Post by calabi-yau on Sept 15, 2004 7:00:07 GMT -5
There will be talk about 9/11 for generations to come. Like Pearl Harbor, the truth will eventually come out and as the article points out, it will be too late by then. Do we ever learn ?
The many unanswered questions about the atrocities of September 11, 2001
by Muzaffar Iqbal
(Wednesday 15 September 2004)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
"It is reasonable to believe that it will take a long time and fundamental changes in the US government before the whole truth about September 11, 2001, is revealed."
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The real story of the attacks on Washington and New York on September 11, 2001, is slowly emerging, shattering the myths propagated by the Bush administration. While establishment voices in the US continue to promote the official version of events, numerous independent investigators continue to find more and more evidence that exposes the lies crafted by the neo-conservatives, with the help of CNN and other media outlets, soon after the events of that fatal day. The whole truth is still not known, but one thing is already established: the official version no longer holds together. There is something terribly wrong with the version of events that has been used by the Bush administration to launch two invasions and numerous overt and secret aggressions against Muslims throughout the world.
Certain facts are worth remembering. Shortly after the attacks, most of the US press and media hugely exaggerated the number of deaths, claiming that up to fifty thousand people may have died; the total death count was gradually reduced to less than 3,000. Pointing this out is not to belittle the dead, but to draw attention to the fact that numbers were inflated to create an atmosphere of collective fear. Over the last three years, the Bush administration has continuously used this strategy to maintain a high level of anxiety and fear in America in order to pass draconian laws at home and justify an aggressive foreign policy abroad.
It is now widely accepted that September 11 has been used as a pretext for a tiny clique in the American ruling elite to push for a vast agenda of change in and outside America that could not have been justified or implemented without some massive catalyst. The details of this agenda, laid out in a policy document published by a right-wing think-tank called the Project for a New American Century (PNAC) in September 2000, are well established, and so are the close links between this think-tank and senior neo-conservatives in the Bush administration. So far, this event has been used to carry out sweeping changes in American laws, considerably reducing the legal security of its citizens; it has also generated tens, even hundreds, of millions of dollars for a tiny corporate elite through military and other contracts in and outside America.The questions which arise, then, are about the relationship between the events of that day and this agenda, which has already led to two invasions, resulting in the deaths of tens of thousands of Muslims and the occupation of two Muslim countries. What are the links between those who have crafted this blueprint for a century supposed to be dominated by America and the events that have been used as an excuse and justification for implementing it?
These questions are drawing the attention of independent thinkers and investigators, and the answers are unravelling a massive and far-reaching story of deceit. It is still too early to construct a coherent and complete understanding of the real story behind September 11, but from a large number of facts brought forward by independent investigators, it can be established without doubt that the attacks did not surprise the American security and intelligence agencies; in fact, they were widely anticipated, and there is evidence to suggest that something like them was in fact desired and needed by a small group of people who had a secret agenda of world dominance.
Michael Meacher, who until June 2003 was environment minister in Tony Blair’s cabinet, has suggested various links between September 11 and the New American Century Project. In an article called ‘This War on Terrorism is Bogus’, published in the Guardian newspaper, London, on September 6, 2003, Meacher wrote: “We now know that a blueprint for the creation of a global Pax Americana was drawn up for Dick Cheney (now vice-president), Donald Rumsfeld (defence secretary), Paul Wolfowitz (Rumsfeld’s deputy), Jeb Bush (George Bush’s younger brother) and Lewis Libby (Cheney’s chief of staff). The document, entitled ‘Rebuilding America’s Defences’, was written in September 2000 by the neoconservative think tank, Project for the New American Century (PNAC). The plan shows Bush’s cabinet intended to take military control of the Gulf region whether or not Saddam Hussein was in power.”
Meacher points out, as numerous other independent investigators have, that the first hijacking was suspected no later than 8.20 am, that a second plane hit the Pentagon at 9:38 am, and that the last hijacked aircraft crashed in Pennsylvania at 10.06 am. During this interval of one hour and forty-six minutes, not a single fighter plane arrived at the scene, even though the US Andrews Air Force Base is just 10 miles from Washington DC. Why was the standard FAA intercept protocol ignored on that particular day, although the US air force launched fighter aircraft on sixty-seven different occasions between September 2000 and June 2001, to chase suspicious aircraft (AP, August 13 2002)? It is a US legal requirement that once an aircraft has moved significantly off its flight plan, fighter planes are immediately sent to investigate the matter. So why were these procedures ignored on September 11? Were orders given to suspend them, and if so who gave them, on what basis and on whose authority? So far, the US government has not offered any answers to these questions.
Such details begin to make sense when viewed against the PNAC blueprint. According to this plan, America had to be willing to change its foreign policy in order to secure its perceived interests in the Middle East and elsewhere. In April 2001 the Baker Institute of Public Policy had recommended an attack on Iraq because it was “a destabilizing influence to the flow of oil to international markets from the Middle East”.
As for Afghanistan, independent observers have pointed out that Afghanistan became a target after the Taliban refused to accept US conditions for the construction of pipelines from the oil and gas fields in Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, which were supposed to pass through Afghanistan and Pakistan to the Indian Ocean. US representatives are reported to have threatened the Taliban, saying: “either you accept our offer of a carpet of gold, or we bury you under a carpet of bombs” (Inter Press Service, November 15, 2001).
Of course, oil and gas are the most basic factors behind this global aggression. This overriding consideration can be understood in the light of the prediction that by 2010 the US will be able to produce only 39 percent of its petroleum needs, compared to 57 percent in 1990. The situation in Britain is no different. By 2020, 70 percent of electricity in UK will be produced from gas; 90 percent of this gas will have to be imported. Given these forecasts and the fact that Iraq has 110 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves in addition to its oil, it is not surprising that the US and Britain have invaded Iraq so impudently, ignoring the outrage of millions of people who took part in protest marches and rallies around the world.
By any standards the events of September 11, 2001, are a crime. Every crime has a motive and one or more beneficiaries. While some motives in this case remain hidden, it is abundantly clear that the main beneficiaries are the Bush administration, the Pentagon, the CIA, FBI, Israel and the US weapons and oil industries. It is reasonable, therefore, to ask about their involvement and/or complicity in the crime. In other words, did any of these beneficiaries of the tragic crime of September 11 play any role in its success?
continued in next post
The many unanswered questions about the atrocities of September 11, 2001
by Muzaffar Iqbal
(Wednesday 15 September 2004)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
"It is reasonable to believe that it will take a long time and fundamental changes in the US government before the whole truth about September 11, 2001, is revealed."
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The real story of the attacks on Washington and New York on September 11, 2001, is slowly emerging, shattering the myths propagated by the Bush administration. While establishment voices in the US continue to promote the official version of events, numerous independent investigators continue to find more and more evidence that exposes the lies crafted by the neo-conservatives, with the help of CNN and other media outlets, soon after the events of that fatal day. The whole truth is still not known, but one thing is already established: the official version no longer holds together. There is something terribly wrong with the version of events that has been used by the Bush administration to launch two invasions and numerous overt and secret aggressions against Muslims throughout the world.
Certain facts are worth remembering. Shortly after the attacks, most of the US press and media hugely exaggerated the number of deaths, claiming that up to fifty thousand people may have died; the total death count was gradually reduced to less than 3,000. Pointing this out is not to belittle the dead, but to draw attention to the fact that numbers were inflated to create an atmosphere of collective fear. Over the last three years, the Bush administration has continuously used this strategy to maintain a high level of anxiety and fear in America in order to pass draconian laws at home and justify an aggressive foreign policy abroad.
It is now widely accepted that September 11 has been used as a pretext for a tiny clique in the American ruling elite to push for a vast agenda of change in and outside America that could not have been justified or implemented without some massive catalyst. The details of this agenda, laid out in a policy document published by a right-wing think-tank called the Project for a New American Century (PNAC) in September 2000, are well established, and so are the close links between this think-tank and senior neo-conservatives in the Bush administration. So far, this event has been used to carry out sweeping changes in American laws, considerably reducing the legal security of its citizens; it has also generated tens, even hundreds, of millions of dollars for a tiny corporate elite through military and other contracts in and outside America.The questions which arise, then, are about the relationship between the events of that day and this agenda, which has already led to two invasions, resulting in the deaths of tens of thousands of Muslims and the occupation of two Muslim countries. What are the links between those who have crafted this blueprint for a century supposed to be dominated by America and the events that have been used as an excuse and justification for implementing it?
These questions are drawing the attention of independent thinkers and investigators, and the answers are unravelling a massive and far-reaching story of deceit. It is still too early to construct a coherent and complete understanding of the real story behind September 11, but from a large number of facts brought forward by independent investigators, it can be established without doubt that the attacks did not surprise the American security and intelligence agencies; in fact, they were widely anticipated, and there is evidence to suggest that something like them was in fact desired and needed by a small group of people who had a secret agenda of world dominance.
Michael Meacher, who until June 2003 was environment minister in Tony Blair’s cabinet, has suggested various links between September 11 and the New American Century Project. In an article called ‘This War on Terrorism is Bogus’, published in the Guardian newspaper, London, on September 6, 2003, Meacher wrote: “We now know that a blueprint for the creation of a global Pax Americana was drawn up for Dick Cheney (now vice-president), Donald Rumsfeld (defence secretary), Paul Wolfowitz (Rumsfeld’s deputy), Jeb Bush (George Bush’s younger brother) and Lewis Libby (Cheney’s chief of staff). The document, entitled ‘Rebuilding America’s Defences’, was written in September 2000 by the neoconservative think tank, Project for the New American Century (PNAC). The plan shows Bush’s cabinet intended to take military control of the Gulf region whether or not Saddam Hussein was in power.”
Meacher points out, as numerous other independent investigators have, that the first hijacking was suspected no later than 8.20 am, that a second plane hit the Pentagon at 9:38 am, and that the last hijacked aircraft crashed in Pennsylvania at 10.06 am. During this interval of one hour and forty-six minutes, not a single fighter plane arrived at the scene, even though the US Andrews Air Force Base is just 10 miles from Washington DC. Why was the standard FAA intercept protocol ignored on that particular day, although the US air force launched fighter aircraft on sixty-seven different occasions between September 2000 and June 2001, to chase suspicious aircraft (AP, August 13 2002)? It is a US legal requirement that once an aircraft has moved significantly off its flight plan, fighter planes are immediately sent to investigate the matter. So why were these procedures ignored on September 11? Were orders given to suspend them, and if so who gave them, on what basis and on whose authority? So far, the US government has not offered any answers to these questions.
Such details begin to make sense when viewed against the PNAC blueprint. According to this plan, America had to be willing to change its foreign policy in order to secure its perceived interests in the Middle East and elsewhere. In April 2001 the Baker Institute of Public Policy had recommended an attack on Iraq because it was “a destabilizing influence to the flow of oil to international markets from the Middle East”.
As for Afghanistan, independent observers have pointed out that Afghanistan became a target after the Taliban refused to accept US conditions for the construction of pipelines from the oil and gas fields in Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, which were supposed to pass through Afghanistan and Pakistan to the Indian Ocean. US representatives are reported to have threatened the Taliban, saying: “either you accept our offer of a carpet of gold, or we bury you under a carpet of bombs” (Inter Press Service, November 15, 2001).
Of course, oil and gas are the most basic factors behind this global aggression. This overriding consideration can be understood in the light of the prediction that by 2010 the US will be able to produce only 39 percent of its petroleum needs, compared to 57 percent in 1990. The situation in Britain is no different. By 2020, 70 percent of electricity in UK will be produced from gas; 90 percent of this gas will have to be imported. Given these forecasts and the fact that Iraq has 110 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves in addition to its oil, it is not surprising that the US and Britain have invaded Iraq so impudently, ignoring the outrage of millions of people who took part in protest marches and rallies around the world.
By any standards the events of September 11, 2001, are a crime. Every crime has a motive and one or more beneficiaries. While some motives in this case remain hidden, it is abundantly clear that the main beneficiaries are the Bush administration, the Pentagon, the CIA, FBI, Israel and the US weapons and oil industries. It is reasonable, therefore, to ask about their involvement and/or complicity in the crime. In other words, did any of these beneficiaries of the tragic crime of September 11 play any role in its success?
continued in next post