[Leica] Photo student harassed in Seattle by Homeland Security

[relo_pros at cox.net (Bill Phelps)]

>King George Bush?

Lets stop and think about this for a moment. As one poster has observed, 
there really ARE some nasty people out there who are intent upon causing 
grevous damage to the United States. Whether we want to admit it or not, 
radical Muslims hate our guts and would destroy the entire nation if it was 
within their power to do so. The Europeans needn't feel too smug about it 
either; they're clearly on the list of enemies hated by radical Muslims also.

Going ONLY on the account of the student in Seattle, he has a legitimate 
gripe about the manner in which he was treated. However, not having been 
there or hearing the actual event unfold, I wouldn't be too quick to condemn 
the Federal authorities involved. Could they have over-reacted? Sure. Could 
the student have been confrontational and a horse's rear end? That, too, is 
a possibility. The entire situation could probably have been handled better 
by all concerned. It's possible that we'll never know the full story because 
the authorities are unlikely to say much publicly.

IMO, President Bush is in a no-win situation. It's a "Damned if you do & 
damned if you don't", rock & hard-place senario. The size and scope of this 
nation makes security difficult. 9/11 was a wake-up call that we were (and 
are) in a war for our very existence. The immediate reaction in any such 
situation may well tend to be excessive and mistakes will be made. It's 
regrettable when even a single incident takes place but it's also 
inevidable. Medal of Honor winner and retired Marine General Joe Foss - well 
into his 80's - was harrassed by airport security when he tried to board a 
plane with his medal. The morons didn't recognize the significance of the 
medal or know who Foss was.

When security folks over-react or use poor judgment, lots of people blame 
President Bush..... as if he can personally control every government 
employee. But, if the student hadn't been checked out and he just happened 
to be a terrorist and his pictures made blowing up the locks possible, the 
same people would be screaming for Bush's head because the student wasn't 
caught. He can't win no matter what happens. Some of it is politically 
motivated by those who want to see Kerry win or a Democrat back in the White 
House. Some of it is because people don't stop and think things through. 
They read what one newspaper or TV reporter has to say and never question 
the information. After all, reporters and TV news programs aren't 
political...... are they? 

For the poster who reported the fellows taking videos shortly after 9/11, 
I'm willing to bet that federal, state and local authorities had thousands 
of "leads" to check out at that time and there's no way of knowing what the 
police officer in the car ahead of you may have been doing at that moment. 
However, you do have my thanks for being alert enough and smart enough to 
report what you saw. Who knows? Your lead may have done more good than you 
realize. BTW, all power generating plants are considered Nation Defense 
assets.

Walker Smith