Man shot on Tube

[s1m0n]

"No one's ever created a profile of the anthrax guy, for instance, even though he is thought to be white, middle aged, educated and middle class. If fact, he's dropped well off the radar in way that would not have happened if he'd been any other colour."

I never heard this, or read this. Are you talking about the anthrax at the National Inquirer in Florida and / or the letter in DC and / or the missing vial from a university? I hadn't heard they had a suspect, much less they were one in the same.

They have a witness who described what is assumed to be the suspect dropping packages into a mailbox, as I recall. They even have a suspect. He's described vaguely as a (I may have some details wrong) a former or current federal employee, holding advanced scientific training and employed in research. I believe the unnamed man knows he's a suspect (his house & office have been searched by the FBI), and he has released a statement through his lawyer denying involvement.

[missy]

"I believe the unnamed man knows he's a suspect"

which particular mailing? Or all?

[s1m0n]

My recall is fairly hazy, so I may be wrong about some of this.

However, I believe that all of the anthrax mailed came from the same source, so the FBI are only looking for a single suspect--it was all professionally processed and the strain was one which circulated in the US. It is known to be unrelated to the much more primitive strain once researched in Iraq, for instance.

However, the whole thing dropped out of the news some months back, (or at least I stopped seeing stories about it) so what the status of the investigation is now is anyone's guess.

[herbivore12]

My recall is fairly hazy, so I may be wrong about some of this.

....

However, the whole thing dropped out of the news some months back, (or at least I stopped seeing stories about it) so what the status of the investigation is now is anyone's guess.

This'd probably be Steven Hatfill yo're describing; I haven't heard much since he sued the government:

http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/08/26/lawsuit.hatfill/

[s1m0n]

My point is that there has been no attempt to systematically profile fiftyish white ex-military republicans as potential terrorists.

But you're right, that's a curious oversight--after all, there's abundant evidence of clearly anti-social tendencies held by some members* of this demographic.

* a minority, I'm sure, but an extremely dangerous minority. We can't be too careful!

[Wanderer]

We wouldn't start profiling the straight white men in the first place, so the question would never come up.

Who's "we"?

In the US and Britain, straight white men in their 20s and 30s are absolutely profiled....when there's a manhunt for a serial killer, that's the demographic they look for.

In fact, the investigation of the DC sniper attacks in 2002 performed by two black men (Lee Boyd Malvo and John Allen Muhammad), was hampered by the assumption of profilers that the shooter was an "angry white male".

[Martin Milner]

Eerily quiet on the tubes today. There were two burly policemen outside my local Underground station today, but I haven't noticed if they're every day of late. A colleague who came on the Tube said that Hammersmith station was almost deserted. Of course it is the school holidays now, which reduces the number of prople in London.

I actually cycled in, as I didn't have to be in work early for once on a Thursday, and as it was raining I didn't notice much difference.

London does have the feeling of a place expecting another attack. Nine men have been arrested in Tooting, a South London suburb, under the Terrorism 2000 act.

[TomB]

We wouldn't start profiling the straight white men in the first place, so the question would never come up.

Who's "we"?

In the US and Britain, straight white men in their 20s and 30s are absolutely profiled....when there's a manhunt for a serial killer, that's the demographic they look for.

In fact, the investigation of the DC sniper attacks in 2002 performed by two black men (Lee Boyd Malvo and John Allen Muhammad), was hampered by the assumption of profilers that the shooter was an "angry white male".

Yeah, but they don't stop every car with a middle-age white man in it.

[ChrisLaughlin]

The young man shot 8 times by plainclothers officers in the UK was not wearing a bulky coat, did not jump the turnstile and was actually in the UK legally, contrary to previous statements by the British Government and the Police... Is anyone else getting sick of being lied to by our "leaders"?

[TomB]

The young man shot 8 times by plainclothers officers in the UK was not wearing a bulky coat, did not jump the turnstile and was actually in the UK legally, contrary to previous statements by the British Government and the Police... Is anyone else getting sick of being lied to by our "leaders"?

Chris: Well, the jumping the turnstile thing should come out pretty easily, had to be a lot of folks there. Just because he had a pass, if he was indeed running from the police he may not have paused to go through legally, and still may have jumped.

No, this does not mean I'm defending what happened.

All the Best, Tom

[Martin Milner]

Original story here:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/attackonlondo ... 13,00.html

[buddhu]

The young man shot 8 times by plainclothers officers in the UK was not wearing a bulky coat, did not jump the turnstile and was actually in the UK legally, contrary to previous statements by the British Government and the Police... Is anyone else getting sick of being lied to by our "leaders"?

It seems that The Guardian got its 'facts' from the unfortunate chap's family ("...his cousin said yesterday"). Under the circumstances I think they might be excused if emotion coloured their version of events. The cousin has certainly been emotional and vocal on UK TV.

I thnk I'd be more comfortable waiting for a verifiable clearer picture before drawing conclusions.

[I.D.10-t]

Chris: Well, the jumping the turnstile thing should come out pretty easily, had to be a lot of folks there. Just because he had a pass, if he was indeed running from the police he may not have paused to go through legally, and still may have jumped.

Eyewitnesses are incredibly inaccurate. Unless there is a security camera that the government is willing to be seen publicly, I would not take much stock in anything anyone “witnessed”.

[TomB]

Chris: Well, the jumping the turnstile thing should come out pretty easily, had to be a lot of folks there. Just because he had a pass, if he was indeed running from the police he may not have paused to go through legally, and still may have jumped.

Eyewitnesses are incredibly inaccurate. Unless there is a security camera that the government is willing to be seen publicly, I would not take much stock in anything anyone “witnessed”.

Yes, I know. However, if everyone present says he jumped and his cousin says no, he has a pass, I would go with the jumpers.

Tom

[I.D.10-t]

Chris: Well, the jumping the turnstile thing should come out pretty easily, had to be a lot of folks there. Just because he had a pass, if he was indeed running from the police he may not have paused to go through legally, and still may have jumped.

Eyewitnesses are incredibly inaccurate. Unless there is a security camera that the government is willing to be seen publicly, I would not take much stock in anything anyone “witnessed”.

Yes, I know. However, if everyone present says he jumped and his cousin says no, he has a pass, I would go with the jumpers.

Tom

If all of the witnesses agree then I would be even more suspicious. I would wonder what questions were being asked and who was asking them. I do not trust the cousin’s account, because he was not there (and has reason to be bias). As I said before. Without a security camera that the police are willing to allow the public to see, we will not know the truth.

It seems that we agree on the main point though. I just feel the need to try to dispel the myth that witnesses are reliable sources of information.