How big is the government's file on you? Jack Anderson's is over 2200 pages.

[arcadian]

And that's just the released stuff.

http://www.governmentattic.org/Jackson_Northman_Anderson.html

Agency Files on Columnist Jack Anderson

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Department of Defense (DoD), US Army, and Department of State files on the redoubtable, controversial, Pulitzer Prize winning columnist Jack Anderson (Jackson Northman Anderson 1922 – 2005)

These files were obtained through a number of FOIA requests to the listed agencies which resulted in seven separate releases between May and November, 2008.

files@link

[Captain Hilts]

1. If you open the FBI's FOIA files for MLK, Eleanor R, 'Wild' Bill Donovan or the Rosenburgs...

smoke will come out of your computer, they're so big.

[Raven]

2. When I was 23, I hit a car full of FBI Agents in Washington D.C.

A woman ran a light at the Washington Monument and broadsided me pushing my car into the car next to me which was loaded with Agents (I didn't know that at the time). One of the Agents told me not to worry, he would explain to the cops what had happened and that I was not at fault. Next time I looked, the car with the Agents was gone. A few weeks later, the Manager of the apartment complex that we lived in told me that the FBI had been around asking questions about me of her and my neighbors. Soon after that I got a call at work from an FBI Agent. He told me that the FBI had "opened at file" on me because of the accident and he wanted to know why I was working when I had an infant son. He also wanted to know who took care of Will while I was at work.

I have always been curious as to whether or not I could access my file.

It was also interesting to me that the FBI had the time to snoop around about 23 year old working mothers. Hmmmmmmm.

[DCKit]

3. Great. A stalker with FBI credentials. n/t

[arcadian]

4. Damn. FOIA request should be able to get it.

Do you recall the intersection? Just curious, I'm in D.C. a lot, want to try to get a visual.

[Raven]

5. Jesus! It was 37 years ago. I think the Monument was in front of me.

I was in the left lane ready to take a left turn to head toward the Congressional Office Buildings.

[Warpy]

7. That sounds like Hoover's FBI

They only hired white bread old farts who thought totally conventionally because they'd never rock Hoover's boat. No blacks, no women, no Hispanics and he barely tolerated Irish and Italians.

A young, working mother would have sent those old boys around the bend. Of course you were a communist!

I got a peek at my own when I worked at a government job. It was chock full of inaccuracies, but as long as they wanted to follow a blonde with three kids, they were going to leave me alone so I never did anything about it.

You should be able to see part of your file through the FOIA. There's a website online to apply to see it. Just expect a lot of it to be redacted, blacked out. I often think they do it at random just to show us who's boss.

[arcadian]

8. What did your's say specifically?

[Javaman]

13. So if you apply for a FOIA inquiry and you get permission...

will your inquiry also be put into the file?If so, I would then have to put in yet another inquiry to see if they put my FOIA inquiry in. etc, etc...

Makes your head hurt.

[Warpy]

15. Nothing ever dies in cyberspace

or in the bowels of any Federal bureaucracy. Fortunately for the world, there are things that feed on paper, so it has a long but limited lifespan. Even CD-ROMs and hard drives degrade over time.

I checked out the FOIA site not too long ago. There's an up front fee and I seem to remember a charge per page. It's not outrageous.

[arcadian]

16. You can get the fee waived

[Barack_America]

6. I imagine I may have a file, but it's probably short. nt

[FarCenter]

9. 2200 pages was in the days before cheap computer storage

Everyone should have at least that many pages by now.

[flvegan]

10. I doubt I'd even warrant such a thing.

A lot more important things to bother with than little ole me.

[OutNow]

11. 14 pages - Cointelpro program

My file, obtained back in the 1970s, was 14 pages long, with plenty of redacted information. I did a FOIA query, but was also part of a successful lawsuit that sued the FBI et al, for violation of Constitutional rights. In my case the FBI questioned by landlord, my boss, and me. They warned me to stop my activities to stop the war in Vietnam or else. I asked, or else what? The answer, quite relevant to today, was that I would be labeled a terrorist because I supported the Viet Cong.

FYI - I didn't support the Viet Cong, but did want my brothers out of Vietnam quickly and alive.

[Captain Hilts]

14. I need to get mine. The FBI came to my house 3 times because I wrote a letter

to the Soviet Embassy asking about oil trade statistics.

I wrote Al Haig and George Ball also.

Funny thing is this: first, they NEVER asked to speak to me. Talking to my mother who once had a clearance reviewed weekly, wasn't good enough, they wanted to talk to my dad, the former submarine skipper. I was 25 at the time.

Second, this was in the thick of the Johnny Walker Red espionage case. They had a choice - investigate me or him. They chose wrong.

[justabob]

12. I definitely have a file

but I doubt there is too much in it. My dad had nuclear clearance with the Air Force and my mom had high clearance working for the Feds during the S&L Crisis back in the 80s. The one thing that might rate a note with the FBI is that my Foreign Policy/International Relations class in high school went to visit the old Soviet Embassy before the Wall came down. (so I probably have a note in the KGB files as well :) )