Thousands of foreign student pilots have been able to enroll and obtain pilot licenses from U.S. flight schools, despite tough laws passed in the wake of the 9/ll attacks, according to internal government documents obtained by ABC News.
"Some of the very same conditions that allowed the 9-11 tragedy to happen in the first place are still very much in existence today," wrote one regional security official to his boss at the TSA, the Transportation Security Administration. "Thousands of aliens, some of whom may very well pose a threat to this country, are taking flight lessons, being granted FAA certifications and are flying planes," wrote the TSA official, Richard A. Horn, in 2005, complaining that the students did not have the proper visas.
Under the new laws, American flight schools are only supposed to provide pilot training to foreign students who have been given a background check by the TSA and have a specific type of visa. But in thousands of cases that has not happened, according to the documents and current and former government officials involved in the program. "TSA's enforcement is basically nonexistent," said former FAA inspector Bill McNease, in an interview for ABC News' "World News With Charles Gibson."
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http://abcnews.go.com/print?id=4353991
Undercover Auburn police detectives bought a live hand grenade (TACOMA, Wash.)
February 28, 2008
Undercover Auburn police detectives bought a live hand grenade, 17 blasting caps, and tear gas from three Pierce County men. The three men were jailed Tuesday in Tacoma for investigation of possessing explosives without a license. Investigators are trying to trace where the grenade came from.
Sgt. Scott Near said the officers took some risks to gain control of the explosives. The detectives were assisted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
http://www.kirotv.com/news/15437382/detail.html
Banning police investigate suspicious bomb discussions (California)
02/28/2008
BANNING - An anonymous tip led police to a business Thursday afternoon where the caller said he believed a bomb had been hidden. Banning police were notified of the bomb by Palm Springs police, who heard the tip on an anonymous tip line.
The caller was was inside a Palm Springs store when he heard two men talking about a bomb they had placed in the Ace Colors/Remax building at 515 W. Ramsey Street in Banning, according to a Banning police news release. Officers and a K-9 searched the building but no suspicious devices were found.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Members of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department's bomb squad were sent to a Goodwill store on Albermarle Road Wednesday afternoon after a tear gas grenade was discovered by an employee inside a donation bin.
"As soon as he walked in with it, I knew immediately, 'okay, yes, he's got a grenade, am I going to have to evacuate this building," said assistant manager Craig Warner who spent several years in the air force and was trained to recognize hazardous materials.
Warner said he checked to grenade to make sure it was safe before calling police. "The pin was still in the handle, so it was completely safe," said Warner. "I didn't smell anything leaking out." Police couldn't determine who the grenade belonged to.
http://www.wsoctv.com/news/15441692/detail.html
KC police checking out suspicious package (Missouri)
Thu, Feb. 28, 2008
Kansas City police are inspecting a suspicious package found in the middle of the street near 24th Street and Topping Avenue this morning.
Police were alerted to a box containing wires and batteries about 10 a.m. Officers requested the bomb squad and a bomb robot. Police said they did not receive any threats associated with the package. Police reopened Topping about 11:35 a.m. but kept 24th Street closed.
http://www.kansascity.com/news/breaking_news/story/509530.html
Borders wide open, TSA inept (checking our soft drinks and coffee while pilot training for foreigners is unchallenged by the feds), post 9/11. Expectatations of citizens are apparently on the back burner or unimportant to those entrusted with our safety and security. Meanwhile baseball ethics surpass national security in most politicians' realm of importance. Unreal!
Air plotters have no USA links
Snippets: Brighton - American intelligence officials have said the men accused of trying to blow up several airliners bound for the US had no obvious links to support networks in the United States but warned the greatest threat may be lurking within the United States.
"We were very hungry for information that could link them (the alleged airline plotters) to support networks in the US," Billy said at Britain's first national counterterrorism conference. "We did not see it ... Does that mean they don't exist? I'm not so sure of that."