FBI: 35 terrorist incidents disrupted since 9/11

CNN ^ | March 5, 2004 | Kevin Bohn

[cateizgr8]

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A senior FBI official says authorities have disrupted 35 terrorist-related incidents since the September 11, 2001, attacks.

"These include both domestic and international terrorism matters and consist of a variety of preventive actions, including arrests, seizure of funds and disruption of terrorist recruiting and training efforts and even, in certain cases, the prevention of actual attacks," said Larry Mefford, assistant director of counterterrorism for the FBI. He was testifying Thursday before a Senate judiciary subcommittee.

[CWOJackson]

Keep on trying there sparky...notice how folks are cheering you on?

You see, while most folks do have a natural suspicion of government, they don't have an unhealthy obsession with all things government being evil. Most folks also tend to realize that the war on terror is real, and that despite being "government" employees, those fighting that war are Americans also and are doing their best.

Now let's take your contribution that the war on terror. So far to date what have you accomplished? I guess we don't need to really go into that very deeply. But just keep on touting your BS...the entertainment value is priceless.

P.S. Putz is a kinder gentler form of the correct term.

[eno_]

My contribution? I wrote a big check. I expect it to be spent wisely, and anyone not spending it wisely can kiss my ass.

I fully support the overseas real war being waged by soldiers and CIA men. And there is nothing unpatriotic pointing out what an expensive joke Homelame Security is in comparison to the real war.

[eno_]

It would also be even more entertaining if you posted real budget numbers for, say, billions spent on Homeland Security per real terrorist busted. If you are a CWO and you don't see the waste, you are part of the problem.

[CWOJackson]

"My contribution? I wrote a big check. I expect it to be spent wisely, and anyone not spending it wisely can kiss my ass."

LOL! Well according to you they aren't spending it wisely, so why didn't you just refuse to write the check? Of perhaps you should go to the closest FBI office and demand they kiss you a$$>

Sparky...you have no substance.

[CWOJackson]

Oh, please let me know if you do go to the FBI with your demand. I'd love to be there with a camera.

I promise to post them.

[eno_]

I don't expect to go out of my way to do that, but if I happen across the murderer Lon Horiouchi I'd sure post his picture to the Web, and the location, and will tell him to kiss my ass.

[_Jim]

I don't know how much of a nut he [Vernon Howell] was ...

A background story/information everyone should read about Vernon Wayne Howell A/K/A David Koresh:

The Sinful Messiah
The Waco Tribune-Herald Series, Fort Worth
Star-Telegram/March 3, 1993
By Mark England and Darlene McCormick

Note the *date* this article first ran ...

[CWOJackson]

"I don't expect to go out of my way to do that..."

Of course, why would anyone expect the likes of you to have the courage of your convictions. Face it sparky, you're all flash and no fire.

You sit back on your tired rear end whining about the evil gubermint but pay your taxes like...well, like the troll you accuse everyone else of being.

And in exchange for paying your taxes, because let's face it, you're afraid not to, you think that gives you some sort of special insight into the abilities of those government servants who are defending us in the war on terror.

LOL! You contribute nothing but to demean those who are really doing something. That speaks volumes for your character.

[BlueNgold]

So fathering childern by 13 year old girls is NOT child abuse ...

Well, at least my instincts were right ...

It wasn't too hard to figure out where you were coming from...

[eno_]

So if a snitch told you that someone fathered children by 12 year olds, you would believe her? If she also called an AK-47 a "machine gun" you would not have any doubts about anything else she told you? Or I suppose there are birth certificates and hospital records backing that up? (Not!) Just the the crank lab, right?

[BlueNgold]

Mr. Koresh's exploits are well documented by the people who escaped his cult.

And to most people out on the street an AK-47 is nothing more than a machine gun. The general public does not in fact have a great deal of differentiating information about weaponry, especially automatic weapons.

The government is not blameless or perfect, and Waco went bad ... but that doesn't mean that the FBI et al are completely inept, it does not mean that they are all liars, it does not mean anything other than ... Waco went bad. I know, I know .. now is when you bring up Ruby Ridge and OKC ... its OK, let it out, we are all expecting it anyway ...

[eno_]

Koresh may well have been a dangerous raving nutbag. The only problem is there was no case against him. There are no "well documented" exploits. There are the leaked assertions made my his ex wife/girlfriend who wanted to paint him a gun-nut pedophile.

And I'd feel a lot better about the rest of the FBI if the people who perpretrated the Waco massacre were themselves put on trial. Since they haven't been, it's a darn good reason to think the worst - that the FBI is run by people who would rather sweep burning a few children under the rug than sweep out the incompetents in their ranks.

Yes, nobody is perfect. How well does the FBI deal with their much less than perfect people? If they can't handle that well, the whole organization is rotten.

[Killborn]

I'll have to admit that the prosecution rate is less than satisfactory (2? Moussaui and Lindh?) but these cases are definitely much more difficult than your average criminal cases. Evidence gathering is key. The prosecutors would need to get more than just the fact that these people are shooting at US troops. Just because they do that doesn't make it evidence of Al Qaeda involvement.

As for the lack of details, undercover agents, secret tech, the panic factor (people wouldn't react well if they just heard that the Feds narrowly stopped an Al Qaeda attempt to detonate a nuclear bomb), etc, make disclosure not the best policy.

We couldn't guage how well of a job they are doing from the sidelines. So I wouldn't conclude that they are totally incompetent. Just as well, it is ludicrous to have faith in them 100%. For now, it would seem that they are doing a decent job. In the realm of black ops/counter-terror, silence is good. Opening the newspapers to another boring news article is a clear indicator of a job well done on the part of our counter-terror warriors.

[Samwise]

In the battle between Good and Evil, Evil often wins unless Good is very, very careful.

--Mr. Spock

[Killborn]

We couldn't say for sure whether the FBI are doing an excellent job or failing miserably. As long as there are no further attacks, we can conclude that the Feds are doing a decent job. For now, the FBI have done well. If another attack occured and the FBI completely dropped the ball, then there is definitely a serious problem.

[eno_]

We couldn't guage how well of a job they are doing from the sidelines.

Not true: We have a rough measure from the ratio of billions of dollars spent versus successful prosecutions. We are at least as screwed if we bankrupt ourselves while failing to stop terrorism as we would be if we just failed to stop terrorism.

A good example is the TSA. ZERO acts of terrorism have been prevented by the TSA. ZERO attempts at boarding planes with weapons were thwarted by the TSA when they were tested. Therefore we can come to the fairly certain conclusion that money spent on the TSA is money flushed down the toilet.

[Killborn]

That's TSA. What about the FBI?

[HitmanLV]

They will do this with no apparent fears that there will be a terrorist attack on that building. To this, the Bush Administration would simply like to reply...'You're welcome.'"

And would also expose itself horrbily and needlessly to criticsm if something did actually happen.

Not a good idea.

[eno_]

What about the FBI?

The FBI can't prosecute murderers who work there. Why would anyone trust them to stop a terrorist? Famous But Incompetent.

[Killborn]

Well, I trust that they are doing a good job. But if another 9/11 happened and it was clear they dropped the ball, I'll concede that you are right.

But for all our sake, I hope that the Feds are doing their best.