FBI seeking Cantonese linguists

Nitemare

Lifer
Feb 8, 2001
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Saw on the news last night(forget which channel) on a crolling banner that the FBI was seeking volunteers to help out...they needed some linguists who were proficient in some languages. I don't remember all of them but one of them was Cantonese.

Perhaps there really is a China connection to all this. I've dismissed all the conspiracy theories up to now, but why would they be seeking a Cantonese translator???

Perhaps China was the one that funded Bin Ladin and the Talibans instead or with Iraq? Perhaps to make the US military weak and then they flex their muscle?...hmmm
 

rudder

Lifer
Nov 9, 2000
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Or maybe China borders afghanistan? Or maybe Bin Ladens people have operated in China? Maybe some witnesses who lived close to the terrorists only speak Cantonese. Stop playing the national enquirer.

I dont even think cantonese is spoken in that region anyway. I am not a linquistic expert so I do not know.

And the most widely spoken dialect is probably Mandarin. If there was a chinese connection you would think they would be looking for someone that spoke Mandarin.
 

GL

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
4,547
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Nitemare,

Al Qaeda has terrorist cells in a predominantly Muslim area of China known as Xinjiang. There have been numerous conflicts between the Chinese government and the people in that region. I'm not sure if they speak Cantonese but I wouldn't be surprised if they do.
 

Nitemare

Lifer
Feb 8, 2001
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Yes, China has terrorist cells in their country like most other countries. If they are a part of the Al Qaeda wouldn't they be of Arabian descent and speak Cantonese as a second language. I wouldn't imagine the Al Qaeda could convert Chinese into terrorists.

Frankly, I'm kind of surprised that the FBI is asking for volunteer linguists as well. I thought they would have someone proficient in Cantonese as it isn't that rare and with our relationship with China.