(San Joaquin) Valley terror plot alleged

[Newsjock]

http://www.fresnobee.com/263/story/19138.html

His attorney said Friday that Talal "Ted" Ali Chammout is a U.S. citizen who loves America, adores his children and is a respectable mini-mart owner in Porterville.

But federal prosecutor Carl Faller said Chammout, 47, wanted to purchase missiles and rocket launchers and other weaponry to send to terrorists in Iraq, Syria and Jordan.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Lawrence O'Neill heeded Faller's advice and ordered Chammout to be detained in the downtown Fresno jail, even though Chammout's relatives were ready to put up $1 million in property as bail until his trial on weapons charges.

Chammout was in U.S. District Court, accused of being a felon in possession of firearms. A criminal complaint alleges he purchased five semiautomatic pistols from a government witness who told Chammout the weapons were stolen from the military.

After Faller spoke of Chammout's intentions to hire a hit man, perhaps to kill his wife, and purchase sophisticated military weapons, O'Neill said, "The discussion we have now is in the terrorist category."

[ToolTex]

1. Obviously another government entrapment setup!

What is wrong with the normal people in this country? Has everyone except DUers gone mad?

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

8. The government entrapped him into purchasing semiautomatic weapons?

How does that work?

[tularetom]

2. The title of your post scared and mystified me

Scared because I live in the valley and mystified because I couldn't imagine anything here a terrorist would give a shit about blowing up.

[ToolTex]

3. Mr Liddy, I presume.

[nealmhughes]

5. My first thought was "Poisoning our fruits and vegetables?"

Looks like we do a pretty good enough job at that ourselves.

[rodeodance]

4. The Feds have cried wolf so often I do not know what to take seriously

anymore.

[Peace Patriot]

6. Yeah, that's how I feel, Rodeodance. I don't trust anything I read in the

corporate press--not one word, not even plain verifiable facts--and nothing that "federal prosecutors" do. They're all under the thumb of torture-memo writer and Bush Cartel toady Alberto Gonzales, and the war criminals in the White House. And I'm fast losing any faith I had in the courts. It is not possible to tell any more if people have been rightfully convicted, or if other decisions--such as on corporate crime--are aboveboard, and there is much evidence that many courts are Bush/rightwing toadies as well--with the Supreme Court being the biggest Bush toady of all.

This guy could be 100% innocent, for all we know. And we really MUST start making that presumption, and not falling for articles like this. Remember that lawyer in Oregon (can't recall his name, Brian Mayfield?), whom they said was connected to the bombings in Spain? They whipped him off in the dead of night to "enemy combatant" detention, and it all turned out to be bogus. And the guy who was a military chaplain at Guantanamo--they put him in solitary for weeks. And then, when they were caught out, on bogus charges (treason, document theft), they tried to slam him with pornography charges. They ruined his career. And he was completely innocent.

I think a number of things are going on, among them massive spying on all of us, for blackmail (or who knows what other dark) purposes, and also bogus charges and prosecutions to cover up other Bush regime crimes, as well as to grand-stand to the public in a very contrived newsstream.

Wait and see. Presume innocence. Question every word. This is one of the best things we can do, to put things right. Don't be fooled by anyone who takes their orders from Bush.

(And the other thing is election reform--transparent vote counting.)

[Morgana LaFey]

7. I can help you with that

NOTHING. Take NOTHING seriously -- at least not until further confirmation.