Homeland Security amuk

[SDK]

Independent video journalist Greg Palast and television producer Matt Pascarella are being charged with criminal "unauthorized filming of a “critical national security structure” in Louisiana." An Exxon refinery in New Orleans was shown next to a Hurricane Katrina/FEMA housing camp, and apparently Exxon complained because their refinery was shown in a unflattering light in the Palast documentary. See http://www.gregpalast.com/palast-charged-with-journalism-in-the-first-degree.

 

[Keith]

Scary stuff ... you don't have to be too smart to work out who is running the US at the moment. The big corporations now have the power to get the government to do their standover work for them ... willingly on Bush's part unfortunately!

I'll be staying in Oz ... far from perfect but a long way from George!

 

[SDK]

The really scary thing is that the list of critical homeland assets in the US has been reported by National Public Radio to include completely ridiculous items like a Flea Market in Tennessee and the Trees of Mystery park in California.

Today two Boston cops asked me to stop shooting pictures of the Acela bullet train at South Station. I'd already stopped because the lady who was standing in front of the engine left and it became boring without a person to relate it to. The reason? 9/11 Anniversary. I wore black yesterday, unlike most people, yet somehow photographing a cool train is a threat to homeland security? At least these two cos were polite and did not take my name or demand ID. Next time may be different.

I'll be so happy when we get a new President. George II is too incompetent and self righteous to set a good example for our country.

 

[boarini2003]

Scary stuff ... you don't have to be too smart to work out who is running the US at the moment. The big corporations now have the power to get the government to do their standover work for them ... willingly on Bush's part unfortunately!

I'll be staying in Oz ... far from perfect but a long way from George!

I'm sorry, but that statement is bilge.

 

[Bryce]

SDK-
Keep shooting. Keep that ACLU card handy.

 

[Keith]

I'm sorry, but that statement is bilge.

Don't be sorry for expressing your opinion ... but why do you feel that way. From where I stand and for a lot of others outside the US this is the way it appears to be!

 

[Ergo]

Kill This Thread

 

[Socke]

Ergo, I've heard that killing people is now legal in florida and some other states, too. New law about selfdefence and such.

For me this sounds a bit strange, photographing may be a criminal offence and if somebody is anoyed he can shoot you out of selfdefence. To me it doesn't look like a place I want to visit again. In 1984 I liked it and shot a lot of pictures of allmost anything and anybody from Orlando to Boston. Today I'd leave my camera at home if I had to go to the US.

 

[Dougg]

Ergo, I've heard that killing people is now legal in florida and some other states, too. New law about selfdefence and such.

For me this sounds a bit strange, photographing may be a criminal offence and if somebody is anoyed he can shoot you out of selfdefence.

Certainly not true; that annoyed shooter would be committing a felony. For self-defense shooting to be legal there must be (on the part of the threatening party) ability, proximity, and immediate jeopardy of severe bodily injury or death to oneself and/or others nearby. This has been the case for several hundred years here, deriving from English Common Law.

This Homeland Security business seems to be in some turmoil, and as things get sorted out there are obviously some parties interpreting it in nonsensical ways. 🙁

This thread does have the potential to devolve into unpleasantly partisan disagreement...

 

[David Murphy]

I read the article and a few others (found with Google). Mr Palast and Mr. Pascarella (both apparently left wing activists) have not been arrested, charged, or prosecuted.

I suppose anyone can pick up the phone, call the police, and make a criminal complaint. I know a family whose neighbor makes a "criminal complaint" against them every time they have a party at their house. I'm afraid we in the USA are going to have to live with this sort of thing till religious zealots from the Middle East stop trying to kill us in large numbers (which may be a long time).

 

[SDK]

I read the article and a few others (found with Google). Mr Palast and Mr. Pascarella (both apparently left wing activists) have not been arrested, charged, or prosecuted.

I suppose anyone can pick up the phone, call the police, and make a criminal complaint. I know a family whose neighbor makes a "criminal complaint" against them every time they have a party at their house. I'm afraid we in the USA are going to have to live with this sort of thing till religious zealots from the Middle East stop trying to kill us in large numbers (which may be a long time).

While it's a good point that this investigation is so far just that, an investigation of a complaint, I'm not entirely comforted. Exxon should spend its own money hiring private investigators to legally investigate journalists it does not like. This sort of thing wastes taxpayer money on something that smells like a "slap suit." DHS has a hard enough time doing its real job without having to chase down frivolous complaints.

If Exxon is really worried about the security of this refinery, why are they not asking Google to remove satellite images from Google Earth/Google Map? You can see every storage tank, big pipe and and cooling tower of the thing!