[Vision2020] Phone call from the FBI?

[Ted Moffett]

Bob, et. al.

I am very aware that the vision2020 list, along with other "e-groups," will 
be monitored for certain content by the powers that be.  I hear my door 
being broken in at 4 AM... Naw, it can't happen here in the land of the free 
and the home of the brave, right?

However, it seems a bit clumsy, and what would be gained, for the FBI to 
call you posing as someone interested in the origin of the name for that 
mosque.   Wouldn't they just put you on a list of people to watch and/or run 
a background check, and leave it at that, unless they really thought you 
were up to something, in which case they would take pains not to "tip you 
off"  with phony sounding phone calls from unidenified people?  Unless 
someone at the FBI just likes being nosy and playing games.

If they really thought you knew something of value they wanted to 
investigate, again, this phone call gets them nowhere. Unless perhaps they 
thought you might launch into a apoplexic tirade against...  I won't say 
against what, this post is monitored!  Ha!

Why did you not ask who was calling?

Ted


>From: Bob Hoffmann <escape@alt-escape.com>
>To: vision2020@moscow.com
>Subject: [Vision2020] Phone call from the FBI?
>Date: Sun, 02 Mar 2003 12:22:53 -0800
>
>At 02:46 PM 3/1/2003 -0800, aphro dite wrote:
>>I'm scared that if I publish a webpage trying to explain my religion to 
>>non-members, and the government suspects that religion of any possible 
>>connection to anything middle-eastern I could be arrested.
>
>A week or two ago, I received an interesting phone call.  While it can be 
>hard to identify people demographically over the phone, I would say that 
>the person on the other end of the phone was a white male, between 30-50 
>years old, and spoke with a "neutral" American accent.
>
>As I was telecommuting, and in the office frame of mind, I answered the 
>phone with, "Hello, this is Bob."
>
>"Hi," said the voice, "I don't know if I have the correct number.  I was 
>trying to reach the Al Farooq Mosque."
>
>A bit bewildered, I responded, "You are correct.  You do not have the right 
>number."
>
>"Oh, I found a Web site that listed your number for the Al Farooq Mosque."
>
>"Really?  Well, I do believe that there is an Al Farooq Mosque here in 
>Moscow, but this isn't the number."  (incidentally, the mosque is in 
>Pullman).
>
>"Oh," said the man, "I guess someone ought to correct that Web site.  I was 
>just trying to track down the origin of the name 'Al Farooq.'"
>
>"Well, I can't help you with that one.  Good luck."
>
>I forgot about the call until the arrest at the U of I this past week.  
>Now, if you search Google for "Al Farooq Mosque," you will find the top hit 
>being this page:
>http://vision2020.moscow.com/Archives/2001/0109/msg00078.html
>
>Yup, it is a posting by yours truly about an open house at the mosque.  I 
>had received the information the same way that perhaps 8,000 WSU employees 
>received it, through the WSU Announcements email list.  I thought it would 
>be of interest to Vision 2020 subscribers, so I forwarded it to the list.  
>My email program automatically appends a signature to my messages, 
>including my phone number.
>
>I don't know if this phone call was indeed from an FBI agent investigating 
>leads, or if it was just a wild coincidence.  But if I receive any visits 
>from the FBI, I'll let you all know about it in this forum.
>
>Bob Hoffmann
>820 S. Logan St.
>Moscow, ID  83843
>
>Tel: 208 883-0642
>
>_____________________________________________________
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>communities of the Palouse since 1994.                 http://www.fsr.net   
>                              mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com
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