Topic: 9/11 Remembered
9/11 documentaries challenge America A short review and analysis of 9/11 conspiracy films that have appeared on the internet - their themes, their cultural significance, and their impact.by Aaron Wolfe
(libertarian)
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Americans love a good conspiracy theory. JFK, Roswell and CIA "black ops" have become a unique part of our culture, spawning countless movies and books that straddle various degrees of reality. They are the guilty pleasures of our country; dust gathering in the corner of the room that, for several reasons, we refuse to sweep.
However, there is one theory that is not so innocuous. It has become so controversial and taboo that we have created a new cliche to deal with it.
There are now three things you don't speak about at the dinner table: religion, politics and 9/11.
One can scarcely find a subject that causes more screaming matches than "direct-to-Internet" movies like "9/11 Mysteries", "Loose Change" and "Painful Deceptions". The directors of these films are occasionally spotlighted on major news networks, and often find themselves under intense scrutiny or denounced as unpatriotic fools. President Bush, himself, accused conspiracy theorists of creating "malicious lies that attempt to shift the blame away from the terrorist themselves; away from the guilty."
So what keeps these "nut jobs" going? How do these independent documentaries continue to appear?
Quite simply, because they are speaking to a rather large audience. According to a Zogby poll from May 2007, 42 percent of Americans believe the government took part in some kind of cover up involving the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Considering the president's dramatically low job approval rating, and the previously mentioned documentary "Loose Change" having been downloaded more than 10 million times, it's clear whom the U.S. is listening to.
How, then, are we to interpret this? What cultural and political factors have led to nearly half of us believing the federal government is sponsoring acts of terrorism against its own citizens? The answers are, just as anything else in this world, incredibly complex.
And that is what has been forgotten. We have been too quick to our individual conclusions, ignoring what we know to be true: theories about 9/11 and other tragedies occur because of one, and every reason conceivable.
Are Americans who believe or make these films searching for a fantasy to escape this reality? Of course they are.
Has the government ever planned an attack against U.S. citizens in order to bolster support for a war? Yes. A 1962 proposal from the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was presented to Defense Secretary Robert McNamara and President John F. Kennedy suggesting the CIA, in order to blame Cuban nationalists and initiate conflict, start "terror campaigns" in Washington D.C. and Miami.
Will conspiracy theorists ever be completely satisfied with any explanation of Sept. 11? No, but when such a large percentage of Americans believe internet banter over their government, it is needless to say we have bigger problems to worry about. Particularly the lack of faith in our elected representatives, and their blatant incompetence - factors that largely contribute to a national mood that nurtures conspiracy theories against its own government.
The late John Roberts, an Oxford historian, suggested that during periods of rapid social and economic change, it is comforting to ascribe complicated issues to hidden forces bent on disrupting the status quo. To an extent, this is completely and disturbingly true.
However, with so many Americans unsure about their government's involvement in 9/11, it is not healthy for us to ignore millions of people who believe these heavy allegations.
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I will say from the start that I have no tolerance for the "Truthers" whatsoever. As a native New Yorker who knows the city, and as a descendent of 4 generations of New York fire chiefs, I feel insulted and angry when I hear these conspiracy freaks present their pseudo-science. I have listened impatiently as Truthers have 'explained' how a series of popping explosions was heard from each corner of the Towers....and I have responded in kind that if they had any sense whatsoever of the noise and distance normally present in the enormous area occupied by the twin towers, they would know that it would be impossible to (a) hear those sounds, and, if they could, (b) pinpoint their direction with any accuracy. It shows a stark ignorance of Manhattan to believe such silliness.
However, I want to take issue with your two statements above that do NOT follow at all. You wrote,
"...According to a Zogby poll from May 2007, 42 percent of Americans believe the government took part in some kind of cover up involving the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.."
from which you concluded,
"...so many Americans unsure about their government's involvement in 9/11, it is not healthy for us to ignore millions of people who believe these heavy allegations..." , those 'heavy allegations' being, supposedly, the government's involvement in "The Plot" to blow up the Towers.
But that is a misreading of the Zogby poll. Many Americans believe that the US government covered up the health effects from the tons of dust that covered everyone and everything. Many Americans believed that the US may have had some warning this was going to hapen, but didnt believe it or didn't put 2 + 2 together soon enough. And many believe there was more going on (anthrax, etc) that we weren't told about.
But none of that translates into agreement with the Truthers who believe the US plotted the blowing up of the World Trade Center. In fact, I would say many Americans find it downright loony and insulting to hear the Truthers proclaim their religious dogma as insistently as they do. And all the while we can say 'yes' to Zogby, while saying 'No' to Truthers,
Posted By: Scott from Oregon
Date: 2008-07-10 18:36:43
The truther movement is a symptom of a larger malaise-- that Americans don't trust their government, and that the government is too self-protecting and secretive.
tully, "as a descendent of 4 generations of New York fire chiefs" how do you explain how 400K of concrete turned into dust?
"As a descendent of 4 generations of New York fire chiefs" you should know that fire does not turn concrete into dust. Where were the chunks of concrete? None were found above ground.
"As a descendent of 4 generations of New York fire chiefs" how do you explain the fact that several of the perfectly cut pieces of steel that couldn't have been cut by anything other than thermate were found embedded in buildings blocks away from the towers? A simple pancake theory that YOUR government wants you to believe would not produce enough energy to embed those perfectly cut pieces of steel into those buildings blocks away from the towers.
And "as a descendent of 4 generations of New York fire chiefs" how do you explain the fact that there was only about 30 feet of rubble for each tower when they were both over 100 stories high? When a building pancakes, like YOUR government insisted happens, there should have been at least several stories high of some kind of rubble and concrete chunks and jagged steel. There were no pieces of jagged steel found, only jagged aluminum. All the steel that was found were all perfectly sliced in approximately 30 ft sections cut on the bias and were secretly carted away so no one but YOUR government could study them.
"As a descendent of 4 generations of New York fire chiefs" YOU believe that the Zogby poll is wrong because that is what the mainstream media leads you to believe. But if you would OPEN your eyes and YOUR brain to what is on the Internet, tha only TRUE place for the TRUTH, you would see that the real TRUTH is that at least 50% of the country believes that the government had something to do with the happenings surrounding 9/11. All the memnbers in the 9/11 turth community want to a NEW INDEPENDENT non-government commission to answer the questions that were not EVEN discussed in the governemtn run commission that even the 2 lead Commissioners Kean & Hamilton have written a book saying that they were hung out to dry by Bush and his cronies. Look it up. Buy the book and read it. It's all there right in front of you eyes. Open your mind and your eyes before you say the things that you do.
The Truth is out there. Except Bush and Rove and his cronies have control over the mainstream media and they feed you whatever THEY want you to hear and believe and you feed on it. OPEN YOUR MIND'S EYE and read what is on the TRUE news medium, the Internet and not Fox News or Bill O'Reilly. They are the biggest liars out there. Look at the other side. That is where it is at.
Read the writings of David Ray Griffin or Richard Gage. It will astound you how many unanswered questions there were. Over 100 of them.
Why did building 7 fall when no plane hit it at all when there was very little rubble that hit it and very small fires inside and it fell straight down in it's own footprint when the damage was in the SW corner of the building? When you chop a tree it falls in the direction you chop it on. This building didn't do that. It fell straight down. It should have tipped in the direction of the damage it incurred. It did not. No one from the government can explain it and it was not even covered in the 9/11 Commission. That is why we are asking for a new Independent non-government Commission to investigate this. There are 100+ more question that they didn't even touch. A pleasure doing business with you. The TRUTH is out there
Posted By: David Slesinger
Date: 2008-07-10 23:39:06
Aaron's piece shows a weakness in his charcter. He sides with the greatest current evil, the current administration, against activists who raise questions he suspiciously refuses to address. Even if he can't yet consider yet that Arab Muslims didn't do 911, at least he should try to counter some of our voluminous evidence.
What can't be denied, whether you are a "Truther" or not, is that the official explanation for the events surrounding that fateful day (the 9/11 Commission Report), particularly with regard to WTC 7, doesn't hold up under forensic and scientific investigative scrutiny.
What also cannot be denied is that there has been no evidenced court trial or criminal charges filed in relation to the events that took place on 9/11, which, when you consider the gravity of the crimes committed, seems ludicrous, especially in America.
I love this country, and the judicial tenets this democracy was founded upon, and it makes me sad to see so many dissillusioned and angry patriots on both sides of the argument.
I found Tully's statements particularly arrogant. What having been born into a four generation family gives him special access to knowledge or wisdom? His accident of birth means nothing in the realm where the scientists and engineers have declared that the official governmental version of 9/11 does not explain the physical observations and requirements of the usual scientific analyses. Thus, Tully must be seen for what he is -- a self-impressed blowhard.
famw, who are you parroting? Surely you do not know for a fact that no concrete chunks were found, you are taking someone else's words. I assure you, having been to the site in the week after the event; having a cousin who is an EMT who worked the south tower before it fell (and who survived); and knowing several people (very close friends) who worked inthe WTC: there were *PLENTY* of concrete chunks, and any suggestion to the contrary is fantasy repeated enough that some believe it. Further, concrete powders under pressure, and explosions, collapses of the towers, etc is easily explainable.
Cut steel beams, eh? I guess the CIA went in, opened up all the buildings, sliced the beams, and patched the entry holes while all of Manhattan slept and no one heard or saw a thing. Good movie scenes, but certainly not reality.
You can shop for engineers to say whatever you want, but most reputable engineers have discounted each and every assertion made by the Truth Squads, who conveniently forget the continuous explosion caused by boilers, natural gas lines, and other naturally occurrig explosive materials in the buildings. And buildings - like trees - do NOT fall 'on the side' on which they're cut, they fall based on the balance of weight above and a variety of easily explainable factors.
I'm sorry, but there's no substance to these claims, propraganda films not withstanding.
Well, Tully, I think you should plan on feeling insulted and angry for the rest of your life.
It's been almost 45 years since JFK was shot. They are still making new documentaries positing that it didn't happen the way we were told. I think 9/11 is going to get at least that much mileage.
Posted By: Floyd W. Whitley
Date: 2008-07-11 20:29:27
In response to Dave's statement "What also cannot be denied is that there has been no evidenced court trial or criminal charges filed in relation to the events..."
This should not surprise legally, assuming you understand the law, because "Factum negantis nulla probatio." [Negative facts are not proof].
Furthermore, as this theory's accusation is doubtful, "In re dubia magis inficiato quam affirmatio intelligenda". [In a doubtful matter, the negative is to be understood rather than the affirmative.]
You (the conspiracy theorists) therefore have nothing to adjudicate. You have no case which CAN be considered. That is not "conspiracy" that is a matter of law.
Posted By: Walt Thiessen
Date: 2008-07-12 07:21:46
One thing I never cease to be fascinated by is that both sides of the debate are certain they're right. There's rarely any expressed self-doubt, and if ever a doubt is expressed there's usually a motive regarding reinforcing another "certainty."
I guess that's the result we should expect when there's no way of knowing for certain what really happened behind the scenes. Even more fascinating is that when I make this point, I am usually accused of being a stooge for the other side. This happens regardless of whether I'm talking with a truther or an anti-truther.
Walt, suppose I asserted that the government blew up the levees in New Orleans as Katrina was hitting, in order to wage genocide on poor blacks. Or, suppose I asserted that the FDA actually planted Salmonella in Mexican food in order to poison Hispanics. Or suppose I asserted that the government secretly seeded the clouds to cause the rainstorms that flooded Iowa, Wiconsin, and Missouri in oredr for Administration to come in as heroes to theswe 3 swings just before a Presidential election?
There are many weird things I could assert, and you can not 'prove' (nor 'disprove') a negative. But that does not mean that my conspiracy-theory assertions are just as valid a theory as to what happened as good ol, Occams-Razor type common sense.
You're right, I'm holding to my plain-reading, common sense approach without any self-doubt, and I feel no need to disprove a fantasy. To do otherwise would be to grant credibility to any wacko assertion that is put forth. All theories are not equal, and all opinions are not valid.
Tully, your responses expose an underlying anti-intellectual bias. For example, how is it possible that the towers collapsed at free fall speed when the official story is that they pancaked clearly requiring a collapsing speed far inexcess of free fall? Your "man in the street" retorts to the hard questions, proves you are impervious to intelligent analysis, but it does not support your assertion that your explanation is as good as any other.
I often hear people say things like: "This is America and I'm entitled to an opinion just like any one else." Right, but that doesn't mean that your opinion is entitled to be taken seriously. Just being stubborn doesn't answer any of the hard questions. Your opinions are totally and completely worthless.
You're right Ed. Millions of Americans like me are wrong. In the age of videos and surveillance cameras, cameras in cell phones and the Internet, millions of New Yorkers missed all the skullduggery performed by undercover government workers in buildings that were occupied 24/7.
We're all wrong, and a small cadre of Monday-morning Quarterbacking Truthers is right.
Somehow, this sounds an awful lot like me talking to my teenagers....
All of you which have written to this page, forgive my grammar for I can never come close to your grammar level.
In my opinion, I feel you can not give an educated opinion until you have heard or seen both sides of the story. I understand that some of you, which have commented, are not fully aware of all the info that is presented in these controversial documentaries and if you are, then you are simply discarding the idea that it might be true. I am not implying that those documentaries are true, but I am not saying they are not.
I have seen Loose Change 2nd Edition about 7 times. I sought out the truth and that documentary sent me on an information chase via the internet. I have gotten much info regarding this 9/11 controversy, however, I can not honestly say where I stand. It's a difficult topic.
If you really want to know the truth then seek it, wholeheartedly, not by saying, "I'll watch it but I know it's a bunch of nonsense."
Posted By: scott alexander cowie
Date: 2008-07-21 01:29:52
Tully, I assume by Occum's razor you are refering to Ockham's razor..." Pluralitas non est ponenda sine neccesitate " ? You've begun your arguement ad vericundium and we're all suitably impressed.
Physical evidence notwithstanding...Qui Bono ? Certainly the neo-cons and the PNAC document acheived their New Perle Harbour. They were able to march into Afghanastan the planning of which, as had been reported in the Indian Times in I believe April of that year ( a full five months prior to sept 11)
This was long before the CIA asset Tim Osman was alleged to have arisen from his dialasis machine.
So the Skull and Bones former Opium Barons progeny controls the Opium fields of Afghanistan. Fruit not falling that far from the tree.
And the Oil rich fields of the pathetically protected Iraqi's are now also firmly in the grip of the child molesters.
And look at you, sweetie. You've decided to shill for them. Isn't that cute.
Posted By: Robert Waters
Date: 2009-08-14 22:52:44
The Truther movement is a symptom of the fact that it\'s always easier for ill-informed and intellectually lazy people to account for any phenomenon by invoking a conspiracy (preferably one which justifies and excuses their own political naivette and inertia) than to become better informed, to access the matter intelligently, and to act effectively.
What we need to do with Truthers is to dismiss them as the nut jobs they are. To take them seriously on any level only encourages them.
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