The FBI knocks on my door

[Q]

Just saw a nice video at Louis Proyect (http://louisproyect.wordpress.com/2010/06/12/the-fbi-knocks-at-my-door/), enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fct4LIODoM

[chegitz guevara]

Oh man she gets tiring quick.

[Q]

Well, that's the point :D

[S.Artesian]

She's a jerk. This is what cheap access to video equipment does. Makes some people think they're Oliver Stone.

Close the door. That's all she had to do. But that wouldn't give her anything to post on YouTube.

[RED DAVE]

Why are people ragging on this woman? She has produced a valuable video that every activist should watch.

(1) It documents the FBI in action and shows some of their techniques, including how disarmingly low key they can be.

(2) It shows a proper response to the FBI: Don't answer their questions. Plead the Fifth Amendment (not the First as identified on the Video).

(3) It shows the FBI carrying out what is, essentially, political intimidation.

(4) It shows the FBI, essentially, employing the technique of guilt or suspicion by association.

(5) It publicizes the Palestinian protest and shows that there are Jews who support this.

(6) It shows that such videos can and should be made and posted on YouTube.

RED DAVE

[Q]

Exactly Red Dave. In addition I would say that such a video provides a useful bit for many activists out there in the US (it is a bit specific to the US, pleading on fifth amendments and such) who would shit bricks if the FBI was coming to them asking them questions. And such an impact is exactly what they hope for, because scared people are more easily manipulatable and give much more information.

She has done us a service.

[Monkey Riding Dragon]

1) Pretty shocking indeed that the FBI would come knocking on your door just because you attended a protest.

2) I propose two much shorter and much better alternative responses to this magnificent inquiry:

a. Invoke your 5th (not 1st :rolleyes:) Amendment right to silence immediately and shut the door.

OR

b. Tell them about this guy you know of called Barack Obama whose got plans to commit tons of violence in Afghanistan. Then invoke your 5th Amendment rights and shut the door.

Gee, I wonder if you'd be expected to inform the FBI that you know communist groups exist in America, given that all the serious ones are predicated on the goal of ultimately overthrowing the U.S. government?

[S.Artesian]

Why are people ragging on this woman? She has produced a valuable video that every activist should watch.

(1) It documents the FBI in action and shows some of their techniques, including how disarmingly low key they can be.

(2) It shows a proper response to the FBI: Don't answer their questions. Plead the Fifth Amendment (not the First as identified on the Video).

(3) It shows the FBI carrying out what is, essentially, political intimidation.

(4) It shows the FBI, essentially, employing the technique of guilt or suspicion by association.

(5) It publicizes the Palestinian protest and shows that there are Jews who support this.

(6) It shows that such videos can and should be made and posted on YouTube.

RED DAVE

Political intimidation? What political intimidation? A man and a woman knock on a door in broad daylight, show their police ID, ask permission to ask questions, don't seem particularly angry when they don't get answers-- as a matter of fact the only reason the "interview" continues is because the woman wants it to continue so she can produce her video.

What political intimidation? Nobody showed up at night. Nobody barged in the front, or the back door. Nobody fired a random shot through a window. Nobody threatened the woman with a grand jury [maybe they did, I didn't watch the whole video-- it's pretty tedious], with loss of employment, or custody of her children.

There's no political intimidation here. There's nothing here. It's a whole lot of nothing.

Maybe it's just me, but this woman got the kid glove, best behavior, white
woman, suburb treatment. No good cop, bad cop. No kicks to the gut, with the other cop saying "Not so hard."

This reminds me of Jane Fonda complaining, whimpering actually, about the
FBI "grilling" she had to endure after her trip to North Vietnam. She was
outraged, that she, Jane Fonda, a famous film star could be treated so.
Really. Well that's just a shame. WTF do you expect the government to do?

I have that same feeling watching this video...

[GreenCommunism]

Political intimidation? What political intimidation? A man and a woman knock on a door in broad daylight, show their police ID, ask permission to ask questions, don't seem particularly angry when they don't get answers-- as a matter of fact the only reason the "interview" continues is because the woman wants it to continue so she can produce her video.


it is some political intimidation, but not really much of it. of course it's pretty small though.

[A Revolutionary Tool]

Political intimidation? What political intimidation? A man and a woman knock on a door in broad daylight, show their police ID, ask permission to ask questions, don't seem particularly angry when they don't get answers-- as a matter of fact the only reason the "interview" continues is because the woman wants it to continue so she can produce her video.

What political intimidation? Nobody showed up at night. Nobody barged in the front, or the back door. Nobody fired a random shot through a window. Nobody threatened the woman with a grand jury [maybe they did, I didn't watch the whole video-- it's pretty tedious], with loss of employment, or custody of her children.

There's no political intimidation here. There's nothing here. It's a whole lot of nothing.

Maybe it's just me, but this woman got the kid glove, best behavior, white
woman, suburb treatment. No good cop, bad cop. No kicks to the gut, with the other cop saying "Not so hard."

This reminds me of Jane Fonda complaining, whimpering actually, about the
FBI "grilling" she had to endure after her trip to North Vietnam. She was
outraged, that she, Jane Fonda, a famous film star could be treated so.
Really. Well that's just a shame. WTF do you expect the government to do?

I have that same feeling watching this video...
It's not much political intimidation like you said but it's pretty intimidating knowing that if you go to a protest the next morning the FBI will be knocking on your door. Some people would never go to another protest after the FBI showed up to their house to question them even if the questioning was very light, there's a psychological effect to it because the big government is knocking on little ol' you's door.

[bcbm]

the fifth amendment deals specifically with refusing to answer a question because the answer will be self-incriminating. you don't need to plead the fifth if you don't want to talk to the fbi, you can simply refuse to talk to them.

[infraxotl]

Bin Laden has at least four times as many children and look what kind of shenanigans he's up to.

[#FF0000]

I think it's neat you can call up the FBI and they'll go and question someone for you.

And my neighbors thought all those pizzas we ordered under their name was annoying. Oh boy.

[Robocommie]

She did exactly the wrong thing in this situation; she acted shifty as fuck. If the Feds didn't suspect her before, they sure as hell do now, at least for further surveillance. Everytime that guy says, "I just think it's suspicious you're not answering the question" it's like he's saying, "Just how thick should your dossier be, ma'am?"

Just play dumb, don't antagonize them, just remember they've got the full fury of the state backing them up.

[Os Cangaceiros]

the fifth amendment deals specifically with refusing to answer a question because the answer will be self-incriminating. you don't need to plead the fifth if you don't want to talk to the fbi, you can simply refuse to talk to them.

Yep.

Tom Metzger (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Metzger) is a neo-nazi scumbag, but he's right about one thing at least: there's five words you need to say whenever you're confronted with law enforcement.

I. Have. Nothing. To. Say.

[28350]

Holy shit I would have shot her.
I work for the census bureau, and the people I have to track down because they don't know how to fill out simple forms are less aggravating than her.

[Buffalo Souljah]

That was a well-made video. I wonder if she uses Adobe Premiere (http://www.adobe.com/products/premiere/)?

[Saorsa]

She does get really annoying.

"a mother of FIVE kids... of FIVE kids... OF FIIIIIIIVVVEEE KIIIDDDSSS"

But that said, good on her. At the very least this is video evidence that the American state will target you if you attend peaceful protests.

[Jimmie Higgins]

Ok, she's not Michael Moore, but it's good that she tapes and posted this because if she said the FBI knocked on her door for no reason, most people in the US wouldn't believe it.

Political intimidation? What political intimidation?No of course the FBI has no interest in intimidating people - that's why they go up to every house in the US and ask them if they know about potential violence.:lol:

A suburban white mom may not have been their main target - but imagine you are Arab and this same thing happens - imagine if you are an undocumented worker and this shit happens. For some reason some radicals don't consider the subtle things the government does bad unless it's obvious outright repression - but historically this is what they do.

The FBI was trying to 1) make people paranoid: is there and informant in my group; who snitched on me; how'd they get my information? Yeah, it's not an IDF commando breaking through your window, but fuck the only purpose for this kind of "information gathering" is intimidation! 2) To make peace activists feel like terrorists or think that other people in the movement are potential terrorists. Gee, the FBI seems to think that someone involved in the protest is going to bomb a building - I don't want to be connected to that.

Stop trying to be tough on the internet comrades - if this shit happened to you do you think you'd shrug it off and go back to playing Grand Theft Auto? No, you probably call every radical you know and then recount the strange experience to all of us on this website.

And I'd reply to your post: "Phfft - that's not intimidation":lol:

[RadioRaheem84]

Any Tea Protesters been visited by the FBI yet?

[Jimmie Higgins]

Any Tea Protesters been visited by the FBI yet?I know for a fact that they haven't because 1)They are protesting in allignment with what the ruling class wants 2) because if they had, then we all would have heard (from Glenn Beck and Alex Jones) about it and how Obama's socialist secret police are preparing to torture and disappear petite-bourgeois white people's grandmothers.

[Q]

Any Tea Protesters been visited by the FBI yet?

I'm sure Glenn Beck would on top of it before you could sneeze.

[Jimmie Higgins]

I'm sure Glenn Beck would on top of it before you could sneeze.Ha, beat you to it!

Remember when the FBI said that the armed self-proclaimed anti-government militias might - um - do something anti-government like they always threaten to do and have done in the past... well the right-wing paranoid claims about concentration camps for conservatives went on for a month!