Police everywhere in duluth WTF

There was a police officer in the lobby of my hotel on canal point, and an oficer in the lobby of Grandma's restaraunt/bar.

In the cold war, reportedly, duluth was number seven on the list of probable nuclear targets.

Any ideas?

Maybe he decided to take the bus on up to Duluth too?

They want to get rid of St Ives?

a major Harbor and really feeds the northern part of the country's manufacturing sector with raw materials and such.

you're tall.

It was a huge thrill from me to meet the next president. Yeah, I'm 6'1", i'm not sure how tall senator Kerry is?

BOB DYLAN!

the title and setting for one of Gore Vidal's most bizarre novels.

"Duluth! Love it or loathe it, you can never leave it or lose it."

i'd never heard of it before!

...and moved to Hibbing at a young age.

I know! yes..lol.

that is why Duluth is Duluth.

RC

I would expect Mall of America to be crawling in police, but not Duluth. When you find out what's up, post it.

I think Duluth is the prettiest city in Minnesota, especially at night.

I know it sounds like a weird comparison, but Duluth has lots of rolling hills overlooking the bay, old victorian houses, and a definite bohemian / artsy vibe that you usually don't find in a city of that size.

My rightwing friend has always said that his hometown (Erie, PA) was a target too. I'm just curious as to where these ideas come from. I did a Snopes search and couldn't find anything.

that all Great Lakes ports would be Cold War targets. Incredible amounts of ore and other things are transported over the Lakes, and they would be targetted as much as blue water ports.

Why a terrorist would give a shit about them, though, is another question.

I'm originally from the Pittsburgh area. Lots of coal and ore mined, produced, and transported there. I don't recall ever hearing any rumors about it being a "target". I think that crap like this from back then is comparable to what Fox News is today, keeping Joe and Jane six-pack in fear. There's just something about statements like this that reek of urban legend to me. It's kind of like how everyone has a Chinese restaurant in their town that was shut down for serving cat/rat/bat/Martian.

Very close to Johnstown, actually. We were told then that Johnstown and Pittsburgh were THE prime targets for nuclear attack, because of the huge steel industry, and how damaging it would be to any war effort. This was in the early 70's, before all the mills started to shut down.

which kind of makes sense.

Obviously, the Soviets didn't give us a list of their targets, but the Pentagon was busily figuring out where those thousands of warheads would likely be aimed at, and major industrial and transport areas would be high on anyone's list.

I grew up in NYC, which would probably be targeted, and we had those stupid drills which ended up with "...stick your head between your knees and kiss your ass goodbye."

Some places took this sort of thing more seriously than others.

Now, I guess we can safely assume the Russians aren't too interested in throwing nukes our way, so its terrorists we have be live in fear of.

That your average terrorist organization doesn't have thousands of warheads on ballistic missiles aimed at us is irrelevant. We must live in constant fear that they could strike at any place, at any time.

Personally, I live in fear for my life when driving on Route 4 through Paramus. Now, that's terror.

The number two target on the Russians' strike list. Woo hoo!!

Some chatter picked up, about Duluth? Over-zealous local police force?

Any kind of Bear!

Then putting a lot of police in it before an attack wouldn't do that much to help...

To back up my rememberance about Duluth being high on USSR's target list. Sure were tons of police there, though. Also, a border patrol convention staying at the Radisson.

Posted on Sun, May. 02, 2004

Hmong leader in Calif. may be target of violence in Minnesota

Associated Press

ST. PAUL - Authorities are looking for connections among a spate of violent incidents directed against local Hmong leaders affiliated with Gen. Vang Pao, a California resident regarded as the most influential Hmong leader in the United States.

The incidents include a firebombing at the suburban St. Paul home of the general's son, a drive-by shooting at the home of his translator, a suspicious fire at a St. Paul social service agency the general founded, and a reported hit list that includes a veteran St. Paul police officer.

Star Tribune of Minneapolis in its Sunday editions. Rumors are swirling about what's behind the violence, which the Star Tribune of Minneapolis reported in its Sunday editions. Popular theories include communist agents, political divisions or the opening shots in a war of succession in the Hmong community.

"I believe there is something going on in a more general way," said Steve Young, former dean of the Hamline University law school and a close adviser to Vang, who lives outside Los Angeles. "These are not isolated incidents. Somebody is doing something."

http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/news/politics/8574361.htm

maybe?

It's 150 miles north of the Twin Cities.

Just a hunch.

gen. vang pao is a liar
Base: military
Re: My war too (Rose)
Re: WHAT YOU DON'T KNOW (your own people)
Re: i think... (kasey)
Re: General VANG PAO>>>??? (Alexis)
Date: Wed, 10 Sep 2003 00:01:18 GMT
From: yang_racers@yahoo.com (unknown yang)

vang pao is a liar who don't care about no one but himself. lets just face it, he is hmong and hmong men are are full of it. it was because of him lying to our parents in Laos that led to the death of over 108,000 hmong peoples. Two of thos people were my brothers. My dad lost his whole family and everyone else he cares for. General "coward" is not helping the hmongs in the usa neither the ones back home. he uses all the money he gets on gambling and the us lets him have 8 wives just because he was a dog to the americans who brainwashed the HMONGS to actually take part in th war just to die for the americans. A "TRUE LEADER" survives with all his people or die trying.

http://knossos.shu.edu/HyperNewsV/get/vp/military/66/4/16/1/2.html


US WI: Sen. George Asks UW For Probe On Vang Pao

URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n809/a09.html
Newshawk: Drug Policy Forum of Wisconsin www.drugsense.org/dpfwi/
Votes: 0
Pubdate: Sat, 27 Apr 2002
Source: Capital Times, The (WI)
Copyright: 2002 The Capital Times
Contact: tctvoice@madison.com
Website: http://www.captimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/73
Author: Pat Schneider


SEN. GEORGE ASKS UW FOR PROBE ON VANG PAO

State Sen. Gary George is calling on UW-Madison Chancellor John Wiley to order an investigation into allegations by a UW-Madison professor that the commander of the CIA's secret army in the Vietnam War - now a leader of refugee Hmong in the United States - engaged in drug trafficking in Laos.

The allegations, 30 years old, resurfaced this month, enraging the refugee community.

"We will seek the truth and follow that path wherever it leads," George said Friday at a news conference at the State Capitol packed with Hmong veterans and supporters of Gen. Vang Pao.

Professor Alfred McCoy wrote about his findings on the role of Vang Pao and the CIA in drug trafficking in southeast Asia in a 1972 book, "The Politics of Heroin."

McCoy said the U.S. government assisted Vang Pao in bringing opium, an important cash crop for the Hmong, to heroin factories to help Vang Pao seal his leadership role and ensure a supply of fighters who waged a secret war against the North Vietnamese in Laos.

http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n809/a09.html

McCoy said the U.S. government assisted Vang Pao in bringing opium



Posted on Wed, Apr. 28, 2004





ST. PAUL: Crime spree on Hmong investigated

BY LENORA CHU and TODD NELSON

Pioneer Press


Authorities are trying to determine whether a connection exists between anonymous death threats leveled Monday against seven Hmong community leaders and recent crimes committed against prominent Hmong.

St. Paul Police spokesman Paul Schnell revealed Wednesday that the death threats came in an anonymous call received by a St. Paul Hmong veterans group. Local and federal law enforcement agencies are investigating the alleged hit list.

Authorities also confirmed Wednesday that an object hurled through a window sparked the arson fire that destroyed the home of Cha Vang, son of influential leader Gen. Vang Pao. Cha Vang narrowly escaped the early Sunday fire with his wife and three daughters.

A flammable substance was also found in the home, according to Maplewood Police Chief Dave Thomalla, who declined to identify the object and substance.

Two other crimes are being investigated for possible connections. On April 20, someone fired five shots into the Maplewood home of Xang Vang, Gen. Vang Pao's translator. The following day, officials discovered someone had thrown a brick into a window and started a fire at the St. Paul offices of the Lao Family Community of Minnesota.

more
http://www.realcities.com/mld/twincities/8543732.htm

Muaj ib nqe ntawm Sen. Norm Coleman cov lus hais tias "nws yog ib qho tseem ceeb heev uas U.S. State Department yuav tsum ua txhua yam coj kom tau kev thaj yeeb nyab xeeb mus rau tebchaws Lostsuas thiab pab kom tau txoj kev muaj vaj huam sib luag (humanitarian) rau haiv neeg Hmoob nrog rau daws kom tau teeb meem tsoom Hmoob tawg rog nyob rau SE Asia".

http://www.hmonglaoradio.org/default.asp?active_page_id=32

From The Wire

Rapid Fire At Home Investigated
Saint Paul Pioneer Press (April 27, 2004)

Maplewood investigators suspect an arsonist set a weekend fire at the home of a prominent Hmong community leader, who is calling the blaze a politically motivated attempt to kill him and his family.

The fire destroyed the home of Cha Vang, son of Gen. Vang Pao, one of the most widely known and influential Hmong leaders in the United States.

http://fe.pennnet.com/News/Display_News_Story.cfm?Section=WireNews&SubSection=HOME&NewsID=99833

Cha Vang, his wife and their three daughters were asleep when the fire broke out after 1 a.m. Sunday. A noise, possibly the sound of breaking glass, prompted him to investigate and he discovered the flames toward the back of the home. He and his family escaped unharmed, but the fire left little more than the garage standing.

"If you want to terrorize a person or send a message, you slash a tire," Cha Vang said Monday. "To burn down a house with people sleeping in it is attempted murder."

Investigators said they suspect arson because the house burned so thoroughly within minutes, said Maplewood Police Chief Dave Thomalla. Investigators searched the soot and debris for evidence for a second day on Monday.

http://fe.pennnet.com/News/Display_News_Story.cfm?Section=WireNews&SubSection=HOME&NewsID=99833

1961
Eisenhower warns the young president-elect that Laos is a major crisis, the first "domino" in Southest Asia. The CIA begins the covert build up of Hmong forces under General Vang Pao at the beginning of the year. At the same time the U.S. sends the rightist forces to Laos six AT-6 Harvard trainer aircraft armed with machine guns and equipped to fire rockets and drop bombs. The covert PEO infantrymen are replaced by 400 clandestine U.S special forces personnel known as White Star Movile Training Teams. Kennedy announces U.S support for the sovereignty of Laos in March, directly confronting the Soviet Union. Geneva conference on Laos opens in May.

http://www.seacrc.org/pages/ravenschrono.html

http://www.ohiopowmia.com/news/2190302.html

COLEMAN HOSTS FIRST EVER MEETING BETWEEN HMONG LEADER GENERAL VANG PAO AND SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL
Coleman working to alleviate humanitarian crises in Laos and streamline Hmong refugee resettlement process

January 21st, 2004 - Washington, DC - Senator Norm Coleman today hosted a meeting in his Senate office between Hmong leader General Vang Pao and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia and Pacific Affairs Matt Daley. The group, which also included Chao Ophat Nachmpassak, a member of the Lao royal family, discussed General Vang Pao's efforts to bring peace to Laos, the refugee resettlement program for Hmong in Thailand, and the humanitarian crisis facing many Hmong living in Laos.

"I have some serious concerns about the way the Hmong people are being treated today in Southeast Asia," Coleman said. "It's critical that the U.S. State Department does all it can to bring peace to Laos and an end to the humanitarian and refugee crises facing many Hmong in Southeast Asia. This meeting is a solid first step in opening up a real, meaningful diplomatic dialogue between Hmong leaders in Southeast Asia and the U.S. State Department."

General Vang Pao presented to State Department officials his vision for a lasting peace in Laos, as he publicly articulated on November 26. State Department officials listened to Vang Pao's presentation, and discussed the changing opportunities for peaceful reconciliation in Southeast Asia.

Daley, who had just returned from an official visit to the region, described the U.S. initiative to resettle in the U.S. as many as 14,000 Hmong refugees currently living in Wat Tham Krabok, Thailand

http://coleman.senate.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases.Detail&PressRelease_id=312&Month=1&Year=2004

Hmong History, May 5, 2000
Reviewer: PaoChang Vang from Duluth of Minnesota (USA)
The stories in this book were true story for the Hmong. If you didn't know who are Hmong and where they came from. You better read this book. It is every a good book. After you read this book, you also get information from Hmong culture. The book talked about Hmong history from China, joined with CIA when the Vietnam War, how hard their lives and also how hard they had moved from country to country. The book also included story by each person. After I read the stories in this book, I felt very interesting and enjoying with.

Hmong Means Free, because Hmong was a group that didn't like to live by law control. For me, I understand that Hmong had joined the law when general Vang Pao become a Hmong leader. He was the first one that forced the Hmong to join with the law and had education with other foreign people.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1566391636/102-9188204-5324122?v=glance

Major General Vang Pao, former Commander of the 2nd Military Region of the Royal Lao Army, and former Commander of the U.S. Secret Army in Laos during the Vietnam War.



Mr. Larry Devlin, Central Intellingence Agency (CIA) Station Chief in Laos.


Mr. Hugh Tovar, Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Station Chief in Laos.



Major General Ronald H. Markarian, USA (Ret), Director, California Selective Service System, former Commander of the Reconnaissance Unit in Vietnam.



Brigadier General Thonglith Chokbengboune, former Commander of the 5th Military Region of the Royal Lao Army.



Brigadier General Paul Carroll, Jr., USAF (Ret), former Commander of the 144th Fighter Wings.




Colonel Dave Cobb II, USAF (Ret), River-Ratt.



Dr. Jane Hamilton-Merritt, Hmong scholor, photographer and reporter in Vietnam during the Vietnam War; and author of the Tragics Mountains. Nobel Peace Prize Nominee.



Dr. Nkajlo Vang, Minnesota Human Rights Liaison Officer.



Colonel James Arthur, former Executive Officer of the 144th Fighter Wings; and instructor for Hmong pilots in Oudorn Thani, Thailand.




Lieutenant Colonel Wangyee Vang, former Chief of Personnel Bureau of the 1st Strike Division Infantry, Chief Staff of the 2nd Brigade Infantry of the U.S. Secret Army in Laos. Currently, he is a National President of the Lao Veterans of America.



Mr. Jim Doyle, former Vietnam Veterans of America, Inc's National Director Region IX.



Mr. Grant McClure, former Vietnam veteran worked with Vietnam minorities during the Vietnam War.



Captain David L. Hicks, USA (Ret), U.S. Special Forces, "a covert operator in Laos and Vietnam for the US Army."



Mr. Jack Matthews, former CIA officer, counterespionage.



Captain Cherzong Vang,
Mr. Cherzong Vang was recruited on January 2, 1960 to serve in the US Secret Army in Laos during the Vietnam War as a Deputy Commander of the 1st Company Infantry, Khang Kho, Lima Site 4, PDJ area. Mr. He is the chairman of the Lao Veterans of America in Minnesota from 1992 to present.



Mr. Philip Smith, Director
Philip Smith and Associates, Inc., and
former Congressional Staff.




Mr. Paul Payne, USA (Ret), US Special Forces, served in Laos from 1960 to 1962 and from 1970 to 1974 as Military White Star MTT conducting operations in Laos.


Capt. David A. Christian, USA (Ret), US Special Forces, Staff for US Senator John Kerry.

www.laoveterans.com/ hall.html
Laotian Secret War
http://www.ohiopowmia.com/news/2190302.html

Lots of places hire off-duty cops for security. A lot of insurance agencies are starting to require them when they write policies.

But I just outside St. Louis on Friday, about to get on highway 40 (west of 270). Before I entered the on-ramp, I saw 50, if not 100, police cars racing down the highway with their lights on (no sirens). I'd never seen anything like it. Two police cars blocked each on-ramp and it completely stopped traffic (this was around 6pm). I rode the side roads and each on-ramp was blocked. By 6:30 the police left and traffic slowly resumed. I called my wife to see if anything was on the news; later that evening, before leaving town, I checked the news again and still no mention.

I speculated that maybe it was a HSA "preparedness" exercise. Still have no idea what it was about.

Any ideas?

I always made sure that I was friends with all of the police dispatchers in my town. Second best is reporters. If you will give them information off the record, they will give you information off the record back (but it is usually vague). You do have to be sure you're comfortable giving the information. (no problem if it is about R's.)

Don't give info directly to detectives. They always lie in return.(according to other former friends who have tried.)