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emptywheel's profile
emptywheel
emptywheel
emptywheel
@emptywheel

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emptywheel

@emptywheel

Abundant tweets about civil liberties & national security. "Has a longer memory than an elephant & keeps more records than Jim Comey.” Legendary potty mouth.

Grand Rapids, MI
emptywheel.net
Joined August 2008

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    1. emptywheel‏ @emptywheel May 31

      Q: Why do they call ordinary old FBI Agents -- the ones you see on TV -- "Special"?

      11 replies 4 retweets 26 likes
      Show this thread
    2. emptywheel‏ @emptywheel May 31

      I mean, maybe we'd be better off if FBI Agents felt like they had to work, every day, for the title of "Special"?

      5 replies 4 retweets 21 likes
      Show this thread
      emptywheel‏ @emptywheel May 31

      Let me be clear: I'm well aware the formal title is "Special Agent." I just used it in a post, which is why I started thinking of this. My underlying question is, what does it say to Agents that they are default called "Special"?

      8:13 AM - 31 May 2018
      • 3 Retweets
      • 20 Likes
      • Ron “Weak Stomach” Mexico Ghosts n' Stuff - Nick Beaudrot Remix Jennifer Groll Richard Adhikari Dan H Fake Thad Stevens Cyber Vulnerability Scan runtodaylight
      14 replies 3 retweets 20 likes
        1. New conversation
        2. Christian Delante‏ @DelanteMedia May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          Come on, this took 5 seconds.pic.twitter.com/BZBi0CP1rs

          1 reply 0 retweets 0 likes
        3. emptywheel‏ @emptywheel May 31
          Replying to @DelanteMedia

          Great!! And that totally, utterly, does not address my point!!! So maybe take more than 5 seconds if you'd like to address my point?

          1 reply 0 retweets 0 likes
        4. Christian Delante‏ @DelanteMedia May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          I did address your point. "Special" in this case means "different" or "unique". It distinguishes different categories of federal agent. Special means more than just "superior". This, too, took 5 seconds:pic.twitter.com/hjAViO6Bdp

          1 reply 0 retweets 0 likes
        5. emptywheel‏ @emptywheel May 31
          Replying to @DelanteMedia

          Thanks for insisting you're interpreting my question correctly. You're not. But I'm sure insisting you are makes you feel "special."

          1 reply 0 retweets 0 likes
        6. Christian Delante‏ @DelanteMedia May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          -"What does it say FBI agents when you say they're 'special'?" - "Well it tells them that they are distinct from other agents in that they have the power to make arrests and conduct investigations." - "That's not the answer to the question." - ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

          0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
        7. End of conversation
        1. Sasha Samberg-Champion‏ @ssamcham May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          It tells them that they have to work hard for promotion to "very special agent."pic.twitter.com/8YfP5nR0PL

          0 replies 0 retweets 3 likes
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        1. Ed Bott [404: Halloween Name Not Found]‏Verified account @edbott May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          After looking up the etymology of that term, I wonder why it never changed.pic.twitter.com/jmkrrI5rOJ

          0 replies 0 retweets 3 likes
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        1. Jeffrey Melnick‏ @melnickjeffrey1 May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          Participation trophy, A priori.

          0 replies 0 retweets 2 likes
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        1. Baron Blakley‏ @baronblakley May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          If all the agents are special, then none of them are

          0 replies 0 retweets 1 like
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        1. Mushma Bubba‏ @mushmabubba May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          Maybe they specialize in certain types of crime?

          0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
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        1. Gerard Whittey‏ @gwhittey May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          Isn't there some jobs that are classified as just agents of FBI? Like if you are a agent who does background checks and do not have arrest and criminal investigative powers which is what special agent does.

          0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
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        1. Barbara B999‏ @BarbaraB9999 May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          Why did Kamikaze pilots wear helmets???

          0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
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        1. Andy Farquhar‏ @andy_farquhar May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          Shouldn't we all be special by default? (Weird, just noticed the striking resemblance with Comey)pic.twitter.com/MfJgnyb2CR

          0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
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        1. Samuel H Garfield‏ @samuelhgarfield May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          Samuel H Garfield Retweeted Seth Abramson

          Seth explained pretty well. As far as I understand they are special agents because they are mostly focused on specific investigations, not general law enforcement.https://mobile.twitter.com/sethabramson/status/996776459900420096 …

          Samuel H Garfield added,

          Seth AbramsonVerified account @SethAbramson
          1/ First, understand that "agent" is a legal term. An "agent" is a person authorized by another person to act in their stead—and with their authority—in performing a task. If the authorization is for a specific task, the agent is a "special agent." If general, a "general agent."
          Show this thread
          0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
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        1.  🌊ʇᴉɯᴉl ɐɯǝɥɔs® 🌊 🤘🏼‏ @TimForgot May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          Being serious momentarily: FBI Agents *are* special. They have powers that extend well beyond other LE officers, they have training that exceeds any other standard, they don't take just anyone (no fog-on-the-mirror test). They're explicitly elite. The title acknowledges that.

          0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
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        1. Fake Dean Acheson‏ @FakeDeanAcheson May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          Maybe the title doesn't make them feel special? I was once a special assistant and did not, in fact, feel special.

          0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
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        1. MT‏ @Lazertrade May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          Blame it on the model T

          0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
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        1. Rich Puchalsky Ⓐ‏ @RichPuchalsky May 31
          Replying to @emptywheel

          "special" is what we call people who through no fault of their own are not up to the cognitive challenges of functioning in typical society, such as FBI agents

          0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
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