Alexander's September Slander

When George W. Bush stated, “let us never tolerate outrageous conspiracy theories,” Alexander Cockburn took it to heart. Reminiscent of right-wing shock jock radio hosts, Cockburn responded to the 9/11 truth movement with angst, drama, and personal attacks. His rant lacked facts, rational thought, and logic and made no points other than he feels bumbling bureaucrats and government foibles are to blame. His inflammatory and disrespectful remarks fell just shy of the zealots who want to stop the “unpatriotic, treasonous” questioners of 9/11. When the line was drawn and Bush declared—you’re either with us or you're with the terrorists, Cockburn opted to preserve himself by siding with the administration.

Berkeley Event

Sacramento 9/11 Truth activists traveled to Berkeley on Sunday, September 24, 2006, to attend the KPFA event, 9/11 & American Empire: Intellectuals Speak Out (after the recently released book Volume I of the same title). The event was sold-out (with over 800 in attendance) and many waited in a long line to try to buy tickets at the door. Ray McGovern hosted the event following an introduction by Bonnie Faulkner of KPFA. The first speaker was David Ray Griffin who noted that the 9/11 Truth Movement is a broad movement that covers the entire political spectrum (not solely leftists as the media would have people believe) and noted a list of conservative and libertarian 9/11 Truth Activists. He concluded noting that defending the Official Conspiracy Theory is an irrational and unscientific approach. Kevin Ryan was the second speaker noting many of the shortcomings and obvious oversights of the NIST report. Griffin and Ryan were followed by Peter Dale Scott, and Peter Phillips (event info. and brief speaker bios). The event was filmed by KPFA and C-SPAN who will be airing the event within a few weeks. Once airdates are known they will be posted.

Truth is More Powerful than Fear or War

Understanding how to communicate about 9/11 is critical to any outreach strategy. There are many ways to approach discussion on 9/11; an activist in Colorado has an interesting web page The Psychology of 9/11 Perception. The page is very low tech, but the information is interesting. There are also sample flyers regarding different approaches to communicating with others. There is no right way to communicate; some people are ready to head straight to a factual presentation, others need to have a personal connection "how does this affect me," and others are careful about protecting their comfort zone.

Restating the Obvious

New York 9/11 Truth is hosting an event that should take place in all communities: "9/11 Truth and Peace, Learn why 9/11 Truth is the vortex for all global issues impacted by the imperial agenda for empire." The concept is very relevant but lost by many who have made a conscious choice to avoid the truth about 9/11 or draw connections to the catalyst used to launch the New World Order and unending war.

It is clear that the truth movement is making significant progress and thanks go out to all who coordinated 9/11 truth and outreach events throughout the country over the past week. Unfortunately some who appear to be a beacon of truth actually serve to conceal it; this is in direct reference to a popular leftist radio/television news program that aired a 9/11 debate this past Monday. The Popular Mechanics propagandists should have been scheduled to debate the person who wrote the article that debunked their 9/11 hit piece; however, a source has indicated that Jim Hoffman who wrote the cover piece for Global Outlook (issue 10) was not invited to participate. You may recall another program from May 2004 where the same host featured a "debate" between Chip Berlet (who has many web pages devoted to mocking so-called conspiracy theorists) and author David Ray Griffin. These "control the debate" tactics are those used by the likes of Fox News, MSNBC, etc., and should not be part of the alternative news. One is left to wonder why this program has avoided hosting a one-on-one interview with key 9/11 researchers rather than stage a "debate."

Local Activist Writes About the Growing 9/11 Truth Movement

A local 9/11 activist has written an excellent short piece titled "The 9/11 Truth Movement Gains Strength." The article is posted on Portland Indymedia - one of the few Indymedia websites that gives 9/11 its own topic heading.

Worldwide Event Listing for 9/11/2006

911Truth.org has compiled a list of events commemorating the 5th anniversary of 9/11 to encourage those who doubt the offical story to take action this year. There are seven events listed in California and likely many more that have not been listed. Those who have an event scheduled can have it listed by emailing: webmaster@911truth.org. If you can't make it to an event find some other way to share information with others.

Steven Jones Placed on Leave by BYU

According to a Utah paper Deseret Morning News, Professor Steven Jones has been placed on paid leave while BYU reviews his involvement in the 9/11 Truth Movement. The article refers to Jones achieving "celebrity" status with "conspiracy-theory groups."

Text of BYU statement on Steven Jones:
"Physics professor Steven Jones has made numerous statements about the collapse of the World Trade Center. BYU has repeatedly said that it does not endorse assertions made by individual faculty. We are, however, concerned about the increasingly speculative and accusatory nature of these statements by Dr. Jones. Furthermore, BYU remains concerned that Dr. Jones' work on this topic has not been published in appropriate scientific venues. Owing to these issues, as well as others, the university has placed Dr. Jones on leave while we continue to review these matters."

Follow up report: On October 20, 2006, Steven Jones announced his plans for early retirement from BYU.

Ironworkers and 9/11

One of the many 9/11 shows currently being aired on cable television had an interesting title: Metal of Honor - The Untold Story of the Ironworkers of 9/11. The film documented the rescue efforts of New York City structural ironworkers. Readers must be thinking why waste time viewing these programs, but some of these programs reveal small pieces of the big puzzle and further support the 9/11 truth movement. There were many noteworthy details revealed throughout the film:

• Regarding the fall of the twin towers, one speaker said "you couldn't have paid a demolition company to do it straighter," noting how very few surrounding buildings were damaged and how much damage there would have been had the towers toppled to the side.
  
• One heading that flashed during the film indicated that the towers were a symbol of peace.
  
• At first there were many volunteers to help search and clear out material but the site became too chaotic and there were concerns about injury so the government hired general contractors to establish a chain of command.
  
• Everything was pulverized there were no desks, computers, or laptops.
  
• After the towers were destroyed there was one foot of dust on the ground.
  
• The last fire was put out on December 19, 2001.
  
• Fires and explosions occurred often during the clean up.
  
• In the underground area, some cars were untouched in the parking garage and some businesses did not have any damage.
  
• Workers witnessed massively mangled, crushed, and crumpled steel and could not imagine the amount of force it would take to cause such damage.
  
• All material had been cleared within 8 1/2 months, 3 months ahead of schedule.
  

There should be a group of ironworkers for 9/11 truth, not to mention pilots, structural engineers, firefighters, and others who understand the nuances, can expose key facts, and reveal that that the official fiction is completely impossible.