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Tuesday 31 January 2012

What is wrong with Homeland security?

At the risk of never been granted a visa to enter the United States I had to ask the question after seeing this story in the news yesterday. How stupid are the American security services? For those of you who didn't see this in the news yesterday, please keep reading, you won't believe it!
Two friends recently travelling to LA were barred from entering the country after a couple of innocent tweets, (messages posted on the social network site Twitter), to each other about their upcoming holiday.

The one person had tweeted....
" Free this week, for quick gossip/prep before I go and destroy America"
He had also said.....
"3 weeks today, we're totally in LA p*ssing people off on Hollywood Blvd and diggin' Marilyn Monroe up"
The first tweet using the term destroy was obviously slang for party and the second tweet was a quote from American TV show Family Guy.

However using the terms America and destroy online in the same sentence had obviously flagged up on someones computer and when the pair arrived in the States they were taken into custody by Homeland security.
They then had to go through five hours of interrogations and being locked up for twelve hours before being sent straight back home.
Although they had tried to explain that destroy was British slang for party one Homeland Security officer commented
"You've really f***ed up with that tweet, boy"
Nice!

What I find particular funny about this story isn't even that they were arrested, I'd expect nothing less from Americas finest, (hmmmm), or the fact that they were held on suspicion of 'committing crimes', but the fact that they were searching their bags for the spades they were planning to use to dig up Marylin Monroe, completely ignoring the fact that she was cremated! You'd think the Americans would know that.

I suppose an argument could be made that they should of known better before travelling to America and should of been a bit more sensible about what they tweeted but you'd only think that if  you first assumed all American security agents are a little bit , erm, (what's a polite word for mental), shall we say lacking in common sense.

And the moral of the story?
If you're travelling to America any time soon don't tell anyone you're planning on destroying it - The immigration officers won't find it funny.

Happy cruising

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