A Heads Up to Fellow Americans...
Especially if you happen to identify yourself as Muslim or Arabic.
Racial profiling getting the green light?
By Lara Jordan,
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Justice Department is considering letting the FBI investigate Americans without any evidence of wrongdoing, relying instead on a terrorist profile that could single out Muslims, Arabs or other racial and ethnic groups.
Law enforcement officials say the proposed policy would help them do exactly what Congress demanded after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks: root out terrorists before they strike.
Although President George W. Bush has disavowed targeting suspects based on their race or ethnicity, the new rules would allow the FBI to consider those factors among a number of traits that could trigger a national security investigation.
Currently, FBI agents need specific reasons - like evidence or allegations that a law probably has been violated - to investigate U.S. citizens and legal residents. The new policy, law enforcement officials told The Associated Press, would let agents open preliminary terrorism investigations after mining public records and intelligence to build a profile of traits that, taken together, were deemed suspicious.
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I'm sure that this type of information wouldn't magically appear on the 5 or 10 o'clock news. Some people may not even care, but just think if you have friends or co-workers whose ethnicity or religious background happens to fall into that category, and for some "reason" they end up under investigation, then maybe you end up under investigation or at least some line of questioning, for having some affiliation with them...
The idea that innocent people will be deemed "suspect" until proven "innocent" alone is enough to bother me. At first it may start with a "just cause," but it is probably just a matter of time before the ethnicity no longer stays the main focus and it shifts to anyone they consider to be "suspicious" or a threat to their power. And I'm sure it'll be even tougher on those who can't afford to do anything about it. I have more thoughts about this, but I think I'll just stop here. And if this does start taking effect, which I am sure it will, I really hope that the American citizens wrongly suspected, will not have to endure much emotional/mental stress, and can overcome whatever happens to them.
Racial profiling getting the green light?
By Lara Jordan,
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Justice Department is considering letting the FBI investigate Americans without any evidence of wrongdoing, relying instead on a terrorist profile that could single out Muslims, Arabs or other racial and ethnic groups.
Law enforcement officials say the proposed policy would help them do exactly what Congress demanded after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks: root out terrorists before they strike.
Although President George W. Bush has disavowed targeting suspects based on their race or ethnicity, the new rules would allow the FBI to consider those factors among a number of traits that could trigger a national security investigation.
Currently, FBI agents need specific reasons - like evidence or allegations that a law probably has been violated - to investigate U.S. citizens and legal residents. The new policy, law enforcement officials told The Associated Press, would let agents open preliminary terrorism investigations after mining public records and intelligence to build a profile of traits that, taken together, were deemed suspicious.
For the rest of this article you can go here
Article Continues
I'm sure that this type of information wouldn't magically appear on the 5 or 10 o'clock news. Some people may not even care, but just think if you have friends or co-workers whose ethnicity or religious background happens to fall into that category, and for some "reason" they end up under investigation, then maybe you end up under investigation or at least some line of questioning, for having some affiliation with them...
The idea that innocent people will be deemed "suspect" until proven "innocent" alone is enough to bother me. At first it may start with a "just cause," but it is probably just a matter of time before the ethnicity no longer stays the main focus and it shifts to anyone they consider to be "suspicious" or a threat to their power. And I'm sure it'll be even tougher on those who can't afford to do anything about it. I have more thoughts about this, but I think I'll just stop here. And if this does start taking effect, which I am sure it will, I really hope that the American citizens wrongly suspected, will not have to endure much emotional/mental stress, and can overcome whatever happens to them.