FBI in dark, informants dried up -- same problems before 9-11

Law enforcement burt bridges. Who's going to take responsibility?

FBI agents in Red Lake are still scratching their heads. "Why, despite us ignoring all the complaints in the past, didn't someone put up with our baloney and tell us?"

Mind you, this is the same stupidity the same Minnesota SACs [pronounced "Sack"] showed in re 9-11.

How many people knew of problems, but were rebuffed by both local and federal law enforcement?

This isn't the first time the FBI makes up information and a cover story. Talk to Spike Bowman, former NSA-general counsel sent to clean up the mess in Guantanamo.

FBI would like the public to believe that there were up to 20 people who "were aware" and sent e-mails.

Strange, wasn't Echelon and Carnivore supposed to be the system that caught all this message traffic? Looks like the additional surveillance powers which violate the constitution still aren't enough.

The other strange things is that the FBI is being so open about ongoing investigations. Why are their stupid agents revealing sources and methods?

Surely, if there was a basis to say that there were actually 20-identifiable people who "knew and said nothing," that would be the basis for a conspiracy. Yet, FBI wants to publicly float theories.

That's the FBI's mistake. There is no cause of action to be brought if the FBI is lying about what they suspect.

Bottom line: FBI still hasn't woken up to what DoJ is doing to contribute to the communication problem.

Why are there supposedly "so many people" [FBI says 20] who supposedly knew, but said nothing?

Answer: FBI has no clue; because if FBI did know the "real number" it wouldn't say. Nor would it be publicly saying "we're going after the e-mail" because those who are involved [supposedly] would be under surveillance. Yet, wouldn't the FBI be smarter to be quiet about what they suspect in the hopes of catching those who continued to talk after the event? Of course.

Why is the FBI tipping people off to the e-mail? Answer: There's no e-mail, and there are no people.

So the real issue is that FBI has no names, only making allegations. And the person they have under custody isn't a credible defendant. Rather, the person their holding is merely a scapegoat: FBI is trying to smoke things out.

DoJ has a problem. Minnesota was the same SAC-responsibility for the Moussaoui. So the same FBI agents that Rowley left are now having to backtrack at Red Lake.

This is a perfect time for DoJ to go to Congress and say, "We need to clamp down on the internet" so that people will not discover the problems with the FBI not turning over information in the FBI I-drive.

Going forward, we need to have a straight answer why the Patriot Act and domestic surveillance is needed. Despite the "we have no problems with leadership and intelligence" out of the Senate Intelligence Committee, the informants and under cover agents didn't catch anything.

So if there are supposedly 20 people who knew about this, surely the FBI's undercover agents on the Reservation would've heard something. Or are they saying that despite all the spyware they have under Carnivore that the FISA-approvals to engage in domestic counter-terrorism doesn't work?

The FBI plans to press for greater access. But this is a ruse to divert attention from what the FBI regularly does: Rebuffs information, dissuades cooperating informants.

They do this so they can then later detain people, ask them questions, even when they know nothing.

The real crime isn't that there are "20 people" running around who knew about this. The real crime is despite Echelon and the Patriot Act, FBI still can't come up with a credible story why something like this can happen and "the large chorus" didn't come forward.

Either the FBI has a problem with public relations and it can't get people to come forward; or the FBI that messed up prior to 9-11 and missed the information still has a second group of 20 people they can't find.

There is no credible basis to believe the FBI has 20 suspects. FBI wouldn't be foolish enough to tip people off to stop using communication methods that would otherwise produce admissible evidence.

Because the FBI spilled the beans, the Senate Judiciary Committee need to look into the matter:

Why are we having another problem with the FBI missing things?

Why despite the Patriot Act, FISA, and "promises to do better" is there not a credible FBI public outreach program to work with the local community?

Why is the FBI publicly discussing methods it is using to gather information on an ongoing criminal investigation?

The answer to the questions relate to the real problems behind the failed pre-9-11 response. The same public-DoJ communication problem that occurred prior to 9-11 now continues.

In DoJ-FBI own admission there's another group of 20-plus people who are involved. Yet, just as we found out in 2005 that the 10,000-AlQueda allegations had no merit, so too will we find out that there is no basis behind the allegations that there were 20 involved.

If there are 20 involved, then the FBI director needs to be brought before the Senate Judiciary Committee to explain why his agents, ASACs and SAC in Minnesota are revealing information that would tip potential accomplices off to investigation methods.

However, if there are not really 20 involved or who knew, the FBI needs to be forced to explain why it is spewing out the same nonsense in Red Lake that it spews out about the 10,000 AlQueda.

Either way, the Red Lake incident is just as much about the failure of domestic law enforcement as it is about a troubled teen. America was asked to give up many civil liberties under the Patriot Act and the legacy is that Americans are not safer. Even on a private Indian Reservation, far away from modern reality.

The President got involved with Terry in Florida. Why do we not hear the same man speak out about the loss of life in Minnesota? The answer is that the President is part of the problem: His same agents that were abusive in Guantanamo are now the same ones who are being abusive in Minnesota, and whose abuse contributed to the communication problem.

How about it Senate Judiciary Committee, are you going to look at this one or going to defer it back to your Senate leadership in the hopes that nobody connects the dots? Or do you want there to be another cover up just like we saw in re both 9-11 and the WMD issue?

All this electronic information flowing around, but nobody can be held accountable. The only answer is to make up more stories about a wider conspiracy so that the FBI, that failed and has a continuing leadership problem, can divert attention from the FBI SAC in Minnesota and shine the light on those ghosts.

Same thing happened in Abu Graib, Guantanamo, and Afghanistan. And despite the photographs, the Army released people without bringing charges.

Alas, we have the makings of another disaster. Let us hope that there are independent witnesses present during these FBI interrogations of the "20 who may have known" about the Red Lake incident. If there aren't independent media present, we should doubt the veractity of FBI claims that the admissions were voluntary.

How about it, FBI? The very agency that talks publicly about the methods of conducting a criminal investigation and identifying the means that the "suspects' were using, is suddenly quiet and not willing to be as open to the American public that they should have been at Guantanamo.

The same fools that messed up at Red Lake are the ones who messed up the Moussaoui case. Same idiots, same crew, just the scapegoat has shifted from the Middle East to the domestic population.

This is not news. It is more of the same. All the more reason the FBI loves the fact that the Pope has passed away: A wonderful diversion from the continuing FBI public relations problem. What's the next excuse going to be to not have the Senate Judiciary Committee look into this, connect the dots, and really ask the tough questions that still don't have straight answers in the wake of 9-11?

The 10,000 AlQueda proved to be ghosts. So are the ghosts of J. Edgar Hoover back, in full force, and looking for an excuse to dance around in lovely pink dresses.

How about it, Counter intelligence Field Activity and Joint Terrorist Task Force? All this time lobbying for the Patriot Act, intimidating people not to speak out about the abuses within DoJ and overseas, and the best that JTTF and CIFA can do is blame the public, create stories, and hope that the Judiciary Committees don't wake up.

Rest assured, Echelon does have the tapes. The Canadians across the border do have the ability to provide evidence of a larger criminal conspiracy. The same fools with GCHQ, Mr Koza, and Ms Gunn who engaged in domestic intelligence gathering at the US should also have copies of these alleged IMs.

How about it Echelon? If the FBI is to be believed, then there should be evidence of this grand conspiracy outside US control and fully releasable to those who run the tabloids. Yet, we hear nothing, all the more evidence that this is just another FBI public relations story.

Did the same idiots at Leo Burnett who worked the DoD Public Relations campaign get involved in this one, or is this going to get blamed on another ghost. Let's hope they find life on Mars--a new place for DoJ to point the finger to distract attention from the continuing leadership and management problem within J. Edgar's closet.