Let us all now join the Bigot Parade!

Apparently Dan Finelli (R-FL) who is running for the seat currently held by Alan Grayson thinks all you need to do to find a terrorist is look for their beady eyes, see the Turbin and the Olive Skin...



But Mr. FINELLI isn't that what they used to say about finding members of - y'know - THE MAFIA, except for the Turbin...

Welcome to the Bigot Parade, wherein Really Dumb People think they can see into the depths of your soul, by looking at your skin tone...

It might seem to some simplistically logical to look for terrorists coming from countries that threaten us, except that it really doesn't work.

One of the larger problems facing the security industry in the era of mass terrorism is the task of creating a profile of a likely terrorist. Identifying those at risk of first time offenses is a challenge in any context, but the stakes are higher when that offense may also be the last, and involve the deaths of dozens of people. We've discussed the challenges of generating profiles of potential terrorists in the past, but a study that will be released by the Proceedings of the National Academies of Science does a mathematical analysis how we're deploying the profiles we do have, and suggests we may not be using them wisely.

The study was performed by William Press, who does bioinformatics research at the University of Texas, Austin, with a joint appointment at Los Alamos National Labs. His background in statistics is apparent in his ability to handle various mathematical formulae with aplomb, but he's apparently used to explaining his work to biologists, since the descriptions that surround those formulae make the general outlines of the paper fairly accessible.

Press starts by examining what could be viewed as an idealized situation, at least from the screening perspective: a single perpetrator living under an authoritarian government that has perfect records on its citizens. Applying a profile to those records should allow the government to rank those citizens in order of risk, and it can screen them one-by-one until it identifies the actual perpetrator. Those circumstances lead to a pretty rapid screening process, and they can be generalized out to a situation where there are multiple likely perpetrators.

Things go rapidly sour for this system, however, as soon as you have an imperfect profile. In that case, which is more likely to reflect reality, there's a finite chance that the screening process misses a likely security risk. Since it works its way through the list of individuals iteratively, it never goes back to rescreen someone that's made it through the first pass. The impact of this flaw grows rapidly as the ability to accurately match the profile to the data available on an individual gets worse. Since we've already said that making a profile is challenging, and we know that even authoritarian governments don't have perfect information on their citizens, this system is probably worse than random screening in the real world.

Let's also remember that the 9-11 hijackers didn't come from enemy states, they came from Saudi Arabia who we consider an ally and from the United Arab Emirates who we nearly sold all of our ports to, years after 9-11.

More via Thinkprogress...

Indeed, terrorists come in all shapes, sizes, and colors, and do not simply belong to one religion, ethnicity, or nationality. The “shoe bomber,” Richard Reid, was Jamaican and British. Al Qaeda recruit Adam Pearlman was a white American. Germaine Lindsay, one of London’s 7/7 bombers, was Afro-Caribbean. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was a black African.

Jose Padilla was an American Citizen of Latino descent as was Bryan Neal Vinas, a Long Island resident, former Catholic and Boy Scout who converted to Islam moved to Pakistan where he was caught fighting U.S. Forces with the Taliban.

And lastly let's recall Faisal Shahzad - who looks more like a trendy club hopper than a Terrorist - is also a Naturalized American Citizen with an MBA, who originally came from a country - Pakistan - that had never committed an act of international terrorism before.

The fact is that Racial Profiling doesn't work. The ACLU has sponsored a variety of studies of the techniques use by Law Enforcement via Racial Profiling.

While Hispanics comprise less than eight percent of the Illinois population, and take fewer than three percent of the personal vehicle trips in Illinois, they comprise approximately 30 percent of the motorists stopped by ISP drug interdiction officers for discretionary offenses such as failure to signal a lane change or driving one to four miles over the speed limit. For example, in ISP District 13, which covers seven counties southeast of St. Louis, Hispanics comprise less than one percent of the local driving-age population, yet they represent 29 percent of all people stopped by these officers for speeding less than five miles above the speed limit.

While African Americans comprise less than 15 percent of the Illinois population and take approximately 10 percent of the personal vehicle trips in Illinois, they comprise 23 percent of the searches conducted by Valkyrie officers. In District 4, where African-Americans comprise 24 percent of the local driving-age population, but are the targets of 63 percent of the searches.

The main problem as has been shown in many studies is that even though there was no evidence that Black or Latino drivers "drive worse" and therefore are legitimately creating the cause of the stop on their own, they are nonetheless searched 2 or 3 Times as Often regardless of the reason for the stop and the "Hit Rate" - the percentage of finding drugs or other contraband - among Whites, Latinos and Blacks are pretty much equal and sometimes Greater for Whites.

While troopers ask a higher percentage of Hispanic motorists than white motorists for consent to search their vehicles, they find contraband in a lower percentage of the vehicles of Hispanic motorists. This demonstrates that searches are based on race, not results.

So if they aren't finding MORE drugs, More often by targeting people racially - why are they stopping and searching these particular people? And why aren't we all clamoring for them to STOP WASTING TIME AND TAX PAYER FUNDS HARASSING INNOCENT PEOPLE WITH UNNECESSARY STOPS AND SEARCHES? Also it seems to me that if I needed a drug courier, they would be safer and less likely to be be searched and caught - if they were White.

The same issues would apply to using these failed techniques to fight terrorism (al Qeada and the Taliban know this hence they don't recruit people from the most "obvious" places - instead using Abdulmuttalab from Senegal or Vinas from Long Island).

These issue also apply to capturing illegal aliens, it's not just about what you look like, it should be about what your doing (aka Probable Cause).

Yet people like Finelli apparently think that when al Qeada needs a new suicide bomber, they make a call to Central Casting. Finelli's ad - and what he must have done to find people to play the "terrorists" kinda reminds me of how Hollywood Based stereotypes have seeped into our consciousness for decades and not by accident as shown by Robert Townsend's "Hollywood Shuffle" over 23 years ago - I think of it as Terrorist Acting School.



Not counting Finelli, certainly we've come long way Brotha from those dark days as this more recent scene from Showtime's Sleeper Cell (showing a Black Muslim FBI agent as the main character attempting to infiltrate an al Qeada Cell in East L.A. which includes both Latino's & Whites and is led by the Daily Show's Aasiv Manvi - Yes, Aasiv Manvi played a Terrorist - Black people may have gotten out of the Stereotypical Hollywood Box, but Asians and Arabs haven't yet!)



Somehow I think these guys would have completely defeated Finelli's brilliant strategery to foil their plot simply by not LOOKING like who he thinks they should.

Vyan

How the Tea Party Handles a Racist, Blame Him on Dems

Look, a Tea Party and Conservative Activist/Blogger Adam Sharp actually Found a Racist (who wouldn't deny it) and did what he's supposed to do -- confront him.



But then in his blog post about this video he claims that this guys was a "Democrat Plant" who was there to make the Tea Party look bad... Dude, you really don't need help with that.

I do have to give this guy credit for standing ground against this Nazi Pig - but then he somewhat destroys his own argument when he start to get into "Quien es Mas Christian" fight with the guy and then asks him -

Do you go to Reverend Wrights Church - He's a Racist!

Yeah, ok - ya lost me with that one pal. I think Wright's a self-aggrandizing wackadoodle, but he's not a racist. But even if you assume he is a Racist, he would be more of a so-called Black Nationalist not a Nazi you dipwad.

Nowhere in this video does the admitted Nazi claim to be a Democrat, in fact he challenges the videographer Sharp's own Conservatives Bona Fides by asking if he's a member of the Council of Conservative Citizens?

The CCC has a long linkage with Conservatives and the Republican Party - this is what the ADL says about the them.

The St. Louis-based Council of Conservative Citizens traces its roots directly to the racist, anti-integrationist White Citizens' Councils of the 1950s and 1960s.

Its current leader, attorney Gordon Lee Baum, was an organizer for the WCC and built the Council of Conservative Citizens in part from the old group's mailing lists. Like its predecessor, the CCC inflames fears and resentments, particularly among Southern whites, with regard to black-on-white crime, nonwhite immigration, attacks on the Confederate flag and other issues related to "traditional" Southern culture. Although the group claims not to be racist, its leaders traffic with other white supremacist groups and its publications, Web sites and meetings all promote the purportedly innate superiority of whites. Despite its record, the CCC has been successful in drawing southern politicians to its events: the 1998 revelation that then Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott had been a frequent speaker before the group drew substantial media attention. Mississippi governor Haley Barbour, Mississippi state senators and several state representatives have appeared in recent years.

Sharps post has been picked up and has been spinning around the Wingnut Interwebs including Andrew Breitbart's own BigGovernment.com where they claim this interlopper was a "Leftist Plant" - because apparently the Conservatives never met a Racist who wasn't a Democrat.

Leftist and racist infiltrators were forced to flee at tea party rallies in St. Louis, San Francisco, Oceanside and Greensboro.

Racist? Yes. Leftists? Not a chance.

Brietbart who has been defending Tea Partiers by announcing a $100,000 reward for anyone with video of Democratic Congressmen being called the "N-Word" - (although Video from ABC News has already confirmed that Barney Frank was called "Faggot")



However at the Tax Day Tea Party Rally, rather than simply calling Rep. Cleaver and Lewis Liars - has decided that maybe they weren't lying, and even if something might have happened They Were ASKING For it!!

At last night’s FreedomWorks Tax Day Tea Party event at the Washington Monument, a sneering and slightly slurry Andrew Breitbart, the right’s new media entrepreneur and sponsor of the anti-ACORN provocateur James O’Keefe, delivered a rant that was at times incoherent and laced with mild profanity.

Breitbart’s overall message seemed to be that the Tea Party crowd has been unfairly described by the mainstream media as racist and violent, when in fact, it’s the “union thugs” who are violent. As for the racism, well, he seemed to say, members of the Congressional Black Caucus sought to provoke racist behavior from Tea Party activists gathered on the Capitol grounds on the day that health-care legislation won final passage.

“I study media,” Breitbart told the crowd. “I pay attention to media, I’ve gone to the circus: I know a trick when I see it. And I see Barney Frank walkin’ around, I see the Congressional Black Caucus, I see Sheila Jackson Lee, taunting with a V-sign. I’m like, ‘What on God’s green earth is happening here?’ A half hour later, you see Nancy Pelosi with a shit-eating grin, holding that gavel. This was a stunt. They wanted to provoke you, my friends.”

Yeah, how dare Barney Frank walk around Capital, it's not like he Works There or anything? How dare Sheila Jackson Lee flash a Peace Sign, clearly she's asking for trouble. How dare Nancy Pelosi SMILE, and hold a Gavel like she's Speaker of the House or something. She and Senator Patty Murray were just asking to receive Death Threats!

And while we at it, how dare John Lewis walk across that bridge in Selma - clearly he was just asking to be nearly beaten to Death - In fact I'll bet he probably wasn't even injured back then where's the VIDEO of it?



And obviously the Freedom Riders were simply begging to be kidnapped and murdered - just like those dirty Liberals at the Unitarian Church in Knoxville Tennesee who were gunned down by James Adkisson just last year.

Yeah, they were all Asking For it.

But then again it didn't really happen did it Andrew since you didn't see it on video. And this out-and-out Nazi Conservative guy didn't show up at a Tea Party - cuz he was just Democrat in disguise.

Yeah, keep telling yourself that Baggers - just keep it up. You might convince each other, but not the 80% of the public that disagrees with you.

Vyan

Fox Politicizing Time Square Car Bomb Attempt

Via Media Matters - Fox and Rudy 9-11-Iuiani are yet again hammering the Obama Administration as being weak on "Terruh" in their response to the attempted Time's Square Car Bombing.

Discussing the incident with former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, co-host Gretchen Carlson said, "Let's face it. Anyone who wants to blow up and kill people in Times Square, it's no doubt an act of terrorism. We just interviewed though, the Secretary of Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano, who refuses to say the word terror. Is this a mandate within the Obama administration, not saying the word terror?"

But as usual, Fox and Carlson were yet again WRONG!

In the just concluded interview Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano actually *didn't* refuse to say the Magical Mystical Special Super Secret Word - "TERROR!" - she said repeatedly she wouldn't rule it out.

DOOCY: The other key thing, Madam Secretary, is that this is terrorism, right?

NAPOLITANO: Well, it's certainly something that I would not rule out. The way it was carried out, the kind of device that was used. Again, until we know the perpetrators, the people -- person or persons who were responsible -- you don't know the derivation, you don't know their intent. But I would not rule that out.

DOOCY: Well, right. Clearly, the guy was trying to, if not kill people, scare people, which is terrorism.

NAPOLITANO: Well, and we do know that if that --you know, if the explosions had been properly done and ignited, that would have been quite a fireball in that particular area. It was not properly done, it was not effective. And one of the very significant things that occurred here was that street vendors noticed this truck improperly parked, notified law enforcement, law enforcement immediately took action. Really an illustration about how everyone has a role to play when we're talking about our security.

CARLSON: I think the American public sees it as an act of terrorism, but the proof will be in the coming days.

The fact is we don't yet know exactly why this device was placed or who placed it, and Napolitano is simply reflecting the truth of that reality.

Also the argument Obama "refuses to say Terror, Terrorist or Terrorism" is blatantly false.

Obama on the attempted Christmas Day Bombing.

Good morning, everybody. I just want to take a few minutes to update the American people on the attempted terrorist attack that occurred on Christmas Day and the steps we're taking to ensure the safety and security of the country.

[...]

Thanks to the quick and heroic actions of passengers and crew, the suspect was immediately subdued, the fire was put out, and the plane landed safely. The suspect is now in custody and had been charged with attempting to destroy an aircraft. And a full investigation has been launched into this attempted act of terrorism and we will not rest until we find all who were involved and hold them accountable.

[...]

Second, I've ordered two important reviews because it's absolutely critical that we learn from this incident and take the necessary measures to prevent future acts of terrorism. The first review involves our watch list system, which our government has had in place for many years to identify known and suspected terrorists so that we can prevent their entry into the United States.

Obama on December 7th speaking to the Turkish people.

We reaffirmed the shared commitment to defeat terrorist activity regardless of where it occurs. I expressed condolences to the Prime Minister and the Turkish people for the recent terrorist attack that was taken there and pledged U.S. support in trying to bring the perpetrators of this violence to justice.

Here's the thing, Fox is already steering this situation into a "Terrorist Act" clearly by a MULSIM foreign power or agency. They've been proding police with questions about whether this is related to the Controversial South Park near-depiction of Mohammad.

Authorities have not ruled out a link between Saturday's failed Times Square bombing and a New York Islamic group that warned the creators of "South Park" that they face retaliation for lampooning the Prophet Muhammad.

Younus Abdullah Muhammed, who runs the website RevolutionMuslim.com, told the New York Daily News he was in Times Square when the bomb-packed SUV was found, but he said he was not involved in the failed terror attack.

"What do you think, I commanded somebody to blow up a building in the middle of Times Square?" Muhammed told the newspaper.

"It had nothing to do with the 'South Park' controversy. It was not an attack targeting Viacom," he said. He could not be reached for further comment early Monday.

There has been a claim of responsibility from the Pakistan Taliban, but no one is taking that seriously.

But what if yet again, Fox is Wrong and this wasn't done by an evil wacky Muslim?

What if this really was done by one of Hannity's "Tim McVeigh" wannabes? What if this bomb was really an attempted repeat of the bombing attacks by Eric Robert Rudolph who bombed the Atlanta Olympics, several women's clinics and a gay nightclub?



What if it was a repeat of the kinds of firebombings perpetrated by Shelley Shannon - who describes/confesses to her actions here on the Army of God Website, and is now serving time in prison for shooting Dr. George Tiller in each arm.

What if it someone like James Adkisson who shot and killed two "Liberals" in Knoxville Tennessee because he felt Fox News Contributor Bernard Goldberg would've enjoyed that.



Or a group like the Hutaree Militia who planned to kill police officers, then bomb their funeral. Or someone like James Van Brunn, the BIRTHER who killed a guard at the Holocaust Museum in DC?



Or someone like Joe Stack who flew his plane into the Austin IRS Offices? Or someone like Gregory Guisti who threaten to Kill Speaker Nancy Pelosi after FOX News told him how "Evil" and "Far Left" she was?

What if it wasn't a terrorist from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Yemen or Afghanistan - what if they came from the Nation of Fox?

There isn't any evidence that they did - yet. But it's also something - we can't rule out, can we?

There are two things that make me personally think this probably wasn't a muslim terrorist bombing attempt, 1) Their Car Bombs tend to WORK REALLY WELL with sophisticated cellphone remote triggers or else they stay with the bomb and ensure that it goes off, while this one was a Fracking Mess...

The would-be car-bomber who left an SUV loaded with propane and gas cans, fireworks and timing devices on a Times Square street also had more than 100 pounds of fertilizer, but not the kind that would explode, police said today.

Sources also told ABC News that the valves on the propane tanks were not open, which would have made it less likely that the gas inside would have ignited.

Which would've made this the biggest Firepie in history and 2) Video Surveillance showed a "WHITE GUY" leaving the area and attempting to disguise himself - not a dark skinned Arab.

Police are looking for white male in his 40s who was seen leaving the area near the SUV and shedding a dark shirt, revealing a red shirt underneath, about a half block from where survellance cameras saw the vehicle entering Times Square at about 6:28 p.m. Saturday, NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly said.

Listen closely, any second now there should be a collective "Oh Shit!" coming from Fox Plaza soon...


Vyan

The Heart of Liberal Anger

In this video Mike Malloy, who I often consider to be way over the top pretty much lays out the Heart of Liberal Anger - which is focused Laser-Like on Predatory Capitalism.

This is Reason I'm Angry All the Time


I myself am not quite as angry as Mike Malloy, but in this video he does lay out the two visions of America that have been battling each other since it's inception.

America Version A) Is owned and controlled by monied corporate interests, manipulated economically through predatory capitalism and politically through a broken campaign finance system to serve the needs of those interests in direct opposition to the needs of the people.

America Version B) Is one where owning and operating a business is considered an opportunity, a privaledge and a responsibility - not A Right. Workers and Consumers have Rights and are "Persons", Corporations are Not.

Time and time again, Liberals have battled for America Version B - while Conservatives have used Political Stunts and Activist Right-Wing Judges to implement and maintain America Version A. It was Liberals who ended Slavery, back when the Republican party Was predominantly Liberal in the mold of Lincoln. It was Liberals who brought the vote to women. It was Liberals who passed Social Security, Medicare and Civil Rights. Yes, some of these were opposed by Democrats, Conservative Democrats - and supported by Republicans, but those were Liberal Republicans.

Since then those Liberals were driven out of the Republican Party, and many of those Conservative Democrats joined it.

Time and time again, it's been the Conservatives who fought against the expansion of personal liberty, and FOR corporate and business interests. While doing it they've done a ton of name-calling and blame shifting to excuse their cow-towing to the fat cats - even Dr. Martin Luther King Jr was called "Socialist", "Marxist", "Communist" and "America-Hater" - so we know this tact is nothing really new.

I didn't work then and it won't work now.

None of these cheap smears have ever come close to the mark, and never will - they are simply a diversion from the fact that the Conservative wing - of both parties - are nothing more than Corporate shills.

This is why you don't see the Cult of Foxonality and Tea Baggers Marching On Wall Street - you see the AFL-CIO, Micheal Moore and Rage Against the Machine doing it. Where for art thou Baggers?

Liberals, don't Worship Money Like it's a "God".

Anyone remember: "Whose picture do you see here? Render onto Caesar, what is Caesar's..."

At the same time we don't "Hate Business", we simply think they need to be kept in check or else all hell breaks lose. When corporations go unchecked, unmonitored and unregulated the result is chaos, whether it be lead paint in our children's toys, to cars that run but won't stop, oil spills that threaten to coat the entire Gulf, contractors that cover up the drugging and gang rape of their own employees as well as poison and electrocute our soldiers, mercenaries who murder innocent civilians in cold blood on the streets of Baghdad, mines operations that collapse and explode, sick people being cut off from access to health care - simply because they had the temerity to GET SICK and cost an insurance company some cash, to a selfish short-sighted and horrifically GREEDY banking and loan industry that nearly brought our entire country to screeching grinding collapse.

Out of Control Big Business is like a runaway Semi-Trailer on the Interstate with the capacity to kill and maim hundreds before it finally comes to rest - this is why we need to enforce the Rules of the Road, not only to protect all the other cars on the highway (Consumers & Workers) but even to protect the SEMI itself, with clearly posted road signs and speed limits.

It's not "Socialism", it's just plain common sense.

Here's another Liberal, Helen Thomas being grilled by Fox Business on her temerity for daring - to be a LIBERAL.



As Thomas points out - Liberals don't hate Capitalism. (Nor are we "Socialists")

But we also don't think rampant out-of-control capitalism should allowed to grow wild and like a form a Cancer, or else it will kill our nation, and potentially KILL OUR PLANET.

Obama: You should have nothing to fear from financial reform, unless your business model is to BILK people!

Problem is for many companies these days - Bilking People is their ONLY business model. That has to change.

Malloy Says:

How can we stand here with the House on Fire, and not Call the Fire Dept? Don't you know that it'll all burn down?

How? We don't put the Fire out because the people who set the Fire (Big Business) have also bought and paid for complete control of the the Fire Dept (Government) which has the task of trying to save the house, but can't - or won't.

Liberals Don't "Hate America"... we're trying to Save it, we want to PUT The FIRE OUT.

But we can get pretty pissed off at it. When, in the name of corporate and monied interests, America commits Genocide as it did with the native American, it pisses us off. When, in the name of corporate and monied interests, America Enslaves and Exploits it's own People - it pisses us off. When, in the name of corporate and monied interests, America denies equal access to the right to Vote, equal protection in the home and workplace, equal and fair access not to be accosted, searched, harassed, spied on and tortured without probable cause, due process and the writ of habeas corpus - we get pissed off.

Meanwhile the Tea baggers scream about "Liberty" being taken away by "Big Government" - but whose Liberty are we really talking about? The Liberty of any American to see the Doctor of their choice, or the "Liberty" of an Insurance company to take your money and give you BUPKIS for it?

The Only Rights Baggers seem to understand are the 1st Amendment (Right to TALK SHIT) and 2nd (Right to Carry A Gun) - not exactly an inspiring combination. But just ask them - ASK THEM - what's the 4th Amendment? What's the 6th Amendment About? What's the 8th Amendment?

Just for the record those would be protections against the "Unlawful Search and Seizure", "Right to Speedy Trial, Confrontation of Witnesses" and "Cruel and Unusual Treatment".

Now ask them, if they're so concerned about Big Government "Take-Overs" where we're they when the Patriot Act was passed? Where we're they when Gitmo was erected? Where we they during Abu Ghraib? Where we they when Torture was authorized (an even used against American Citizens like Jose Padilla, not just "Foreign Enemy Combatants" - they tortured Americans!)? Where were they when some of those Tortured prisoners Died?

Is that the America that you Baggers Love, one that kidnaps, tortures and murders people that we knew were innocent?

Liberals want America to be BETTER than that.

What is the Bagger answer to Big Corporate Crime? "Let the Free market Decide?"

That would be the same "Free Market" that has elevated Justin Beiber and Lady Gaga to super stardom? The same "Free Market" that let Tobacco companies sell a cancerous additive product to the American public for Decades while lying to us - and Congress - about it?
That would be the "Free Market" that has used it's political influence to neuter Consumer protections via the courts with so-called "Tort Reform".

And isn't it interesting that all the Evolution and Global Warming Deniers seemed to all by 100% Social and Economic Darwinist?

"Simply trust in the invisible hand of the God-Market to take care of everything"

They don't worship Jesus, they only worship Money.

However, LIberals don't hate Money, we Love Money - we love Making Money (Case in point: Hollywood), but NOT if we have to do it by screwing somebody else over.

The truth is that Individual workers and individual consumers don't have the economic power to topple corporate giants when they've used that influnce to rig every element of the game in their favor. They've used their money to continue "business as usual" - even though the house really is burning down.

Sometimes someone as large and BIG as Big Business has to bring them to HEEL, and that can only be a Government (or maybe a Union) that's just a big and powerful as they are.

Liberals think it's time to put the Damn Fire Out, then grab those Business Arsonist by the Scruff of the neck and let them see what real American Justice is all about.

Liberal's don't blindly trust Big Government, far from it, they simply recognize it's something that's sometimes needed to control Big Business.

That's not "Anti-American" - it's the only way to Save America from self-destructing in a blind feeding frenzy of greed!

If Tea Baggers think they're "Angry" over ridiculous phantasms like "Death Panels" - they don't know what Real Anger is over the REAL ISSUES that threaten us all.

Vyan