So the Alligator Alley Three have been asked to seek an internship elsewhere by the hospital they were en route to when they were pulled over by every cop, national guardsmen, security guard, hall monitor, and reporter in Floridabecause of the number of death threats the place has recieved.
I’d like to congradulate the hospital administrators for being spineless, craven little wimps, the people making the threats for being a bunch of fucking idiot knuckleheads, and Eunice Stone, the woman who made the whole fucking thing up, for confirming every unreasonable negative stereotype I had about Georgia and why it’s a good idea to stay the fuck outta it.
Couldn’t agree more with the OP. Isn’t it wonderful now that all it takes it some idiot mishearing you and your life is ruined?
Even if the witness is telling the truth, and the 3 were stupid enough to make the alleged jokes, you cannot argue that it doesn’t simply take a phone call now to ruin the life of someone who happens to be of middle east ancestory.
I’m sorry, has it been confirmed that the woman made this up? Or is it possibly the case that these guys were, in fact, saying exactly what she reported as a joke in order to wind her up? I haven’t seen any definitive report which of these is true. The students deny it, but then, given that they’re currently hip deep in alligators. But ** if ** it’s the latter, then these guys got pretty much what they deserved, for pretty much the same reason that you don’t make jokes about bombs when in an airport security line.
Again, IF these guys played a particularly stupid practical joke, then I’d have to agree with the hospital’s stand – no one is required to hire a dumbass.
I have to agree with Finagle. If they said it, and so far I haven’t heard any of them denying it, they were wrong. They aren’t terrorists, but they were still wrong. They were uncooperative with the police, the dogs sensed explosive residue in their cars, something was definitely up. If they had been terrorists, then Eunice Stone would absolutely be a heroine. Since they’re not but apparently pretended to be, that may make her foolishly gullible, but it doesn’t ascribe malice to her. That would be a specious allegation.
Apparently, they do have something to worry about. Even though no charges were filed, they have lost their internships, and people are threatening them.
Innocent until proven guilty just doesn’t seem to be something the media (or some Americans, apparently) grasp.
twl-
As for them denying making the statement, the first article says this:
I have to agree with Finagle. If they said it, and so far I haven’t heard any of them denying it, they were wrong. They aren’t terrorists, but they were still wrong. They were uncooperative with the police, the dogs sensed explosive residue in their cars, something was definitely up. If they had been terrorists, then Eunice Stone would absolutely be a heroine. Since they’re not but apparently pretended to be, that may make her foolishly gullible, but it doesn’t ascribe malice to her. That would be a specious allegation.
I don’t think this woman made it up, I think she’s paranoid, stupid, and racist. She heard some suspicious-looking people (i.e. brown-skinned) talking twisted it to sound like a terrorist threat. She thought she heard them say, “do you think we have enough to bring it down?” Jesus, they could have been talking about anything. And regarding “celebrating 9/11” - if I want to celebrate 9/11, it’s my damn business. But gee, don’t you think it’s possible they meant “commemorate 9/11”?
Finagle, that analogy is totally inaccurate. Do we want to live in a world where everyone (OK, just the dark-skinned people) has to watch what she says in case some idiot miscontrues it?
I’m with Revtim. I can’t even comprehend what’s going on anymore.
chula- This article says that the 3 men originally withheld consent to search the vehicle, and mentions the dogs alerting, so it may be the article tlw was refering to. However, no actual explosives were found, and the agents who investigated it do not believe that the men were up to anything.
Chula, if (did you notice my “if”?) that person of apparently Middle Eastern descent is joking about a bombing or an act of terrorism , then the analogy is spot on. We do live in a world in which such a person has to watch what they say. Do we want to live in it? Heck no.
But given that there were Middle Eastern types driving around Florida a little over a year ago planning terrorism who then implemented those plans in a horrific fashion, and given the very strong possibility that this will happen again, I don’t think you can put a “racist” label on this.
You think Middle Eastern looking people should have different rights than others? That sounds like a statement that deserves a racist label. Did you say the same thing about white people after Timothy McVeigh committed an act of terrorism? Anyway, this woman didn’t hear them saying they were going to blow anything up. She heard some comments out of context and her paranoid, racist mind jumped to conclusions.
Something similar has recently happened to Dr. Steven Hatfill recently. Although he has never been charged with a crime he has been fired by LSU because of pressure put on them by the Government.
I’ll take a seat with Revtim and chula - the things that are going on are alarming. And I’m not sure what can be done since it’s our own Government that is doing/encouraging these actions. Scary.
I hope the hospital decides in favor of the students, and doesn’t secumb to outside pressures.
If the trio actually made comments in the diner in an effort to “spoof” the lady, then yes, there could be some consequences. No mater their ethnicity, color, dress, age or what.
Just go back to the early days of plane hijackings and see if innocent jokesters were ignored for “joking” by getting on a plane and calling to a friend “Hi, Jack!” , or making joking references to “It’d be a nice day to visit Cuba,” etc.
So if Tim McVeigh and the Unabomber happened to be chatting in a diner about how they planned to blow up a building, it would be OK to ignore them because they were white?
Either everyone has to watch what they say for fear of “consequences”, or nobody does. There’s no cosmic law preventing people who don’t look Middle Eastern from committing acts of violence.
Regarding the three students “not cooperating with police”: If the cops pulled me over for absolutely no reason that I was aware of and asked if they could search my vehicle, I’d tell them no, too, even if the most incriminating thing I had in my vehicle was some gray mold growing on the inside of a Diet Snapple bottle.
As someone other than me said first, when 50-year-old golfers in plaid pants highjack planes and crash them into buildings, you can profile me all you want.
And let’s not forget that Mohammad Atta tried to get several hundred thousand dollars in a government loan to buy a crop dusting plane. During his interview with the bank officer, he offered money for the woman’s aerial photo of Washington, and threatened to kill her when she told him he couldn’t get the loan, and praised Osama as a great man.
For men who are supposed to be training to be doctors, they showed an incredible lack of judgment and intelligence. Would you care to put your lives in their hands in a hospital?
Take your endless ‘racist’ labeling and blow it out your ass. After Oklahoma City, white christian male ‘survivalist’ and ‘militia’ groups were given added scrutiny. Just like now, young arab muslim men are given added scrutiny. And when said young men are ‘joking’ about acts of terrorism, damn straight they will get all sorts of attention.
Where the scrutiny is pointed changes with the changing nature of the threat. ‘Racism’ has nothing to do with it.