Rights Activist Not Against It, But…
- Everyone’s a Winner (Or Claiming to Be) in Iran’s Elections
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Wha???? My tax dollars are supporting THIS??
Oh, and, zed.
If at first you don’t succeed, try something even more stupid.
Oh my, what if there were a cooking class and everyone went out and bought ingredients…..
Good morning
Good morning Christy!
Election day here in VA. Time to kick Tom Davis’ wife out of office.
Morning all. I managed to find a way to work in a Princess Bride YouTube. Thought after reading this, everyong could use a little Miracle Max…
Meanwhile, the good guy won in Guatamala & the bad guy conceded, according to democracynow.org. How come neocons didn’t control that election? Maybe there is Domino Democracy after all, but occurring in Latin America.
I don’t know about Iranian terrists Christy, but you sure are making me hungry :)
Good Morning, Christy. I have to admit – even I am speechless over this. Falafel? I don’t even want to think about the FBI meeting that came up with this.
Am watching a travel show about Lake Como this morning. Lovely contrast with the news this morning, I have to say.
egregious @ 4
Even more proof that such action is needed: the WaPoo endorsed her.
I hope all “locals” are out working the get-out-the-vote. In the rain, it might be helpful.
Christy Hardin Smith @ 5
thanks Christy, much appreciated!
The good thing about this being out is, ‘regular’ folks will get the whole groceries thing and ’smarter’ folk will see clearer the rabbit hole….This may well wrap-up any ‘credibility’ supporter’s of these programs had left….
I’ll have two Curveballs and an order of yellow cake, please. The Bolten special.
one more example of why judicial oversight makes us more safe – not less.
sometimes our law enforcement officials make bad decisions on how to spend their/our resources. judicial oversight can help them make better decisions – so that our tax dollars are not wasted on things which don’t make us safer, and instead used on things that will.
duh.
i am so sick of the rhetoric that states, or even implies, that somehow civil rights and security are competing values that we have to balance. they are not. they are complementary values and strong civil rights enforcement will enhance our security – not diminish it.
Too funny George :)
Ohhh, sorry…
Good morning everyone :)
So now the supermarkets are handing over purchase records on all of their customers without anything approaching probable cause? I realize that information probably isn’t covered by any sort of privacy statute, but how have we come to countenance this kind of crackpot fishing scheme as something routine and unremarkable?
Next thing we’ll hear is that they’re putting people who buy their groceries with cash on a terrorist list because they don’t know what they could be buying.
selise — The one hopeful thing in the whole story was that the head of the criminal division back in DC put the kibosh on this. That it had to get that far up the chain before some did so, though, is disconcerting, to say the least.
How wide can you cast the false positive net before you realize that all you are doing is adding more straw to the top of the pile instead of sifting through to find the needles?
Christy Hardin Smith @ 9
Christy, I’m driving to Pittsburgh [via Morgantown] tomorrow, and back on Thursday. Any chance you’d be “available” for a cuppa?
To totally change gears: this morning it occurred to me that as far as I know, there’s no big table-pounding, letter-writing mob lobbying FOR Mukasay’s confirmation.
In other words, the Dems aren’t getting whupped by some powerful opponent who outnumbers them. They’re beating themselves [and probably wetting themselves too].
Why do Republicans even need to think about opposing Dems, when the Dems will do all the folding themselves.
Can anyone explain this to me???
Mauimom — Are you coming up 79 or over on 68? I might be able to do something, just need to figure out which direction you’ll be coming to work out planning logistics… E-mail me and we’ll talk coffee. Maybe we could do a Morgantown coffee morning if I can work out scheduling?
Will do.
Good morning Christy and Firepups.
Please forgive an OT. Two important items this morning.
Juan Cole has a short background piece on the Bush-Musharraf situation in salon.com. As is usual with him, it’s well worth a read. If you’re not a salon.com subscriber, go to Prof Cole’s Informed Comment blog and follow the link provided in his Tuesday, November 6 entry. The piece is entitled, Bush and Musharraf’s Grand Illusion. Cole also devotes the rest of his current blog entry to news about the state of affairs in Pakistan.
While you have the salon.com day pass be sure to check out Michael Massing’s article, We are the Thought Police. It’s a very interesting piece that discusses how our current situation differs from that envisioned by George Orwell in 1984. Massing argues that the American public, in many respects, “has become its own collective Ministry of Truth”. This, despite the availability of a wealth of accurate information sources. Again, a very insightful, intelligent, and important read. I’ve provided the direct link above, but you probably won’t be able to access it directly unless you have already entered salon.com by way of Prof Cole’s blog.
George Simian @ 13
just don’t order the zucchini!
“I hope we win”
Thanks Christy
How about solving the godd*mn anthrax attacks?
They just have too much money and there are these firms that solicit the business who make a lot of money doing stuff like this. Fighting terrorism is a gold mine for these private contractors. You don’t the FBI did this themselves, do you? It’s enough to make you cynical.
eCAHNomics @ 2
HA!
‘morning all… coffee is almost ready…
Doc @ 17
And that is only one bad idea disclosed.
George at 26 — Well, not with their internal FBI computer system, I don’t.
Of course Bill OReilly is the number ONE offender
Watch out – cookbook surveillance coming next.
Felafels are hugely popular in Israel. “Israel” begins with an “I” and so does “Iran.” Umm. . . therefore we trap Iranian terrorists because they buy felafel mix?
Morning,
Aren’t FBI agents supposed to be lawyers???
I have a sneaking suspicion that Phil Mudd and Willie T. Hulon studied in the same class as Monica Goodling.
All these agencies have been farming this stuff out. Illegal wiretapping is done by private contractors. The internal FBI computer system was a boondoggle, farmed out twice, and apparently still doesn’t work properly.
Even if this particular operation wasn’t farmed out, it’s still the result of an agency that has too much money dedicated to fighting terrorism. That was my point. What ever happened to small Government?
Thanks, Bilbo.
I heard a Pakistani grad student yesterday on Ed Shultz talking about how this is really a move by Musharref to take down the Pakistani Supreme Court, which was about to rule that his dual role as Head of State & head of the military was unconstitutional. I.e., like most things from Bush and Friends, pure terrorist-under-the-bed BS.
George Simian @ 26
Like DHS seeing intelligence data as a product for downstream customers?
Next the FBI looks for spikes in taco sales, knowing that where there are huge taco sales there are bound to be illegal immigrants. Taco Bell has to produce all of there records for the last five years.
Ot or not
But David Rivkin is on CSPAN arguing for torture. I think I’m going to throw up.
Wouldn’t “real” terrorists buy yogurt at the grocery and cucumbers at, say, the farmer’s market and bake their own pita just to fake out the feds?
I mean, can’t the feds think like terrorists? Can’t they put one plus one plus one plus one together and come up with a coven of evil chefs?
Surely it’s simple as pie. Maybe they should hire Alice Waters.
h
Christy Hardin Smith @ 18
yes. this time, but i don’t think we can always count on that.
with judicial oversight, the chances are (i’d like to think) this “project” would have been stopped before it even started.
Why does Michael A. Mason hate America so much??
(Actually I think Bill O’Reilly got him to scuttle the falafel-tracking program because it led right back to BillO’s shower…)
Elliott @ 38
yup :/
AZ Matt @ 37
lol kinda.
and Taco Bell is most popular with young males of prime terrorist age, too
Albatross @ 41
It was a loofah not a falafel.
Mornin’ Christy!
Please remind folks that it is also Election Day in Kentucky (polls are open 6AM to 6PM local time). They are electing the top seven statewide offices and Democrats are poised to take at least five of the seats if not a sweep (sweep is doubtful as the R candidate for Ag Commissioner is a Kentucky basketball legend).
The desperation of the Rs is such that not only did they have Pat Boone robo calls, they also had robo calls claiming that Beshear and Mongiardo are going to institute *gasp* Gay marriages!
raven @ 44
Actually O’Reilly referred to a “falafel” on the tape because, along with being a sexually-harassing egomaniac, he’s also an imbicile.
Morning Christy and all
We could have solved those pesky anthrax attacts if we had just used the same agents that cracked the 19 hijackers case the day after 9-11 I don’t think they would have been busy after cracking such a big case
Remember” Stopping Nuclear Terrorism” conference Sunday 1:30 to 5:00 Princeton NJ http://www.peacecoalition.org
How about looking through the records of the breakfast room
at the St. Regis Hotel in D.C.? I hear some nasty stuff goes down there.
You can buy falafel mix? I gotta start going through the middle of the store instead of going around the outside edges where the fresh stuff is.
I guess what’s really disturbing is the fact that the middle east doesn’t hide their country of origin so what purpose does this actually serve?
on the other hand, if terrorists were say from a particular norwegian country who’s diet was unique and we really couldn’t track the people from that region it wouldn’t be a bad idea to use a novel approach
in this case however, the tracking of dietary preferances serve no purpose.
anyway, off to work
thom harman had an author on his show last night who was incredible
she showed us the template for creating a nazi state, pretty much a ten step program and it really looks as if this adminsitration is following that template
I forget the authors name but the title is long and includes “a call to action”.
blackwater is really scary, taking posts in all parts of the country just as hitlers private army…most people didn’t know hitler created a private guard that was not part of the government
also, we really HAVE to start comparing the patriot act to the “enabling act”
the enabling act of hitler “enabled” him to not go to congress for decisions, it put hitler above the law
the patriot act is almost a duplicate, it’s as if it were plaguerized from the enabling act
that information has been around a while but it’s becoming more and more important
we really need to start comparing the patriot act to “hitler’s enabling act which gave him the power to break the law”
we need to use that phrase whenever we are on an interview and whenever we get a call in broadcast
it’s important to do that, get everyone to start wondering if this president is using hitler as his model
once we begin that strategy we will also inject into the discussion bush’s grandfather’s nazi affiliation
we don’t have a hell of a lot of time guys, congress is allready near impotent
pakistan was definately a trial balloon from cheney
let me point something out;
how the hell does a president get to “cut off the phone lines”
I’ll tell you how;
the phone companies had to be on board…does everyone realize these are the same companies that give us communication here in the states?
for instance, verizon would comply with the president if he unilaterally told them to close down their internet and phone lines
this is a new realization of telecom compliance with illegal requests from the adminsitration
here is actually a good thing that comes from pakistan for we can point to the ramifications of telecom compliance and the depraved claim that if the president orders something illegal it becomes legal
we are at a crossroads
It’s voting day in PA, too.
tw3k @ 42
The buy makes me want to upchuck, regardless of the subject, but to sit on his fat, pimply, never-endangered ass and pontificate about the utility of torture is too much in the morning. I though C-Span had some taste.
Damn I better throw out my hummus and pitas. Crap I also bought some tahini last year! Everyone knows that only real Middle Easterners make their own hummus. I am done for…
pma @ 52
yeah, cspan should stick to the house and senate.
So Bill “Falafel Boy” O’Reilly is on a terrorist watch list now?
Speaking from a purely logical viewpoint, terrorist teams don’t have thousands of members. This is just thinly disguised racial profiling
oh look! more more fuckery in Kentucky! Seems the repigs are on round 2 of robocalls, except this time, they are calling and claiming to be from the “homosexual lobby” and are endorsing Beshear…
from Pam’s Houseblend…
RepubAnon @ 55
Yes they do.
Does anyone even make falafel at home? I always bought it ready-made from either the hot truck outside the building or the nearest greek deli.
OldCoastie @ 56
Could it be that Rove isn’t actually spending more time with his family?
pluky at 58 — I make my own. But then, I live in WV, and we don’t exactly have hot trucks and/or midle eastern delis in abundance here (or at all…). If I want a good falafel or fresh hummus, I either make it myself or I get it when I travel. Price I pay for living in a not-so-crowded non-urban place…
pma at 59 — HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA Oh yeah, that was a good one.
I wonder if anyone has told them yet that Iranians, as a rule, are not real big felafel hounds. Middle Eastern peoples, mainly Arab but also Israeli’s, Sudanese yes, but Iranians, no. They did not even target the right food. Idiots. Wiki
I’m not really awake yet. I’m only dreaming that I woke up, and read that my government is frantically tracking falafel purchases as part of an anti domestic terrorism countermeasure. Yeah, that’s the ticket.
Somebody, pinch me and wake me up!
peanutbutter @ 63
welcome to our nightmare
Seamus — Well, if you are going to do some research and resort to logic and stuff…sheesh. *g*
Actually, I had heard that a part of Al Quaida training involved repetitive drills in tamales and fajitas.
It sounds to me like the FBI has never gone grocery shopping in the SF area.
While the suburban parts of the region are filled with big chain-style supermarkets, each with its own “customer card” or “buyers club” card to track purchases, the more urban areas of SF are absolutely loaded with smaller stores of every ethnic variety you can imagine, plus some combinations that would boggle the UN (Filipino/Lebanese, anyone?). These small stores don’t have “customer cards” or other such devices — just proprietors whow know their clientele.
When I lived there, I *could* have bought all kinds of “ethnic” food at the major supermarket — but it was half the price and twice the quality at the little markets down the street.
Maybe the FBI ought to eat out less, and try cooking more for themselves. Or at least do the grocery shopping themselves once in a while.
Pathetic. Well,that and stupid.
I don’t even LIKE falafel,but that makes me want to buy it by the case.
pma @ 66
and sweating it out in the Bratwurst way.
selise @ 14
Just compare the vastly different results that obtained from the vastly different ways in which two separate Twin Towers attacks were handled:
When the Towers were bombed in 1993, newly-elected President Bill Clinton treated it not as an act of war, but as a criminal operation. He got the cooperation of the international community in hunting down the ringleaders and bringing them to justice. Six months later, they were all caught and sentenced.
Meanwhile, it’s been over six years since the Towers were attacked in 2001, and the ringleaders haven’t been touched. But Bush has destroyed two countries, not counting our own.
Hey there Empire State Firepups!!!
It’s election day in New York State today
SO VOTE!!!
Once again Christy, FDL a post with actual content (compared to hacks such as Maureen Dowd). Shall we believe the Bushies are inncompetent in the great struggle of Civilization versus the Bad Guys?
Recall, FBI agents tried to alert Ashcroft and Condi in the summer of 2001, about an attack in the US. They were ignored. Recall the FBI wanted to question the Saudis and Bin Laden’s relatives. They were refused. The FBI has not been allowed to investigate the war profiteering or Tillman asassination or 190,000 missing weapons in Iraq, that the insurgents received. Of course, there is always Sibel Edmonds.
It makes sense for the Bush Crime Family to send real federal law enforcement on wild goose chases. Blackwater will be doing law enforcement before too long.
anangryoldbroad @ 68
I love falafel, but haven’t had any in ages. I should make some falafel burgers for supper tonight — I’ve got an egg to use for a binder.
It’s election day in Minnesota!
Gopher State Firepups, you know what to do.
FINAL REMAINING LIVING JAPANESE SOLDIER DISCOVERED LIVING IN CAVE IN WEST VIRGINIA DUE TO TOFU PURCHASE RECORDS AT SAFEWAY
Mabel’s Wig Shack @ 75
LMAO!
Our nation is being run by incompetent, mentally deficient fascists to boot.
-GSD
Well there is only one ‘norwegian country’. And you can pretty much track most of them by stopping by the local Sons of Norway Lodge on Syttende Mai. Quite apart from the fairly repellent notion that ethnic profiling of entire countries is really the way to go I have to admit the mental image is kind of funny.
FBI Agent: “Inge! Drop the lefse! Lars! Step away from the pickled herring! And what’s that smell?”
Lars: “Uff Da, don’t shoot. And that is yest the lutefisk”
They should also check whoever eats dates or hummus or who does not consume alcohol (although they are clever enough to buy it and throw it away of course, so perhaps they could tap everyone’s sewer pipes to check for alcohol down their drains). This has the potential to be a major job creation program.
This story leaves me awestruck.
After Bush bombs Iran, who is left to be paranoid about? Perhaps Uzbeckistan, or are they on our side?
I think it’s a great idea!
Olbermann’s special comment was awesome last night. Is there anything else we can do to try to stop Schumer and Feinstein??? It’s clear to me that they don’t want the negative publicity. I called Biden and asked his office to pressure the dems to pressure Feinstein and Schumer…Is there anything else we can do?? I am still sick about Mukasey!!!!
“decoy iranians” purchase ‘falaffal kits’ in bulk in 38 locations across nation.
high-stakes cat&mouse game continues
Phoenix Woman @ 70
well we must count that one too
Elliott @ 38
Rivikin is a bald faced liar. He alleged on Hardball that US law enforcement routinely and LEGALLY use waterboarding, stress positions, sleep deprivation and temperature variations.
My police officer brother almost went through the TV at him.
-GSD
russian spys during the cold war were notorious for insisting on only eating ethnic russian food during overseas assignments because it didn’t occur to them it ‘might’ be noticed.
NOT
The nearest good falafel place is an hour’s drive from me. (It’s fantastic.) Cash only, so I need to make ATM withdrawals nearby, but at least there’s no record to say I was stocking up on zaatar and baklava.
Never mind that the place is run by Lebanese Maronite Christians.
Falafel? Damn, this story reads more like Fafblog.
(And I do occasionally buy falafel mix, but only because fava beans are nigh-on impossible to find in stores here.)
The funny thing is that falafel is not an Iranian food. Yes, it is popular in Israel and some of the surrounding Arab countries because it is an Arab food. Iranians are not Arabs and I imagine you would be hard pressed to find a falafel stand anywhere in Iran.
H/T to Bryan at Why Now for this bit of info.
On the other hand, I know of at least one airport cafe which had a majority of middle eastern dishes on it’s menu due to the fact the bulk of their student pilots since 1973 have been from the middle east. Many fixed base operators (flight schools) would have gone under without the middle eastern students.
looseheadprop @ 71
I’m there LHP – Castle Creek Methodist Church – on my way home from work.
All votes count. Every time.
Bruce Webb @ 78
Now if you want to talk about chemical weapons in the hands of terrorists, let me tell you about some of the lutefisk church suppers in the upper midwest. . . .
Mabel’s Wig Shack @ 75
What was his screen name on RedState.com?
mosinee, wisconsin: 1954:
“dont you have any north korean or chinese food at this supermarket?’
and thus: lok do pho, master spy, captured in deserted lumber mill shootout.
Wait, wait — wasn’t it Bill O’Reilly who couldn’t tell a loofah from a felafel?
Why does he even know the f word? He’s a sleeper cell!
Follow the felafels!
aren’t fallafals lebanese?
Astonishing.
Bush Urges Musharraf to Reverse Course but Signals No Penalty if He Doesn’t
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11…..mp;emc=rss
Hi folks,
Just another friendly reminder: Changing screen names and/or sockpuppeting here at FDL, even if just to make a joke, is frowned upon and may be grounds for banning. Thanks!
Just reading the word “lutefisk” makes my nose wrinkle up. Must be a nasty, embedded memory that you can never, ever scrub…blergh.
Oklahoma kiddo @ 95
thoughtful commentary on the pakistan situation today in the toronto star
http://www.thestar.ca
front page
Willie T. Hulon?
Can we refer to him as “Willy T”?
Elliott @ 76
rofl!
Peterr @ 90
ROFL — yep, definite WMD there….
Lemme see…the secret code words are “football”, “picnic,” “smelling fresh air” or “eating cheese.” And grow very fearful if they attempt to buy “zucchinis”. Wasn’t that what Jose Padillas co-conspirators talked about!
Imagine the poor person who has an intercepted phone conversation that says “After Bill’s wedding let’s go up to Candlestick and watch some football. I’m gonna need to be smelling some fresh air. I’ll pack a picnic lunch with a cheese and zucchini casserole. You in?”
Oh WAIT…can I retract what I just wrote…I think I’m in BIG TROUBLE!
Gosh the FBI must have a lot of idiots in their ranks! YOU HEAR ME…YOU GUYS ARE MORONS!
Phoenix Woman @ 70
The ringleaders are still in office. The Oval one.
Bruce Webb @ 78
nooo, not the lutefisk!
There is a silver lining to the business in Pakistan. We don’t have to worry about our Chief Justice being deposed.
AP – Pakistan’s deposed chief justice called on lawyers nationwide to defy police and protest President Gen. Pervez Musharraf’s imposition of emergency rule, while the government debated whether to delay parliamentary elections by as much as three months.
Mabel’s Wig Shack @ 93
San Francsisco is chock full of Lebanese. I remember because I saw that Ellen episode.
-GSD
Christy Hardin Smith @ 60
Be careful. They might decide next that people that buy the ingredients to make their own hummus are trying to hide something. *g*
Does belonging to the local natural food place count?
Will I have to go back to making my own yogurt and whole wheat bread? As I did in the days of yore when those were not easily available?
Should I suspect my fellow shoppers? Are they watching my cart? Taking my car license plate? Following me home?
Lord gawd. We’ve got Roberts, Scalia, Alito and Thomas. With Mukasey on the way. It just doesn’t get any better.
Sorry, I’m late to the party, but it’s election day in Indiana too if you live in a precinct that has anything to vote on today.
Well there is only one ‘norwegian country’.
heh.
and it’s quite a bit north of the ‘italian style countries’ i think.
RFID chips will soon solve this
problemissue of food tracking.Oklahoma kiddo @ 105
Sadly Bush Inc. is probably considering the “emergency rule” in Pakistan as a trial balloon.
A year from now we may see some sort of national emergency here and elections
temporarilyindefinitely postponed.Mabel’s Wig Shack @ 112
Salt and vinegar RFID chips.
Sheriff Mukasey is coming to town. Wonder who Marshal Rudy will appoint as his successor?
Speaking of Election Day today, I’m interested in seeing that figures of voter turnout. I’m looking for a noticeable uptick in Democratic party turnout. Hope I’m not disappointed.
Perhaps the lawyers in this country might take a lesson from Pakistan’s Chief Justice.
Not to sound too paranoid, but those grocery story cards by which we get the in-store discount, keep track of your individual purchases. IOW it’s not just a spike in a store’s sales, but the ability to track individual purchases in a store that they might find useful. And unlike the telecoms, I don’t think one has any expectation of privacy. (The innocent use of those data is for marketing purposes.)
To the best of my knowledge, falafel and tabouli are not Persian foods – more west of Persia – Lebanese.
Haven’t read comments, it’s a fly-by kinda day.
But has Bill-o been warned?
OT, things are heating up….(sry if too many links, dear mods)
The Border Security Force (BSF) guarding the India-Pakistan international border has been put on high alert to avert any possible bid of infiltration by anti-Musharraf activists from Pakistan after imposition of emergency in the neighbouring nation.
The security personnel along the entire stretch of Indo-Pak border, right from Jammu and Kashmir to Gujarat, had been put on high alert and been asked to sternly counter any bid of infiltration from across the border, reported Indian national TV news portal quoting BSF sources.
http://www2.irna.ir/en/news/vi…..104031.htm
05/11/2007
BEIRUT, Lebanon, (AP) – Thousands of Hezbollah guerrillas staged secret military maneuvers without weapons or uniforms near Israel’s border in southern Lebanon, a pro-Hezbollah Lebanese newspaper reported Monday.
http://www.asharqalawsat.com/e…..p;id=10777
Taking part in the American Persian Gulf exercise in progress since Nov. 2 are the nuclear aircraft carrier USS Enterprise , its strike force and two smaller helicopter carriers, the USS Wasp and USS Kearsage , which are marine amphibian assault craft. Commander Jay Chambers, who also heads the combined 59th Task Force, described the exercise as tough and demanding but good preparation for realistic scenarios.
http://www.debka.com/article.php?aid=1312
General Commander of the Islamic Republic Army Major General Ataollah Salehi said here Monday that Iranian armed forces, especially the Islamic Republic Army, are in full alert against enemy threats.
http://www2.irna.ir/en/news/vi…..162847.htm
Compare: Chief Justice Roberts with Pakistan’s Chief Justice.
Mabel’s Wig Shack @ 98
This may be a little hard to find. Here’s a direct link that’s working for the moment anyway. If this link goes 404 try searching the title of the editorial: Musharraf risks Pakistan’s ruin.
Oklahoma kiddo @ 122
Well I’m no expert on Pakistan’s Chief Justice, but I’ll take a stab at the comparison.
Lap dog / Irish Wolf Hound
Can you imagine if all the attorneys in this country went on strike, to protest the usurpation (Florida persidential election; 2000) of the Constitution by the Bush junta.
Elliott @ 38
Has someone called up Rivkin and asked if he wanted to be waterboarded? And then tell the caller if he thinks it is torture? Rivkin would undoubtedly wet his … well .. you know.
solai @ 107
I have a small stock pile of pre 9/11 tahini and grape leaves..may be I can still fly..oh wait, I’m on the FDL watch list.
Jackie,
Add on the Turkey/Kurd showdown and the fact that in Afghanistan a suicide bomber just targeted a bunch of parlimentarians in the relatively safe north region and we have the makings for a full on regional meltdown underway.
John Bolton and Bill Kristol are wearing their cammo jammies and are furiously tugging their tiny puds in eager anticipation.
Dick Cheney has put on his Patton helmet and has begun blaring martial tunes from loudspeakers in his darkened lair too.
-GSD
i am no longer ashamed of my government. i am ashamed of myself and my fellow americans who have done nothing to stop this blatantly corrupt administration.
emails and phone calls ain’t cutting it. and no i don’t have any better ideas. i just want this shit to stop.
Elliott @ 116
My friend said her election place was jammed.
If you live in Virginia please vote!!
Election day in MICHIGAN – and don’t forget your photo ID!
Jackie @ 121 said
This makes a lot of sense. Juan Cole pointed out this morning that Musharraf is strongly Anti-Indian unlike his predecessor who was much more inclined to compromise with India. So it wouldn’t be too surprising to see anti-Musharraf elements infiltrate across the border.
more Christy upstairs!
Curious about the KY robocalling. Isn’t this illegal? Clearly DOJ won’t prosecute in this admin but aren’t they taking quite a risk for 2009?
Regarding the scenario about using torture to avoid a dirty bomb or whatever: I wonder why no one asks them if they would place any limits. What about hot pokers? How about torturing someone’s spouse or children? Should the U.S. rule anything out under their rationale? Anyway, I’ve never heard anyone ask the Rivkins.
Add Texas to the list of states voting today!
Phoenix Woman @ 70
may we learn from experience.
This gives a whole new meaning to vegemite.
ANd for the record I have had many Iranian friends over the years and now that I think about it I don’t recall any of them eating falafel..certainly not from a box.
p.s. on my 134
Does it make sense to push for a ban on robocalling? It seems like it adds no real value and opens the door to this kind of abuse. Would there be any constitutional issues with adding this to the next campaign reform bill that comes up?
Wow. I mean, this is beyond wow. How anyone came up with this idea, how someone could consider it to be a way to identify terrorists, and the fact that it even was used for one day, baffles the mind.
I’m confused about one thing – did we have a big Iranian terrorist threat here in the US in 2005?
Thinking about my last shopping trip to the Costco, I bought a block of Dubliner cheese, some chicken taquitos, and a box of spring mix. I also sampled some Belgian chocolates and pumpkin pie. Does that mean the government will accuse me of having ties to the IRA, Mexican druglords, Militant Ecoterrorists, Jean Claude Vandamme and the Great Pumpkin?
Christy,
Amazing. AMAZING. Are they tracking chickpea sales too? You know, for those of us who make Falafel from scratch?
Were they also able to report to PBS and the Food Channel “spikes” in certain food sales which corresponded to their food programs’ featured recipes?
See, a weenie, weak, cross-cultural mediator, liberal — like myself, is certainly not needed in the FBI. Gee, they’ve got “cultutre” all figured out!
And tax dollars paid for this…???
BTW…Voting in Ohio? Don’t forget your photo ID in Ohio too!
landofthefree @ 140
I don’t think so, but you may have given O’Reilly new ideas.
Oh my GOD, I am so thankful for the foresight of law enforcement here. I LIVE in San Jose, and have long suspected that these people hate our meals. They all walk around like they live here or something, and they have declared jihad on burgers and fries!
This terrifies me, this… this ethnic food… I am so thankful that American law enforcement has declared War on Supper. If we cannot have our food and ensure that no chickpea is used in jihad, no one shall have food.
I had Chinese food last night. Do I have to stand in front of a tank now?
This tale may be apocrypal, but it makes the story of the falafel mix come as no surprise:
J. Edgar Hoover, who was very displeased after a meeting with three subordinates, said to an aide, “One of those guys is a pinhead, get rid of him.”
Apparently this was typical of Hoover, who would mutter a vague directive over his shoulder and expected his people to figure out what he meant and act. (Does this remind you of “Becket?”)
At a loss for which of the three subordinates the Director was referring to, the aide did the only thing he could think to do and compared their hat sizes.
What is commonly regarded as the national food of Israel?
a) Loofahs
b) Jerusalem Crickets
c) Matzoh
d) Falafel
e) Gefilte Fish
It’s election day here in CT – bring your IDS
I usually don’t vote in local elections – but I’m beginning to believe that republicans must be kicked out of politics right now at all costs. The people who are usurping power now started out at the local level at some point.
Rick in SF @ 144
No, but it does remind me of Rumsfeld [the “snowflake memos”?]
This Machine Kills Fascists @ 143
No, apparently what you eat makes you a terrorist, not a freedom-lover. Therefore, you must simultaneously poison pet food and put lead paint all over children’s toys.
I’m going to make myself a nice George Bush style hotdog (reportedly his favorite food) and get me an apple pie now.
Oh, except I don’t eat hotdogs. And I don’t want pie. Shit, I even drank some French wine last night. That’s it, between that and my Irish cheese, I’m on a list.
Why does falafel hate America?
landofthefree @ 148
As are we all.
I already feel safe!
We are in good hands!!
Wonder why they keep saying we did not have enough good intelligence after screw ups..
The funniest thing about this sting is Persians/Iranians don’t eat falafel!
I’m Persian and the first time I heard of falafel was when I arrived in New York in 1975! Go figure.
As a SF bay area resident, I can tell you that ALOT of restaurants in this part of the world have felafel somewhere on the menu! Why would anyone with intelligence think such an approach for finding terrorists would work to begin with? Has he even been to the San Francisco bay area?
Falafels?
Really?
Lord save me from this surreal Bush era!
I just realized I’m probably on a list somewhere. I used a credit card to buy tickets to the Axis of Evil Comedy Tour. Probably was one of the few non-Middle Eastern guys there not with the FBI.
Falafel: FBI’s Most Wanted Terrorists
This is so ridiculous considering that falafel is thought of as a pan-Middle-Eastern recipe as well as the national food of Israel.
How are those 750,000 people on the terrorist watch list working out?