# Landmark photos a prerequisite to terrorism?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/landmark-photos-a-prerequisite-to-terrorism/116350>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [June 28, 2002, 9:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/landmark-photos-a-prerequisite-to-terrorism/116350 "2002-06-28T09:08:34Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\
**Post date:** [June 28, 2002, 9:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/landmark-photos-a-prerequisite-to-terrorism/116350/1 "2002-06-28T09:08:34Z")

</div>

[http://www.cnn.com/2002/US/06/28/us.iran/index.html](http://www.cnn.com/2002/US/06/28/us.iran/index.html)

I know we have a war on terror and all that, but seriously, you can’t consider someone a terrorist because they are taking photos of famous landmarks. That’s the whole reason a lot of people go to cities, is to see the landmarks.

Besides, what are they gonna get from taking pictures that they aren’t gonna get from buying the same photo at the gift shop?

Am I the only one who feels this is taking the security thing a bit too far?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Brutus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Brutus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brutus)\
**Post date:** [June 28, 2002, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/landmark-photos-a-prerequisite-to-terrorism/116350/2 "2002-06-28T09:17:49Z")

</div>

From my understanding, they were taking pictures of rather un-tourist things (very interested in the bottom of the Brooklyn Bridge, the entrances to the tunnels, etc.)

But I suspect that this is just an ‘open’ excuse to kick them out; We probably have intel from some other source that tipped us off to them. Can’t go leaking confidential sources now…

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\
**Post date:** [June 28, 2002, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/landmark-photos-a-prerequisite-to-terrorism/116350/3 "2002-06-28T12:45:50Z")

</div>

As it said, there were no plans to kick them out, in fact the article explicitly says the letter said it was “not inappropriate”, simply that US officials were worried, given the recent spate of terror attacks and the fact that Iran has not been our closest chum these past years.  
In any event, had you read the article you would have realized, Brute, that it said officials were _not_ planning to take any other action.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\
**Post date:** [June 29, 2002, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/landmark-photos-a-prerequisite-to-terrorism/116350/4 "2002-06-29T16:25:46Z")

</div>

> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Brutus \*  
> \*\*From my understanding, they were taking pictures of rather un-tourist things (very interested in the bottom of the Brooklyn Bridge, the entrances to the tunnels, etc.)  
> \*\*

Well, that’s a bit different. Kinda like if they were asking for building plans for no particulary good reason.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![JDM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/90db22/32.png) [@JDM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JDM)\
**Post date:** [June 30, 2002, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/landmark-photos-a-prerequisite-to-terrorism/116350/5 "2002-06-30T10:26:44Z")

</div>

Here are [Peggy Noonan’s](http://sixtiessurvivor.org/docs/noonan101901.html) thoughts on the subject. JDM