FBI WATCH MAKING CRUELTY VISIBLE

[fruhmenschen]

just doesn't get better than this

Taxpayer funded FBI agents use your tax dime to pay FBI informants to create terrorist events
Taxpayer funded FBI agents create No Fly Lists

2. stories

1st story






http://dissenter.firedoglake.com/2014/1 ... -fly-list/

In Historic Development, Seven Americans Are Notified by US Government They Aren’t on No Fly List
By: Kevin Gosztola Saturday October 11, 2014

Ibrahim Mashal, one of the Americans notified he isn’t currently on the No Fly List

As a result of a court ruling that found thirteen United States citizens who were placed on the No Fly List had their rights to “procedural due process” violated, seven US citizens have been notified by the government that they are not currently on that particular watchlist.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) had been involved in representing these individuals in their lawsuit against the government. Hina Shamsi of the ACLU’s National Security Project declared, “After years of being blacklisted and denied due process, seven of our clients know they can fly again, and the rest will soon be able to fight back against their unjust flying ban.”

One of the individuals on the list [PDF], who was notified that he was not currently on the No Fly List is US Marine Corps veteran Ibraheim Y. Mashal.

“More than four years ago, I was denied boarding at an airport, surrounded by TSA agents, and questioned by the FBI,” Mashal recalled. “That day, many freedoms that I took for granted were robbed from me. I was never told why this happened, whether I was officially on the list, or what I could do to get my freedoms back.”

Mashal had been working as a dog trainer when he found out he was not allowed to fly from Chicago to Spokane, Washington, to meet with a woman who had hired him to train her dog. An airline representative told him on April 20, 2010, he was on the No Fly List. That same day FBI agents interrogated him at Midway International Airport and in his home.

“Two of the FBI agents who questioned me the day I was denied boarding asked me to speak to them again,” Mashal stated in a court declaration [PDF]. “Because I had nothing to hide, I met with them on June 23, 2010. The agents again asked me deeply personal questions about my religious beliefs and practices, political opinions and family. They told me that if I would help the FBI by serving as an informant my name would be removed from the No-Fly List and I would receive compensation. I told the agents that I did not feel comfortable answering their questions without my attorney present. The agents promptly ended the meeting.”

Mashal is one of the founders of a national non-profit organization, Always Faithful Service Dogs, which provides service and therapy dogs to disabled military veterans in the country. He is the organization’s president and head dog trainer, but Mashal for the past years he had been unable to attend events in California or Boston or go to Board of Directors meetings in California because he is on the No-Fly List.

“Now, I can resume working for clients who are beyond driving distance. I can attend weddings, graduations, and funerals that were too far away to reach by car or train. I can travel with my family to Hawaii, Jamaica, or anywhere else on vacation. Today, I learned I have my freedoms back,” Mashal stated.

Nagib Ali Ghaleb, who lives in Oakland, California, tried to travel in 2010 to San Francisco from Yemen, where his wife and children were living. The flight was scheduled to stop in Frankfurt. He was not permitted to board the flight from Frankfurt to San Francisco and flew back to Sanaa. A US Embassy official informed Ghaleb he was not permitted to be on any flights to the US.

“About two weeks later,” according to a court declaration [PDF] from Ghaleb, “a US official asked me to come to the US Embassy for questioning.

“I met with two officials, one of whom was an FBI agent. The interrogators offered to arrange for me to fly back immediately to the United States if I would agree to tell them who the ‘bad guys’ were in Yemen and in San Francisco. The interrogators insisted that I could provide the names of people from my mosque and my community. When I told the interrogators that I was not interested in spying on the Yemeni community, they told me that if I did not cooperate, they would have me arrested and jailed in Yemen. They advised me to ‘think about it.’”

Judge Anna J. Brown, who was appointed to the US District Court for the District of Oregon by President Bill Clinton, ruled [PDF] in late June that Attorney General Eric Holder, FBI Director James Comey and other government officials were required to provide some notice to plaintiffs on their “status on the No Fly List and the reasons for placement on that List.” The plaintiffs were also permitted to “submit evidence relevant to the reasons for their respective inclusions on the No-Fly List.” Government officials “must include any responsive evidence that plaintiffs submit in the record to be considered at both the administrative and judicial stages of review.”

That means that the government, pursuant to the court’s decision, has to provide some kind of notice to the other six US citizens who the ACLU represented. The government must provide them some kind of explanation as to why they are on the list and grant them an opportunity to challenge their inclusion.

“Each plaintiff submitted applications for redress through the Department of Homeland Security Traveler Redress Inquiry Program (DHS TRIP),” Brown wrote in her decision. “Despite plaintiffs’ requests to officials and agencies for explanations as to why they were not permitted to board flights, explanations have not been provided and plaintiffs do not know whether they will be permitted to fly in the future.”

The plaintiffs have no idea what information was used against them and have been given no right to comment on any of the evidence the government claims to have, Brown noted.

The government’s failure “to provide any notice of the reasons for plaintiffs’ placement on the No-Fly List is especially important in light of the low evidentiary standard required to place an individual in the [Terrorist Screening Database] in the first place,” she additionally argued. “When only an ex parte [single party] showing of reasonable suspicion supported by ‘articulable facts taken together with rational inferences’ is necessary to place an individual in the TSDB, it is certainly possible, and probably likely, that ‘simple factual errors’ with ‘potentially easy, ready, and persuasive explanations’ could go uncorrected.”

Indeed, in the case of Dr. Rahinah Ibrahim, she sued government officials and overcame the government’s tactic of invoking “state secrets privilege” to prevent her from being able to challenge her placement on the No Fly List. Ibrahim eventually learned that she had been put on the list by “mistake.”

This is a hugely significant development in the struggle to establish meaningful due process rights for citizens improperly placed on watchlists. As Shamsi said, “The opportunity that the plaintiffs in our case are finally getting to clear their names should be available to everyone on the No Fly List as soon as possible.”

The government must complete all of the notifications and further reviews by January 16, according to the ACLU. By then, thirteen Americans will have effectively challenged the authority of the government to blacklist them without regard for the liberty interest they have in being able to travel internationally by air

2nd story

Intelligence on Omagh bomb 'withheld from police' | UK news | The ...
http://www.theguardian.com › News › UK news › Omagh bombing
Aug 7, 2013 - Omagh bombing support group report intelligence ... They were David Rupert, an American who was run by the FBI, and Paddy Dixon, ...
David Rupert - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Rupert
David Rupert is a former FBI/British intelligence agent whose testimony led to the arrest ... McKevitt, the reputed leader of the Real IRA, for the Omagh Bombing.
Orwellian Ireland - Page 108 - Google Books Result
books.google.com/books?isbn=0955681200
Brian Nugent - 2008 - ‎Political Science
might be instructive to look at the bombing, which was attributed to the Real IRA, from the point of ... suggested that the bombing could be made in Omagh.18 David Ruppert was obviously working all this time as an agent of MI5 and the FBI.
The Omagh Bomb Conspiracy and cover-up!
http://www.missingpersons-ireland.freepress-fr ... bconspir...
Mar 24, 2010 - 1) The CIA/FBI had already infiltrated the CIRA/Real IRA, is this not correct? David Rupert, he was a US citizen, accused of child trafficking ...
Omagh Bombers Appeal; Evidence Suggests Prior Knowledge ...
wideshut.co.uk/omagh-bombers-appeal-evidence-suggests-false-flag/
Jan 10, 2011 - The 1998 bombing of Omagh, Northern Ireland, was the largest single ... David Rupert was a double agent for the FBI and MI5, who was only ...


How the IRA set up an arms deal with Boston gangster James ...
http://www.independent.ie/.../how-the-ira-set- ... on-gangs...
Feb 24, 2013 - It states that prior to becoming an FBI "informant", Bulger had no dealings with the IRA. It says: "The truth was that on the night Whitey signed on as an ... then prevailed upon a friendly FBI agent to acquire C4 explosives for the ...
Whitey Bulger trial resumes with testimony from his former partner ...
http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2013/07/.../w ... story.html
Jul 19, 2013 - But, on Friday, Flemmi testified for the first time that in the 1980s, FBI agent John Newton gave him and Bulger a case of C-4 explosives, some ...
This exchange really captured Whitey Bulger's attention - Metro ...
http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2013/07/19/.. ... story.html
Jul 20, 2013 - Stevie claimed that Whitey put him in the employ of Whitey's FBI ... consignment of C-4 explosives Whitey and Stevie promptly shipped off to the ...
'Mob boss' James 'Whitey' Bulger on trial for murder in Boston - NY ...
live.nydailynews.com/.../Mob_boss_James_Whitey_Bulger_on_trial_for_m...
Aug 12, 2013 - Accused mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger, who spent 16 years on ... many of them committed while he was said to be an FBI informant. ... Flemmi says FBI agent John Newton gave him and #Bulger a case of C4 explosivesstory


Also see

Tactical Implications of the Headley Case | Stratfor
http://www.stratfor.com/weekly/20091216_tactic ... adley_case
Dec 31, 2009 - A week after he was arrested in Chicago on Oct. 3, David Coleman Headley ... Headley reportedly became an informant for the U.S. Drug ... Following the 9/11 attacks, he allegedly worked for the FBI as a terrorism informant.



Defenders of NSA Surveillance Omit Most of Mumbai Plotter's Story ...
http://www.propublica.org/.../defenders-of-nsa ... ost-of-m...
Jun 12, 2013 - Headley confessed to doing undercover surveillance in Mumbai for ... The FBI received new tips in 2002 and in 2005 when Headley's wife in ...
The American Behind India's 9/11—And How U.S. Botched Chances ...
http://www.propublica.org/article/david-headle ... -terrorist
Jan 24, 2013 - Officials say David Coleman Headley slipped through the cracks ... Background: Fire and smoke gush out of the Taj Mahal PaDefenders of NSA Surveillance Omit Most of Mumbai Plotter's Story ...
http://www.propublica.org/.../defenders-of-nsa ... ost-of-m...
Jun 12, 2013 - Headley confessed to doing undercover surveillance in Mumbai for ... The FBI received new tips in 2002 and in 2005 when Headley's wife in ...
The American Behind India's 9/11—And How U.S. Botched Chances ...
http://www.propublica.org/article/david-headle ... -terrorist
Jan 24, 2013 - Officials say David Coleman Headley slipped through the cracks ... Background: Fire and smoke gush out of the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel during the 2008 Mumbai attacks. (Photo .... The CIA, FBI and DEA deny such allegations.lace Hotel during the 2008 Mumbai attacks. (Photo .... The CIA, FBI and DEA deny such allegations.

[fruhmenschen]

Ed Tatro and I became friends
after we brought him to speak
not once but on two different occasions
at Bates College where we held a conference for 11 years detailing evidence of crimes committed by taxpayer funded FBI agents.
He detailed the role the FBI Director
J Edgar Hoover played in planning and covering up President Kennedy' s assassination.


https://22novembernetwork.wordpress.com ... ernetwork/


THE DALLAS ACTION~PT.27: “A Front Row Seat To History-Ed Tatro And The Shaw Trial”.

Posted by 22novembernetwork on October 12, 2014
CLICK THE LINK TO LISTEN! http://www.spreaker.com/user/7338953





Recently at the JFK Historical Group’s Research Conference, I had the opportunity to sit with Edgar F. Tatro, Consultant/Contributor, Nigel Turner’s “The Men Who Killed Kennedy” episodes “The Guilty Men”, “The Truth Shall Set You Free”and “The Smoking Guns”; the original editor of Madeleine Brown’s “Texas In The Morning”, among many other credits.
Here, Mr. Tatro recounts, for Us, the incredible story of his experience when, at 20 years old, he travelled to New Orleans and attended the Conspiracy Trial of Clay Shaw.
LISTEN/DOWNLOAD READY! THANK YOU!

[fruhmenschen]

see link for full story


Chat logs reveal FBI informant’s role in hacking of Sun newspaper
US agency faces questions after records show Lulzsec leader, who was informant at time, helped attack that closed UK sites


http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2014 ... -chat-logs



Tuesday 14 October 2014 05.00 EDT

The FBI is facing questions over its role in a 2011 hacking attack on Rupert Murdoch’s Sun newspaper in the UK after the publication of chat logs showed that a man acting as an agency informant played a substantial role in the operation.

In July 2011, a group of hackers known as Lulzsec – an offshoot of Anonymous – posted a fake story about the death of Murdoch, penetrated several News International (now News UK) corporate sites, and claimed to have obtained gigabytes of material from the company’s servers.
The Sun website after it was targeted by computer hackers, visitors to the website were redirected to a hoax story about Rupert Murdoch's suicide The Sun website after it was targeted by computer hackers, visitors to the website were redirected to a hoax story about Rupert Murdoch’s suicide. Photograph: PA

The attack was so successful that the publisher took down the websites of the Sun and the Times while technicians worked out the scale of the hack.
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Unsealed documents obtained by Motherboard, the technology channel operated by Vice, and seen by the Guardian, show Hector Xavier Monsegur – known widely online as “Sabu” and frequently referred to as the leader of Lulzsec – played an active role in the operation.

The chat records show Monsegur encouraging others to break further into News International systems, claiming to have sources at the Sun, and even apparently helping to break staff’s passwords and to source files for stealing.

Monsegur was, however, at that time operating under the direction of the FBI, who had arrested him weeks earlier and cut a deal that kept him free if he helped to track down and secure the convictions of others in the group.

The close involvement of an FBI asset working under extraordinarily close supervision in a hacking attack on a media outlet ultimately owned by a US-listed company is set to raise further questions about the agency’s approach to tackling online crime.

Monsegur, who faced a maximum of 124 years in prison, was released earlier this year in exchange for his “extraordinary” cooperation with the FBI. Monsegur, who is currently on a 12-month supervised release programme, is believed to have cooperated with authorities because of his role as sole carer for two young relatives. He has had no contact with the media since his release.
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The chat logs, which are more than 380 pages long, show the Lulzsec group working together over several days to hack into the Sun, talking in the relaxed (and often misspelled) manner of online conversations.

The chat, in a private channel aptly named “#sunnydays”, jumped between talking through reasons to attack the newspaper, what to do when in, and technical advice on how to operate the hacks.

“what up gentlemen,” said Sabu, opening the channel’s conversation, “lets do this.”

Some members of the group had already secured limited access to servers owned by the Sun. Sabu immediately encouraged them to go further, and obtain email records.

“good work on owning sun honestly speaking this is going to be good shit,” he wrote. “I want their mailspools … fuck the rest”

Sabu goaded the others on, telling them the Sun was planning to fabricate a story saying Lulzsec had tried and failed to hack the newspaper – a claim likely to enrage the group – and saying there were likely to be internal communications to confirm his claim.

At the time, others in the channel were focusing on merely embarrassing the Sun by running a false news story – which they did – or replacing home pages with pictures of internet memes, such as Nyan cat.

After some login details were shared, Sabu claimed to be looking around in the server, cautioning the others to “do this carefully”, and helping them try to “root” – gain total access to – another server.

Later, another hacker obtained encrypted login details of multiple News International staff, but was unable to decrypt them and thus obtain the usernames and passwords. Sabu offered to assist at this point, and later provided the password details.

The logs also show Sabu on multiple occasions offering detailed technical help to find additional records on different servers, breaking in to new servers, or obtaining more files – which could easily have included those belonging to journalists at either the Sun or Times.

At various stages in the course of the conversation, Sabu claimed to have obtained mail records from HSBC bank, and details on the Qatari royal family.

The logs even show Sabu celebrating with the other hackers – whose names are redacted – when CNN read out messages released by the group when the websites were taken down to handle the hack. “THE GUY JUST SAID WE HAVE JOY WE HAVE FUN WE HAVE MESSED UP MURDOCHS SUN,” he posted.

Less than 10 days after the attack on the Sun, several members of Lulzsec were arrested, and later convicted, for activities in the group. They included British citizens Jake Davis (known online as “Topiary”) and then-16-year-old schoolboy Mustafa Al-Bassam (“Tflow”).

The Sun, which is challenging the UK government over police accessing the phone records of one of its reporters, declined to comment on the apparent FBI involvement in attacks on its servers.

The FBI had not responded to a request for comment by the time of publication.

[fruhmenschen]

How One Man Refused to Spy on Fellow Muslims for the FBI—And Then Lost Everything


http://m.thenation.com/article/182096-h ... everything



Arun Kundnani and Emily Keppler and Muki Najaer on


October 14, 2014 - 3:13PM ET



On the night of December 9, 2011, Siham Stewart called her husband, Ayyub Abdul-Alim, as he closed down his corner store, Nature's Garden, in Springfield, Massachusetts. She asked him to bring home a gallon of milk. A few minutes later, she watched from the window of their second-floor apartment as he was seized in the street and handcuffed by two police officers.

Forty-eight hours after Abdul-Alim's arrest, FBI agent James Hisgen and Springfield police officer Ronald Sheehan offered him the chance to walk away free of charges if he agreed to become an informant on the Muslim community. He refused the deal and is now held at the Cedar Junction maximum-security prison in Massachusetts, facing up to sixteen years behind bars.

While awaiting trial, Abdul-Alim discovered that his wife received cash payments from the FBI totaling at least $11,949. The receipts were signed by Sheehan and Hisgen. Stewart testified against Abdul-Alim in court and admitted to working as an informant. This past April, Abdul-Alim was found guilty of illegal possession of a firearm that he alleges the officers planted on him as part of their attempt to pressure him to work for the FBI.

Abdul-Alim, 36, grew up in New York City in a family of African-American and Puerto Rican heritage. Prior to his arrest, he founded and ran the Quran and Sunnah Community Center in Springfield, which offered free meals and prayer services, and Connections Transportation, which transported people to visit their loved ones in prison. He was also a small business owner, an apartment complex manager, a husband, and a father figure to Stewart's son.

His life began to change in 2010 after he returned from a three-week religious trip to Mecca. Abdul-Alim reports that he began to receive calls from James Hisgen, an agent at the FBI's Springfield field office, who asked him questions such as, "Do you love America?" and told him to call back if he was interested in working as an informant.

In early 2011, Hisgen showed up at Abdul-Alim's mosque, Masjid Al Tawheed, with two other agents. According to the Imam, Dr. Ishmael Ali, Hisgen claimed he was from the Springfield Building Department and demanded to search the mosque. Dr. Ali turned him away because he did not have a warrant. Dr. Ali recalled that in the two years leading up to his arrest, Abdul-Alim continually sought advice on how to get the FBI agents to leave him alone.

Since 9/11, a key element in the FBI's counter-terrorism tactics has been the aggressive recruitment and deployment of large numbers of informants among Muslim communities in the United States. Part of the purpose is to gather information on political or community activism, which the FBI frames as a precursor to extremist violence. But the tactics also fit a familiar pattern—one that harkens back to the FBI's history of targeting the civil rights and Black Power movements of the 1960s, when it was likewise asserted that extremist ideologues were fueling violence.

At that time, FBI agents were each expected to hire at least one informant to report on the goings-on of black people. African-Americans were watched by FBI informants everywhere they congregated: churches, bookstores, bars, restaurants, college classrooms and other gathering spots. In addition to providing information on activist leaders, the informants served as "listening posts" for blanket information on black communities.

The FBI believed that the civil rights movement was a front for Communist subversion and that the urban rebellions of black youth were instigated by Communist agitators. Systematic spying, it was thought, would help prevent riots but ultimately the purpose was to disable the growing radicalism of black America. Black Muslims—branded the "extremists" of the day—were seen as especially politicized, and prominent community figures such as Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X were placed on NSA and FBI watch lists. Nation of Islam leader Elijah Muhammad had been on the FBI's radar since World War II; in 1942, agents had arrested him on charges of draft evasion.

The best-known FBI initiative directed at the black liberation movement was COINTELPRO—short for Counterintelligence Program. It was launched in 1956 to infiltrate the Communist Party but shortly afterwards was expanded to include the ongoing surveillance of black activists. Disinformation campaigns, arrests on trumped-up charges, faked evidence, and assassinations were used to "expose, disrupt, misdirect, discredit, or otherwise neutralize" black movements, according to the FBI's own documents. But COINTELPRO was just one initiative within the FBI's wider surveillance and criminalization of black organizations.

Abdul-Alim's parents were themselves caught up in these longer histories of FBI surveillance. His father was active with the Black Panther Party in New York and his mother was a member of the Young Lords, the radical Puerto Rican youth group that was, like the Panthers, targeted by the FBI. Both parents were involved in the Mosque of the Islamic Brotherhood, a Harlem-based Muslim congregation founded by an associate of Malcolm X and whose attendees have faced decades of surveillance.

Today, black Muslims stand at the intersection of the War on Drugs' institutional racism and the War on Terror's institutional Islamophobia: their race frames them as prone to gang violence, their religion as a terrorist threat. Abdul-Alim's case shows the extreme measures the FBI is willing to use to pressure Muslims to work as informants on the terror war's domestic front.

On the night of his arrest, Sheehan instructed two Springfield Police officers to stop Abdul-Alim as he approached a store. According to a police radio transcript, the officers pat-frisked Abdul-Alim and told Sheehan that he was clear of any weapons. Sheehan ordered them to conduct a second search and, according to one transcript, they again responded that Abdul-Alim did not have any weapons.

Sheehan asked over the police radio, "Is the subject in earshot?" and then asked one of the officers, Angel Berrios, to step away. This is where the record ends. Abdul-Alim alleges that Berrios then pushed him against the police car, pulled down his pants and boxers, probed his testicles, spread his buttocks and yelled out, "Gun!"

The officers handcuffed Abdul-Alim and placed him in a police cruiser. Abdul-Alim alleges that Sheehan then approached the vehicle and asked, "Are you ready to make the deal of a lifetime?" When Abdul-Alim protested, he was told to "think it over" on his way to the police station.

Sheehan, who is also a member of the Springfield Joint Terrorism Task Force, immediately called his FBI supervisor to notify him of the arrest.

Forty-eight hours after the arrest, it became apparent what the "deal of a lifetime" would involve. As Abdul-Alim awaited arraignment at the Springfield police station, Sheehan and Hisgen questioned him for about an hour. Abdul-Alim recalls Hisgen saying, "You may remember I called you about a year ago requesting a meeting to discuss possible information you may have that could be helpful, but you refused to meet with me. Maybe you'll be more willing to cooperate now." At this point, Abdul-Alim recognized Hisgen as the same man who had called him for months and attempted to search his mosque. He recounted these events to The Nation from behind a plexiglass barrier in Hampton County Jail.

Abdul-Alim, who had been convicted of dealing cocaine in 2003, assumed the interrogation regarded drugs or gangs. Hisgen allegedly said, "I'm not interested in that nickel and dime shit. I want the real shit. Like terrorism shit."

"They said that I was facing ten years, but I could walk away right now if I agreed to be an informant," recalls Abdul-Alim. "They said that they would give me the names of specific people who they wanted me to target, and I would use anti-government propaganda to incite them to violent action. They implied that they would provide me with guns and bombs to give people." Hisgen and Sheehan did not record the interrogation.

Abdul-Alim refused the deal and was held at the Hampden County Correctional Center for two and a half years awaiting trial. In December 2013, the prosecution introduced a new set of charges. Police officers claimed that, shortly after Abdul-Alim's arrest, they had conducted a search of the apartment complex he managed and discovered a bag of guns in an empty suite. "They supposedly sat on this information for two years, which is definitely very unusual," said Abdul-Alim's public defense attorney, Thomas Robinson.

In April 2014, a four-day trial began on the original gun charges but it was riddled with inconsistencies. The officers could not agree on simple details, including how many times they searched Abdul-Alim, or the location and time that they allegedly found the gun. The gun was originally described by police and a ballistic expert as a .22 revolver but later identified in court as a .25 semi-automatic pistol manufactured in 1908.

A police forensics analysis conducted three days after the arrest found that there were no fingerprints on the gun. In contradiction to police procedure, the arresting officers failed to retrieve surveillance videos of the arrest scene, wear gloves while handling the weapon, or write a complete police report.

In Court, Siham Stewart testified as an informant saying she had been paid by the police and the FBI but denied that the payments were related to Abdul-Alim. She said that, whenever she was short on rent money, she would call "Ron," referring to Officer Sheehan, and he would pay her in cash. Abdul-Alim says that Stewart convinced him to sign his bank accounts and store over to her while he was in jail. She sold the store, took his money, and left.

see link for full story
or google title

http://m.thenation.com/article/182096-h ... everything

[fruhmenschen]

see link for full story
http://theweek.com/speedreads/index/269 ... dies-at-92



OCTOBER 14 2014
David Greenglass, brother who testified against Ethel Rosenberg, dies at 92
David Greenglass, whose testimony against his sister Ethel Rosenberg led to her death sentence for espionage in 1953, died July 1 at the age of 92. The New York Times learned of his death recently after calling the nursing home where he lived.


A Communist, Greenglass was assigned to the Manhattan Project at Los Alamos in 1944 while an Army sergeant. He was already a Soviet spy, and while there, stole nuclear intelligence. After being arrested in 1950, Greenglass admitted to passing secrets to his brother-in-law, Julius Rosenberg. There was the question of whether it was Ethel or Greenglass' wife, Ruth, who had typed the notes that were sent to the Soviets. Greenglass learned that Ruth had told FBI agents that Ethel was the typist, and Greenglass went along with the story and testified against his sister and brother-in-law. The Rosenbergs never named names, and after being found guilty were executed in 1953.

Ruth was never prosecuted, and Greenglass served almost 10 years in prison. Upon his release, he changed his name. Decades later, a New York Times journalist tracked him down, and he admitted to not really knowing whether or not Ethel had typed the notes. "I don't remember that at all," he said. "I frankly think my wife did the typing, but I don't remember." He didn't regret what he did, though, saying: "My wife is more important to me than my sister. Or my mother or my father, OK? And she was the mother of my children."

[fruhmenschen]

DiMura v. FBI, 823 F. Supp. 45 (1993)
U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts - 823 F. Supp. 45 (1993)
June 2, 1993

823 F. Supp. 45 (1993)

Paul M. DiMURA, Plaintiff,
v.
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION, et al., Defendants.

Civ. A. No. 92-12084-T.

United States District Court, D. Massachusetts.

June 2, 1993.

*46 Ernest C. Hadley, Wareham, MA, for plaintiff.

Suzanne E. Durrell, U.S. Attys. Office, Boston, MA, Elizabeth A. Pugh, Kenneth L. Doroshow, U.S. Dept. of Justice Civ. Div., Washington, DC, for defendants.

MEMORANDUM

TAURO, Chief Judge.

Plaintiff, Paul M. DiMura, a special agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation ("FBI"), brings this action against the FBI, the United States Department of Justice and the United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts, alleging that defendants violated the Privacy Act of 1974 (the "Act"), 5 U.S.C. § 552a, by disclosing to the press certain information concerning an incident between plaintiff and a federal judicial nominee whom plaintiff was assigned to investigate. Plaintiff seeks $100,000 in damages for embarrassment and mental anguish he claims to have suffered as a result of the alleged disclosure.[1] Presently before the court is defendants' motion to dismiss pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b) (6) for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted.

I

Background

In April 1992, plaintiff was assigned to conduct the background investigation of Walter Prince, a prominent lawyer in Boston who had recently been nominated for a federal judge position. During the course of this investigation, plaintiff asserts that he had great difficulty arranging a personal interview with Mr. Prince. According to plaintiff, Mr. Prince failed to return several phone calls placed to his office and missed numerous scheduled interviews. Eventually, Mr. Prince did meet with plaintiff for an interview, but plaintiff alleges that even in person he found Mr. Prince to be uncooperative.

Following the interview, and as a routine part of the investigation, plaintiff took Mr. Prince's fingerprints. While plaintiff was processing the fingerprints, Mr. Prince inquired if anything else was required of him. Plaintiff, who claims he intended his response to be only facetious, replied that a footprint from Mr. Prince was also necessary. Mr. Prince then removed his shoe and sock and plaintiff proceeded to take an inked impression of Mr. Prince's foot. Plaintiff now alleges that once Mr. Prince had removed his shoe and sock, plaintiff did not know what else to do, and that his taking of Mr. Prince's footprint was intended merely as a practical joke.

Upon learning of the footprinting incident, the FBI commenced an internal administrative inquiry into plaintiff's conduct. At the close of its inquiry on June 3, 1992, the FBI disciplined and reprimanded plaintiff for his "abominable lack of judgment, maturity, professionalism, and sensitivity ..." in subjecting a federal judicial nominee to such an unauthorized and demeaning procedure.

By July 18, 1992, reports of the footprinting incident began to appear in Boston newspapers. Although the initial newspaper reports did not identify plaintiff by name, on July 21, 1992, the Boston Herald identified plaintiff as the FBI agent responsible for taking the footprint. This and subsequent articles in both the Boston Herald and the Boston Globe also outlined the terms of the disciplinary action taken by the FBI against plaintiff.

*47 Plaintiff's complaint alleges that he suffered emotional injuries as a result of defendants' disclosure of his identity and involvement in the footprinting incident. Plaintiff contends that the press obtained the information about him from records within defendants' files, and that this information was improperly made available by defendants' employees.

II

Analysis

Section 552a(b) of the Act generally prohibits the government from disclosing personal information about citizens without their consent. 5 U.S.C. § 552a(b); Federal Labor Relations Auth. v. Department of Navy, 941 F.2d 49, 52 (1st Cir. 1991). When a government agency violates this prohibition, the Act authorizes citizens to file civil suits against the agency, 5 U.S.C. § 552a(g) (1) (D), limiting the available remedies to "actual damages."[2]

In support of their motion to dismiss, defendants contend that damages for emotional injuries stemming from a claim of unlawful disclosure do not constitute "actual damages" under the Act and, therefore, that this suit must be dismissed for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted.

A. "Actual Damages" under the Privacy Act

The issue of the scope of damages available under the Act is one of first impression in this Circuit. Two contrasting interpretations of "actual damages" exist. In Johnson v. Department of Treasury, IRS, 700 F.2d 971, 972 (5th Cir.1983), the Fifth Circuit held that "actual damages" included damages for mental injuries. By contrast, in Fitzpatrick v. IRS, 665 F.2d 327, 331 (11th Cir.1982), the Eleventh Circuit held that "actual damages" permitted recovery only for pecuniary loss. For reasons different from those set forth by the Eleventh Circuit in Fitzpatrick, this court finds that "actual damages" does not encompass emotional damages.

Ordinarily, the first step in construing a statute is to interpret the statutory language in accordance with its plain meaning. E.g., Perrin v. United States, 444 U.S. 37, 42, 100 S.Ct. 311, 314, 62 L.Ed.2d 199 (1979); Wilcox v. Ives, 864 F.2d 915, 917 (1st Cir.1988). Unfortunately, the phrase "actual damages" in the Act is ambiguous. Accord Johnson, 700 F.2d at 974, 983 n. 33; Fitzpatrick, 665 F.2d at 329. Faced with this ambiguity, the Fitzpatrick court turned to the Act's legislative history to discern Congress' intent as to the scope of the phrase "actual damages."[3]

Since Fitzpatrick was decided, however, the Supreme Court has determined that courts are not to consider legislative history when resolving ambiguities in the text of statutes that waive the government's sovereign immunity. See United States v. Nordic Village, Inc., ___ U.S. ___, ___, 112 S.Ct. 1011, 1016, 117 L.Ed.2d 181 (1992) ("The unequivocal expression of elimination of sovereign *48 immunity that we insist upon is an expression in statutory text. If clarity does not exist there, it cannot be supplied by a committee report."); Maine v. Department of Navy, 973 F.2d 1007, 1011 (1st Cir.1992). Courts, therefore, must limit their inquiry to the language of the statute itself.

The general rule of construction applicable to statutes which surrender federal sovereign immunity is to construe the statutory language strictly in favor of the sovereign. See Library of Congress v. Shaw, 478 U.S. 310, 318, 106 S.Ct. 2957, 2963, 92 L.Ed.2d 250 (1986) (courts "must construe waivers strictly in favor of the sovereign ... and not enlarge the waiver `beyond what the language requires'") (citation omitted); McMahon v. United States, 342 U.S. 25, 27, 72 S.Ct. 17, 19, 96 L.Ed. 26 (1951); In Re Perry, 882 F.2d 534, 544 (1st Cir.1989). To say that a court must construe a statute in favor of the sovereign is not to say that the court must always adopt the construction offered by the sovereign. The sovereign's construction will be adopted only if it is plausible. See Nordic Village, ___ U.S. at ___, 112 S.Ct. at 1016.

Here, defendants ask that the court construe the phrase "actual damages" to refer only to pecuniary damages. Satisfied that this construction is a plausible one, this court adopts the defendants' view that "actual damages" does not include emotional damages. Accordingly, plaintiff's allegations of only emotional injuries are legally insufficient under the Act.

B. Statutory Damages

Plaintiff argues in the alternative that he is at least entitled to recover the $1,000 statutory minimum damages. See 5 U.S.C. § 552a(g) (4). The Fitzpatrick court permitted recovery of this sum, along with costs and reasonable attorneys' fees, even though it declined to award damages for emotional injuries. See Fitzpatrick, 665 F.2d at 331. The opinion, however, is devoid of any explanation as to how the court reached its result. Upon examination, this court finds that the better rule is to preclude recovery where, as here, only emotional injuries are alleged. This court bases its decision on language in the Act specifying that the $1,000 statutory minimum damages are to be made available only to "a person entitled to recovery." 5 U.S.C. § 552a(g) (4). To be entitled to recovery under the Act, however, a plaintiff must prove that he or she has suffered "actual damages." See, e.g., Pope v. Bond, 641 F.Supp. 489, 501 (D.D.C.1986); Houston v. Department of Treasury, 494 F.Supp. 24, 30 (D.D.C.1979); Mobley v. Doyle, No. JH-87-3300, slip op. at 6 (D.Md. Nov. 8, 1988). This court has determined that plaintiff's claim for emotional damages is not one entitling him to recovery under the Act. Given that plaintiff is not "a person entitled to recovery," he is not entitled to the $1,000 statutory minimum damages.

III

Conclusion

For the foregoing reasons, defendants' motion to dismiss is hereby ALLOWED.
NOTES

[1] Plaintiff also seeks attorneys' fees and costs.

[2] Specifically, the Act requires that:

In any suit brought under the provisions of subsection (g) (1) (C) or (D) of this section in which the court determines that the agency acted in a manner which was intentional or willful, the United States shall be liable to the individual in an amount equal to the sum of

(A) actual damages sustained by the individual ..., but in no case shall a person entitled to recovery receive less than the sum of $1,000; and

(B) the cost of the action together with reasonable attorney fees as determined by the court.

5 U.S.C. § 552a(g) (4) (emphasis added).

[3] The Johnson court also looked to legislative history. In addition, however, it was heavily influenced by cases that awarded damages for emotional injuries resulting from violations of constitutionally protected privacy interests. Johnson, 700 F.2d at 976-77. The court reasoned that, by analogy, privacy interests protected by the Act should similarly give rise to claims for emotional injury. Id. This Circuit has concluded, however, that the constitutional right of privacy is not implicated by government disclosures of personal information. See Borucki v. Ryan, 827 F.2d 836, 842-43 (1st Cir.1987) ("[A]n allegation that government dissemination of information or government defamation has caused damage to reputation, even with all attendant emotional anguish and social stigma, does not in itself state a cause of action for violation of a constitutional right; infringement of more `tangible interests' must be alleged as well.") (citing Paul v. Davis, 424 U.S. 693, 701, 96 S.Ct. 1155, 1160-61, 47 L.Ed.2d 405 (1976)). The analogy on which the Johnson court relied, therefore, is inapposite here.

[fruhmenschen]

http://www.fightbacknews.org/2014/10/18 ... -activists





Another FBI investigation of international solidarity activists
By Scott Williams |
October 18, 2014
Read more articles in Political Repression

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following Oct. 17 statement from Scott Williams. We remind all progressive activists to not speak with the FBI.

The FBI came looking for me today at my family’s house

Hello everyone,

I am writing to let everyone know that the FBI visited my father today with the intention of questioning me about my trip to Syria as an international election observer for the 2014 Syrian Presidential Elections.

In June 2014, I visited Syria with the objective of learning the truth about the situation there. This trip was entirely legal and well documented. I visited along with observers representing 32 countries, many of which were members of Parliament and representatives of local governments in countries such as Bolivia, Brazil, Uganda, and beyond. Since then, I have reported on my trip in public meetings at the United Nations, as well as in Buffalo, NY, Rochester, NY, Syracuse, NY, Albany, NY, and where I live in Philadelphia, PA. Since 2007, I have been a committed anti-war activist with many organizations, including Students for a Democratic Society, the International Action Center and several others. The FBI mentioned me as an activist with FIST (Fight Imperialism, Stand Together), of which I am one of the national coordinators.

Why is the FBI coming after me? The FBI’s attempt to question me is not only an attack on me, it is an attack on anyone who chooses to travel the world and seek a perspective that is not represented by the corporate media. The US depends on misinformation and huge lies to perpetrate their crimes abroad. Yet the FBI has picked the wrong person, since I have strong friends and allies across the US who will stand with me in the fight against unjust government repression.

This visit is a continuation of the FBI’s attack on anti-war and international solidarity activists. The FBI has been attempting to charge 24 anti-war and international solidarity activists with “material support of terrorism.” These activist are targeted because have been targeted and face potential long term jail sentences. Please take a moment to look at the StopFBI.net (link http://www.stopfbi.net/) site for the Committee to Stop FBI Repression, the organization that has fought to defend these 24, as well as Palestinian activist Rasmea Odeh. This is a strong example of the political fightback that is needed to defend activists from Government repression.

These activists are not alone in their treatment. Since 2001, hundreds of Muslim men in the USA have been victims of entrapment, harassment, and false imprisonment simply for their religion.

I strongly encourage all of my friends, co-workers, and family members take a look at the Center for Constitutional Rights’ booklet, entitled “If an Agent Knocks,” for resources on what to do if the FBI comes to your door. Most importantly, you SHOULD NEVER AGREE TO SPEAK TO THE FBI WITHOUT A LAWYER present and really you should never speak with the FBI. You can simply say, “I do not wish to speak with you. I will have my lawyer contact you,’ and then immediately close the door.

Most of us do not have a lawyer, but if you or a family member is contacted by the FBI, you should contact the National Lawyers Guild immediately as well as other activists who have been dealt with this government intimidation before.

As soon as this happened, I called Sara Flounders, the co-director of the International Action Center, to discuss our strategy to stop this FBI intimidation. We decided to make a clear statement as public as possible, we will not be silent as you attempt to attack those who choose to speak out against unjust US foreign policy. In fact, we will use any attack on my freedom to continue to build a movement against government repression. It is in this spirit that I am writing you all today.

As Reverend Martin Luther King Jr said, “The bombs in Vietnam explode at home.” With the US wars escalating in Syria, Iraq and beyond, we see that US war has only caused massive devastation for the people of the world, while bringing in huge profits to few. Meanwhile, billions of dollars are taken away from public education and jobs and the government has trampled our basic civil liberties. As the activists in the Committee to Stop FBI Repression have done, I will continue to fight unjust US wars on people across the world, as well as demanding full funding for human needs and an end to the aggressive destruction of our basic civil liberties.

I am not certain what will happen next. While I do have legal help, I hope you all will also stand with me in case of any further attempt at government repression by the FBI.

[fruhmenschen]

see link for full story


FBI agent took bribes in exchange for internal law enforcement documents
Next: 'Mother lode of bad ideas' defended?
October 18, 2014 9:06 PM MST

http://www.examiner.com/article/fbi-age ... -documents

The Department of Justice announced that on October 17, 2014 two Connecticut men pleaded guilty to bribery charges, admitting that they participated in a scheme to obtain confidential, internal law enforcement documents and information from a former Special Agent with the FBI in White Plains, New York.

Johannes Thaler, 51 and Rizve Ahmed, aka “Caesar,” 35, admitted to bribing Robert Lustyik, who was at the time serving as a Special Agent with the FBI’s counterintelligence squad.

According to the guilty plea, between September 2011 and March 2012, Thaler and Lustyik solicited bribes from Ahmed. In return for the bribes, Lustyik promised to provide internal law enforcement documents and other confidential information to Ahmed.

Ahmed, a native of Bangladesh, wanted to access confidential law enforcement information, including a Suspicious Activity Report, pertaining to a Bangladeshi political figure who was affiliated with a political party opposing Ahmed’s views. Ahmed admitted that he wanted to harm and discredit his intended victim and those associated with the targeted individual. Ahmed also sought Lustyik to aid him in having criminal charges against a different Bangladeshi political figure dismissed.

In fact, according to government filings in the case, on September 27, 2011, October 13, 2011 and November 3, 2011, Lustyik directed other FBI Special Agents to access an FBI database and pull up “Suspicious Activity Reports” (SAR) and other privileged law enforcement information.

Using his position as a Special Agent with the FBI, Lustyik brazenly demanded a $40,000 “retainer” and monthly payments of $30,000. In return, the crooked FBI Agent promised to “give [Ahmed] everything” and to set up the victim. Lustyik described his “master plan” to use information from the source within the Bangladeshi government and then to sell it to Ahmed. “No one knows … no one gets hurt,” Lustyik wrote.

Lustyik and Thaler exchanged text messages, plotting how to pressure Ahmed to pony up additional funds. The corrupt FBI Special Agent wrote to his accomplice, “We need to push [Ahmed] for this meeting and get that 40 gs quick … I will talk us into getting the cash … I will work my magic … We r sooooooo close.” Thaler responded, “I know. It’s all right there in front of us. Pretty soon we’ll be having lunch in our oceanfront restaurant.”

When Lustyik learned that Ahmed was considering using a different source to obtain confidential information, he went ballistic. The rogue FBI Agent texted his friend Thaler, stating, “I want to kill [Ahmed] … Let’s kick his ass … I hung my ass out the window n we got nothing? … Tell [Ahmed], I’ve got [the victim’s] number and I’m pissed … I will put a wire on n get [Ahmed and his associates] to admit they want [a Bangladeshi political figure] offed n we sell it to the victim].” Lustyik further stated, “So bottom line. I need ten gs asap. We gotta squeeze C.”

Both Lustyik and Thaler had previously pleaded guilty in a 2012 corruption case filed in Salt Lake City, Utah. In that case, Lustyik admitted that he was involved in a scheme to thwart a federal probe into a controversial defense contractor, Michael Taylor, who was under investigation

[fruhmenschen]

http://www.newsday.com/news/region-stat ... -1.9525973


see link for full story



http://www.newsday.com/news/region-stat ... -1.9525973



Connecticut FBI agent alleges abuses
Updated October 20, 2014 6:15 PM



FBI bosses retaliated against an agent for complaining about personnel decisions, managed by fear and were so dysfunctional that the bureau's director apologized to the Connecticut staff for problems with local leadership, according to a lawsuit filed Monday.
The agent, Kurt Siuzdak, is a lawyer and 17-year veteran of the bureau who worked in New York City and as a legal attache in Iraq before joining the New Haven field office in 2009.
In his lawsuit, Siuzdak said he was subjected to a baseless investigation when he complained he was passed over for supervisory positions. His wife, Heather Clinton, said in an interview with The Associated Press that her husband was reluctant to publicize internal FBI disputes but saw no other way to address what they see as abuses by managers who allow social affiliations to influence promotion decisions.
"This is an organization that he believes in. It's an organization that is very powerful. And he wants it to be better," she said.
Messages seeking comment on the lawsuit were left with the Connecticut FBI and the U.S. Justice Department.
In the lawsuit, Siuzdak says that FBI employment surveys in 2012 and 2013 gave the Connecticut office low ratings for leadership, employee treatment and morale. A January 2013 inspection of the office's violent crime task forces by FBI headquarters found that, in New Haven, "senior management was described as leading by fear and intimidation, negatively impacting both internal personnel and the liaison relationships with the FBI's external partners."
The lawsuit said FBI Director James Comey visited the New Haven field office near the end of last year and apologized to employees for "the failure of the FBI's executive management to correct the leadership failures" in Connecticut.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for Connecticut, names Attorney General Eric Holder as the defendant and seeks unspecified damages for the alleged discrimination and retaliation by managers. Among other allegations of preferential treatment for favored employees, it says a manager in New Haven routinely failed to work a full eight-hour day despite receiving the FBI's version of overtime.
"It's about integrity for him," Clinton said.
Siuzdak, 49, is an Army veteran who was among the FBI agents to respond to the World Trade Center attack on Sept. 11 and later learned Arabic for two postings in Iraq.
The lawsuit says his difficulties began with the former agent in charge in New Haven, Kimberly Mertz.
Siuzdak accused Mertz of blocking his pursuit of several management positions in Connecticut, where his family has its home. After he filed an equal opportunity complaint, he said, she filed a complaint alleging he was using a bureau vehicle for personal transportation, a serious violation of FBI regulations. After an investigation, he said, he was told the claim was unsubstantiated.
When Siuzdak applied for another position this year, an FBI manager he had been working with in Washington issued a non-recommendation, saying Siuzdak had not demonstrated leadership s

[fruhmenschen]

two stories
let God sort out the truth


1st
http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/2277916


Press Release
Two Former FBI Special Agents On Way to Palm Desert to Tell Unabomber Story
>PRWEB.COM Newswire
>PRWEB.COM NewswirePalisades, NY (PRWEB) October 23, 2014

Jim Freeman and Terry Turchie, two of the three FBI Special Agents who led the team that captured the terrorist Ted Kaczynski, will be at Barnes and Noble Bookstore in Palm Desert, California on October 25, to speak to the public about the internal struggle in the Bureau to change procedures necessary to capture the Unabomber. The authors will also discuss how the changes inadvertently established the groundwork for dealing with terrorism in the United States today.

The two Agent authors, along with the third co-author Max Noel, have appeared at 20 Barnes and Noble bookstores in California and appeared on Book-TV and C-Span in Washington, D.C. during their presentation at the Newseum on September 20.

"UNABOMBER, How the FBI Broke Its Own Rules To Capture the Terrorist Ted Kaczynski" is the story told by the former FBI agents of the internal struggle they experienced to change the outmoded procedures of the FBI. Newly assigned to the case after 16 years of futile search for the Unabomber, the struggle resulted in more expedient techniques including the use of reaching out to the public through the media for its assistance. Through the newly refined techniques, Mr. Kaczynski was captured in just two years.

"The public deserved to know the truth behind the capture of Ted Kaczynski," said Terry Turchie. "The behind- the -scenes story of the pursuit and capture of the Unabomber has never been t



2nd



NASA Patent in FBI CIA Unabomber Conspiracy Robert A. Frosch ...
http://www.unabombers.com/Patent%204,146,180.htm
An expose of the FBI's Unabomber Cover-up. Evidence Planting, fabrications, lies, the inevitable patsy, and the witness objections to the frame-up.
Unabomber CIA NSA FBI Conspiracy funding Echelon
http://www.unabombers.com/
An expose of the FBI's Unabomber Cover-up. Evidence Planting, fabrications, lies, the inevitable patsy, and the witness objections to the frame-up.
Part I: CIA, FBI, and the cover-up of the Unabomber | ELECTRIC ...
electriccaves.com/2014/07/27/cia-fbi-and-the-cover-up-of-the-unabomber/
Jul 27, 2014 - The Unabomber Theodore Kaczynsky (1978-1995) A considerable amount of credible evidence suggest that Theodore Kaczynsky participated ...
The FBI's Cover Up Of The Facts In The Unabomber Case -- 9-11
http://www.9-11themotherofallblackopera ... er-up-of...
Mar 27, 2008 - "Understanding Unabom provides in depth insight into the activities of the FBI and CIA before September 11th 2001. Activities that included the ...
Ted and the CIA, Part 1 - David Kaczynski - Blogs - Times Union
blog.timesunion.com/kaczynski/ted-and-the-cia-part-1/271/
Dec 19, 2010 - Was my brother, Ted Kaczynski (AKA “the Unabomber”), a sort of ..... Explores FBI coverup in the Oklahoma City bombing investigation. Kelly ...
Louis Freeh - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Freeh
Freeh began his career as an agent of the FBI, and was later an assistant United ... 2.7 Montana Freemen; 2.8 Unabomber; 2.9 Robert Hanssen; 2.10 Wen Ho Lee ... allegations of a cover-up by the FBI, and tensions developed between Freeh ...
Illuminati backwards - Abodia.com
http://www.abodia.com/2/Illuminati_backwards.htm
Unabomber CIA NSA FBI Conspiracy Echelon Terrorism Ten Most Wanted. "An expose of the FBI's Unabomber Cover-up. Evidence Planting, fabrications, lies ...
Did CIA Experiment Create the Unabomber? - Science Channel
http://www.sciencechannel.com/.../did-c ... bomber.htm
A student at Harvard named Theodore Kaczynski, aka the Unabomber, participated in an intense experiment ... Twisted But True: Deadly Radio Wave Cover Up.

[fruhmenschen]

Heartland Daily Podcast: Jennifer Lynch – FBI’s New Massive NGI Database

October 23, 2014



http://blog.heartland.org/2014/10/heart ... -database/

Electronic Frontier Foundation senior staff attorney and digital surveillance expert Jennifer Lynch joins he Heartland Institute’s Budget and Tax News managing editor, Jesse Hathaway, to discuss the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) new massive electronic surveillance and investigation database, the Next Generation Identification system (NGI).

Lynch explains how the NGI may infringe upon American citizens’ right to peaceably assemble in political protests, as well as how other surveillance and database technologies employed by the government threaten our privacy.

[fruhmenschen]

ELECTRONIC FRONTIER FOUNDATION
DEFENDING YOUR RIGHTS IN THE DIGITAL WORLD

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2014/10/t ... s-reissued



OCTOBER 24, 2014 | BY NADIA KAYYALI
Two Reports About FBI's Use of National Security Letters Reissued
Even the reports that are supposed to provide transparency about the FBI's use of national security lettters (NSLs) are secret—or at least a couple dozen pages of them are. NSLs are nonjudicial orders that allow the FBI to obtain information from companies, without a warrant, about their customers’ use of services. They almost always contain a gag order, which prohibits recipients from even saying they've received the request.

Two Office of the Inspector General (OIG) reports reviewing the FBI's use of NSLs from 2007 and 2008 were reissued earlier this week after having portions declassified. You can see the newly released versions of the 2007 report here and the 2008 report here.

Charlie Savage at the New York Times has reviewed and listed the changes. Some of them make sense. For example, one portion of the 2007 report masked references to a "Virginia Jihad network," which might have been redacted because of an ongoing investigation. But some of the previously classified portions are less explicable, such as the classification of the percentage of requests done under particular statutes. It's unclear what purpose keeping that number secret serves. What is clear is that excessive classification and redaction continue to get in the way of much-needed transparency around NSLs.

[fruhmenschen]

The FBI came looking for me

By Scott Williams on October 25, 2014



http://www.workers.org/articles/2014/10 ... e-looking/


I am writing to let everyone know that the FBI visited my father today with the intention of questioning me about my trip to Syria as an international election observer for the 2014 Syrian presidential elections. In June 2014, I visited Syria with the objective of learning the truth about the situation there. (See article at tinyurl.com/ourqr4g)

This trip was entirely legal and well-documented. I visited, along with observers representing 32 countries. Many were members of Parliament and representatives of local governments in countries such as Bolivia, Brazil and Uganda. Since then, I have reported on my trip in public meetings at the United Nations, as well as in Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and Albany, N.Y., and in Philadelphia where I live.

Since 2007, I have been a committed anti-war activist with many organizations, including Students for a Democratic Society and the International Action Center. The FBI mentioned me as an activist with FIST (Fight Imperialism, Stand Together), in which I am one of the national coordinators.

Why is the FBI coming after me? The FBI’s attempt to question me is not only an attack on me. It is an attack on anyone who chooses to travel the world and seek a perspective that is not represented by the corporate media. The U.S. depends on misinformation and huge lies to perpetrate its crimes abroad. Yet the FBI has picked the wrong person, since I have strong friends and allies across the U.S. who will stand with me in the fight against unjust government repression.

This visit is a continuation of the FBI’s attack on anti-war and international solidarity activists. The FBI has been attempting to charge 24 anti-war and international solidarity activists with “material support of terrorism.” They are being targeted and face potentially long jail sentences. Take a moment to look at the StopFBI.net site for the Committee to Stop FBI Repression, the organization that has fought to defend these 24, as well as Palestinian activist Rasmea Odeh. This is a strong example of the political fightback that is needed to defend activists from government repression.

These activists are not alone in their treatment. Since 2001, hundreds of Muslim men in the U.S. have been victims of entrapment, harassment and false imprisonment, simply for their religion.

I strongly encourage all of my friends, co-workers and family members to look at the Center for Constitutional Rights’ booklet entitled “If an Agent Knocks.” (ccrjustice.org/ifanagentknocks). See StopFBI.net for resources on what to do if the FBI comes to your door. Most importantly, you should never agree to speak to the FBI without a lawyer present — and you really should never speak to the FBI. You can simply say, “I do not wish to speak with you. I will have my lawyer contact you,” and then close the door.

If the FBI visits, do not become fearful or silent. Let other people know immediately and speak out against government surveillance and intimidation. If you do not have a lawyer and you or a family member is contacted by the FBI, contact the National Lawyers Guild immediately — and contact other activists who have dealt with government intimidation before.

As soon as this happened, I called Sara Flounders, co-director of the International Action Center, to discuss our strategy to stop this FBI repression. We decided to make a clear statement as public as possible. We will not be silent as the government attempts to attack those who choose to speak out against unjust U.S. foreign policy. In fact, we will use any attack on my freedom to continue to build a movement against government repression. It is in this spirit that I am writing today.

As the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “The bombs in Vietnam explode at home.” With U.S. wars escalating in Syria, Iraq and beyond, we see that these wars have only caused massive devastation for the people of the world, while bringing in huge profits to a few.

Meanwhile, billions of dollars are taken away from public education and jobs, as the government has trampled on our basic civil liberties. As the activists in the Committee to Stop FBI Repression have done

[fruhmenschen]

witter
Follow on Twitter (https://twitter.com/Igpublishing
facebook
Friend on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ig-Publi ... 8769078839
http://www.igpub.comIg Publishing is excited to announce the paperback release of The Terror Factory: Inside the FBI’s Manufactured War on Terrorism (http://igpub.com/the-terror-factory-paperback-edition/ , Trevor Aaronson’s groundbreaking book about the FBI’s domestic counterterrorism program.

The paperback coincides with the Al Jazeera America premiere of Aaronson’s one-hour documentary “Informants, (http://webapps.aljazeera.net/aje/custom ... nformants/ ” which builds on the reporting in The Terror Factory. Produced by Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit, “Informants” tells the stories of three FBI informants who worked counterterrorism cases. Aaronson, as the correspondent, guides viewers through the story. “Informants” premieres on Al Jazeera America tonight at 10 p.m.

First published in hardback in January 2013, The Terror Factory exposes how the FBI has, under the guise of engaging in counterterrorism since 9/11, built a network of more than 15,000 informants whose primary purpose is to create and facilitate phony terrorist plots so that the Bureau can then claim it is winning the war on terror.

Aaronson reports in the book that through elaborate and expensive sting operations involving informants and undercover agents posing as terrorists, the FBI has arrested — and the U.S. Justice Department has prosecuted — dozens of men who government officials say posed terrorist threats. He says evidence suggests, however, that some of those under FBI scrutiny did not have the capacity for terrorism and that FBI undercover agents provided the means, including weapons and logistical support. The expanded and updated paperback edition of The Terror Factory includes an epilogue that discusses how FBI agents in Boston missed the threat posed by the Boston Marathon bomber because they were too focused on a sting operation targeting a mentally ill man of limited capacity for violence.

Aaronson’s book has received praise from reviewers, journalists and former FBI agents. In a starred review, Publishers Weekly described The Terror Factory as “compelling, shocking, and gritty with intrigue.” Lowell Bergman, the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and former 60 Minutes producer, called The Terror Factory “investigative reporting at its best.” James J. Wedick, a former FBI agent who supervised undercover work, said the author “explains just how misguided and often deceptive FBI terrorism sting operations have become.”

Aaronson has discussed his book on CBS This Morning (http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/fbi-sting ... ntrapment/ , MSNBC, This American Life, On the Media, Radio Free Europe and The Leonard Lopate Show (http://www.wnyc.org/story/266376-inside ... terrorism/ , among other outlets. The Terror Factory also inspired substantial derivative works, including the HBO documentary Newburgh Sting and Aaronon’s own one-hour documentary for Al Jazeera. A recent and well-publicized report by Human Rights Watch also cited book and related reporting.



http://igpub.com/the-terror-factory-pap ... dition/The Terror Factory (http://igpub.com/the-terror-factory-paperback-edition/
Trade Paper
284 pages
ISBN: 978-1935439967
$17.95

-Trevor Aaronson -
is author of The Terror Factory: Inside the FBI’s Manufactured War on Terrorism (Ig Publishing, January 2013). He is an investigative reporter for Al Jazeera Media Network. Aaronson co-founded the nonprofit Florida Center for Investigative Reporting and was a 2010-11 fellow at the Investigative Reporting Program at the University of California, Berkeley. A two-time finalist for the Livingston Awards for journalists under the age of 35, Aaronson has won more than two dozen national and regional awards, including the Molly Prize, the international Data Journalism Award and the John Jay College/Harry Frank Guggenheim Excellence in Criminal Justice Reporting Award.

[fruhmenschen]

ONDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2014
NEWS / MEDIA / TECH Seattle Times Furious With FBI Over Allegations That the Agency Impersonated the Newspaper

see link for full story

http://www.thestranger.com/slog/archive ... -newspaper


Seven years ago, the FBI used a kind of spyware known as a CIPAV to track down and arrest a 15-year-old hacker who was sending bomb threats to a high school near Olympia. Old news for privacy watchdogs. But today, ACLU analyst Christopher Soghoian trawled through an arcane set of the bureau's records and came across something startling: in order to get the suspect's computer infected with the spyware, the documents suggest that the FBI sent a message to him that masqueraded as an e-mail from The Seattle Times.

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"Here is the email link in the style of the Seattle Times," wrote one FBI agent, whose name is redacted. "Below is the news article we would like to send containing the CIPAV," wrote another. The e-mail includes a message, headline, link, and subscription information all purporting to represent an Associated Press article carried online by The Seattle Times. According to WIRED editor Kevin Poulsen, the message acted as a phishing attack and was sent to the young man's MySpace account, "luring him to read an article about himself at a custom url."

The HTML behind the link would presumably redirect the viewer to an FBI server, which would infect the computer with spyware (CIPAV stands for Computer & Internet Protocol Address Verifier) allowing the government to track the computer's "IP address, MAC address, list of running programs, operating system, Internet browser used, language used, the registered computer name, the currently logged-in username, and more," according to Ars Technica.

"I remember reading about it at the time and wondering, 'How do they get people to click on their stupid links?'" says Soghoian, the ACLU's Principal Technologist.

The suspect, identified only as Josh in court records because he was a juvenile, was arrested following the apparently successful use of the CIPAV. But, Soghoian says, "The ends don't justify the means. I'm not saying that the FBI shouldn't be investigating people who threaten to bomb schools. But impersonating the media is a really dangerous line to cross."

The editor of The Seattle Times, Kathy Best, says they just learned about this and are seeking answers from the FBI and the US Attorney's Office. "We are outraged that the FBI misappropriated the name of The Seattle Times to secretly install spyware on the computer of a crime suspect," Best says in an e-mailed statement. "Not only does that cross the line, it erases it... We hope that this mistake in judgment by the FBI was a one-time aberration and not a symptom of a deeper lack of respect for the role of a free press in society."

Soghoian likened the FBI's apparent ploy to the CIA's 2011 fake vaccine campaign in Pakistan, which was in reality a front for intelligence gathering. The CIA pledged not to engage in any future deceptive public health campaigns last year.

Frank Montoya, Jr., the Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Seattle office, said in a statement: “Every effort we made in this investigation had the goal of preventing a tragic event like what happened at Marysville and Seattle Pacific University. We identified a specific subject of an investigation and used a technique that we deemed would be effective in preventing a possible act of violence in a school setting. Use of that type of technique happens in very rare circumstances and only when there is sufficient reason to believe it could be successful in resolving a threat. We were fortunate that information provided by the public gave us the opportunity to step in to a potentially dangerous situation before it was too late.”

And agency spokesperson Ayn Dietrich-Williams declined, for now, to disclose further details about how the fake e-mail was designed, writing: "I’m sure you’ll understand that in order to safeguard the FBI’s ability to effectively detect, disrupt, and dismantle threats to the public, we must be judicious in how we discuss investigative techniques."

Here's the Times' full statement:

We, like you, just learned of this and are seeking answers ourselves from the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s office.
But we are outraged that the FBI misappropriated the name of The Seattle Times to secretly install spyware on the computer of a crime suspect. Not only does that cross the line, it erases it.
Our reputation—and our ability to do our job as a government watchdog—is based on trust. And noth