This is all good.

OT via Instapundit

Wanted militant 'dead' in Pakistan blast
Police officials have said one of four people who died in a blast in the Pakistani city of Karachi is a leading militant involved in a number of terrorist acts.
[Link: news.bbc.co.uk...]

so what now? are they gunna keep them in jails, eating up taxpayers money, or are they going to ship them off?

I really, really do not understand why these people cannot be loud and idnignate in thier homelands.

You break the law, you pay the price...
Let's wait for another version of the story, please. I'm getting sick and tired of Reuters...

good FIRST step...

I'm tired of things like traffic tickets as arbitrary road usage taxes as being perfectly fine, but break an actual federal law, and now somehow that's unjust? Stupid.

Immigration scofflaws rounded up in California

This is the real story. Instead, Reuters see this story as hundreds of Muslims have been arrested in Soutghern California. Jeez, spinorama is in full bloom!

Please note, from the Reuters report, that these are all males "without permanent resident US status", i.e., not US citizens and not holders of green cards. Unless these people have very specific H-type visas, it is ILLEGAL for them to work in the US , even if they pay taxes. This is NOT the equivalent of the interment of Japanese-Americans who were mostly, if not all, US citizens. It sounds as if these people are overwhelmingly made up of those who are in violation of immigration laws and thus subject to deportation.

Nothing personal fellow bloggers, I've never been known as a proficient typist. Sorry about that last post; proof again that I'm having problems multi-tasking.

Maybe they’re being treated as criminals because they broke laws? Ya think?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHA!

As for whether terrorists would come in to register, dumb criminals are caught in stings like this all the time—and terrorists are nothing if not schtoopid.

Case in point: didn't the 9/11 hijackers use their real names when purchasing their tickets? (Of course, this leads to the caveat: the FBI is often schtoopider.)

fasterrr puleeezeee

They didn't break the law. Muslims are only subject to the Sharia, not the dhimmi's laws. Islam will eventually extend to the entire Earth, therefore they can stay wherever they want without regard for the local laws and customs.

Or at least, that's probably what they think.

Now, mind you, I don't have a problem with locking up these guys who came in and revealed themselves in violation of one law or another...

but this tactic, I would think, probably won't be effective much longer.

I can only lure my dog into the bathroom and then give her a bath a couple times - then she wises up.

I hope we got enough of 'em, or the ones we wanted, because I doubt anyone will fall for the, "naw...c'mon in and register - we're from the government and we're here to HELP" line again anytime soon.

I wonder how many of the "7,000,000" muslims in America are also immigration scofflaws. If so, send any and all of them home on the first available camel.

maybe i missed it, but of the 20 Middle East countries "listed" on the INS crackdown, I count only 18.

Oh, and did anybody notice that Saudi Arabia is not included on the Special Registration Procedures for Certain Nonimmigrants?

What other nations are missing?

[Link: www.ins.usdoj.gov...]

[Link: www.usdoj.gov...]

Send them all home, along with the protesters. Let them protest from their own country.

If they dont want to follow or laws and way of life, either go back to your thrid world country, or our jails.

#14 Good point, Abby.

I'm reminded of a ploy put together by Chicago police a number of years ago that was designed to round up people with outstanding warrants. A host of fugitives from justice were invited to a central meeting place under the guise of getting a tryout with the Chicago Cubs. Once they had all gathered, out came the handcuffs! You can bet any bail jumpers getting an invite from the Cubbies weren't about to show up after that, especially considering the media coverage it garnered.

I doubt this voluntary action has any longevity.

The ancient Greeks seemed to have a good system. Socrates was deemed to be incompatible with their society and so was given a choice. Exile or drink hemlock. He chose the hemlock mainly because he was such an incredible asshole.

I think each of these scumbag illegals should be given the same choice. Hell, we could even put the hemlock in a big mug with the word "martyr" across it. Maybe give it a squirt of ZamZam to make it all fizzy and delicious.

Can someone enlighten me why they were arrested. It is not clear from the news excerpt. If the INS is involved, then were they all illegal immigrants. However the news does not say that. What is the cause for the arrests after they came forward?

If they are in the US illegally or are out of status, then why the fuss?

"Terrorists most likely wouldn't come to the INS to register. It is really a bad way to go about it." [said by a representative of CAIR]

Great. This is a good way to rule out Arabs who are here for legitimate purposes and put the focus on those who are not. American Muslim organizations should welcome this opportunity.

"I think it is shocking what is happening. It is reminiscent of what happened in the past with the internment of Japanese Americans." [said by a representative of the ACLU]

Bullshit! As Charles pointed out, according to the INS, "those arrested had violated immigration laws, overstayed their visas, or were wanted for crimes."

If any detainees have not violated any laws, then they are certainly owed apologies. Otherwise, these arrests are completely appropriate.

the FeDs should give out Ramadan trip to Mecca "sweepstakes" and round up illegal muslimes. Just like the boat give away in the Simpsons.

i hate the LA times registration. i forgot my user name and password long ago... and cypherpunk doesn't seem to work anymore.

If they are here illegally, they aren't paying taxes anyway, are they? if they are, HOW? I thought you had to be at least a "resident alien" to get a social security number, which you have to have to pay taxes? I mean aside from the outrageous 8+% sales tax... (what is it now, last i was there, October 2K, it was 8.75% in LA)

It is clear from their spokeman's comments that CAIR really hasn't made any study at all of the major terrorist attacks by Islamic extremists in America, whether TWC in '93 or 9/11. They really don't have a clue how non-U.S. terrorists are able to enter the country legally (or with apparent legality, like "Visa Express") and only become illegal aliens after the passage of time. CAIR just doesn't seem interested in thinking about these issues at all.

A Prophecy for the New Year
by Michael Ledeen
The hardliners in Tehran have decided that their only chance of survival is a massive crackdown on all forms of dissidence, so they are first going to give the useless President Khatami an offer he can't refuse: Either quit, or submit. They will give the pathetic "reformers" the back of their hands, and then bring down an iron fist on the students, the teachers, the trade unions, and even the dissident mullahs. Sad to say, even more brave Iranians will be rounded up, clubbed into submission, or tortured to death.

This may — but only may — remove all illusions in Foggy Bottom and in the appeasement capitals of Western Europe, and finally put some spine in the still-silent human-rights and feminist gangs in the West, and confirm President Bush's many accurate statements about Iran, from the "Axis of Evil" onward. And I hope it will finally convince my government that we must not stand idly by as the Iranian regime gets ever stronger, and unleashes a new wave of terror against the West.

Faster, please. We're already very late.

# 23 -

You are absolutely right. If you are an illegal alien, you cannot legally work in the U.S. Therefore, your only source of legal income for taxes purposes is savings and investments. Wages and bonuses would be illegal income, which you would still need to report, but how are a practical matter could you without an employer providing a W-2 for your wages?

now this not to take sides, but if y'all want to engage seriously in the arguments that will ensue in the coming days it would be good to review a few facts

1. total numbers involved 700-1000 thus far far cry from WW2 internment
2. All detained are (as stated above) not citizens or green card holders - no mass round-up of muslims
3. At least some of those held are, apparently in technical violation of immigration laws, and are currently under appeal - a situation that in the past INS handled with a caseworker, and not arrest. At least some seem to be no threat to dissappear.
4. INS is certainly not going to deport these en masse - they will hold them till their cases are resolved, as appropriate.
5. Most of the detainees in LA seem to be Iranians - largely anti-fundamentalist exile community - perhaps not the best place to start
6. This does come at a time when there have been numerous arrests of in the US, France, Canada and Britain. Its been a while since theres been such a bunch of arrests in Western Countries.

On the surface it seems INS was enforcing its regs literally. It was doing so far more strictly than it usually has in the past - (how does it feel to get a ticket for going 67 in a 65 mph zone??) It was following the law and new policy, but may have been a bit heavy handed in how they did it. Maybe this is bureaucratic bumbling. Or maybe they are in a rush because the intell people have found something and they're really looking for a handful in a haystack, not the folks with minor visa problems (noting of course that the baddies often have visa problems) The great mass of people held will be released shortly and will be very pissed. (As will the deport em all crowd here) Some folks overseas will make much of this. Some of the people held will have legitamate gripes. Whether this is a blunder (why piss off Iranian exiles when we're hoping for Iran to have a revolution now??) or something very smart (Some bloke in gitmo squealed, and this is likely to catch somebody big, or at least to disrupt things enough to stop something big) is not something we will know for a while. It would be best in defending this quite possibly necessary action to acknowledge the inconvenience it may render to completely innocent people, and the POSSIBILITY that it may be a mistake, while making it quite clear that this is NOT persecution of muslims, and is an attempt to deal with real security problems in a way that does the least possible harm to civil liberties.

Look - this is basic inventory control. Verify what's on the shelf, then go looking for what's missing.

Translated into real world practice, the ones on the list that showed up are probably ok. The ones that didn't - go find 'em. It is now easier to arrest and hold them since they did not comply with the the law to come and register.

couple things:

1. this is unlike the Japanese case in that these folks will likely be deported not indefinitely detained. the INS could have simply issued a Notice to Appear. I suspect the service is detaining them as being risks of flight. each should get a bond hearing if they request it. again, a difference between this and the Japanese WWII case.

2. the observation that the registration requirement and the round up is only for nonimmigrants, that is it does not include US citizens or LPRs from the relevant countries is well taken

3. if they are violating their visas, it should, notice should, be difficult to declare this anything more than a police action

4. actually, nonimmigrants from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Armenia are subject to a registration requirement, just not the same one that required registering before Dec. 16, 2002. In fact, the requirement for these nationalities was announced in the federal register on Dec. 16, 2002. They must register between Jan. 13, 2003 and Feb 21, 2003.

5. technical correction, there are many more visa types than just H pursuant to which an alien can not be an LPR and still work in the country: J, L, TN, O, P, etc. (though H is probably the most common)

6. the point is well-taken that in light of this high profile story, attendance at the second registration might not be high. however, missing the registration is almost certainly a deportable offense, even if the alien is in status.

7. re-inforcing #6 above, I have it on (reasonably) good authority that (at least one) INS field office was ready to initiate removal proceedings immediately against anyone who showed to register late, even this Tuesday (Dec. 17, 2002) whether or not the alien was in status at the time.

#28 Well said, TakeFive. I like your inventory metaphor. This is exactly what I was getting at in #21.

This doesn't bother me in the least and, as Charles pointed out, they are already in violation (although THEY aren't going to see it that way). But I just hope they got enough of them. The problem is the real Islamabaddies won't come in because they KNOW they're going to be pinched.

As for Iran--I was afraid that would happen. I did not think a bunch of students would be able to stand up to the thugs that the Mullahs have on hire who's job it is to beat these kids into submission.

"If they are here illegally, they aren't paying taxes anyway, are they? if they are, HOW? I thought you had to be at least a "resident alien" to get a social security number, which you have to have to pay taxes?"

---

All you need to file taxes is a tax ID number, not a SS #. anyone earning "income" in the US is required to pay taxes, including those who work here illegally and those who earn income illegally (e.g. gambling profits where unlawful or income generated by selling drugs). many illegal aliens pay income taxes. The IRS considers its mission to be revenue collection, not immigration control or local law enforcement.

also, SS# are given out to far more people than just LPRs and citizens. Until fairly recently, they pretty much all looked the same. Now those given out to folks who arent authorized to work will have printed on them something like, "Not valid for employment without authorization" or some such.

well well well

[Link: abcnews.go.com...]

good point 28, i think youre right

Of course, now the ACLU is getting involved. These people broke the law! They voluntarily came here and voluntarily agreed to the laws set forth by the government. What is the problem? This mass roundup is not the best way to go about it, but something must be done. I think a one month (probably longer due to the ineptness of the INS) period for aliens to come forward and declare any possible violations. All cases will be looked at and judged accordingly. Then, after the grace period, ANYONE caught is simply deported. End of story. As for the "I pay my tax" argument some of them are trotting out... the legal system doesn't buy that one, trust me. Also for a shameless plug, I called the reaction to this action on Tuesday on my oh-so-humble site...

As a resident of SoCal, I say good-fucking-riddance.

Look at it from the INS's point of view. The stats will only say 2002, not December 2002. Sit at your desk and jerk off for 11 months, then go out and boost your numbers for the end of the year. I'll bet that there were months in 2002 that the INS didn't round up 50 from the suspect countries. Typical bureaucratic process, I bet, not the rousing victory of America that you'd like.

Give me an INS badge and I could grab 50 or so a day. There are THAT many illegals in the country. This is just showboating for year end.

Let's hope they don't ship them all over to Tijuana like
in Cheech Marin's fantastic "Born In East L.A."

I've seen it posted here and on other blogs that Saudi Arabia is still not on the list of nations that require special registration. This observation is usually made with a kind of smug self-satisfaction, such as,

Oh, and did anybody notice that Saudi Arabia is not included on the Special Registration Procedures for Certain Nonimmigrants?

I'm not sure where these people get their information from, but Saudi Arabia is most assuredly on that list. If you don't believe me, call the INS.

Most of the people who express happiness that these people are being deported do not understand how the INS works. Do you have any idea how many silly and beurocratic rules and regulations immigrants have to sift through to be "legal"? You need an attorney, and many of them cannot afford one. I bet if the INS decided they would require 'special registration' for, say, British immigrants, many of them would be deported as well. The INS has all of these rules that they haven't enforced for years, and now all of a sudden they want to enforce them but only on certain groups of people. Whether or not you like the results, that's not the way it's supposed to work.

Just like the boat give away in the Simpsons.

"Owww. My boating arm"

As someone who became a US citizen and had to deal with the inefficiencies of the INS for years, I have always wondered how illegal immigrants get "taxpayer" status.

What do they put on the SSN section of their 1040?

N/A ?

I'm not sure where these people get their information from, but Saudi
Arabia is most assuredly on that list. If you don't believe me, call the INS.

Saudi nationals were added later and did not face the same deadline. Strange, since most of the hijackers were from there.

Do you have any idea how
many silly and beurocratic rules and regulations immigrants have to sift
through to be "legal"? You need an attorney, and many of them cannot
afford one

My dirt poor 70-year-old non-english speaking mother-in-law and her high-school age daughter were able to figure it out and get permanent residency cards. All it took was about 3 years of due dilligence.

he
INS has all of these rules that they haven't enforced for years...

Maybe things changed, say after 9/11?

but only on certain groups of people..

See comment #1.

Damn - I just stepped on a troll. Now I'll never get this mess off my shoe!

matt, as an attorney, whose practice is probably 50% immigration law (much of which is deportation defense) Im sympathetic to your apparent position. However, I think this goes a bit far:

"The INS has all of these rules that they haven't enforced for years, and now all of a sudden they want to enforce them but only on certain groups of people. Whether or not you like the results, that's not the way it's supposed to work."

(1) to the extent the aliens are deported for violating their visas by, for instance, overstaying, or are deported for criminal convictions (even minor ones) this is nothing new. it's a large part of what the INS does.

(2) Based upon my own admittedly anecdotal experience, I'd have to disagree that only certain groups are being subject to enforcement of these rules. Ive seen it across the board. Off the top of my head, I can think of a Guatemalan, a Latvian, an El Salvadoran, a Honduran, a Mexican, a Polish client all in removal for overstaying their visa or illegal entry. Rather unusually, not one of them has a criminal conviction for which they could be deported. I dont even have a Muslim client in deportation right now. So at least in my experience, INS is not just going after Muslims.

(2) I dont think the "all of a sudden" argument is particularly persuasive. Sept 11, 2001 was a fairly dramatic event. What I mean is that - even if the Service had not enforced these rules before against anyone - there is a very rational and compelling reason for the INS to start aggressively enforcing them now.

I agree with you that folks are wrong who claim that Saudi Arabia is not on the mandatory registration list. I've also seen that lamented all over the blogosphere. But Ive known that it was coming for a while (via professional associations). The public announcement, however, was only yesterday. (I was wrong about the announcement date in my earlier post. My "memo from headquarters" said the public announcement was to be made on the 16th; it was, in fact, made on the 18th)

My point: its hard to blame folks who dont follow this stuff for a living for not knowing about the second round of mandatory registration, which includes Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and - most interestingly to me - Armenia. It was publically announced in the Federal Register just yesterday (and few sane folk check the FR on a daily basis).

To put "the Saudis arent required to register" story to rest, here's a link to the INS federal register notice, dated December 18, 2002:

[Link: www.ins.gov...]

Jim, point taken. Thanks for sharing your experiences. I don't think that the INS never enforced their rules before today, I just think they enforced them selectively. My attitude is, either they enforce them all the time or not at all. Enforcing the rules when it suits them politically is just not what a free country is about. By the way, I heard Armenia was just removed from the list. I can't imagine why it was ever there.

Takefive, I'd be willing to bet that if your grandmother had been from an 'unfriendly' country (like Iraq now), they could have found some reason to deport her. Maybe she missed a form somewhere or something. Most immigrants know that you can make a mistake here and there and still get through. I doubt, though, that these people in southern California were maliciously trying to evade the system. More likely they made a small error somewhere along the way.

An illegal immigrant can obtain what in govermentese is known as an "Individual Taxpayer Identification Number" or ITIN. This is what goes in the SS# box on the 1040. It be used for things like a SS# except you aren't taxed medicare or SS taxes like resident aliens and citizens are taxed. An interesting sidelight is that the 5th Amendment doesn't apply to tax laws, so that even if you obtained money by some form of crime, you must report it as taxable income(although you can deduct the recordkeeping part of the operation as one does with a legit business).

#38 - Jason Roth

Let's hope they don't ship them all over to Tijuana like
in Cheech Marin's fantastic "Born In East L.A."

Why not? After taking 9 million Mexican illegals over the years, the least they can do is take our illegal Muslims.

History lesson for those that think of the Japanese internment as the "American Holocaust" or something close to it.

The internees were Japanese w/o US citizenship or their born in the USA dependents. 40,000 had Japanese citizenship, 60,000 were their family dependents born in America. It is Constitutional to intern citizens of a country the US is at war with. We also interned German, Italian, enemy nationals and their US citizen children. They had better facilities than most poor Americans had. 6000 "hardcases" were confined to Tule...they were known amongst fellow Japanese internees as the "No-Nos" - "No" in refusing to sign a oath that they were willing to contribute to the US War effort, "No" in their refusal to renounce loyalty to the Emperor and Supreme Wartime Commander, Hirohito.

A majority were deported back to Japan after the war ended.

Currently, the history books say it is the biggest crime America was guilty of next to slavery...what could a few thousand enemy do loose in America.??? The history books were written before 9/11.

#46 Ranbutan

Another myth about the Japanese immigrants is that none ever did wrong or commit treason against the United States - wrong!

[Link: www.the-catbird-seat.net...]

for the record (feel free to ignore), the Dec 18 notice rescinded a provision of the Dec 16 notice which erroneously designated Armenia as an included nation. Armenia is not included, just Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

I cannot understand how these liberals still accuse the Bush Administration of being anti-environment.

By kicking out this Arab trash, he is keeping our streets clean and helping the whole country smell a little better.

These have to be either the stupidest damned Arabs or some of the smartest. Either they are so dumb they don't realize that they are enemy nationals from a society that has declared war on us - and must know that there will be a price to be paid (couldn't they just go to Europe - they've already taken that place over)...or these Arabs are smart enough to know that our political correctness would stop us from doing anything.

If one L.A. cop would go Rodney King on just one of these Arab pieces of crap, they would all scatter from our country like roaches when you turn the lights on.

Japanese immigrants weren't allowed to naturalize until after World War II. Many of the internees would have been U.S. citizens if not for the anti-Asian laws. U.S. citizens of Japanese ancestry -- adults or children -- were subject to internment if they lived on the West coast. So it wasn't just an enemy alien thing.

I see no parallel with the current situation. All those locked up are charged with violating our laws. Probably none are terrorists, but we do have a right to enforce the laws.

My problem with this comes down to two issues:

1. This sounds like selective enforcement. I hope everybody can figure out why that is a bad thing.

2. This will work exactly once and this was it. The INS should expect (and will get) zero cooperation from any immigrant communities in the future.

The activists are yelling "What next, concentration camps?" Do these people have a problem with criminals being arrested!? Well, yeah, obviously.

I bet they don't have a demonstration permit.

#51

I agree. America needs to do it properly, ie, ALL illegal aliens out. If you're in the country legally, working with a green card, etc, fine. If not...

Selective enforcement, this is, but it reflects the demographic of 99% of terrorism against the US in the last twenty-five years: Arab-Muslim males aged 17-45.

I understand the facts as presented so far, but no amount of rationalization can make me feel good about this one.

Strategically and public relations wise, this is a disaster.
Depending on the scope of truth in this, and initially it's all based on one report by a Reuters reporter who just finished covering the Winona shoplifting case, it looks horrible. Too many people want to believe stuff like this about America. Remember the outcry about Guantanamo. Those who've been lacking for ammunition in the rhetorical war just got armed to the teeth by the INS and Reuters.

The INS has never been a model of government competence. As this story plays out, which it will, heads should roll at INS. This level of perceived incompetence, bad press and bad community relations just can't be allowed to happen right now (and hopefully not ever again).

We need moderate muslims on our side, both citizens and those who want to become citizens. What kind of support can we expect if the popular understanding of this story becomes 'Muslims lured into trap and imprisoned'? That interpretation is already taking hold. America's strength is in our diversity, this drives a wedge against people whose help we desperately need.

I'm not sure why so many people(including FOX News) fail to understand what this is all about. This issue DOES NOT APPLY TO IMMIGRANTS. It applies to NON-IMMIGRANTS. An IMMIGRANT has a green card by definition. That's what a green card is. It is a documentation of IMMIGRANT status. These are all people who are here illegally or are non-immigrants here on non-immigrant visas.
Read the INS document for Saudi Arabian citizens. It specifically refers to NON-IMMIGRANTS.

It took a while to actually find any information about what was really going on, and truly, the information is sketchy at best.

Males that are natives from the countries listed that are not US Citizens or permenent resident aliens are required to be identified. Fairly simple. All of those arrested were for warrants or visa/immigration violations. Most of them are being released without bond, since it is mostly clerical issues on one party or another and bail is really low.

As for the INS, it like every government agency will have problems, there are the rare and really horrible cases, such was the one Bill O'Rielly was following, but for the most part, if a person actually tries, you can get the problem taken care of. Yeah, it can be a really big really annoying headache, but if you can't see it through, then maybe you should just leave the country anyway. No one has the 'right' to live in this country if they are not a born citizen, but we extend the privilage that they can come here and possibly become citizens.

Reminiscent of past actions we've supposedly moved beyond.

re: matt #44

Takefive, I'd be willing to bet that if your grandmother had been from an
'unfriendly' country (like Iraq now), they could have found some reason to
deport her. Maybe she missed a form somewhere or something.

The point I was making was that it can be done, in a reasonable amount of time, without special skills or piles of money.

Most of the whining I heard on TV was from people complaining about how they've been here 10 years, have kids, have a house, have job (or business), yet somehow could never get it together to settle their residency status.

Think about it. If you have kids, how irresponsible is that? It just was not that important to these people and now they are suffering the consequences.

thanks for the straightening up on ss#'s, employment and immigrant status. I'm no expert :) which is why i asked.

I'm a little late to this discussion, but let me just agree with Michael Farris and Joe Maller. Legally, this "sting" may very well be in the clear. From a political and pragmatic point of view, it was sheer undiluted asininity.

The government abused its credibility to capture some fairly innocuous folks. (If any real terrorists get caught in this operation, it will be purely due to their incompetence. The FBI and INS should be so lucky.) Not only will it not work again, but never will they be able to do things like conducting the "voluntary interviews" that were done shortly after 9/11. People are going to be too afraid to even go near a government building.

Whoever pulled this stunt ought to be publicly reprimanded, and possibly dismissed from his post. I'm all for capturing and deporting illegal aliens -- especially illegal aliens from the Middle East -- but surely our law enforcement agencies can come up with better ways to find and capture them. Please don't tell me that the only way such people can be captured is if they are dumb enough to walk themselves into INS custody.

agree with #59. Whether you agree with this action or not, it comes across really poorly. Sure, it only applies to non-immigrants -- but come on, how many people (especially those for whom English is not their first language), are going to understand those nuances when presented on the nightly news? If there was any chance of law-abiding Muslim Americans (legal immigrants or citizens) coming forward to share any information with the authorities, its gone now -- they'll be too scared to.

And I certainly hope (despite the hyperbole that we often hear) that people concede that the VAST majority of Muslim Americans (and Canadians) are decent, law-abiding people.

And #49 -- wow, you really are a smart one. And you even know how to use a KKKomputer!

Well apparently we've not been getting the whole picture.

Iranian Jews held in detention
as part of roundup across U.S.

By Tom Tugend
LOS ANGELES, Dec. 19 (JTA) — Los Angeles’ Iranian Jewish community is joining area Muslims in accusing the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service of mistreatment during a federally mandated registration of certain immigrants.

The Iranian Jews, together with a much larger number of Muslims from Iran, Iraq, Lybia, Sudan and Syria, were detained during a national registration process of those temporarily residing in the United States.

“We know of some Iranian-born Jews who are being held under subhuman conditions, even worse than those found in Third World countries,” said Sam Kermanian, the usually low-key secretary-general of the Iranian American Jewish Federation in Los Angeles.

Other human rights advocates compared the situation to the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II.

The registration, part of a U.S. attempt to track Middle Eastern men living in the United States, ended Monday.

Sources in the Iranian Jewish community said up to a dozen community members had been detained or arrested, though attorney Beck Saffary said he was trying to raise bail of $1,500 per person for 35 Iranian Jews.

There are some 30,000 Iranian Jews and more than 500,000 Iranian Muslims in Southern California. A large protest rally was held Wednesday afternoon, organized by a Farsi-language radio station.

Mainstream Iranian Jewish organizations did not participate, but a relatively unknown group, Persian Jews United, joined the protest.

Eight of the Jewish detainees apparently emigrated from Iran to Israel and later came to the United States, and many hold Israeli citizenship.

Zvi Vapni, the Israeli deputy consul general in Los Angeles, said he had received complaints of “very hard conditions,” perhaps due to overcrowding, and had conveyed the consulate’s concern to the INS.

A spokesman for the U.S. Department of Justice denied the charges of mistreatment.

Calling the charges “preposterous” and saying they weren’t backed by evidence, Jorge Martinez said the law mandates the detention of persons in the United States illegally.

With some 10,000 men required to register nationwide, Martinez said some detention rooms “may have been a little crowded,” but said any incidents “have been blown way out of proportion.”

Complaints had been received only in Los Angeles and Boston, Martinez said.

Bita Yaghoubian said that her uncle, a 45-year old businessman with a wife and two children, had reported to the downtown federal building because he had not yet completed the process to obtain a green card.

“He was arrested like a criminal,” Yaghoubian said. “They taped his wrists and ankles, put him in a room with the air conditioning way up, with no blankets or mattress.”

Yaghoubian also reported terrible sanitary conditions and very little food, which the uncle, who keeps kosher, declined.

Yaghoubian said her family put up the $1,500 bail on Monday, but the uncle still was being held on Wednesday.

Some fear that if any of the Jewish detainees are deported, they might be returned to their native Iran.

“I understand the need for vigilance, but they are jailing some people because they overstayed their visa for a few days maybe 20 years ago,” Kermanian said. “That’s not justified.”

Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), speaking from his Washington office, charged that “the INS has really messed up. They are using a sledgehammer approach and jeopardizing the goal of tracking visa holders.”

Waxman said he has protested to the INS, but had not yet received a response.

The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles also expressed its concern.
http://jta.org/page_view_story.asp?intarticleid=12 215&intcategoryid=4

#43:

Interesting that they added Call-in Group 3 for Citizens or Nationals of Pakistan or Saudi Arabia hours after I posted. (#16)

Let's see...where does Egypt fall amongst these Call-in Groups? Oh, I forgot we give them $2B/year so they can spit in our face.

Ciao for now.

Dash The Trash:

Anil Dash now deliberately cultivates this unkept look (and smell) that you can find on:

[Link: www.kiruba.com...]

in a recent interview with Anil the dashing Dash. OK you can't find the smell, but you should be thankful for that.

Then he cries "wolf " - oops, I mean "discrimination" - if nobody wants to sit next to him in an airplane or in a theatre in New York City.

The Interview itself is a bit slanted as it is published on the Weblog of an AllIndianWebMagazine of a sinlge young Indian freelance (read: unemployed) journalist who desperately tries to find a way to get into the US, while the interviewer is an AllIndian "Technology Expert" (read freelance Web Designer) who would like to find a way to stay here. Even at the cost of having to suck up to the likes of Dash The Trash and lick his shoes shiny day after day.

Notice that all Anil Dash could come up with to describe himself was "prominent Weblogger". Since 1999 no less.
Guys like him would sell this country for $5.50.

Net sum, not hourly rate, mind you.

So that's the problem with the system. Anything goes.

Oh I do apologize. Dash The Trash describes himself as prominent "blogger" not "Weblogger".

See, Webloggers generally are familiar with math and stats, while blogger are required only to broadcast on the World Wide Web (since 1999 in the case of Anil Dash) what they ate and how much they pooped every day. That's such an important activity that most of these Muslims and MuslimLookAlikes forgot what else they needed to do (e.g. fill out some forms to comply with U.S. law).

Jish Mukerij is yet another prominent AllAmericanIndian blogger who got interviewed by this ambitious RealIndian.
Go figure. They have quite a big network, if you did not know. Some of them taking over jobs which could be done by now-unemployed Americans.

[Link: www.kiruba.com...]

Jish.nu is one of those who milked 9/11 to his personal benefit. Jish.Nu was shedding fake blog teardrops to collect comments of sympathy while stationed safely in San Francisco. Allegedly somebody made a remark about his (MuslimLike?) looks on 9/12 and he had to leave withouth being able to fill his belly with rich breakfast as originally planned ... Quite a prominent Web stunt actually. While thousands of people were lost, India and United Bloggers of the World mourned the loss of breakfast for hypocritical Jish.Nu, another prominent blogger of Indian origin.

Here:

[Link: www.jish.nu...]

Jish.Nu had to survive without a rich breakfast until noon on 9/12, 2002 ... quite a tragedy in itself, isn't it?
Fortunately 257 comments from all over the world kept him alive.

Are you now surprised that hypocritical inhabitants of this land are asked to report and register?

"...according to the INS..."

Ya'll have a lot of faith in federal cops.

We are better than a lot of other countries because we have equality under the law.

Look, focus your rage elsewhere. The current administration ignored CIA warnings until the day the towers fell, but now we think their INS polices are fully competent?

We must demand that the federal cops do their jobs using real evidence to catch real terrorists.

I've met these guys face to face (and won). If they accuse *you* you are screwed. Innocent unless proven guilty - it's written down somewhere.