Homeland Security opening private mail

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Sat, 7 Jan 2006 02:15:56 -0500

Homeland Security opening private mail

 

 

 

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10740935/

 

Homeland Security opening private mail

Retired professor confused, angered when letter from abroad is opened

 

By Brock N. Meeks

Chief Washington correspondent

MSNBC

Updated: 5:55 p.m. ET Jan. 6, 2006

 

 

WASHINGTON - In the 50 years that Grant Goodman has known and

corresponded with a colleague in the Philippines he never had any

reason to suspect that their friendship was anything but spectacularly

ordinary.

 

But now he believes that the relationship has somehow sparked the

interest of the Department of Homeland Security and led the agency to

place him under surveillance.

 

Last month Goodman, an 81-year-old retired University of Kansas

history professor, received a letter from his friend in the

Philippines that had been opened and resealed with a strip of dark

green tape bearing the words " by Border Protection " and carrying the

official Homeland Security seal.

 

" I had no idea (Homeland Security) would open personal letters, "

Goodman told MSNBC.com in a phone interview. " That's why I alerted the

media. I thought it should be known publicly that this is going on, "

he said. Goodman originally showed the letter to his own local

newspaper, the Kansas-based Lawrence Journal-World.

 

" I was shocked and there was a certain degree of disbelief in the

beginning, " Goodman said when he noticed the letter had been tampered

with, adding that he felt his privacy had been invaded. " I think I

must be under some kind of surveillance. "

 

Goodman is no stranger to mail snooping; as an officer during World

War II he was responsible for reading all outgoing mail of the men in

his command and censoring any passages that might provide clues as to

his unit's position. " But we didn't do it as clumsily as they've done

it, I can tell you that, " Goodman noted, with no small amount of irony

in his voice. " Isn't it funny that this doesn't appear to be any kind

of surreptitious effort here, " he said.

 

The letter comes from a retired Filipino history professor; Goodman

declined to identify her. And although the Philippines is on the U.S.

government's radar screen as a potential spawning ground for

Muslim-related terrorism, Goodman said his friend is a devout Catholic

and not given to supporting such causes.