~~~~~~~~ The War on Reason ~~~~~~~~~~~~
No matter how you reduce it, the events that took place on Manhattan Island, September 11, 2001 were a direct result of the intentions of the American
government. How far you go into conspiracy theory is up to you. I've heard them all, but I'm not here to subscribe to any of them. You know me, you
know our goals here. I'm going to go with what I have: things that we agree are indisputable facts and logic. It is in the interest of full
disclosure that I present all these theories of what happened that day. It is a necessary part of my overall argument that the dichotomy of opinion be
illustrated. I mean no disrespect to anyone, in fact, in this story, I see everyone as victim. It is not only their arguments we must think about, we
must also recognize how it's all argument and what that means.
So, what can we say for certain about what happened that day? It's hard to imagine anyone thinking that “nothing” happened that day and I'm
certainly unaware of any such theory coming forward. Everyone agrees that “something” happened that day. Other things we have to believe happened,
but a few things are given. There used to be three more towers at the World Trade Center complex. Those towers are not there because they were
destroyed on that day. Surprisingly, this is where what we actually know and can all agree on as happening, ends. No matter how you look at the rest
of the story, you are going to be able to find more than one person who thinks differently. To some, this may be of no consequence. Those of us with
paradigm paralysis cannot change our minds, those of us who won't even hear such nonsense, won't change our minds. You and I, however, understand
something of how the mind works, how the self is shaped. You and I are beginning to understand how, at times, we can't even trust ourselves. We know
what the difference between knowing and believing is. We can see the value in the big picture. We can decide for ourselves and, more importantly, we
can not decide if we so choose. As I've stated, everyone is entitled to believe whatever nonsense they like. Some of us are also able to explain why
we believe things without saying, “I just do.”
First, I will explain the official account of the day, as briefly as I can before I open a can of worms. As usual, we seek the who, what, where, when,
how and why of the events that lead to the destruction that took place at the World Trade Center on September eleventh. (We will also discuss the
other events of the day.) We all agree that, in the end, we had three towers reduced to dust, thousands of people dead and missing. How did the towers
collapse and what was the cause? The official, accepted version is actually quite simple: Two large commercial airliners crashed, one each in each of
the towers. The planes were laden with fuel and the subsequent explosion and fire weakened structural supports over the nearly two hours before the
collapse. Finally, once the supports let go, the beams holding up the floor collapsed to the floor below, which was also weakened. Thus, the floor
below collapsed, then the floor below, until such momentum and weight was achieved that the towers disintegrated in a “pancake” effect, floor to
floor at nearly free fall speed. First one tower collapsed, then the other. Then, a few hours later, the third tower, the building known as WTC 7,
collapsed. (We will discuss this event separately.)
The official explanation of how the aircraft were being used is also very clear cut. Members of Al Queda, controlled and funded by known terrorist
“kingpin” Osama bin Laden, wished to wage a holy war against America. The hijackers used boxcutters and brute force to gain entry into the
cockpits of these airplanes with the intention of crashing them into specific targets in the US. Which, for all but one of the four planes, they did.
The fourth crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. Officials later stated they became aware of the boxcutter methodology via passenger cell phone calls to
loved ones, the police, the FBI, etc. All of the men boarded the plane as ticketed passengers. All of them were Muslim. Some of the men were known to
be training as pilots in the US. The highjackers, as they became known, were from different middle eastern countries. Pakistan, Sudan, most of them
were from Saudi Arabia. Some of them, later identified, were known “muslim extremists.” The Pentagon was hit by the third highjacked airliner
that came in at a ground level trajectory. There is no useable video footage of this event but there are still photos of the aftermath.
[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/053af16c9040.jpg[/atsimg]
So we've covered everything but the “official why.” Which is the most difficult to cover and the point at which we have no choice but to accept
someone's opinion. Even if we believe the tape of Osama bin Laden taking responsibility for the events and saying that he did so in retaliation for
the US supporting Israel and occupying Muslim lands, it is still his version, which differs than the American version of “Muslim extremism hates
everything about America, especially freedom.” Now, looking back on this statement, it seems almost farcical, yet we all heard it countless times.
Now, before we open that can of worms, peer inside and see what kind of weirdness is wriggling around, let's examine just a few more accepted truisms
about the intentional background of the overall story. This will entail a little history. On December 24, 1979, Russia sent troops in to assist the
government of Afghanistan in an ongoing civil war against the Mujahideen. The Mujahideen were, and are still, essentially Muslim freedom fighters.
Afghanistan's government, The Democratic Republic of Afghanistan was Communist and wished to advance the government, into a more modern, Eastern
place. This type of coup was not at all a new thing for the area, even a cursory glance at Afghanistan's history will prove to you that it is, and
always has been, an area of upheaval, perhaps become of it's central location in what we call the middle east. This time however, the government
asked the Soviets for assistance and got it. Of course America didn't like this, particularly after the Shah they place in Iran was ousted and the
American ambassador was kidnapped, then executed. (And let's not forget, the cold war is still in effect.) America, and some of her allies, via the
CIA funnelled arms and supplies into Afghanistan, often through Pakistan, to support the Mujahideen in their “patriotic struggle.” This literally
put bin Laden and his resources in the loop. He didn't need to “be on the payroll” but for all intents and purposes, he was. He was assisted in
every way imaginable, short of putting American troops on the ground there, in any form other than training or advisory.
Then, in the spring of 1988, Russia, having spent billions of dollars and lost countless young men, she gave up and began removing her troops. Some
people call the Russia Afghanistan conflict “Russia's Vietnam” because it was unpopular, seemingly unwinnable and promising little reward in the
first place, (or so it seemed to the populace.) With Russia retreating, the Mujahideen claimed Afghanistan as victors, which I guess they were. The
price they paid however, was continued chaos. Afghanistan has always been a tribal area or tribal people. (One little ten year war, in the grand
scheme of eons of tradition of a proud people(s) is unlikely to change things for very long.) Until finally, the Taliban takes control of the
government in 1996. The Taliban are aptly named, the word means “student,” and the Taliban, above all honours it's interpretation of the faith.
What George Bush sees as Muslim extremism, to the Taliban, is the will of God. This is serious business and a great many people willingly take part in
this seriousness.
The west used the Mujahideen for it's own goals and then abandoned them, albeit with fanfare and respect, to their own devices. Reagan recognized
them as “freedom fighters” (which is a direct translation) as did James Bond and Rambo. While being applauded and immortalized in film nearing the
end of the cold war, the CIA was quietly jotting down the names of the leaders, Liutenants and key players in the Mujahideen. These people, again, the
more extreme, more violent members, became known as “the foundation” which translates into “Al Queda.” (Foundation as in “base,” a
structure to be built upon.) Al Queda continues to fight for that which they consider holy.