And one for the start of the weekend. Vice News reports:
In addition to his library of English-language books on topics such as international law, voting irregularities, and the Illuminati, Osama bin Laden also had a pretty substantial porn collection.
But the CIA won't release bin Laden's stash of porn, which Navy Seals apparently seized during a raid on his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan four years ago. That's because, unbelievably, it's located in an "operational file," which is exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
An operational file is defined as:
(1) files of the National Clandestine Service which document the conduct of foreign intelligence or counterintelligence operations or intelligence or security liaison arrangements or information exchanges with foreign governments or their intelligence or security services;
(2) files of the Directorate for Science and Technology which document the means by which foreign intelligence or counterintelligence is collected through scientific and technical systems; and
(3) files of the Office of Personnel Security which document investigations conducted to determine the suitability of potential foreign intelligence or counter-intelligence sources;
Reuters first reported in 2011 that pornography was recovered from bin Laden's compound after he was killed by commandos.
"The pornography recovered in bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, consists of modern, electronically recorded video and is fairly extensive," Reuters reported, citing anonymous officials. "The officials said they were not yet sure precisely where in the compound the pornography was discovered or who had been viewing it. Specifically, the officials said they did not know if bin Laden himself had acquired or viewed the materials."
It has long been rumored that Al Qaeda used pornography to hide secret messages to its followers, according to a report published by The Telegraph last March.
(Score: 2) by lentilla on Sunday June 14 2015, @01:11PM
Musing on two thoughts.
Assume you have something that is under copyright; say a movie with Mickey Mouse. That movie is on a hard disk, legally, in use by someone who becomes the subject of a FOIA request. What happens to the Mickey Mouse movie? If the results of the FOIA request are in the public domain, but there is copyrighted material in that, what do we do? Watch the FOIA bundle with our eyes closed?
On a tangentially-related note, I'm not sure if it would be good or bad to a porn star appearing in Mr Bin Laden's naughty stash. Maybe no-one would care. Perhaps there would be some cachet in being Osama's favourite starlet (or camel, or whatever). On the other hand, it might be very uncomfortable - very unAmerican indeed - to be known as Osama's extra bit of visual candy. An angry mob is a fickle beast at the best of times - add a little dash of rumpy-pumpy and a small sprinkling of World's Most Wanted Terrorist and it could become interesting.