FBI Marks Almanacs as Terrorist Tools - January 12, 2004 Vol.5 No.1

January 12, 2004 Vol.5 No.1:

Published: 01/12/2004

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FBI Marks Almanacs as Terrorist Tools

Almanacs may assist potential terrorists in selecting targets and planning attacks, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The agency sent a message to roughly 18,000 law enforcement agencies on Dec. 24, 2003 urging police to keep alert of anyone carrying almanacs, especially if they contain notations. The alert did acknowledge almanacs could be used for legitimate reasons.

Almanacs like the Farmers’ and World Almanacs contain information like weather forecasts, fishing calendars and information about landmarks. Many almanacs have long histories and are widely read and circulated. Almanac staff expressed objections to the FBI’s categorization of the publications. Peter Geiger, editor of the Farmers’ Almanac stated, “Our almanac is about as far away as you can get from terrorism and about as close as you can get to what you would think of as American.” Echoing this thought, the senior editor of the World Almanac acknowledged that terrorists “certainly didn’t need the almanac to locate the twin towers.”

Civil liberty advocates also expressed concern, as this type of warning could prompt police harassment of individuals based on their reading habits.

Click here to read a related Dec. 29, 2003 Washington Post article.