A reader of my blog sent along the following article and his comments, which I use as a preamble.Another story like the one last week, on DHS harassing people who make unusual credit card payments. This source is much less reliable than the previous one. I hope they are both hoaxes, but I fear they are not.
My comments...
The other story referenced was widely circulated on blogs from an article on PrisonPlanet, March 3rd: "Protecting America From Terrorists Who Pay Bills." It is the story of a Walter Soehnge who came "under the microscope of big brother when he attempted to level on his JCPenney Platinum MasterCard." Homeland Security allegedly froze the transaction because "any amount that is a certain percentage higher than the usual monthly payment automatically triggers a Homeland Security investigation."
I consciously passed on posting the Soehnge story on my blog a few days ago because I wondered if it was a hoax. The proximate source of the story was part of the problem -- that is, I did not entirely trust the source -- and I wondered why the item had not been picked up independently by mainstream media or by a local newspaper in Rhode Island.
The Internet is a Web of lies as well as of insight and truth. And I sense a theme of reverse hysteria running through many posts, many sites. By reverse hysteria I mean a willingness to believe anything awful about the government and Homeland Security, to credit any and all accounts of their brutality and totalitarianism. I am an anarchist and I'm quite willing to believe that Homeland Security not only froze Soehnge's money but that they also shot his dog and stole his family Bible in the process. But I'd like evidence before I get stirred up and have my emotions used by those who may be planting stories for fun or political profit.
So I felt impelled to do a bit more digging on the Soehnge story and it looks legit. The account was first published in a local newspaper The Providence Journal (R.I.) Feb 24, 2006. pg. B.01. The article was entitled "Pay too much and you could raise the alarm" and written by reporter Bob Kerr, a regular with ProJo.
Heartened by success, I tried to track down the second story: namely, that an "Edie Booth, a community college professor in East Texas" went through an ordeal similar to that of Soehnge. The long and short of my research...I'm willing to bet its a hoax.
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