[meia]

Three of the four main elements of this story have now been proven false. The story of a fake license plate was wrong. The story of explosives in the cars was wrong. And now the story of them "Blowing past the the toll booth" without paying has been proven wrong. The only element which remains is the story of what really happened in the Shoney's. Will the 3 Muslim mens story turn out to be true or will Eunuice Stone's version of events ultimately be proven correct? Or will we never know? What is true though, is that the police have had to do some serious backtracking on this event so far. Why did they release all of this info without checking it out first?

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Why did they release all of this info without checking it out first?

Let me see... 9/11 was the FBI's fault because they didn't check out terrorism leads that they had. Now the Florida highway patrol is at fault for checking out terrorism leads that they had.

What's wrong with this picture?

[joesnuffy]

There were no middle eastern looking men with Timmy M in OK City either....

[DWPittelli]

Obviously the only way to know whose version of the Shoney's story is accurate is if someone recants, and possibly not even then, given all the pressures on both sides.

[Shermy]

"Three of the four main elements"

Your premise - these are "main" elements. Why are they "main" elements?

Did Ms. Stone have a connection to these? No. Tearing down straw man arguments have no relation to her.

BTW, did anyone say explosives were actually in the car? Cops still say that explosives could have been in the car in the past.

[woofie]

This story should also be balanced with the arrest of 6 AlQaeda in Buffalo. However, it is hard for me to believe Eunuice Stone's story is not true ....If she turned these guys in on anything less than their talking about 9/13 shame on her ...if however they were getting even with her for starring at them by mouthing off (which I think is most likely) ....shame on them

[syriacus]

The only element which remains is the story of what really happened in the Shoney's.

We have yet to learn if Eunice told the truth when she said she overheard them talk about heading to Miami.

We have yet to learn whether it is true the students actually told the police it was a prank or whether it is true they told the police they didn't say anything at all (that could be construed as talking about terrorism).

Also, if the 3 young men are so concerned about "truth" why did they smear Eunice by calling her a liar?

• She said they might have been joking, giving them the benefit of the doubt (or so it seemed).
• They said she deliberately lied out of prejudice.

She was accused of eavesdropping in a public place.

If she were nosily eavesdropping (as the students claimed) you'd think she would not have misunderstood what they were saying.

Finally: What is wrong about listening to a nearby conversation in a restaurant? I'm sure screenwriters and other authors do it all the time.

[anymouse]

Two different bomb dogs did react to their cars, so it is specious to say that this lead was proven false. You have no credible evidence to disprove Ms. Stone's account of what she overheard them saying. It would be nice to have a second witness, but her story has remained the same every time she has been interviewed. The same cannot be said about the three suspects. And not once have these suspects publically explained what they were doing between that Georgia Shoney's and when they were apprehended in South Florida. They had a whole day to get rid of (deliver or utilize) whatever those dogs reacted to.

I wonder if anyone thought to take those dogs up to FSU in Tampa and see if they regained the trail of those explosives in that hot bed of islamo-fascist activity?

[LaGrone]

I do wish the News Stations (including Fox) would quit reporting heresay as fact; as in regard to the license plate and toll booth in this story. If one News Station reports a rumor, they all pick it up and report it. They should independently verify the reports before putting it before the public. This is how reputations get ruined; can you say Richard Jewell and more than likely Hatfill?

I still believe Eunice Stone's story is true. If it isn't my faith in a lot of things will slide further. Her story can still be true even though the original license plate story and toll booth story are not.

[crazykatz]

How IS our resident muslimb apologist doing today???? Up to the usual "off-handed" support for your buddies, I see!!

[A CA Guy]

Eunice had the witness of her son.
She also challenged these three men to have them all take lie detector tests and they ran-for-the-hills.

[Consort]

Anything to make Jeb Bush look bad.

[cebadams]

I've said this before but it bares repeating -- The call Eunice made must have been recorded. Where is the transcript? That would clear up all this. What did she report? What tone of voice did she use? etc.

It's entirely likely that both sides of these stories 100% true -- Eunice reported what she thought she heard and the police acted on it (maybe overreacted).

[dighton]

Three Down. One To Go. Will Eunice Stones Story Be The Next to be proven false?

Original headline: Collier Sheriff's Office voids ticket given to medical student

[js1138]

Three of the four main elements of this story have now been proven false. The story of a fake license plate was wrong. The story of explosives in the cars was wrong. And now the story of them "Blowing past the the toll booth" without paying has been proven wrong.

You are so eager.

There was no conspiracy in the initial reporting of the license plate. Clerical error. The explosives question is up in the air. The students themselves said that one of the cars went through without paying. Under the circumstances, it was reasonable for everyone to be nervous. The students confirmed a major element in Eunice's statement.

They are not going to take a polygraph about the other part.

[Mr. Bird]

Why the big hangup with finding out that some of the crap you heard on the news was false?

It is likely the three morons said something. It is also likely they weren't the most cooperative people in the world when they were stopped, or their lawyers would be counting the cash right now.

In my opinion, the lack of foam-mouthed attorneys is the most incriminating item in this whole affair.

[Saundra Duffy]

Eunice Stone was telling the truth. The students were playing a joke which backfired and now they're lying to cover their butts. That's my take on it.

[Political Junkie Too]

If these guys had made this joke at an airport restaurant, they'd be in deep trouble right now. They're lucky they did it at a roadside restaurant, but they also did it when we just elevated the national security alert to level 4.

-PJ

[Nephi]

Three issues may have arisen in connection with three suspicious swarthy males, but when scrutinized further, the issues were expained in their favor.

So?

The wrong plate is the fault of the bureaucracy of the motor vehicle department. Not Eunice's fault.

The report of the first car running the toll booth was because the toll operator was so nervous when she realized this was the car police were looking for. She got so nervous she forgot that they had paid. Not Eunice's fault.

The dog marking on the scent was the mistake of the dog, or a misread by its handler. Again, not Eunice's fault. Although, I'm sure Eunice is quite well connected, I doubt she enlisted the help of the toll booth operator, K-9 squad and DMV to harass these guys.

So, the media reported the facts accurately in real time, but it turned out well for the towelheads. Good for them. I still believe Eunice and I believe she did the right thing - she exhibited the Paula Jones syndrome of acting immediately, not ten years after the fact.

Thankfully, Gov. Bush has publicly praised her. Now, where is the head of homeland security? Tom Ridge, didn't Eunice do exactly what you want all citizens to do?

[syriacus]

You know, the wording the student used, about Eunice adding a little "Salt and pepper" to her story, struck me as a little unusual (but of course, I am a mere provincial American who has never travelled to the Middle East).

A google search shows that "salt and pepper does seem to be a phrase that Jordanians use to describe an aspect in a situation as well as ingredients in a recipe.

From the Jordan Times

AMMAN — Moderates won a landslide victory in the Islamic Action Front's Shura Council elections, sweeping 80 per cent of the seats. Islamist sources said on Saturday that this unprecedented win is certain to bring about a reversal of the IAF's boycott of legislative elections...

The IAF, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood, usually maintains a tight lid as to the number of eligible voters and those who cast their ballots. Independent sources, however, put the number of IAF members at roughly 3,000.... The party is regarded as the most influential political grouping in Jordan out of 27 registered parties.

“I believe the Islamists will participate. Although the next parliament is expected to be apolitical, the inclusion of Islamists will give it a pinch of salt and pepper,” said former Prime Minister Taher Masri.

[ Taher Masri, a former prime minister of Jordan and currently the country's representative to the Arab League,]

[paulklenk]

Regarding the three elements which have proved false, how many originated with Stone?