This reminded me of something a friend told me 2 weeks ago, which I had totally forgotten about. He was at a local gas station filling up and noticed a very dirty, mud covered pickup truck doing the same thing. Now in the rural area I live in, muddy pickups are not unusual.
What was unusual about this was the appearance of the driver and passenger. 30something Mid Eastern looking men in IMMACULATE clothing all the way to starched white shirts. He got that same cold stare that Ms. Noonan describes - around here that is not a common occurence.
He called the local FBI office the next morning and they were very interested in what he had to tell them.
It's not paranoia, we ARE living in a different world these days.