The day I saw terrorists

[Ordos]

I want to re-tell of this incident so everyone can learn from it.

Back in May 2011 I spotted two terrorists in a parking lot. I live in Indonesia which has known terroism in the past. I live in a predominantly Christian province which is actually the safest region in the country for religious minorities.

So here's my story:

My two friends an I were having some casual fun seeing the local sites one afternoon. We drove up a mountain and stopped at a roadside restaurant with a view. The restaurant was closed. We were hoping to see a waterfall but it was not there. The only other car in the parking lot belonged to two guys standing in the parking lot. As soon as I saw the two guys, I immediately knew that these two were up to no good judging fro appearance, behavior and circumstances. My friend asked them if they knew where the waterfall was and they said they did not and we left.

Here were the warning signs:

1.One of them was holding a camera and taking not photos of the view, but of the road. Why? Why did they not ask one of my friends or me to take their picture standing in front of the view? I've watched documentaries where it is explained that terrorists send out agents to do surveys of sites for potential attacks.

2.They were both from the Island of Java (ethnically Javanese) where churches are burned down, home to Abu Bakar Baashir the spiritual head of the terrorist group Jemaah Islamiah and Bin Laden sympathiser and voter stronghold to the PKS party which is Indonesia's largest and most fundamentalist Islamic political party. If they were mere tourists, where was their local guide?

3.If they were working and the guy was taking photos for perhaps a site for a new building or place to set up a business, why were they wearing casual dress and not suits and uniforms (office and industrial workers wear suits and uniforms in Indonesia or at least wear name tags) and why were they working after working hours? (offices close at 4-5 PM in this country).

4.One of them had long hair reaching his shoulders and the beginnings of a beard and mustache (a stubble). This told me one thing: He's changing his appearance to disguise himself.

I did not want to believe they were up to no good. So I made one of the BIGGEST mistakes of my life which I regret to this day. I did not memorize or write down their license plate. I could have reported them to the police had I done so. I thought I was the only one who was suspicious. It was only when we left that my friend confirmed he was also suspicious.

Had I written down or memorized the licence plate, I could have alerted the police to suspicious behavior and those two could have been brought in for questioning.

But now that I think about it, those two were dumb enough not to be more discreet. But yeah they were met by somebody equally dumb enough not to think fast and look at their licence plate. Anyway I learned my lesson. Has anybody here been in similar situations or would any of you have done things differently?

Nothing in subesquent days happened. So either they called off any attack because they were spooked or considered it impractical, or somebody else reported them.

[The Winged Shadow]

Or you were wrong? :dunno:

Some massive leaps in logic you've made there...

[Nas!]

This is one of the craziest threads I've ever read. Congratulations!

[The Notorious]

Stay vigilant ordos. I recommend getting a small handheld camera and record everyone you come into contact with and post the videos on youtube.

You can also give yourself a cool nickname like "The Watchman."

[Larry of the Lawn]

Were you and your friend smoking weed at the time?

[Jace, Extat]

From now on, I'm going to murder everyone I see who has a camera.

To be safe, of course.

[Nas!]

However, I did learn from your story. So thank you.

[Lord Flashheart]

However, I did learn from your story. So thank you.

You did?

Op,

I have long hair and stubble and now you have thwarted my plans of taking pictures of roads...rooods...rooaaads..roads is a funny word.

[Littlefingers In The Air]

I'm black. Murder me on sight, lest you be robbed.

[Wise Fool]

So basically - taking pictures, growing facial hair, and of an ethnic origin you're prejudiced against = terrorist.

Yeah, great job there, Sherlock.

[DreamSongs]

You aren't an intelligence officer and might have put yourself in danger if had put yourself in an obvious position to see the license plate.

It sounds like you and your friend weren't very familiar with the area either. Why would these guys need a tour guide if you and your friend didn't need one?

And LITA, I'm locking up my apartment right now since you post in the same threads that I do :p

[Nas!]

You did?

Sure: never underestimate the depths of human delusion. It's not a new lesson, but sometimes it needs refreshing.

[Littlefingers In The Air]

You aren't an intelligence officer and might have put yourself in danger if had put yourself in an obvious position to see the license plate.

It sounds like you and your friend weren't very familiar with the area either. Why would these guys need a tour guide if you and your friend didn't need one?

And LITA, I'm locking up my apartment right now since you post in the same threads that I do :p

Gillen is coming. ;)

[Guy Kilmore]

I wouldn't take any chances; I think you should barricade yourself in your home right now. They could be just doing the "slow roll" on their terrorist plottings and are waiting for the element of surprise.

[DreamSongs]

Gillen is coming. ;)

OK...but if you need to find my place, just ask where the crazy white lady that owns a convertible and walks her dog in the middle of the night lives. I'm pretty low profile in my neighborhood. :leaving:

[Errant Bard]

Did the road they were taking pictures of get blown up some time later?

[Relic]

Hahahaha. Thanks for the laugh. I needed it. This reminds me of the day I thwarted a terror attack by glaring at a long haired guy with a camera. He was so shaken by the steel in my eyes he called off the attack and went back to his country, where I suspect he turned over a new leaf and started a brand new life as a goat farmer.

[Ordos]

You aren't an intelligence officer and might have put yourself in danger if had put yourself in an obvious position to see the license plate.

It sounds like you and your friend weren't very familiar with the area either. Why would these guys need a tour guide if you and your friend didn't need one?

At least you took me seriously. Well, they were the visitiors. We are locals and we know the area slightly better.

Many of you see this as some kind of joke, but if you knew the political and social climate of my country and had seen what I had seen, you might think different.

There were simply too many coincidences and things that did not add up. You know the movie Home Alone? The two burglars were driving around a neighborhood in a grey van. At one point one of them said 'Let's get out of here before somebody sees us'. When people see something out of the ordinary, they should report it. I would have been doing the police a favor.

I should clarify: they were not taking pictures of themselves or each other. Just the road. It happened to be a major road leading in and out of the district capital.

[Relic]

So unless they are taking selfies anyone with a camera and a beard is a possible threat? I have taken photos of roads before. For certain articles and for the visual aesthetic. I also have long hair. And sometimes a stubble. Thankfully I'm white so at the worst I can be mistaken for a confused hippie, right?

[Nas!]

Now that you've made reference to Home Alone, I regret my earlier cynicism. Obviously, you are on to something big here.