NYPD pressuring muslims to be informants

[+OverSword]

From the article:

“Are you a Muslim? Which Mosque do you go to? Do you know al-Qaeda?”

These are questions New York City Police (NYPD) are asking young Muslims being picked-up for offenses like traffic violations, subway fair-dodging and graffiti art. The NYPD’s aim: to recruit more young Muslim informants to snitch on their peers.

Once arrested, or pulled in for questioning, NYPD officers claim that these interrogations are merely “non-coercive sessions”, but residents tell another story – of being heavily coerced and pressured into spying by police desperate to generate more intel and ‘reports on the Muslim community’ (read full report below).

Coercion is the key feature here, and so often is the case that both police and informants feel the pressure to produce ‘high value’ or ‘actionable’ intel and will routinely exaggerate findings, or even contrive a situation in order to carry out a ‘terror bust’.

This was most certainly the case in 2012, when the NYPD grandstanded after claims that they foiled a major terror plot by Quazi Mohammad Nafis, a 21 year old Bangali student, to blow up the NY Federal Reserve. Closer examination revealed a story of police entrapment – a farcically contrived situation from start to finish, and stage-managed by the NYPD.

New York seems to be a hot bed of innovation when it comes to terror plots. We cannot forget the ‘Christmas Tree Bomber’. As manufactured FBI terror plots go, this was one of the most ridiculous ever staged.

After the bust, then enter stage left, the NSA will normally join in, with the Agency announcing proudly that its wiretapping and spying ‘helped lead to the terror bust’. Each party manages to soak up some credit, and thus justify their own existence financial black holes to the US taxpayer.

As it turns out, 2010′s Christmas Tree Bomber, Mohamed Osman Mohamud, ended up mounting a Constitutional challenge in a federal court on the basis of NSA phone-tapping ‘evidence’ was used by Feds to entrap the mentally deranged, 19 year old Somalia-born student asset.

read it here

Edited May 12, 2014 by OverSword

[RoofGardener]

Hmmm....

Seeing as the author of the original article believes that 9/11 was not carried out by the actual terrorists (but presumably was... what... a government 'inside job' ? ), then forgive me if I will take this article - with all of its pejorative adjectives and built-in assumptions - with a pinch of seasoning.

[+OverSword]

Hmmm....

Seeing as the author of the original article believes that 9/11 was not carried out by the actual terrorists (but presumably was... what... a government 'inside job' ? ), then forgive me if I will take this article - with all of its pejorative adjectives and built-in assumptions - with a pinch of seasoning.

So since the author of the article is sane enough to believe we do not have the full truth about 911, this entire article is just simply dismissed? Good for you,

[RoofGardener]

Oh hush Oversword, that is NOT what I said. I'm merely sane enough to suspect that the author is not giving the full truth about the NYPD campaign.

[aztek]

this entrapment practice of nypd has been covered before, and their muslim spying programm was covered many times as well. nothing unbelivable.

[Sir Wearer of Hats]

well seeing as 100% of Terrorist attacks on American citizens and soil have been by Muslims, the major news story of the globe is a result of Muslims etc I'd say keeping a clsoe eye on the Mullahs is probably a good idea.

[+OverSword]

well seeing as 100% of Terrorist attacks on American citizens and soil have been by Muslims, the major news story of the globe is a result of Muslims etc I'd say keeping a clsoe eye on the Mullahs is probably a good idea.

Timothy Vey, Ted Kaczynski. Adam Gadahn. Think they were all American.

[andy4]

well seeing as 100% of Terrorist attacks on American citizens and soil have been by Muslims, the major news story of the globe is a result of Muslims etc I'd say keeping a clsoe eye on the Mullahs is probably a good idea.

Let's keep an eye on those Japanese too.

[Sir Wearer of Hats]

Timothy Vey, Ted Kaczynski. Adam Gadahn. Think they were all American.

Yes, I should have been more precise....

[Sir Wearer of Hats]

Let's keep an eye on those Japanese too.

You mean the people who edit their own history books to make the rape of Nanking look like the fault of the Chinese if they mention it at all?

[Skep B]

I don't really have a problem with this. If they're willing to snitch, let them snitch. If they believe in their faith enough, then they wont.

[+and-then]

NYC's new mayor eliminated the undercover investigation of Muslims. Not sure where this story is coming from.

[Babe Ruth]

If it were not for entrapment and police stings, US prisons would be half full.

The War On Terror is intellectually and morally bankrupt--it's no wonder that creating crimes with patsies is the only tactic available to the police.

[Jeremiah65]

Hmmm...now this is a quandary for me personally.

I am totally against the police/nanny state.

As a more or less Gnostic with foundations in Christianity...I can't say I am a fan of Islam...regardless of the torrential downpour of sympathizers input, Islam is NOT a religion of peace...one only need to look around to see they are expansionists and converters...if you do not convert...you die...yeah, that sure is peaceful. They are the diametrical opposite of tolerant.

As a Libertarian, I would like everyone to be free to live as they choose to live. I could care less what you believe in...that is..until you try to impose your beliefs on me.

The problem I have with all of this turmoil is we seem to be misunderstanding a few things...myself included. Islam is not a tolerant religion and belief system. As far as they are concerned...anyone that disagrees with them is hellspawn evil and deserves to die. They have a long track record of treating women poorly...they kill homosexuals...need I say more?

This is causing all kinds of cognitive dissonance among the liberals...they want to allow the followers of Islam a fair share...but they don't take a fair share. They want to allow them to practice their religion, but their religion makes women a second class citizen and condemns homosexuals to death.

The only way I can deal with my own cognitive dissonance on this subject is isolationism...cut them off from the rest of the world and let them live as they see fit...but do NOT allow them to come in and change our way of life.

Western Europe is in a real pickle right now for trying to be the good guys...now they have issues that no one could have imagined. I read an article this morning of a school in Berlin that has 3 German native students...the rest are immigrant Muslims...and this is Germany? The epitome of Aryan? Germany needs to remember that one time the entire world feared them...put aside the guilt of days gone by and "be" German once again...stop being a whipped dog and have some pride for heavens sake...you do NOT have to condone this crap.

OK...let the libs rail against me...even though supporting Islam is supporting the repression of women and gays....reconcile that libs...please...this I have to see.

Edited May 13, 2014 by Jeremiah65

[+DieChecker]

What is the issue here? Asking questions? Are they unfairly singling out those that answer Yes to any of those questions to punishment? If not then they are just questions.

As to snitches, haven't the police everywhere been collecting snitches since Roman times?

[Babe Ruth]

What is the issue here? Asking questions? Are they unfairly singling out those that answer Yes to any of those questions to punishment? If not then they are just questions.

As to snitches, haven't the police everywhere been collecting snitches since Roman times?

Yes, Judas is an old figure in the story of humanity. Benedict Arnold too. Agents provocateur.

But that is generally considered to be the darker side of the human condition, and IMO there is something fundamentally wrong about the police encouraging such behavior.

[Frank Merton]

Nonsense; do whatever you can within the law to protect the public. They are not "snitches," they are good citizens doing something dangerous for their country.

[lightly]

“Are you a Muslim? Which Mosque do you go to? Do you know al-Qaeda?”

Do you know where the sleeper cells have been sleeping since 2001 ?

[aztek]

NYC defends use of Muslim police informants.

NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Police Department disbanded a unit that tracked the everyday lives of Muslims, but it has taken a tough stance in a heated legal battle over its continuing use of Muslim informants in terror threat investigations.

Muslim groups filed a civil rights lawsuit last year asking a federal judge to declare the surveillance unconstitutional and halt it.

City lawyers struck back by suggesting the plaintiffs brought the attention on themselves with "rhetoric or their known, suspected or rumored associations with people or organizations of ill repute." The city then demanded any communications by the plaintiffs — including two Brooklyn mosques, an imam and a Muslim charity — that mention terrorism, jihad or the war in Afghanistan as well as financial records from the mosques and the charity, including names of donors.

http://news.yahoo.com/nyc-defends-muslim-police-informants-165108467.html

[Babe Ruth]

Nonsense; do whatever you can within the law to protect the public. They are not "snitches," they are good citizens doing something dangerous for their country.

It's the "within the law" part that is central Frank.

If "the law" makes it illegal to practice homosexuality, is it then "OK" to put offenders in prison for life? To kill them after a trial?

The Supreme Law of the land in this, your former country, is the US Constitution. It is silent on entrapment as a police tactic. How should that be interpreted?

[aztek]

It is silent on entrapment as a police tactic. How should that be interpreted?

actually it is not. entrapment = lying, and cops legally allowed to lie.

[andy4]

What is the issue here? Asking questions? Are they unfairly singling out those that answer Yes to any of those questions to punishment? If not then they are just questions.

As to snitches, haven't the police everywhere been collecting snitches since Roman times?

Yet if the Gov. wanted to ask (or do this) to a bunch of white Americans, you and many others would be saying "that's all the Gov's fault, why are they asking innocent people such questions, isn't that illegal?!" Don't deny it, you would say that.

[+DieChecker]

actually it is not. entrapment = lying, and cops legally allowed to lie.

They are allowed to Record what you say also, regardless of State/Federal privacy laws. It is all there in the fine print of such laws.

[+DieChecker]

Yet if the Gov. wanted to ask (or do this) to a bunch of white Americans, you and many others would be saying "that's all the Gov's fault, why are they asking innocent people such questions, isn't that illegal?!" Don't deny it, you would say that.

Do you mean if a government agent of some kind came to my door, or stopped me on the street, and asked if I was a Christian, and what church I go to, and if I follow/have knowledge of, any terrorist agencies? Well, I suppose I would stop, ask the officer if he had some kind of ID, and if he did, I would tell him that Yes, I am a Christian, and my church is over at the corner of 1st and Main, and no I don't know any terrorists, but I do know some missionaries. And if he wanted to know more about those missionaries, I'd ask why. And if he had a good reason, I'd either tell him or point him at my pastor.

In no way would I refuse to cooperate, or withhold simple information. The officer is probably doing an investigation, which may involve actual terrorists planning to attack my Own Neighborhood. So I would try to help as well as I could. I HAVE NOTHING TO HIDE!

Similarly, if I was on a train or bus, or airplane, and a security person came up and asked me where I was going or if I had a ticket, I'd gladly show him my ticket and tell him what stop I was going to. Because.... I have nothing to hide.

Edited May 15, 2014 by DieChecker

[Babe Ruth]

actually it is not. entrapment = lying, and cops legally allowed to lie.

I think we are basically in agreement on the thread topic, but if you claim the constitution is not silent about entrapment, might you cite that part of the document that addresses the subject?