If there were about 1,000 Al-Qaida operatives in 2001, how did 755,000 people get on terrorist watch list?

Question

Isn't this a prime example of 'boogyman' politics, trying to scare the populace into believing that the threat of terrrorism is much larger than it actually is?

How do Bushie neocons reconcile that elderly American citizens and toddlers are being kept off of airlines because they have a similar name to someone on the terrorist watch list?

Honestly, if there are 755,000 Al-Qaida operatives in the US, we have some real problems that need immediate addressing, right?

Colonel: Actually I am a Ron Paul, keep the government out of my life and personal business, Republican....eg: The kind that are hard to find anymore.

davidmi711: So are you saying that Bush's terrorism-fighting policies have grown terrorist organizations exponentially since 2001?

davidmi711: If there were 1,000 Al-Qaida operatives in the US in 2001, the WTC terror attack would have been the tip of the iceberg. I'm pretty damn sure the report meant that there were 1,000 AQ operatives around the world.

And I get your point regardings how the bar has been lowered to get on the terrorism watch list. However, I sincerely doubt that there are actually 750k people around the world who would participate in an agressive attack (or suicide attack) against the US right now.

I think Bush & Co. have lowered the bar so low that it is hitting people who have little to nothing to do with terrorism or related activities.

Answer 1

As usual, they are going after the wrong people, because of yet another knee-jerk reaction. Is that all we can get from this administration? There can be no set, printed instructions, guilty people almost always LOOK guilty in some form. (I read body language & I am hardly ever wrong) AND, if there is a profile, they will find out & change thenselves to not fit! Then, it will be the rest of us schmucks, who didn't read the memo, getting profiled poorly.

Or, the list consists of a lot of the people on this forum!!

Answer 2

There were 1,000 Al-Qaida operatives IN THE US. There are 755,000 people that are associated with any terrorist organization in the world. The watch list does not only contain people IN the US.

"So are you saying that Bush's terrorism-fighting policies have grown terrorist organizations exponentially since 2001?" - No, not even close. I'll try to use smaller words so I don't confuse you:
1. In 2001 a specific organization had 1000 operatives in the US.
2. In 2001 the terror watch list was not a huge priority and contained known active terrorist.
3. Since 2001 the list includes active terrorists, suspected terrorists, supports of terrorist etc. The bat has been lowered to get on the list.

Your comparison makes as much sense as saying "in 2001 there were x number of Chevrolet cars registered in Miami. Today there are Y number of cars registered in the world" While we are talking about cars in both statements they are not directly related.

Answer 3

As the guy up above said...the list doesn't include only al-quaida or only islamic extremists. If you go buy a car today it doesn't matter who you are, they will run you through the OFAC database to make sure you aren't buying a car for a terrorist or using it as a way to launder money.
The fact that they said there were only 1000 al-qaida ops back in 2001 is hillarious not only because we've killed at least 10x that many Iraqis so far, but also because every time we kill a "terrorist" (see also innocent civilian) we create 10 more of them. What americans don't realize is, unlike us, the iraqis and the islamic extremists are willing to fight for what they believe in...and they start early...

The other thing people fail to realize is the fact that according to GW Bush...the american government is a terrorist organization. Bush has said :

"A terrorist is any individual, group, or government that tries to enforce their own religious or social lifestyle onto another group through use of force"

Now, maybe I'm wrong, but wouldn't invading Iraq and "giving" them Democracy be pretty close to the same thing ?

We're all terrorists in one way or another.

J-

Answer 4

We supported the Taliban under the basis that if Russia replaced into their enemy, then that made them our chum. They have been waiting to apply American provided weapons against our squaddies. lots of the Mideast replaced into cheering interior the streets while our residing house and Senate became Democrat ruled interior the final election. we would desire to awaken. Bush has no longer dealt with the region, yet a bleeding heart in his place will supply human beings a actual wakeup call.

Answer 5

It was not the boogey man...It was and is Real! Many Americans were placed on the list by accident due to Identity theft and fraud. Now that Americans are screaming about ID theft, they are double checking to find out who's who.

Answer 6

Well, what is your solution then?

I like the Bushie Neocons comment, well your statement clearly shows you are Hillary loving Democrat. So, what this means is you would rather complain about a problem and moan about how "messed up" something is and in TRUE Democratic/ Hillary Clinton fashion you would rather point your finger and blame than suggest a way to fix the problem.

Answer 7

Go to

http://www.documentary-film.net/search/search-videos.php

and watch the documentary The Power of Nightmares. It's a three part series by the BBC about the climate of fear we live in. Very interesting stuff.

Answer 8

15,000 want off the no fly list too. It's clearly people who don't agree with the government's corruption, make no mistake. It's called police state, common in fascist nations.

Answer 9

It's because we're not allowed to racial profile.

This group of people is committing this sort of illegal act, but we don't want to hurt their feelings so we'll waste time checking everyone.