The FBI's Plan to 'Profile' Muslims

The FBI's Plan to 'Profile' Muslims

www.informationclearinghouse.info

Fox

10/07/08 "Salon" -- -- The U.S. Justice Department is considering a change in the grounds on which the FBI can investigate citizens and legal residents of the United States. Till now, DOJ guidelines have required the FBI to have some evidence of wrongdoing before it opens an investigation. The impending new rules, which would be implemented later this summer, allow bureau agents to establish a terrorist profile or pattern of behavior and attributes and, on the basis of that profile, start investigating an individual or group. Agents would be permitted to ask “open-ended questions” concerning the activities of Muslim Americans and Arab-Americans. A person’s travel and occupation, as well as race or ethnicity, could be grounds for opening a national security investigation.

(visit the link for the full news article)



[edit on 7/10/2008 by die_another_day]

In contrast, using race and ethnicity as the — or even a — primary factor in deciding whom to stop and search, despite being widespread among police forces, is illegal. Just this spring, the Maryland State Police settled out of court with the ACLU and an African-American man after having been sued for the practice of stopping black and Latino men and searching them for drugs. New Jersey police also got into trouble over stopping people on the grounds of race.

More guilt by association?

Based on the article, what the author has generally stated is that racial/religious profiling is counterproductive in any war against terrorism. This is because race isn't all that determines relationship between terrorist groups. Either the government is bullying Muslims or they havn't learned their lesson.

www.informationclearinghouse.info
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by die_another_day


I think the DOJ is silly not to use powerful tools like profiling in their search for terrorists. Or should I say, not using profiling is a waist of valuable time and effort.

Should we wait till terrorists knock another building down before we begin profiling? How many more innocent people have to die?

One of the problems with trying to profile terrorists is that it does not work. While proponents for profiling can point to successes in using it to track gang affiliations and criminal activity, once we move intothe terrorist arena, profiling works in the terrorists favor.

The terrorist is actively trying to avoid detection. Letting him know that he is being profiled allows him to to alter his methodology so that it doesn't match the profile. There is a precedent. from wikipedia

The Lod Airport massacre was a terrorist attack that occurred on May 30, 1972, in which three members of the Japanese Red Army, on behalf of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, killed 26 people and injured 80 others at Tel Aviv's Lod airport (now Ben Gurion International Airport). Because airport security was focused on the possibility of a Palestinian attack, the use of Japanese terrorists took the guards by surprise, and their commitment to a suicide mission simplified the planning.

So if the terrorist knows that authorities are data mining and profiling middle eastern men who pay cash and ask for aisle seats, a counter move is put into place. A blond haired and blue eyed middle aged woman with a heavy Texas accent who appears to be a conservative business woman then becomes the ideal person to carry out the attack. It may take several years to establish her cover, perhaps with a nice stolen identity, so that she can use her American Express card to book a window seat.

Profiling at this level only works if the profiling criteria are kept secret or better yet, no one knows there is profiling going on. Anything less than that and we have a chess game of move and counter move.

Why is this dangerous? Because the authorities are going to start relying on the profiling results and lessen their scrutiny of those who are a extreme mismatch from the profile. By profiling, the actual threat from those less scrutinized individuals becomes greater because they are now the ones most likely to be successful at eluding detections and thus become more attractive as terrorist covers. Authorities are watching all the doors and windows while the enemy is tunneling into the basement.

The only positive thing I can come up with is that maybe this is all disinformation and that the real profiling effort is using totally different criteria and the claim that agencies are profiling Muslims is just to throw those who are really being targeted off the track.



[edit on 10-7-2008 by metamagic]

reply to post by plumranch


Such drastic measures under the right leadership being used responsibly would be a very positive stance,

But under the wrong people it leaves to many avenues for abuse.

And we all know the facts behind this governments agenda.

reply to post by plumranch


How many terroristic acts have occurred in the US by Muslims? Now tell me how many have occurred by non-Muslims. Now tell me which group is more likely to commit terrorism based on those statistics, and you will see why racial profiling wont work.

reply to post by DJMessiah


Here's the point: If you are looking for Irish terrorists you could probably eliminate Arabs from your search. If you are looking for Arab Islamic terrorists you wouldn't want to spend your time checking out old white catholic ladies in their 70s!

If law inforcement agencies can't profile they are greatly reduced in their effectiveness.

Political correctness should not limit law enforcement agencies. It makes no sense!

reply to post by plumranch


Is this a war against terrorism or war against Arabs? Last I checked, there were no Arab-American terrorists bombing abortion clinics, parks, clubs, or burning crosses on people's yards.

While we relive the Salem witch trials again, just remember how people will read about this as history and laugh at how we never learn.