Falafel and the War on Terror
Can you tell a terrorist by what he eats? Apparently FBI agents thought so.
CQ Homeland Security reported last week that FBI officials combed through sales records of Middle Eastern food at San Francisco-area restaurants grocery stores in 2005 and 2006, hoping that the data, along with other information, would lead them to Iranian secret agents operating in the United States. Apparently, higher-ups put a stop to the effort before it got very far.
(Hat tip: Danger Room.)
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Government Executive Staff Correspondent Alyssa Rosenberg takes a look at news affecting the management and operations of the massive federal bureaucracy.
Unfortunatly this intelligence gathering most likely cost the tax payers millions..
Chris Posted Thursday, November 8, 2007 9:53 AMJust appears they were doing some good critical thinking. Bravo to the agents for trying to think outside the box. Management was probably just afraid of bad press they might get from profiling. Unless, they paid the agents overtime for this project the cost was the same as it would have been otherwise.
Ron Posted Friday, November 9, 2007 10:00 AMMr. Shoop: I think you need to check your facts. The CQ Homeland Security article you cite mentioned FBI searches of grocery stores -- not restaurants. Of course, that begs the question: were they searching purchase records at major grocers such as Vons and Ralphs or just specialty ethnic markets? As a frequent purchaser of boxed felafel mixes, tahini, and olive oil, and having recently lived in the region the FBI searched, the personal implications are profound. Of course, I'm a white, blue eyed female Christian who believes in non-violence ... but still, I do feel a bit queasy that Big Brother really is watching ...
anon Posted Friday, November 9, 2007 10:25 AMThe problem with this approach is that the people they were seeking were already (if they existed at all) "embedded" in ethnic communities that already eat those foodstuffs. The addition of a dozen or two "mouths to feed" by the arrival of an action team would not be detectable by this method. Remember, 9/11 was carried out by 20-some agents, scattered across the country, and even if they ate only hilal foods, the number of others who eat those same foods would make the whole exercise futile. It's good that the higher-ups put the kibosh on it. In addition to being "bad press," it wouldn't have worked.
Now, if only someone would do the same with the whole "missile shield" thing....
Ed Drone Posted Friday, November 9, 2007 11:19 AM