FBI issues alert against almanac carrier
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| Mon, 12-29-2003 - 8:14pm |
What next...atlases, road map books, GPS??? 
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apus_story.asp?category=1110&slug=FBI%20Almanacs
Monday, December 29, 2003 · Last updated 4:43 p.m. PT
FBI issues alert against almanac carriers
By TED BRIDIS
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
WASHINGTON -- The FBI is warning police nationwide to be alert for people carrying almanacs, cautioning that the popular reference books covering everything from abbreviations to weather trends could be used for terrorist planning.
In a bulletin sent Christmas Eve to about 18,000 police organizations, the FBI said terrorists may use almanacs "to assist with target selection and pre-operational planning."
It urged officers to watch during searches, traffic stops and other investigations for anyone carrying almanacs, especially if the books are annotated in suspicious ways.
"The practice of researching potential targets is consistent with known methods of al-Qaida and other terrorist organizations that seek to maximize the likelihood of operational success through careful planning," the FBI wrote.
The Associated Press obtained a copy of the bulletin this week and verified its authenticity.
"For local law enforcement, it's just to help give them one more piece of information to raise their suspicions," said David Heyman, a terrorism expert for the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies. "It helps make sure one more bad guy doesn't get away from a traffic stop, maybe gives police a little bit more reason to follow up on this."
The FBI noted that use of almanacs or maps may be innocent, "the product of legitimate recreational or commercial activities." But it warned that when combined with suspicious behavior - such as apparent surveillance - a person with an almanac "may point to possible terrorist planning."
"I don't think anyone would consider us a harmful entity," said Kevin Seabrooke, senior editor of The World Almanac. He said the reference book includes about a dozen pages out of its 1,000 pages total listing the world's tallest buildings and bridges but includes no diagrams or architectural schematics. "It's stuff that's widely available on the Internet," he said.
The publisher for The Old Farmers Almanac said Monday terrorists would probably find statistical reference books more useful than the collections of Americana in his famous publication of weather predictions and witticisms.
"While we doubt that our editorial content would be of particular interest to people who would wish to do us harm, we will certainly cooperate to the fullest with national authorities at any level they deem appropriate," publisher John Pierce said.
The FBI said information typically found in almanacs that could be useful for terrorists includes profiles of cities and states and information about waterways, bridges, dams, reservoirs, tunnels, buildings and landmarks. It said this information is often accompanied by photographs and maps.
The FBI urged police to report such discoveries to the local U.S. Joint Terrorism Task Force.
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cl-Libraone
I know...told my DH to imagine what would happen to me if they caught me with my Witch's Almanac!
Renee
True...just 'anti-American' and 'anti-Christian'.
Besides, I seriously doubt that 99.9999999999% of those with almanacs (despite who the publisher is) are 'islamofacists' (sorry, nothing personal but I think that is an extremely ugly word) either.
If that's what you think of our law enforcement, who's judging who here?
<>
Well of course that goes w/o saying. I've even got one in my car.
<<(sorry, nothing personal but I think that is an extremely ugly word)>>
Yeah, well, we determined some time ago that you don't approve of my vocabulary, but I choose my words carefully to convey my meaning and to enrich my communication.
<< Heck, if this is the mindset of those in charge, I'll be sure that my DH never has any map books in our car - after they have all sorts of info about schools, bridges, highways, etc., as well.>>
Is it too much to ask that you seriously consider that there are some characteristics, items, and behaviors that indicate someone might wish to carryout a terrorists attack and that the more of those things that are evident in an encounter with law enforcement, the more attention the officer needs to pay to the suspect and the situation.
When Tim McVey was on the loose, the FBI was looking for people who bought fertiziler. If the police are looking for a particular suspect, they might be told to watch for males in a certain age group that smoke a particular brand of cigarettes, or chew a certainl brand of gum. This is no different and no sillier.
Renee
<>
If that's what you think of our law enforcement, who's judging who here?
Like you, I was joking.
Sorry, I didn't 'read your tone' correctly, and that smiley didn't look sweet & innocent or even dilightfully & devilishly smart-mouthed. The eyebrows struck me as angry \/ but in retrospect, I can see they aren't.
I just can't seen anyone let alone a trained officer going off half-cocked just because someone has an almanac. Like I said, I think it was intended to be one more piece of information that is not so obious as, "Beware of hairy men running away from an explosion shouting "Allah akbar." They have picked up "chatter" about using Almanacs which is why they were specifically mentioned to the public.
If they are really using almanacs, I think they are using it as a sort of code to dessiminate information without it being picked up. For example, everyone in the cell might know a certain date, and a couple weeks before d-day, in a seemingly innocent telephone conversation, the leader mentions Chicago. Everyone makes their way there. The day before they get another call that tells them sunrise so that they can all meet then or carry out the plan without needing to meet.
There are also ways to construct elaborate codes from a particular book. Everyone just has to have the same edition and the key.
Renee
Sorry, I didn't 'read your tone' correctly, and that smiley didn't look sweet & innocent or even dilightfully & devilishly smart-mouthed. The eyebrows struck me as angry \/ but in retrospect, I can see they aren't.
Why would I use sweet & innocent???
Having said that, I'd like to wish everyone a Happy New Year. I'm so glad that we made it to 2004 without incident!
They didn't need an almanac to find that out, just the news on the radio or TV or the internet.
Elaine
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