# When racial profiling pays off. **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [June 5, 2007, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884 "2007-06-05T19:13:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Phlosphr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Phlosphr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phlosphr)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/1 "2007-06-05T19:13:27Z")
I live in an area where we have a very large naval base, a large submarine building facility and a nuclear power facility all within 5 miles of one another. A close friend of mine was sitting on a nice beach close to the nuclear power plant, she was enjoying the sun and playing with her 2 kids. She noticed three men [seemingly of arab decent] photographing, and watching the plant from different angles along a not so conspicuous side of the rocky coastline adjacent to the beach. [I know it’s weird to have a beach near a nuclear facility but hey, the facility came in when the beach had already been there for 40 years.] Anyway, she returned home and decided to phone the FBI tip line. Here is what happened: She explained to the person on the other end of the phone what had happened. She got the license plate of the car the people had and gave it to them. They asked her for a general description and said they would get back to her if they needed more info. A week goes by and she gets a call from the FBI, they called to give her a heads up on what they found.\* They told her that the men were from Spain, and they were making a movie near the beach and they were getting light samples and other info…When my friend thanked the FBI person on the other end of the phone for the courtesy call back, the response was interesting: They said that she lived in a red zone, a zone more likely to be targeted, and every single call from this zone must be investigated. Bar none. I thought that was pretty cool. However, I couldn’t help but thinking that my friend was racially profiling the men because of their skin tone, and subsequent behaviour close to a nuclear power plant. Was she wrong? Would you have done the same? - that is pretty interesting as I thought the FBI had a reputation for being sort of curt in this sort of situation. Certainly a return phone call would have made me quite pleased. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/2 "2007-06-05T19:19:02Z")
Did she notice the men because of their behavior and location of the behavior, or did she notice the men because of their behavior, the location of the behavior, and their _apparent racial makeup_? ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/3 "2007-06-05T19:20:11Z")
[QUOTE=Phlosphr] I couldn’t help but thinking that my friend was racially profiling the men because of their skin tone, and subsequent behaviour close to a nuclear power plant. [/QUOTE] I think Carlos Mencia is spot on with this sort of thing. You _should_ worry about the Arab men taking pictures of the Nuclear Power Plant from the isolated spot. If it was a 90 year old Hispanic woman, I wouldn’t give it a second thought. Elderly Hispanic Women aren’t trying to blow up America. The people who are, are Arabs. (That being said, if there were three white guys up there acting similarly, I might seriously consider calling that in too.) ---
**Author:** ![Mosier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ea924/32.png) [@Mosier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mosier)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/4 "2007-06-05T19:21:45Z")
I think it would have been irresponsible not to call, whether it’s racial profiling or not. ---
**Author:** ![Wee\_Bairn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90db22/32.png) [@Wee\_Bairn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wee_Bairn)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/5 "2007-06-05T19:27:18Z")
[QUOTE=Mosier] I think it would have been irresponsible not to call, whether it’s racial profiling or not. [/QUOTE] Agree- what if she did not call for that reason, and those guys did in fact blow it up? ---
**Author:** ![Gundam\_Cricket](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@Gundam\_Cricket](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gundam_Cricket)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/6 "2007-06-05T19:28:35Z")
[QUOTE=Mosier] I think it would have been irresponsible not to call, whether it’s racial profiling or not. [/QUOTE] with the situation as described, I’d agree. If it were just three Arabic gentlemen in swimming/beach clothes chatting and taking pictures of everything that would be a different story. Profiling (racial and otherwise) is just a tool. If used responsibly it can yield positive results, but if abused it can be disastrous. I’ve always used the xample of a man beating someone with a baseball bat; it’s not the bat that should be punished, but rather the person abusing it. ---
**Author:** ![Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bc8723/32.png) [@Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/7 "2007-06-05T19:40:21Z")
And that’s assuming the cover story that the suspects said was true — and that the FBI told her the truth too. ---
**Author:** ![Mosier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ea924/32.png) [@Mosier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mosier)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/8 "2007-06-05T19:43:08Z")
[QUOTE=Fish] And that’s assuming the cover story that the suspects said was true — and that the FBI told her the truth too. [/QUOTE] I don’t think the FBI would have called her back if it had turned up a terrorist plot, unless they needed her as a witness. ---
**Author:** ![Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bc8723/32.png) [@Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/9 "2007-06-05T19:49:16Z")
I don’t think they would have called her back at all, frankly. ---
**Author:** ![FatBaldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecd19e/32.png) [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/10 "2007-06-05T19:49:54Z")
[QUOTE=Phlosphr] I know it’s weird to have a beach near a nuclear facility but hey, the facility came in when the beach had already been there for 40 years. [/QUOTE] [slight hijack] Unless there’s been some major geologic activity I’m not aware of, I suspect that the beach has been there a lot longer than 40 years. [/slight hijack] ---
**Author:** ![Phlosphr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Phlosphr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phlosphr)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/11 "2007-06-05T19:54:31Z")
I’ll try and post a google map of the area. Try [this](http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=millstone+point,+ct&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=33.214763,59.238281&ie=UTF8&ll=41.305924,-72.152367&spn=0.030755,0.05785&t=k&z=14&om=1) link. Millstone is on the left, the beach is right there across the cove on the right. If you zoom out, the Thames river is on the right and the Navy base is right there [north of the bridge] , and Electric Boat is also right there near the mouth of the river. And yes, the beach has been there longer than 40 years… 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Phlosphr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Phlosphr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phlosphr)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/12 "2007-06-05T19:55:42Z")
[QUOTE=Fish] I don’t think they would have called her back at all, frankly. [/QUOTE] I was very surprised at that as well. ---
**Author:** ![Wee\_Bairn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90db22/32.png) [@Wee\_Bairn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wee_Bairn)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/13 "2007-06-05T20:46:47Z")
[QUOTE=Phlosphr] I was very surprised at that as well. [/QUOTE] This is the newer, nicer, more user-friendly FBI we’ve been hearing about. ---
**Author:** ![Jayrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Jayrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayrot)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/14 "2007-06-05T20:50:35Z")
The Fun Bureau of Investigations? ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/15 "2007-06-05T20:53:40Z")
[QUOTE=FatBaldGuy] [slight hijack] Unless there’s been some major geologic activity I’m not aware of, I suspect that the beach has been there a lot longer than 40 years. [/slight hijack] [/QUOTE] Other things than major geologic activity can cause a beach to build up within 40 years: putting an artificial breakwater in the right place will do it too. ---
**Author:** ![Sunrazor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sunrazor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunrazor)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/16 "2007-06-05T20:53:43Z")
Honestly? Grandma, teenage girl, middle-aged man – anybody photographing a nuke plant from a beach needs to be reported to the FBI. Seriously, what vacationer wants photos of a nuclear power plant in their snapshots? ---
**Author:** ![Phlosphr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Phlosphr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phlosphr)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/17 "2007-06-05T20:54:37Z")
[QUOTE=Wee Bairn] This is the newer, nicer, more user-friendly FBI we’ve been hearing about. [/QUOTE] Could be. My eyes opened a little wider to the Federal Bureau of Intimidation. ---
**Author:** ![Phlosphr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Phlosphr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phlosphr)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/18 "2007-06-05T20:56:11Z")
[QUOTE=Sunrazor] \ Seriously, what vacationer wants photos of a nuclear power plant in their snapshots? [/QUOTE] Good point, non that I can think of… It’d go like this: "_Hey Honey, isn’t that sunset over reactor three, the most beautiful thing you have ever seen?_ ---
**Author:** ![Szlater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@Szlater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Szlater)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/19 "2007-06-05T21:08:07Z")
[QUOTE=Sunrazor] Seriously, what vacationer wants photos of a nuclear power plant in their snapshots? [/QUOTE] [Lots of people](http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=dungeness+power+station). The area around Dungeness nuclear power station is pretty beautiful in an industrial sort of way. ---
**Author:** ![Menocchio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de053/32.png) [@Menocchio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Menocchio)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2007, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884/20 "2007-06-05T21:19:43Z")
My dad was a nuclear engineer. He would have gotten snapshots of nuclear plants if he was near one. In fact, he had tons of pictures of plants around. I inherited a paticularly beautiful shot he took of some spent fuel rods (I think) showing off Cherenkov radiation. I used to play on the grounds of one (not in the plant itself, on the nature trail surrounding it). I see absolutely nothing odd or sinister about taking interest in a power plant from a distance. They’re fascinating things. Not only would I not have reported it, I wouldn’t have noticed it. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-racial-profiling-pays-off/406884.md?page=2)