The 9/11 Truth Movement's Dangers

Nation: Dishonest Government Leads To Cynical Theorists

(The Nation)  This column was written by Christopher Hayes

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According to a July poll conducted by Scripps News Service, one-third of Americans think the government either carried out the 9/11 attacks or intentionally allowed them to happen in order to provide a pretext for war in the Middle East. This is at once alarming and unsurprising. Alarming, because if tens of millions of Americans really believe their government was complicit in the murder of 3,000 of their fellow citizens, they seem remarkably sanguine about this fact. By and large, life continues as before, even though tens of millions of people apparently believe they are being governed by mass murderers. Unsurprising, because the government these Americans suspect of complicity in 9/11 has acquired a justified reputation for deception: weapons of mass destruction, secret prisons, illegal wiretapping. What else are they hiding?

This pattern of deception has not only fed diffuse public cynicism but has provided an opening for alternate theories of 9/11 to flourish. As these theories — propounded by the so-called 9/11 Truth Movement — seep toward the edges of the mainstream, they have raised the specter of the return (if it ever left) of what Richard Hofstadter famously described as "the paranoid style in American politics." But the real danger posed by the Truth Movement isn't paranoia. Rather, the danger is that it will discredit and deform the salutary skepticism Americans increasingly show toward their leaders.

The Truth Movement's recent growth can be largely attributed to the Internet-distributed documentary "Loose Change." A low-budget film produced by two 20-somethings that purports to debunk the official story of 9/11, it's been viewed over the Internet millions of times. Complementing "Loose Change" are the more highbrow offerings of a handful of writers and scholars, many of whom are associated with Scholars for 9/11 Truth. Two of these academics, retired theologian David Ray Griffin and retired Brigham Young University physics professor Steven Jones, have written books and articles that serve as the movement's canon. Videos of their lectures circulate among the burgeoning portions of the Internet devoted to the cause of the "truthers." A variety of groups have chapters across the country and organize conferences that draw hundreds. In the last election cycle, the website www.911truth.org even produced a questionnaire with pointed inquiries for candidates, just like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce or the Sierra Club. The Truth Movement's relationship to the truth may be tenuous, but that it is a movement is no longer in doubt.

Truth activists often maintain they are simply "raising questions," and as such tend to focus with dogged persistence on physical minutiae: the lampposts near the Pentagon that should have been knocked down by Flight 77, the altitude in Pennsylvania at which cellphones on Flight 93 should have stopped working, the temperature at which jet fuel burns and at which steel melts. They then use these perceived inconsistencies to argue that the central events of 9/11 — the plane hitting the Pentagon, the towers collapsing — were not what they appeared to be. So: The eyewitness accounts of those who heard explosions in the World Trade Center, combined with the facts that jet fuel burns at 1,500 degrees Fahrenheit and steel melts at 2,500, shows that the towers were brought down by controlled explosions from inside the buildings, not by the planes crashing into them.

If the official story is wrong, then what did happen? As you might expect, there's quite a bit of dissension on this point. Like any movement, the Truth Movement is beset by internecine fights between different factions: those who subscribe to what are termed LIHOP theories (that the government "let it happen on purpose") and the more radical MIHOP ("made it happen on purpose") contingent. Even within these groups, there are divisions: Some believe the WTC was detonated with explosives after the planes hit and some don't even think there were any planes.

[lyingliars]

Golly, you would think those poll numbers might warrant a PRIMETIME expose on national television pitting Official Government Experts vs. the Scholars for 911 Truth. You know, a genuine point-counter point debating the issue. Or here's a novel idea...genuine and open hearings in Congress spearheaded by a truly Independent Citizens Counsel in a PRIMETIME slot.
Until this is done the controversy will never
be put to bed. Once the truth as percieved by millions is out it can never be stuffed back into the bottle. Until the "Fourth Estate" does it's job there will be a snowball effect that culminates in what...a Revolution? A Civil War? It "IS" that freaking serious.
Americans are slow to act, but will not stand for the loss of our National Sovereignty (North American Union), much less the COLD BLOODED MURDER of it's citizens.
Mainstream Media...are you listening? "If" there are traitors in high places, we need to deal with it.

[saturn-v]

usmczoo1 you asked:

No mention of building 7?

What do you mean? It's pretty obvious what happened.

WTC7 wasn't hit by any planes.

It didn't have raging fires.

It was of an entirely different construction than the Twin Towers yet it collapsed in the exact same way.

The firefighters were ordered out of it just for the heck of it.

It collapsed into a tidy little pile without seriously damaging the two buildings on either side because it was the polite thing to do.

The molten metal found underneath the rubble wasn't strange at all unlike the molten metal found under the other two towers.

If you add this all together along with all the other unexplained, unprecedented, bizarre facts and observations the reason it fell down is obvious:

WTC7 was under a lot of stress that day and unfortunately it went completely insane and committed suicide.

That's why we don't mention building 7. It's bad taste to talk about a building's personal problems.

[usmczoo1]

No mention of building 7? The scolars involved in the 911 truth movement are rational old school thinkers that research in true academic form.They have researched almost all angles, which should have been done by the 911 commission if a solid investigation was done.This reasearch brings many questions.The 911 commision would have had these same questions if a solid investigation was done.The facts point to government knowledge at minimum.
It would be a benefit to American citizens and the rest of the world if CBS and the other news medias would engage in rational debate and look at 'All' the facts of this event.Were not being fooled so easily and know 911 needs a true investigation.

[onlyonevoice]

"What kind of absolute, irrefutable, in-your-face proof would be required in order for you conspiracy types to give it up? Seriously, what would make you guys concede the obvious? Or are you all so blinded by your Bush-hating that is there nothing, nothing at all, no physical evidence, no independent witnesses, expert analyses, etc that could ever sway you?
Posted by erichsh at 12:20 AM : Dec 12, 2006"

Mr Erichsh, I ask of you this? Wean yourself from the MSM echo and go beyond Loose Change. Many of us out here watched it. Many of us think it is an excellent start. But I recommend you go to your local book store and buy Crossing the Rubicon by Michael C. Ruppert. It is by far the best and most complete investigation I know of. Complete with 49 pages of end-notes so that you can verify the sources he used. If you would like a warm up watch this...
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4046564743329239954&q=ruppert&hl=en

be sure and paste the entire web address in.

Be prepared to have your outlook forever changed.
This is not exclusively about 9/11. It gives you the reasons behind the cover-up and what the future has in store of us.

[brjohnson789]

I do not know what is more shameful, the fact that many people may read this article and believe it, or that it was printed in the first place. Mr. Hayes writes as if he has studied human history for the last 5 years. He lives in a magical world where only this latest US administration has possibly told some untruths, and that in fact at no time in the past has any government ever done anything illegal and lied about it. Nor has any past government created situations that benefited it, and lied about it. Nor would the US government intentionally harmm its own citizens. I wish I lived in that world too. It would be great to think that 'Yeah, things have been pretty rough recently, and maybe the government has sort of fibbed about a couple things, but they would never hurt me. Tuskegee experiments? Never happened. Gulf of Tonkin a big lie to get us into Vietnam? Nahh. But dang that silly media, they're just not being cynical enough recently so the filthy unwashed masses are starting to question what my precious media is presenting to them. Maybe I'll be out of job spewing my take on history! Oh No!!'

Did that hit a little too close to home Mr. Hayes?? Let me help you about a bit there. Do some research on what our founding fathers said about trusting our government. In your current state of mind they'd sound like conspiracy theorists, right?

[onlyonevoice]

And I'm wondering why Demolition Companies spend so much time and money when all they need is a few hours and 10,000 gallons of jet fuel. The buildings seem to fall remarkbly into thier own footprint. With the exception of 110 story buildings. 50 story buildings would be worth it. I've considered starting my own business but with my outspoken "theories" I would surely be labeled a terrorist.

[onlyonevoice]

It would be easy to diminish the "Movement" had the only event been 9/11/01. Whats not being said in this article is that since 9/11/01 as a result of an incredibly fast and seemingly (officially) accurate investigation, large numbers of the American population are looking into the ties our elected officials have with various entities around the world. Some of which are so beyind belief, they are safe from scrutiny for that reason only. When you have CIA and ISI connections to drug smuggling, money laundering, the list goes on. The liniing of our government officials pockets e.g.(Cheney and Haliburton or Bush, Carlyle group, and Saudi bin Laden Group (SBG)) the list goes on. The total abuse of power in Washington is beyond corruption. BCCI? Citigroup and Alwaleed and the financial devastation this man could wage agaisnt this country? How is this protecting us?
9/11/01? You think that is all we know about? CBS do your homework! You have more experiance and resources than the people that find this stuff. The reason there isn't 100% that debunk the offical story is the total helplessness of knowing and being able to do nothing. Its time the media did thier job and the Evening News numbers might be what they used to be when we got 1/2 the truth!

[martymary1]

I stopped reading this article when I saw the words "Popular Mechanics" on the page. The jet fuel burned for only a few minutes. Had it burned for many hours, it might have WEAKENED the steel.
The problem is that steel framed skyscrapers are OVER designed - the perimeter beams were 20 times
stronger than the design load and the huge central columns were 6 times stronger than their design load. Thus, if the steel beams had been weakened by 50%, (virtually impossible in the time allowed), they would still have been, respectively, 10 times and 3 times stronger than what was needed to support the entire structure! Besides, the steel glowing red for weeks at the bottom of the pile was MELTED, not weakened!

[martymary1]

I read this article as far as the mention of Popular Mechanics. The claim that jet fuel
burns hot enough to WEAKEN steel would be
correct if it burned for many hours. But the
steel beams in the outside perimeter were 20 times
stronger than the design load. The huge central columns were six times stronger than their design load. So even if the strength of the steel beams were reduced by 50% (unlikely) they would still be 10 times, or 3 times, rspectively, the strength needed to continue supporting the entire structure. Besides, the steel glowing red at the bottom of the pile had been actually melted, not just weakened. The Popular Mechanics article was
a joke. I'm told most of their staff had to be fired before it could be printed!

[joeblytsflk]

"If you actually believe that the government did it then move to Canada. If you really did believe that our government did something that horrific you would do whatever it took to move out of this country."
------------------------------------------------

Sorry. Americans don't work that way.

George Washington, Tom Paine, Ben Franklin and the rest of the boys didn't skip out because they didn't like the ways things were being run.

Did they.

They stayed right where they were, and they fixed the problem.

And that's what we intend to do. We are going to stay right here, and we are going to fix this little problem about public officials lying to us, committing crimes, helping their buds cover up THEIR crimes, and the so-called press helping them to do it.

The "government" is made up of individuals. Individuals who collect paychecks from the American people. Those individuals are EMPLOYEES of the American people. They work for us.

Not the other way around.

If public employees had a hand in this crime, they deserve to be held accountable for their actions. If public employees had a hand in committing the worst mass murder in American history, those public employees need to be held accountable for that crime.

Americans do not run away from their problems. They do not run away from criminality in government. They fix it.

[B.Lokry]

It's too bad I am limited to 1500 characters. I would like to explain blow-by-blow how myopic the vision of this article's writer is as he attempts to debunk the 9-11 Truth Movement and put it in a bad light. It is almost as though he said, "Okay, so you see a man with a smoking gun still pointing at a dead man's head. And okay, you saw the man fall down dead just after hearing the report of the still smoking pistol at about the same time you saw a hole appear between the dead man's eyes, with brains gushing copiously out the hole in the rear of the head. How bizarre that you would conclude that the man with the gun just shot the other fella! Tsk. Tsk. Tsk. YOU WRONG-HEADED CONSPIRACY THEORIST, YOU! The man with the gun may not have done the job." It was a real transparent attempt at propagandizing the reader. I am amazed that there are such foolish human beings walking around sporting brains in their heads of generally the same physical quality as my own.

[jt6]

It's condescending to complain that 911 Truthers somehow spoil the waters of dissent. How pompous it is put forth as more legitimate "their" battles involving torture, the Patriot Act, wiretapping, the removal of habeus corpus, a gutted treasury and Iraq. Every one of these items were shoved down the public's throat in the name of 911.

I wonder how we can trust Hayes and other Nation writers to handle these issues when they allow Popular Mechanics, the NISB and Nova to submit a few stress formulas, temperature coefficients and computer animations to reassure us of the following preposterous assertions:

1. Gravity and Kerosene provided enough energy to create pools of molten steel in the basements of both towers.

2. The time of ground impact of pancaking Twin Tower buildings could match that of dropping a billiard ball from the same height in a vaccum. (A billiard ball in our earth's atmosphere would take 21 seconds to hit the ground from that height).

3. Gravity and kerosene fires contain enough energy to completely anihilate both towers and their contents. (No keyboards, no drawer panels, no telephones, no fax machines were found whole. The largest any one piece that could be found was approximately 4"x 4" wide).

Everyone that sells to us as legitimate the assertions of the 911 Commission should pay for the cost of peeling every last finger back from this executive power-grab.

[liars_all]

To CBS: Why ot try some real investigative reporting and get to the bottom of all the 9/11 lies...is *** like this what you got into journalism for? Stand up and be REAL reporters, instead of lemmings.

[gideon524]

Hey, these silly 9/11 reports just keep popping up. Here's a former employee of yours on 9/11 saying a 4th explosion rocked the remains of the World Trade Center AFTER both towers collapsed!

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=1546964260

[gideon524]

Uh oh, I found another CBS report with one of YOUR reporters mentioning a fireball she saw at STREET LEVEL when the south tower collapse after seeing the tower itself "blow"!

one thing, when you're copying these links, you have to paste them piece by piece because it only copies the first line of the link.

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=1546668296

[gideon524]

Hey, hey lookie what I found; another CBS report of an explosion preceding the collapse of the South Tower on 9/11...

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=1370738299

[gideon524]

You know, that's a really cute, ironic story, especially the part when you say how the movement is a waste of time when your very own TV reporter, Bob Orr, said himself on the very day of 9/11 that "It could've been an inside job." Don't believe me? Here's the link!

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=1547231321

[linux4ever]

[continuation of previous post]

Some theories propagated by people in the 9/11 truth movement are obviously nonsense ("there were no planes", "the planes were replaced with drones", probably the "pod theory"), but the events cannot be explained without some theories propagated by [parts of] the 9/11 truth movement.

Some examples:
- (lack of) reaction of the Secret Service: http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/9-11secretservice.html
- The collapse of WTC7, which was not hit by a plane (http://www.wtc7.net/)
- Larry Silverstein (owner of the WTC complex) admitted demolishing WTC7 (http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/cutter.html)
- It takes several weeks to set up a controlled demolition on the scale seen in WTC7, so how could this be done one one day?
- What about the insider trading of airline put options prior to 9/11? Is it a coincidence that almost all put options were traded by a former CIA director?

I don't know what happened on 9/11 - but one thing is clear: The official story isn't complete, and all attempts to fill its gaps point at members/associates of the Bush administration.

[linux4ever]

I fully agree with the basic point of the article -- but it fails to address the issue of 9/11 really not being what we're told it was.

The Popular Mechanics debunking article referred to in this article has long since been debunked by the 9/11 Truth movement, and the debunking does have better points than the Popular Mechanics article (which was, by the way, written by Ben Chertoff, cousin of the Homeland Security chief at the time -- Michael Chertoff).

(For the debunking of the debunking, see e.g.
http://www.serendipity.li/wot/pop_mech/reply_to_popular_mechanics.htm
http://www.freedomsphoenix.com/Feature-Article.htm?InfoNo=009309
)


[continued]

[truthshall]

Thanks ! It's when i read *** like this that i'm inspired to get more truth out to people. I really like all the big words and little jabs he used to write this propaganda garbage article. Lord of the rings ? Ha you are pathetic. I surf , ride motorcross , wakeboard, work hard , and get more a?s then you could ever imagine , so don't try labeling us TRUTHERS so fast. Next time you write a piece come correct or stay home loser.I gotta go talk to about a hundred or so people real quick and give em some truth . Bye !