THE ULTIMATE, "Did they just say Fresno!"

This totally reminds me "Lords of Dogtown" and early skate documentaries from that era.

If anything, these guys are doing the pools a favor and draining them so that there aren't crazy mosquitos flying around.

Omar bin Gnarli, dude.

Okay NOW look who is beating who(whom? no, who, I think it's who) to the punch on Fresno skateboarding videos *fist shake* DAMN YOU MIKE OZ!

'...they're filming me for a news channel that's just as hated here as I am...' (ref: Al Jezeerah)

And I'm trying to figure out what the pixilated image is on the guys shirt.
(just curious, I mean, Islam is pretty strict, nudity? violent imagery? --lil something from Cannibal Corpse?
Dunno.

But I'll throw this out there...

(Preface: I do not think that all Islamic believers are extremists and terrorists... (I understand some folks feel this way, and that view of 'Muslims in general' can be found (still in today's society.)
--And that's stupid.)
--at the same time? There are extremists in everything, -even Islam, -and this would be a channel that they'd be attracted to.

Reality (as well)

This is a television channel that has posted terrorist messages and has been connected with controversial communication in the past.
-some if it has been discounted and retracted (some)
definitely not.

Lets just say (as a for instance, however)

You were somebody looking to 'do something' to a 'semi-large' American City. (like a violent act.)

What does this report show?
-Massive amount of houses that are vacant (and) are being approached, (and) backyards inhabited long enough to drain a swimming pool, sweep it out, and wipe it down --and then skateboard and FILM the situaion
--(all of which takes hours)---

--With footage of the police basically watching and 'moving them on' if/when they care to, (but there's always more.)

(Me, Personally?)
Coming from a city that has been hit by terrorists?, (first hand.)

I kind of wonder at the logic behind that report, and the information that can be culled from it, by EVERYBODY.

-many vacant houses
-lenient/understaffed/innefective police
-a lot of 'gang problems' (once researched in media)
which means that if you go about something quietly?,--they're gonna be busy elsewhere. (hello window of opportunity.)
-close to military bases (one in Fresno, one in Lemoore, others close by.)
-not far from SF. LA, and Sacramento.
-Vital public utilities that (if) hit could make a strong statement. (Friant.)
-And
--again--
a scenario (now internationally known) where 'trespassing is routine and not considered to be a big deal.'
(in other words, '...hey, this place is pretty much wide open, lotsa vacant houses and not a lot of people caring about trespassing...'

I'm not concerned that we just 'demonstrated to a bunch of Islamics'
how OPEN and VULNERABLE (as a city) we are.

--It's just that we just told ANYONE who watches this station (anybody) how open and vulnerable we are.
(get it?)

--If a bunch of skaters can do this with something as obvious as a van and news crew
---unabated?

A well planned group (meaning) to do harm could have a heyday.
(Regardless of their religious beliefs,
--this could be terrorists, org. crime, 'bangers, opportunistic meth-labs,
--a rogue pack of cub-scouts on a dare...

(you name it...)

I'm not sure that this was such a great idea.

further thinking:
NOBODY in Homeland defense, has seen this and thought:

'...Al Jazeerah is doing a segment on:
-abandoned fresno houses that are
-inhabitable,
-vacant
-and available (to skateboarders for like, hours at a time.)
-going house to house with a film crew, (nobody noticing.)
-showing Fresno Cops going just: '...move along ya rascals...'
-Nothing to think about HERE with THIS ONE... nope,
sounds great by us...'

This is so weird, stupid and disregarding of the rest of the world?

I'm really starting to think it has to be either
A. -a hoax
(or)
B. -here.

The shirt was the Dwarves blood guts and p***y with two fully naked bloody chicks. The footage of fresno PD is over 6 years old from my last vid. And I honestly didnt know who Aljazeera even was until more than half way threw the day. But they sure didnt seem like terrorist just a couple younger italian guys..

okay.

I realize I'm in Fresno where a lot of people don't know who Aljazeera is, let alone the roles that they've played in things in the past, and (to your credit) I think it's great that you don't think any mid-easterner walking down the road is a terrorist,
(that's good,that's very good, I'm serious.)

The problem is?
Even if these were two nice younger 'Italian' guys, Aljazeerah (as you now know) is not simply them.
Are they terrorists?
I'd dare say the two guys and their filming buddies? probably were not.

The guys who hijacked a few airliners and who drove two of them into a couple of buildings I happened to be under?
They were locals in area communities who seemed like 'regular guys' too...

Unfortunately?, they had different views than most, and had been setting up for something and taking advantage of being 'normal' to most folks for quite some time.
We all know how that went.
-And they chose to fly out of the airport that they did for a reason:
it was so lapse in security and they had researched a ton of 'possible' starting points.

Al Jazeerah has been linked directly to some good (and) bad stuff.
You didn't know that.
Okay, that's not your fault, a lot of people around here are clueless to this sort of stuff.

Problem is: When that footage goes on, and goes wide?
Anybody (good or bad) -who would be drawn to Aljazeera as a news source?,

-NOW knows that there's a ton of unattended houses that they can do whatever they want,
--and be even less suspected than a bunch of guys who are (obviously) trespassing and skateboarding.
Here in Fresno.
And not all 'bad people' are going to be watching thinking: '...damn, I need to chill out throw on some straight-edge and grind some pool-coping for a while.'

That the cops didn't bust you this time, (and) the footage was recent?
(the cop was from six years ago,)
--even worse,
-as there are now even more open houses
(and)
you didn't get caught with a film crew in tow.

I'd do this: (seriously)

If the footage has not been shown yet?
Ask that it not be shown.

Tell them that you don't feel like getting charges pressed against you for tresspassing (remember all the guys who got locked up for that
'Fresno Underground or Untamed, or Uncensored or gone wild'
stupid thing a few years ago?
Tell them you don't want to wind up like that,
--because the footage is incriminating.
Maybe they'll pull it.

(We all make mistakes.)

I'd also contact the authorities, and be straight with them...
AFTER discussing and retaining someone who can show you how to handle this and the right and wrong things to do:
(in other words: an Attorney.)

And not some lame 'stand up to the man brothah' 60's retread who can not effectively communicate for you with (what could wind up being) Homeland Defence.

This is no time to go flipping birds a people in suits who wear sunglasses and have funny things in their ear that they talk into, --got it?

I'd start with:
Something like: '...yeah, you know what, we didn't think anything of it,
but now we realize that we may have done something dumb here,
and this was said and maybe it shouldn't have been and I'm kinda wondering about it, and want to tell you guys, (and while you're there? apologize your ass off, think about what could happen? and you'll be quite convincing.'

-If they (cops/feds) tell ya you're being paranoid?

Fine... pressure's off you,
they know about it, and you're just trying to right something that could go wrong. (kudos)

In life everybody should be allowed at least 3 major mistakes,
because we're all human.
-hopefully this will not be one of those times,

but seriously,
I'd really have this looked into and see if this may have been not so good, not just for you, but for anybody that is in the areas that you showed the film crews (and) this area and close metro areas in general.
--at least the cops will know where to keep a closer eye on where you showed them, and tell them how you find these places, (and what you told the newscrew.)

I can't say that you're going to come out smelling like a rose in this... (again) we all do dumb things sometimes, --but at least it will give folks who can do something about this the heads up.

Ya know what I mean?

And for what it's worth?
I'll be praying for you and this situation.
(If you're not sweating a little right now with a queasy stomach? you should be.

I don't even like this,
this is supposed to be a message board where the worst we go through is way too personal pictures of stoned pop-stars getting out of golf-carts or whatever.
(or somebody raving on about mannequin legs.)

This ain't that.
Lemme know if I can do anything to help.

(I was reeeealllly hoping that you'd come on the board and be like: '...dude, late april fools, it's all a big joke.')

so much for that.

Again, praying for you.

-Eric

Like I said the footage was over 6 years old and I didnt take them anywhere I didn't have permission to be. I told them that we sometimes trespass and drain pools but they didnt actually witness that.

you're splitting hairs.

-what you're (now) saying is:

-ALL that footage was six years old?
(including going out with them in the truck and finding the pools?)

-that Al Jazeerha video'd you six years ago?,
and it ran six years ago?,
(but is just now being recognized?)

-(and) everywhere you went on the day of filming was with permission of the people who owned the property,
so
(unlike how it's PORTRAYED and IMPLIED/STATED in the clip,)
you guys were not trespassing at all when the film crews were there.

(Look)

whether you realize this or not?,
what the clip portrays is:

'skaters from all over california are coming to Fresno.'

(why?)
-there's tons of unguarded and uninhabited properties.

--and you even point out that 'since the economy has gotten so bad, there's tons of pools (vacant properties) to be found.
(you point out 3? in the clip.)

Whether you put together a bunch of old and new clips,
(or)
shot the whole thing six years ago,
(or)
shot parts of it more recently and made it look like all 'same day,' (which it sounds like is more the case,)

Your statement is very clearly that there are tons of vacant properties (where) your crew can spend all day (and then some) trespassing and (usually) not get noticed.

(THAT MESSAGE (Visual/Audio) went out on the airwaves whenever this was broadcast, (you're saying it went out 6 years ago?
or just did
(or is about to?)

(it doesn't matter how old the 'footage' is.)
The message went out,
'..we have tons of unguarded and uninhabited (reasonably new) houses, in some cases SEVERAL per community, in Fresno,
(and we drain the pools, clean them out, and skate in them, unabated.')

I don't think you're getting what was put out.

You could be a 'city-sanctioned clean out crew that is officially licensed to drain still water (for mosquito control)'
-(which would make no sense, cause why would the cops bust you..?)

--but even THEN?,
--you'd still be promoting on Al Jazeerah that there were tons of vacant houses
(where anybody could do WHATEVER they wanted)
-and the cops 'sometimes' showed up (like, they did six years ago.)

Even if the pools you were looking at were all owned by your great aunt Sophie and you had complete expressed permission to drain the things?

You still broadcast something different on Al Jazeerah.
What you put out was (again)
'...Come to Fresno, there's plenty of abandoned houses (in reasonable shape,) and these guys even have enough time to drain pools and skate in them, --and rarely get caught. So there's LOADS of opportunity to (do whatever) and nobody's gonna care.'

(that was after the statement '...yeah, I'm being taped by a channel that is probably as hated in Fresno as I am.') (gee really?)

You see it from the perspective:
'...yeah, we can skateboard after a little work on the place, and it's a blast...'

Folks who watch Al Jazeerah (who may not be into skateboarding?)
Were Just handed an advertisment
-for a town where they could
-do whatever,
-be close to Three major metro regions inside of 4 hours,
(not to mention) it being a massive (and growing) population that has an already fragile municipal support structure.
--(Where) -compared to other municipalities/states where attacks have happened?)
Is wide open.

You think you're showing 'illegal skateboarding'

What they're seeing/thinking?
'hey, nice target.'

Whatever, I'm not going to argue this with you. Fresno has always been famous for underground pool skating ever since the vagabond pool. I seen an opportunity to get some advertisement for my videos and I took it. I cant control how they portray me after the fact. I was told they would mention my web site and that didn't happen either. watch the abc nightline, clip I'm being interviewed at the same pool, its a famous fresno pool at my friends house called hogans that independent trucks actually made an ashtray of. There was also a replica made of it at a skate park in saratogo florida, look it up. Yeah they filmed us driving around looking over fences, that is not trespassing. All the footage of us skating is out of a video I produced over 6 years ago, do you want a copy of it? Watch all the other news interviews, its the same footage. Your the only one who doesn't see the positive side of this. Just last week there was an article on the front page of the fresno bee talking about west nile virus and stagnant pools. I'm taking care of that, and most the time we do have permission. I didn't know who the f**k aljazeera was until later in the day and I highly doubt there going to look at this as any kind of opportunity for any terrorist plot. Its not like nobody knew about are screwed up economy and all the foreclosures until I talked about it. Its being talked about on the news everyday. New York Times was the one who contacted me, not the other way around, so it must not be that big of a secret. P.S. people have traveled from all over to skate Rays and Hogans alone, anything else that gets skated is just a bonus. This is the last I have to say about any of this.

so instead of showing beheadings they are showing skate videos
in my book that is called progress
nuff said

Come on Wet Towel. You post reminds me of the paranoid rantings of Glenn Beck. Al Jazeera English came to Fresno to do a story on skateboarders. This story is hardly an invitation to the Muslim extremists to terrorize Fresno.

Are you aware that Al Jazeera broadcasts in both Arabic and in English? Did you know that Al Jazeera English has a broadcasting center in Wash DC?