Some very unhappy people here but not about the mid term elections. It seems that after the Second World War, the Soviets captures all of the records of the Nazi concentration camps…from 1935 to 1945….and put them in their archives in Moscow. Because they pretty much knock a hole in the legend of six millions gassed, Jewish groups pressured Russia not to ever allow any researcher to see or copy any of these and for certain, never to release the contents of these files to anyone, ever. Russians are easy to bribe and apparently someone in the States got the whole file (on microfilm) and there is fury and panic over this. Jewish groups have asked the DoJ to declare these “improperly released” classified documents and grab them. Unfortunately, there is no legal basis for doing this. The original documents were German and the microfilms are Russian, not American. Some of these groups have built up a thriving business on the subject and anything concrete that could sink their boat is something not to put up with. This is a subject that most people don’t care about but to those who do, it is a real bell-ringer. All of this hinges on whether or not the present owner got these legally. If our people can’t prove he didn’t, it looks like fun and games in the History department!
vrijdag 29 september 2006
zondag 24 september 2006
September 24, 2006
It’s always nice to be right, isn’t it? I thought I was wrong on once but I found out later I was mistaken. What am I talking about? Osama bin Ladin. I have published, at least three time over the past two and one half years that bin Laden was dead. I have had my hand a report from the CIA to the NSC stating categorically that bin Laden died in a Pakistani hospital of kidney failure in September of 2003. The Pakistani government informed the Department of State and the CIA informed the NSC at about the same time. We never heard about this in our free and unfettered media because the Cheney people didn’t want us to. Why is this? Because it gave them a wonderful opportunity to get the CIA, in their Texas facility, the chance to produce more “bin Laden tapes” with which to terrify the voting public at opportune times, such as just before an important election or when Bush’s approval ratings dipped below twenty.
However, militant Islamist groups in the Pakistani government are giving some thought to discrediting their current leader and taking control of that country and its known atomic weaponry. Part of this activity is to discredit the United States by showing that bin Laden was dead while the U.S. was faking anti-Muslim scare tapes. Knowing this was about to erupt, suddenly our people allowed rumors to start that, yes, bin Laden was dead but only just recently and not from kidney failure but typhoid! And why just now? Because if they admitted the truth; that the long-dead bin-Laden was making propaganda tapes from the grave, voters in November might just begin to wonder who was making them and why the CIA always rushed forward to breathlessly inform us that their superior technology had clearly proved them to be genuine. Add this nonsense to the ‘liquid bomb’ farce and we still haven’t moved Bush’s ratings up. Cheney is about 8% approval and Bush around 27-35% and in this, we can see a hopeful augury for massive death and destruction at the mid-term elections. Actually, all of them should be thrown out of office and we can start with fresh blood. It would take at least a decade before the new ones would be as corrupt, self-serving and useless as the present hog pen but during this time, hopefully things will get better.
However, militant Islamist groups in the Pakistani government are giving some thought to discrediting their current leader and taking control of that country and its known atomic weaponry. Part of this activity is to discredit the United States by showing that bin Laden was dead while the U.S. was faking anti-Muslim scare tapes. Knowing this was about to erupt, suddenly our people allowed rumors to start that, yes, bin Laden was dead but only just recently and not from kidney failure but typhoid! And why just now? Because if they admitted the truth; that the long-dead bin-Laden was making propaganda tapes from the grave, voters in November might just begin to wonder who was making them and why the CIA always rushed forward to breathlessly inform us that their superior technology had clearly proved them to be genuine. Add this nonsense to the ‘liquid bomb’ farce and we still haven’t moved Bush’s ratings up. Cheney is about 8% approval and Bush around 27-35% and in this, we can see a hopeful augury for massive death and destruction at the mid-term elections. Actually, all of them should be thrown out of office and we can start with fresh blood. It would take at least a decade before the new ones would be as corrupt, self-serving and useless as the present hog pen but during this time, hopefully things will get better.
vrijdag 22 september 2006
September 22, 2006
There are the real public opinion polls and then there the Official public opinion polls. The former are very accurate and we do them almost daily. The latter are made up with White House admonishings strongly in mind. These admonitions? Play it our way…or else we get our supporters to cut off your fucking advertising, punk! This means that when Bush has had a real 35% approval rating for the last six months, the national polls suddenly speak about “bounces” and rising points. Forget this. Bush is in a slow, steady decline and hovers around the mid-thirties. Even rigged incidents like the laughable “liquid bombs” the Brits concocted some time back didn’t raise the President’s approval by so much as one half a point so they told the media to knock it off. Now, if this silly shit had caused him to gain ever one point, we would see the story plastered all over the front pages for at least three weeks, forcing out the propaganda about Iran.
We here know that the Administration, ever friendly to the oil people, have asked the latter to lower the price of gas at the pump until after the November elections. Note how his friends were eager to help George out. After all, it was soaring gas prices that did Jimmy Carter in.
Don’t believe the polls, ever because they are easy to fake. Remember when Reagan was running against Carter? Do you remember the ludicrous claims that Carter was always “surging ahead?/” All lies, I can assure you, having been involved in working this racket before joining the staff of the President. Now, when you read about Bush being at 45% with maybe a bounce, forget it. George and his boys are at the end of their stick and I doubt if there will be any surprises in November.
And Bush is still frantically trying to get some kind of legislation in place so he and his crime partners can escape future prosecution for what are genuine war crimes. If George were a gentleman instead of a punk, he would take his Daddy’s issue .45 and swallow it and then we can all get back to normal living.
We here know that the Administration, ever friendly to the oil people, have asked the latter to lower the price of gas at the pump until after the November elections. Note how his friends were eager to help George out. After all, it was soaring gas prices that did Jimmy Carter in.
Don’t believe the polls, ever because they are easy to fake. Remember when Reagan was running against Carter? Do you remember the ludicrous claims that Carter was always “surging ahead?/” All lies, I can assure you, having been involved in working this racket before joining the staff of the President. Now, when you read about Bush being at 45% with maybe a bounce, forget it. George and his boys are at the end of their stick and I doubt if there will be any surprises in November.
And Bush is still frantically trying to get some kind of legislation in place so he and his crime partners can escape future prosecution for what are genuine war crimes. If George were a gentleman instead of a punk, he would take his Daddy’s issue .45 and swallow it and then we can all get back to normal living.
dinsdag 19 september 2006
September 19, 2006
I recall some time back, when a light plane strayed into the “Forbidden Zone” around the White House, a panic evacuation of the staff was hilarious to watch. All kinds of panting chubbies, clutching pictures of Mom or their favorite plant, waddled away from the supposedly doomed Monkey Palace, tongues out, eyes bulging with fright. Now, everything is reversed. Now the fear-crazed ones are rushing into the White House, babbling with animal fear. A stray plane? No, the perception (rarely spoken of before) that the GOP will for sure lose the House and very probably the Senate in November has raised the equal probability that if the Democrats are successful, many now looting and shoving baskets full of bribe money into their car trunks will end up disgraced and poverty stricken. But Our Beloved Leader, George Bush is in an actual state of acute fear that he might be impeached (likely) and, even more frightening, hauled before the World Court as a war criminal! Joy to contemplate!
But George will not be alone. From someone in the French Embassy, I learn that “certain current American supporters” are actually plotting to commit blasphemy and make Bush and his vicious and lunatic cronies pay the price. I was told, partially in jest, that if the IDF dared to invade Lebanon again with French “peacekeepers” in place, they are under orders to return fire and blast the IDF into small pieces. Note that the French have a competent air force and Israel would then get back in spades what they did to the innocent Lebanese civilians. My French friend said, over lunch, that it was fine for Israel to slaughter Arab children and old people in Palestine and Gaza but when they encounter real men, they run away, whimpering. Egypt is being pressured by the Muslim Brotherhood to abrogate their treaty with Israel and join the other Arab states. Hezbollah has, in only a few weeks, proved the IDF to be a paper tiger and paper burns brightly. (See Blake on this)
But George will not be alone. From someone in the French Embassy, I learn that “certain current American supporters” are actually plotting to commit blasphemy and make Bush and his vicious and lunatic cronies pay the price. I was told, partially in jest, that if the IDF dared to invade Lebanon again with French “peacekeepers” in place, they are under orders to return fire and blast the IDF into small pieces. Note that the French have a competent air force and Israel would then get back in spades what they did to the innocent Lebanese civilians. My French friend said, over lunch, that it was fine for Israel to slaughter Arab children and old people in Palestine and Gaza but when they encounter real men, they run away, whimpering. Egypt is being pressured by the Muslim Brotherhood to abrogate their treaty with Israel and join the other Arab states. Hezbollah has, in only a few weeks, proved the IDF to be a paper tiger and paper burns brightly. (See Blake on this)
zaterdag 16 september 2006
September 16, 2006
We all knew it was going to happen sooner or later. I am referring to the so-called “revolt” in Congress wherein powerful Republicans repudiated, officially, Bush’s attempt to do away with America’s support of the Geneva Convention. The funny part of this is the President’s reaction. He was livid with rage, ranted at various Republican legislators, threatened them with retaliation and in general, used language more appropriate to a whore house dispute over the price of a lay. A friend was there and taped most of the screaming tirade. It genuinely shocked the legislators and after Bush had gone away, their comments were priceless to hear. One of the Senators, normally a gentleman, called Bush a ‘motherfucker’ and another Senator, a “loyal supporter,” said, “You shouldn’t say that. You know he’s been trying to quit!” Roars of laughter. No friends there!
Back in the White House, at least a dozen of my co-workers have been talking about Bush’s unhinged rantings. Some of the staff are going to quit over this and it is obvious that he has finally gone around the bend. I heard none of this but I did see him for a moment and his face was a mask of loonie rage, mottled, contorted and looking like a Japanese kabuki mask. Bush is a man filled with hate. This is something often found in closet gays who suffer from constant fear of exposure mixed with intense self-hated. Nixon was strongly suspected of having had an affair with Bebe Reboza but Bush is known for his hidden pranks. More on this later, plus a transcription of the confrontation.
Back in the White House, at least a dozen of my co-workers have been talking about Bush’s unhinged rantings. Some of the staff are going to quit over this and it is obvious that he has finally gone around the bend. I heard none of this but I did see him for a moment and his face was a mask of loonie rage, mottled, contorted and looking like a Japanese kabuki mask. Bush is a man filled with hate. This is something often found in closet gays who suffer from constant fear of exposure mixed with intense self-hated. Nixon was strongly suspected of having had an affair with Bebe Reboza but Bush is known for his hidden pranks. More on this later, plus a transcription of the confrontation.
dinsdag 12 september 2006
September 12, 2006
I am going to take some time off writing about the Celestial Pig Farm at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. to discuss the activities of a good friend of mine that some of you will find as inspiring and joy-inspiring as I and my friends have.
This good friend of mine was second in line to run a very wealthy family trust fund. His uncle, who ran it for years, was an arch Republican, called “Black Stocking GOP,” who was a firm supporter of Israel, a heavy contributor to the Bush people, a great and abiding supporter of the CIA (whom he let use an overseas company he owned) and other, entirely predictable attitudes.
Several weeks ago, the uncle died and my friend now heads the family trust. The first thing he did was to divest the fund of any business connections with Israel. When his brokerage house demurred, claiming objections from the Department of State, he told them, “I am not asking you to do this, I am ordering you to do this.” When they still babbled about problems, he promptly fired them. And dumped the Israeli electronic stocks en bloc and at the market.
He notified the advertising agency his trust used and forbade them to advertise in any paper or on any television entity that supported Bush, the State of Israel , the Iraqi war or even Bush-loving Joe Lieberman. with the warning that if they disobeyed him, they would go the way of the brokerage house.
They obeyed.
Also, his uncle was a massive contributor to the Republican Party. Uncle had pledged millions for the upcoming election. My friend then notified the GOP that he refused to honor any of his late uncle’s pledges and further notified both parties that any of their members who had voted for the Iraqi war were also cut adrift.
He moved to shut down the CIA-friendly overseas company, sacking all the employees en masse and confiscating all the personnel records and, more important, all their banking records.
Since he owned the company, he plans to make these financial records public.
On the Internet!
To say there has been much wailing and gnashing of teeth would be an understatement. From what I know about the matter, the placing of his company’s bank records on the Internet will, without a doubt, cause terminal spastic colon in some circles.
By now, the late uncle is certainly spinning in his grave. When I mentioned this to my friend, he replied that the next time he visited the cemetery, he would see if the ground was still undulating when he pissed on the turf.
All is well, my friend says, that ends well.
This good friend of mine was second in line to run a very wealthy family trust fund. His uncle, who ran it for years, was an arch Republican, called “Black Stocking GOP,” who was a firm supporter of Israel, a heavy contributor to the Bush people, a great and abiding supporter of the CIA (whom he let use an overseas company he owned) and other, entirely predictable attitudes.
Several weeks ago, the uncle died and my friend now heads the family trust. The first thing he did was to divest the fund of any business connections with Israel. When his brokerage house demurred, claiming objections from the Department of State, he told them, “I am not asking you to do this, I am ordering you to do this.” When they still babbled about problems, he promptly fired them. And dumped the Israeli electronic stocks en bloc and at the market.
He notified the advertising agency his trust used and forbade them to advertise in any paper or on any television entity that supported Bush, the State of Israel , the Iraqi war or even Bush-loving Joe Lieberman. with the warning that if they disobeyed him, they would go the way of the brokerage house.
They obeyed.
Also, his uncle was a massive contributor to the Republican Party. Uncle had pledged millions for the upcoming election. My friend then notified the GOP that he refused to honor any of his late uncle’s pledges and further notified both parties that any of their members who had voted for the Iraqi war were also cut adrift.
He moved to shut down the CIA-friendly overseas company, sacking all the employees en masse and confiscating all the personnel records and, more important, all their banking records.
Since he owned the company, he plans to make these financial records public.
On the Internet!
To say there has been much wailing and gnashing of teeth would be an understatement. From what I know about the matter, the placing of his company’s bank records on the Internet will, without a doubt, cause terminal spastic colon in some circles.
By now, the late uncle is certainly spinning in his grave. When I mentioned this to my friend, he replied that the next time he visited the cemetery, he would see if the ground was still undulating when he pissed on the turf.
All is well, my friend says, that ends well.
donderdag 7 september 2006
September 7, 2006
With the frightening November mid term elections coming upon us, there has been a growing panic in senior, and junior, Republicans, both inside and outside of Congress. A probably loss of the House and a very possible loss of the Senate is stirring up panic. Why? Because there is no doubt that if the Democrats gain control of the House, there will be impeachment articles drawn up with Bush as their target and very probably serious investigations launched by them into certain senior Republicans for, among other matters, massive corruptions and bribery. There have been hinted at ‘October surprises’ which may or may not happen or, if they do, have any success. One of Cheney’s aides and I have become on good terms because I have connections outside of the White House he could make use of in the event of a major defeat. Cheney is a genuinely evil man who is primarily responsible for our present situation. We have lost face throughout the world, especially the Muslim world, but also throughout Asia and parts of Central and South America due to his vicious policies. Rumsfeld is rapidly becoming a cipher, due in part to his current illness and the very obvious fact that he is, to be nice, a very “confused man.” (Read pre-Alzheimer’s here). The military hate him with a passion because he treats all of them, top generals and all, like scum. Someone, and my new friend doesn’t know who, has suggested an interesting ploy to bolster Bush’s collapsing image (Cheney’s approval rating is now in single digits.)
The basic plan, as being formulated involving Bush, Cheney, Mehlman, Rove and some senior staff to include the new head of the CIA, General Hayden, is to have a splendid publicity coup that they feel would guarantee continued Republican control of both houses.
The idea, and I will admit it is awesome in its simplicity, is for the Administration to bribe the warring factions in Iraq to have a long truce during the course of which they will slow down or entirely stop their attacks on our military and each other.! This weird plan is indeed being “considered” but the chances of it ever seeing the light of day are absolutely zero. The Arabs would gleefully take out money…and then turn on us. The military would flatly agree to have anything to do with this and for certain, some minor player would go to the press.
Another plan is for Bush to tell the voting public how successful he and his grossly incompetent people have repeatedly saved, and will continue to save, their blessed Americans from numerous “terrorist attacks.’ There have not and are completely incapable of doing so. There is not one verifiable attack on record as either having been uncovered by the demoralized and depleted CIA or the utterly useless DHS. It is well-known all over Washington that the Bush people have paid ABC for a mini-series blaming Clinton for 911 while ignoring their own really serious role in it.
In law, there are two kinds of evidence: direct and circumstantial. A case of the former is an old lady, having been primed by the police stating that that person sitting over there was the man I saw shooting the nice policeman. The second type is for the pistol used to shoot the policeman being registered to the suspect, dozens of witnesses attesting to his intentions, bus tickets placing him at the scene and the fact that the slain officer had previously raped the man’s ten year old daughter. Any attorney with courtroom experience will tell you that circumstantial evidence trumps direct evidence every time.
That being the case, I can tell you that all the circumstantial evidence on pre-knowledge of the 9/11 attack very clearly points to the fact that George W. Bush, his top people, to include, Vice President Cheney, Attorney General John Ashcroft, top advisor Karl Rove, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and very probably a number of other senior government persons had been well and very timely informed of the attack, when it would happen, where it would happen and how it would happen. That they did and said nothing but awaited the attack for the many political opportunities it would afford the President and the leadership makes all of them willing parties to murder. At law, this is called being an accessory before the fact.
Now, lest my readers believe that I am relying on wishful thinking or some nonsensical blog, I will supply as my brief, a long and thoroughly referenced listing addressing the issue of who knew what and when.
My suggestion is that one should read it and make up their own mind. We do not need the army of liars working for Bush or the ABC whitewash to think for us.
The Circumstantial Evidence
The 1993 World Trade Center bombing resulted in intelligence that indicated that Al Qaeda had planned the attack and was planning further attacks on bridges and tunnels in New York City.
1993: An expert panel commissioned by the Pentagon raises the possibility that an airplane could be used to bomb national landmarks. [Washington Post 10/2/01]
In 1995, an Al Qaeda group headed by one Ramzi Youssef, was planning to seize and blow up 12 commercial aircraft over the Pacific. One Abdul Hakim Murad, a co-conspirator of Youssef, admitted to U.S. authorities that he had been trained at American flight schools and had been involved in a plot to crash a commercial aircraft into the CIA headquarters at Langley, Virginia.
1998: U.S. investigators discover that Al Qaeda personnel involved in the Embassy bombings in Africa are part of a larger plan involving the training of terrorist members at American flight schools for attacks on American targets.
1998: The CIA ignore warnings from Case Officer Robert Baer, that Saudi Arabia is harboring an Al Qaeda cell led by two known terrorists. A more detailed list of known terrorists is offered to Saudi intelligence in August 2001 and refused. [Financial Times, January 12, 2001]
1998: An Oklahoma City FBI agent sends a memo warning that "large numbers of Middle Eastern males" are getting flight training and could be planning terrorist attacks. [CBS, 5/30/02] A separate CIA intelligence report asserts that Arab terrorists are planning to fly a bomb-laden aircraft into the WTC. [New York Times, 9/19/02; Senate Intelligence Committee, Witness Hill, 9/18/02]
December 1998: A Time magazine cover story entitled "The Hunt for Osama," reports that bin Laden may be planning his boldest move yet -- a strike on Washington or possibly New York City. [Time magazine, 12/21/98]
1999: It is learned that Al Qaeda personnel were plotting to blow up the Los Angeles International airport and selected targets in Jordan. Following the trial of an Al Qaeda man, Ahmen Ressam who was caught smuggling explosives into the United States, the FAA issues an official warning that Al Qaeda is expected to conduct explosive outrages against commercial aircraft or American airports.
Following this emerged a number of actual Al Qaeda threats against targets in the United States, often involving aircraft and aircraft facilities.
In the period just prior to the September 11 aircraft attack on American targets, numerous specific reports were delivered from what can only be termed entirely reliable foreign sources (as distinct from domestic intelligence reporting).
September 1999: A U.S. intelligence report states bin Laden and Al Qaeda terrorists could crash an aircraft into the Pentagon. The Bush administration claims not to have heard of this report until May 2002, although it was widely shared within the government. [CNN, 5/18/02, Associated Press, 5/18/01; Guardian, 5/19/02]
1999: MI6, the British foreign intelligence agency delivers a secret report to the London U.S. Embassy stating that Al Qaeda plans to use commercial aircraft "possibly as flying bombs." [Sunday Times, 6/9/02]
October 24-26, 2000: Pentagon officials carry out a "detailed" emergency drill based upon the crashing of a hijacked airliner into the Pentagon. [Source Military District of Washington News Service, 11/3/00] The White House later asserts that no one in government had envisioned a suicide hijacking. [Associated Press report, May 18, 2002]
January, 2001: The Bush Administration orders the FBI and intelligence agencies to "back off" investigations involving the bin Laden family, including two of Osama bin Laden's relatives (Abdullah and Omar) who were living in Falls Church, VA -- right next to CIA headquarters. This followed previous orders dating back to 1996, frustrating efforts to investigate the bin Laden family. [BBC “Newsnight,” Correspondent Gregg Palast, Nov 7, 2001]
Feb 13, 2001: UPI Terrorism Correspondent Richard Sale -- while covering a trial of bin Laden's al Qaeda followers -- reports that the National Security Agency has broken bin Laden's encrypted communications. Even if this indicates that bin Laden changed systems in February, it does not mesh with the fact that the government insists that the attacks had been planned for years.
May 2001: The U.S. introduces the "Visa Express" program allowing any Saudi Arabian to obtain visas through their travel agent instead of appearing at a consulate in person. Three to five hijackers use Visa Express over the next month to enter the U.S. [US News & World Report, 12/12/01, Congressional Intelligence Committee, 9/20/02, Witness Hill]
June 2001: German intelligence, the BND, warns the CIA and Israel that Middle Eastern terrorists are "planning to hijack commercial aircraft to use as weapons to attack important symbols of American and Israeli culture." [Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, September 14, 2001]
June 13, 2001: Egyptian President Mubarak, through his intelligence services, warns the U.S. that bin Laden's Islamic terrorist network is threatening to kill Bush and other G8 leaders at their July economic summit meeting in Italy. The terrorists plan to use a plane stuffed with explosives. [New York Times, 9/26/01]
Summer 2001: An Iranian man phones U.S. law enforcement to warn of an imminent attack on the World Trade Center in the week of September 9. German police confirm the calls but state the U.S. Secret Service would not reveal any further information. [German news agency online.de, September 14, 2001]
June 2001: German intelligence warns the CIA, Britain's MI6, and Israel's Mossad that Middle Eastern terrorists are training for hijackings and targeting U.S. and Israeli symbols. [“Fox News,” 5/17/02]
June 26, 2001: The CIA informs the White House that they had intercepted foreign intelligence traffic concerning possible Al Qaeda strikes in America on July 4.
Summer 2001: Russian intelligence notifies the CIA that 25 terrorist pilots have been specifically training for suicide missions.
June 22, 2001: The military's Central and European Commands impose "Force Protection Condition Delta," the highest anti-terrorist alert.
June 28, 2001: National security advisor Condoleeza Rice states: "It is highly likely that a significant Al Qaeda, attack is in the near future, within several weeks."
July 1, 2001: Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-California) a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee states that her staff had advised her of a “major probability of a terrorist incident within the next three months.” [Emphasis added]
July 2, 2001: The FBI reports to the White House that Al Qaeda terrorist attacks outside the United States are very possible and that domestic attacks could not be discounted.
July 5, 2001: The CIA informs President Bush that Al Qaeda attacks against American targets are entirely possible during the summer of that year.
July 5, 2001: The government's top counter-terrorism official, Richard Clarke states to a group gathered at the White House: "Something really spectacular is going to happen here, and it's going to happen soon." The group included the FAA, the Coast Guard, the FBI, the Secret Service, and the INS. Clarke directs every counter-terrorist office to cancel vacations, defer non-vital travel, put off scheduled exercises and place domestic rapid response teams on much shorter alert.
July 10, 2001: A Phoenix FBI agent sends a memorandum warning about Middle Eastern men taking flight lessons. He suspects bin Laden's followers and recommends a national program to check visas of suspicious flight-school students. The memo is sent to two FBI counter-terrorism offices, but no action is taken. [New York Times, 5/21/02] Vice President Cheney says in May 2002 that he opposes releasing the memo to congressional leaders or to the media and public. [CNN, 5/20/02]
July 26, 2001: Attorney General Ashcroft stops flying commercial airlines due to a threat assessment. [CBS, 7/26/01] He later walks out of his office rather than answer questions about this. [Associated Press, 5/16/02]
July 3l, 2001: The FAA urges U.S. airlines to maintain a "high degree of alertness."
Late July 2001: The U.S. and UN ignore warnings from the Taliban foreign minister that bin Laden is planning an imminent huge attack on US soil. The FBI and CIA also fail to take seriously, warnings that Islamic fundamentalists have enrolled in flight schools across the U.S. [Independent, 9/7/02]
August 2001: Russian President Vladimir Putin orders Russian intelligence to warn the U.S. government "in the strongest possible terms" of imminent attacks by suicide pilots on airports and government buildings. [MS-NBC interview with Putin, September 15, 2001, Fox, September 17, 2001]
August 2001: The FBI arrests an Islamic militant linked to bin Laden in Boston. French intelligence sources confirm that the man is a key member of bin Laden's network and the FBI learns he has been taking flying lessons. At the time of his arrest the man is in possession of technical information on Boeing aircraft and flight manuals. [Reuters, September 13 2001]
Late summer 2001: Jordanian intelligence agents go to Washington to warn that a major attack is planned inside the U.S. and that aircraft will be used. Christian Science Monitor calls the story "confidently authenticated" even though Jordan later backs away from it. [Christian Science Monitor, 5/23/02]
August 6, 2001: The CIA also presents a warning to the President, explicitly concerned with terrorism inside the United States, indicating that bin Laden might be planning to hijack commercial airliners. Actual content of this message has been the subject of considerable debate, with White House officials understandably downplaying its significance. [Time magazine, May 16, 2002; New York Times, May 16, 2002]
August 15, 2001: An alert civilian instructor at a Minnesota flight school calls the FBI: "Do you realize that a 747 loaded with fuel can be a bomb?" The next day, Zacarias Moussaoui was arrested. After investigating Zacarias Moussaoui's past, the FBI (with the help of French Intelligence) learns that he had Islamic extremist connections. They also knew he was interested in flight patterns around New York City, and that he had a strong desire to fly big jets, even though at the time he didn't have a license for flying even a Cessna.
August 20, 2001: The French government strongly informs high level American authorities about pending attacks on American targets, using commercial aircraft.
August 8-23, 2001: Two high ranking Israeli Mossad agents come to Washington to warn the FBI and CIA that up to 200 terrorists have slipped into the U.S. and are planning an imminent major assault in the U.S. Indications point to a highly visible target. [Telegraph, 9/16/01; Los Angeles Times, 9/16/01; “Fox News,” 5/17/02] The Mossad gives the CIA a list of terrorists. A major Israeli spy ring was hard on the heels of at least four members of the 9/11 hijackers, including lead hijacker Mohammed Atta. [BBC, 10/2/01]
August 24, 2001: The head of the Mossad reports the imminence of an Arab attack against American targets; a similar report was made by the Mossad on <>September 7, 2001<>.
August 24, 2001: Frustrated with lack of response from FBI headquarters about detained suspect Moussaoui, the Minnesota FBI begins working with the CIA. The CIA sends alerts calling him a "suspect 747 airline suicide hijacker." Three days later an FBI Minnesota supervisor says he is trying keep Moussaoui from “taking control of a plane and fly it into the WTC." [Senate Intelligence (Hill #2), 10/17/02] FBI headquarters chastises Minnesota FBI for notifying the CIA. [Time magazine, 5/21/02]
August 2001: Britain gives the U.S. another warning about an Al Qaeda attack. The previous warning was vague. This one specifies imminent multiple airplane hijackings by Al Qaeda. [Sunday Herald, May 19, 2002]
Late August, 2001: The CIA asks the INS to put (these two of the hijackers) Khalid al-Midhar and Nawaf Alhazmi on a watch list because of their ties to the bombing of the U.S.S. Cole. On August 23, 2001, the INS informed the CIA that both Khalid al-Midhar and Nawaf Alhazmi had already slipped into the country. Immediately thereafter, the CIA asked the FBI to find al-Midhar and Alhazmi. This should not have been difficult, since one of them was listed in the San Diego phone book, and the other took out a bank account in his own name; also, an FBI informant happened to be their roommate.
September 10, 2001: NSA intercepts two messages in Arabic. One message read: “Tomorrow is zero hour,” and the second: “The match begins tomorrow.” [New York Times, August 10, 2002; Reuters, June 19, 2002] On June 19, 2002, CNN reported the contents of these two National Security Agency intercepts. Other news outlets, including the Washington Post, also reported on the intercepts. [New York Times, August 10, 2002]
A particularly urgent warning was received the night before the attacks, causing some top Pentagon brass to suddenly cancel travel plans for the next morning, apparently because of “sudden security concerns.” [Newsweek, 9/12/2001] “Why that same information was not available to the 266 people who died aboard the four hijacked commercial aircraft may become a hot topic on the Hill." [Newsweek, 9/13/2001]
September 11, 2001: For 35 minutes, from 8:15 AM until 9:05 AM, although widely known within the FAA and the military that four planes have been simultaneously hijacked and taken off course, no one notifies the President of the United States. It is not until 9:30 AM that any Air Force planes are scrambled to intercept, but by then it is too late. This means the National Command Authority waited for 75 minutes before scrambling aircraft, even though it was known that four simultaneous hijackings had occurred -- an event that has never happened in history. [CNN; ABC; MS-NBC; Los Angeles Times; New York Times]
Department of Defense (6/1/01) and FAA (7/12/01) procedure: In the event of a hijacking, the FAA hijack coordinator on duty at Washington headquarters requests the military to provide escort aircraft. Normally, NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) escort aircraft take the required action. The FAA notifies the National Military Command Center by the most expeditious means. [DoD, 6/1/01; FAA, 7/12/01; FAA, 7/12/01] If NORAD hears of any difficulties in the skies, they begin the work to scramble jet fighters [take off and intercept aircraft that are off course]. Between September 2000 and June 2001 fighters were scrambled 67 times. [AP, 8/12/02] When the Lear jet of golfer Payne Stewart didn’t respond in 1999, F-16 interceptors were quickly dispatched. According to an Air Force timeline, a series of military planes provided an emergency escort to Payne’s stricken Lear about 20 minutes after ground controllers lost contact with his plane.[Dallas Morning News, 10/26/99]
September 11, 2001:
8:20 AM (approx.): Air traffic controllers suspect Flight 11 has been hijacked. [New York Times, 9/15/01]
8:40 AM: NORAD is notified of hijacking. [New York Times, 10/16/01; Washington Post, 9/15/01]
8:46 AM: Flight 11 crashes into the World Trade Center north tower (approximately 26 minutes after controllers lost contact). [New York Times, 9/12/01]
8:46 AM: Bush later states, "I was sitting outside the classroom and I saw an airplane hit the tower. The TV was on.” [CNN 12/4/01] “When we walked into the classroom, I had seen this plane fly into the first building.” [White House, 1/5/02]
8:52 AM: Two F-15s take off from Otis Air Force Base. [Washington Post, 9/15/01] They go after Flight 175. Major General Paul Weaver, director of the Air National Guard, states "the pilots flew like a scalded ape, topping 500 mph but were unable to catch up to the airliner. We had a nine-minute window, and in excess of 100 miles to intercept 175. There was just literally no way.'' [Dallas Morning News, 9/15/01] F-15's fly at up to 2.5 times the speed of sound (1875 mph or 30+ miles a minute or 270+ miles in nine minutes) and are designed for low-altitude, high-speed, precision attacks. [BBC]
8:56 AM: By this time, it is evident that Flight 77 is lost. The FAA, already in contact with the Pentagon about the two hijackings out of Boston, reportedly doesn’t notify NORAD of this until 9:24, 28 minutes later. [New York Times, 10/16/01]
9:03 AM: Flight 175 crashes into the south WTC tower (23 minutes after NORAD notified, 43 minutes after air traffic control lost contact with pilots). [New York Times, 9/12/01, CNN, 9/12/01]
9:10 AM: Major General Paul Weaver states Flight 77 came back on the (radar) scope at 9:10 in West Virginia. [Dallas Morning News, 9/15/01] Another report states the military was notified of Flight 77 several minutes after 9:03. [Washington Post, 9/1/01]
9:24 AM [? – see above]: The FAA, who 28 minutes earlier had discovered Flight 77 off course and heading east over West Virginia, reportedly notifies NORAD. A Pentagon spokesman says, "The Pentagon was simply not aware that this aircraft was coming our way." [Newsday, 9/23/01; New York Times, 9/23/01] Yet since the first crash, military officials in a Pentagon command center were urgently talking to law enforcement and air traffic control officials about what to do. [New York Times, 9/1/01]
9:28 AM: Air traffic control learns that Flight 93 has been hijacked. [MSNBC, 7/30/02]
9:38 AM: Flight 77 crashes into the Pentagon (42 minutes or more after contact was lost, one hour after NORAD notification of first hijacking). [New York Times, 10/16/01; CNN, 9/12/01]
10:10 AM: Flight 93 crashes in Pennsylvania (42 minutes after contact was lost). [CNN, 9/12/02]
September 12, 2001: Senator Orrin Hatch says the US was monitoring bin Laden supporters and overheard them discussing the attack. [ABC, 9/1/01; Associated Press, 9/12/01]
September 13-19, 2001: Members of bin Laden's family are driven or flown under FBI supervision to a secret assembly point in Texas and then to Washington, where they leave the country on a private charter plane when airports reopen three days after the attacks. [New York Times, September 30, 2001]
In all of the speculations concerning pre-knowledge of this attack, one concept stands out above all the denials and accusations:
How could an obviously sophisticated terrorist plan involving perhaps as many as 50 identified persons and in training for at least two years, possibly escape the notice of our intelligence services, especially the CIA or the NSA? When one considers the number of people involved in this plot, the wide-spread geographical locations of the plotters, the fact that most of them used a telephone system long known to be thoroughly and completely compromised by the US NSA, for international calls, and that large amounts of cash were transferred from foreign banks to American accounts, the idea that none of the American intelligence and counter-intelligence agencies had the slightest warning of impending disaster, is completely impossible to believe.
The basic plan, as being formulated involving Bush, Cheney, Mehlman, Rove and some senior staff to include the new head of the CIA, General Hayden, is to have a splendid publicity coup that they feel would guarantee continued Republican control of both houses.
The idea, and I will admit it is awesome in its simplicity, is for the Administration to bribe the warring factions in Iraq to have a long truce during the course of which they will slow down or entirely stop their attacks on our military and each other.! This weird plan is indeed being “considered” but the chances of it ever seeing the light of day are absolutely zero. The Arabs would gleefully take out money…and then turn on us. The military would flatly agree to have anything to do with this and for certain, some minor player would go to the press.
Another plan is for Bush to tell the voting public how successful he and his grossly incompetent people have repeatedly saved, and will continue to save, their blessed Americans from numerous “terrorist attacks.’ There have not and are completely incapable of doing so. There is not one verifiable attack on record as either having been uncovered by the demoralized and depleted CIA or the utterly useless DHS. It is well-known all over Washington that the Bush people have paid ABC for a mini-series blaming Clinton for 911 while ignoring their own really serious role in it.
In law, there are two kinds of evidence: direct and circumstantial. A case of the former is an old lady, having been primed by the police stating that that person sitting over there was the man I saw shooting the nice policeman. The second type is for the pistol used to shoot the policeman being registered to the suspect, dozens of witnesses attesting to his intentions, bus tickets placing him at the scene and the fact that the slain officer had previously raped the man’s ten year old daughter. Any attorney with courtroom experience will tell you that circumstantial evidence trumps direct evidence every time.
That being the case, I can tell you that all the circumstantial evidence on pre-knowledge of the 9/11 attack very clearly points to the fact that George W. Bush, his top people, to include, Vice President Cheney, Attorney General John Ashcroft, top advisor Karl Rove, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and very probably a number of other senior government persons had been well and very timely informed of the attack, when it would happen, where it would happen and how it would happen. That they did and said nothing but awaited the attack for the many political opportunities it would afford the President and the leadership makes all of them willing parties to murder. At law, this is called being an accessory before the fact.
Now, lest my readers believe that I am relying on wishful thinking or some nonsensical blog, I will supply as my brief, a long and thoroughly referenced listing addressing the issue of who knew what and when.
My suggestion is that one should read it and make up their own mind. We do not need the army of liars working for Bush or the ABC whitewash to think for us.
The Circumstantial Evidence
The 1993 World Trade Center bombing resulted in intelligence that indicated that Al Qaeda had planned the attack and was planning further attacks on bridges and tunnels in New York City.
1993: An expert panel commissioned by the Pentagon raises the possibility that an airplane could be used to bomb national landmarks. [Washington Post 10/2/01]
In 1995, an Al Qaeda group headed by one Ramzi Youssef, was planning to seize and blow up 12 commercial aircraft over the Pacific. One Abdul Hakim Murad, a co-conspirator of Youssef, admitted to U.S. authorities that he had been trained at American flight schools and had been involved in a plot to crash a commercial aircraft into the CIA headquarters at Langley, Virginia.
1998: U.S. investigators discover that Al Qaeda personnel involved in the Embassy bombings in Africa are part of a larger plan involving the training of terrorist members at American flight schools for attacks on American targets.
1998: The CIA ignore warnings from Case Officer Robert Baer, that Saudi Arabia is harboring an Al Qaeda cell led by two known terrorists. A more detailed list of known terrorists is offered to Saudi intelligence in August 2001 and refused. [Financial Times, January 12, 2001]
1998: An Oklahoma City FBI agent sends a memo warning that "large numbers of Middle Eastern males" are getting flight training and could be planning terrorist attacks. [CBS, 5/30/02] A separate CIA intelligence report asserts that Arab terrorists are planning to fly a bomb-laden aircraft into the WTC. [New York Times, 9/19/02; Senate Intelligence Committee, Witness Hill, 9/18/02]
December 1998: A Time magazine cover story entitled "The Hunt for Osama," reports that bin Laden may be planning his boldest move yet -- a strike on Washington or possibly New York City. [Time magazine, 12/21/98]
1999: It is learned that Al Qaeda personnel were plotting to blow up the Los Angeles International airport and selected targets in Jordan. Following the trial of an Al Qaeda man, Ahmen Ressam who was caught smuggling explosives into the United States, the FAA issues an official warning that Al Qaeda is expected to conduct explosive outrages against commercial aircraft or American airports.
Following this emerged a number of actual Al Qaeda threats against targets in the United States, often involving aircraft and aircraft facilities.
In the period just prior to the September 11 aircraft attack on American targets, numerous specific reports were delivered from what can only be termed entirely reliable foreign sources (as distinct from domestic intelligence reporting).
September 1999: A U.S. intelligence report states bin Laden and Al Qaeda terrorists could crash an aircraft into the Pentagon. The Bush administration claims not to have heard of this report until May 2002, although it was widely shared within the government. [CNN, 5/18/02, Associated Press, 5/18/01; Guardian, 5/19/02]
1999: MI6, the British foreign intelligence agency delivers a secret report to the London U.S. Embassy stating that Al Qaeda plans to use commercial aircraft "possibly as flying bombs." [Sunday Times, 6/9/02]
October 24-26, 2000: Pentagon officials carry out a "detailed" emergency drill based upon the crashing of a hijacked airliner into the Pentagon. [Source Military District of Washington News Service, 11/3/00] The White House later asserts that no one in government had envisioned a suicide hijacking. [Associated Press report, May 18, 2002]
January, 2001: The Bush Administration orders the FBI and intelligence agencies to "back off" investigations involving the bin Laden family, including two of Osama bin Laden's relatives (Abdullah and Omar) who were living in Falls Church, VA -- right next to CIA headquarters. This followed previous orders dating back to 1996, frustrating efforts to investigate the bin Laden family. [BBC “Newsnight,” Correspondent Gregg Palast, Nov 7, 2001]
Feb 13, 2001: UPI Terrorism Correspondent Richard Sale -- while covering a trial of bin Laden's al Qaeda followers -- reports that the National Security Agency has broken bin Laden's encrypted communications. Even if this indicates that bin Laden changed systems in February, it does not mesh with the fact that the government insists that the attacks had been planned for years.
May 2001: The U.S. introduces the "Visa Express" program allowing any Saudi Arabian to obtain visas through their travel agent instead of appearing at a consulate in person. Three to five hijackers use Visa Express over the next month to enter the U.S. [US News & World Report, 12/12/01, Congressional Intelligence Committee, 9/20/02, Witness Hill]
June 2001: German intelligence, the BND, warns the CIA and Israel that Middle Eastern terrorists are "planning to hijack commercial aircraft to use as weapons to attack important symbols of American and Israeli culture." [Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, September 14, 2001]
June 13, 2001: Egyptian President Mubarak, through his intelligence services, warns the U.S. that bin Laden's Islamic terrorist network is threatening to kill Bush and other G8 leaders at their July economic summit meeting in Italy. The terrorists plan to use a plane stuffed with explosives. [New York Times, 9/26/01]
Summer 2001: An Iranian man phones U.S. law enforcement to warn of an imminent attack on the World Trade Center in the week of September 9. German police confirm the calls but state the U.S. Secret Service would not reveal any further information. [German news agency online.de, September 14, 2001]
June 2001: German intelligence warns the CIA, Britain's MI6, and Israel's Mossad that Middle Eastern terrorists are training for hijackings and targeting U.S. and Israeli symbols. [“Fox News,” 5/17/02]
June 26, 2001: The CIA informs the White House that they had intercepted foreign intelligence traffic concerning possible Al Qaeda strikes in America on July 4.
Summer 2001: Russian intelligence notifies the CIA that 25 terrorist pilots have been specifically training for suicide missions.
June 22, 2001: The military's Central and European Commands impose "Force Protection Condition Delta," the highest anti-terrorist alert.
June 28, 2001: National security advisor Condoleeza Rice states: "It is highly likely that a significant Al Qaeda, attack is in the near future, within several weeks."
July 1, 2001: Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-California) a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee states that her staff had advised her of a “major probability of a terrorist incident within the next three months.” [Emphasis added]
July 2, 2001: The FBI reports to the White House that Al Qaeda terrorist attacks outside the United States are very possible and that domestic attacks could not be discounted.
July 5, 2001: The CIA informs President Bush that Al Qaeda attacks against American targets are entirely possible during the summer of that year.
July 5, 2001: The government's top counter-terrorism official, Richard Clarke states to a group gathered at the White House: "Something really spectacular is going to happen here, and it's going to happen soon." The group included the FAA, the Coast Guard, the FBI, the Secret Service, and the INS. Clarke directs every counter-terrorist office to cancel vacations, defer non-vital travel, put off scheduled exercises and place domestic rapid response teams on much shorter alert.
July 10, 2001: A Phoenix FBI agent sends a memorandum warning about Middle Eastern men taking flight lessons. He suspects bin Laden's followers and recommends a national program to check visas of suspicious flight-school students. The memo is sent to two FBI counter-terrorism offices, but no action is taken. [New York Times, 5/21/02] Vice President Cheney says in May 2002 that he opposes releasing the memo to congressional leaders or to the media and public. [CNN, 5/20/02]
July 26, 2001: Attorney General Ashcroft stops flying commercial airlines due to a threat assessment. [CBS, 7/26/01] He later walks out of his office rather than answer questions about this. [Associated Press, 5/16/02]
July 3l, 2001: The FAA urges U.S. airlines to maintain a "high degree of alertness."
Late July 2001: The U.S. and UN ignore warnings from the Taliban foreign minister that bin Laden is planning an imminent huge attack on US soil. The FBI and CIA also fail to take seriously, warnings that Islamic fundamentalists have enrolled in flight schools across the U.S. [Independent, 9/7/02]
August 2001: Russian President Vladimir Putin orders Russian intelligence to warn the U.S. government "in the strongest possible terms" of imminent attacks by suicide pilots on airports and government buildings. [MS-NBC interview with Putin, September 15, 2001, Fox, September 17, 2001]
August 2001: The FBI arrests an Islamic militant linked to bin Laden in Boston. French intelligence sources confirm that the man is a key member of bin Laden's network and the FBI learns he has been taking flying lessons. At the time of his arrest the man is in possession of technical information on Boeing aircraft and flight manuals. [Reuters, September 13 2001]
Late summer 2001: Jordanian intelligence agents go to Washington to warn that a major attack is planned inside the U.S. and that aircraft will be used. Christian Science Monitor calls the story "confidently authenticated" even though Jordan later backs away from it. [Christian Science Monitor, 5/23/02]
August 6, 2001: The CIA also presents a warning to the President, explicitly concerned with terrorism inside the United States, indicating that bin Laden might be planning to hijack commercial airliners. Actual content of this message has been the subject of considerable debate, with White House officials understandably downplaying its significance. [Time magazine, May 16, 2002; New York Times, May 16, 2002]
August 15, 2001: An alert civilian instructor at a Minnesota flight school calls the FBI: "Do you realize that a 747 loaded with fuel can be a bomb?" The next day, Zacarias Moussaoui was arrested. After investigating Zacarias Moussaoui's past, the FBI (with the help of French Intelligence) learns that he had Islamic extremist connections. They also knew he was interested in flight patterns around New York City, and that he had a strong desire to fly big jets, even though at the time he didn't have a license for flying even a Cessna.
August 20, 2001: The French government strongly informs high level American authorities about pending attacks on American targets, using commercial aircraft.
August 8-23, 2001: Two high ranking Israeli Mossad agents come to Washington to warn the FBI and CIA that up to 200 terrorists have slipped into the U.S. and are planning an imminent major assault in the U.S. Indications point to a highly visible target. [Telegraph, 9/16/01; Los Angeles Times, 9/16/01; “Fox News,” 5/17/02] The Mossad gives the CIA a list of terrorists. A major Israeli spy ring was hard on the heels of at least four members of the 9/11 hijackers, including lead hijacker Mohammed Atta. [BBC, 10/2/01]
August 24, 2001: The head of the Mossad reports the imminence of an Arab attack against American targets; a similar report was made by the Mossad on <>September 7, 2001<>.
August 24, 2001: Frustrated with lack of response from FBI headquarters about detained suspect Moussaoui, the Minnesota FBI begins working with the CIA. The CIA sends alerts calling him a "suspect 747 airline suicide hijacker." Three days later an FBI Minnesota supervisor says he is trying keep Moussaoui from “taking control of a plane and fly it into the WTC." [Senate Intelligence (Hill #2), 10/17/02] FBI headquarters chastises Minnesota FBI for notifying the CIA. [Time magazine, 5/21/02]
August 2001: Britain gives the U.S. another warning about an Al Qaeda attack. The previous warning was vague. This one specifies imminent multiple airplane hijackings by Al Qaeda. [Sunday Herald, May 19, 2002]
Late August, 2001: The CIA asks the INS to put (these two of the hijackers) Khalid al-Midhar and Nawaf Alhazmi on a watch list because of their ties to the bombing of the U.S.S. Cole. On August 23, 2001, the INS informed the CIA that both Khalid al-Midhar and Nawaf Alhazmi had already slipped into the country. Immediately thereafter, the CIA asked the FBI to find al-Midhar and Alhazmi. This should not have been difficult, since one of them was listed in the San Diego phone book, and the other took out a bank account in his own name; also, an FBI informant happened to be their roommate.
September 10, 2001: NSA intercepts two messages in Arabic. One message read: “Tomorrow is zero hour,” and the second: “The match begins tomorrow.” [New York Times, August 10, 2002; Reuters, June 19, 2002] On June 19, 2002, CNN reported the contents of these two National Security Agency intercepts. Other news outlets, including the Washington Post, also reported on the intercepts. [New York Times, August 10, 2002]
A particularly urgent warning was received the night before the attacks, causing some top Pentagon brass to suddenly cancel travel plans for the next morning, apparently because of “sudden security concerns.” [Newsweek, 9/12/2001] “Why that same information was not available to the 266 people who died aboard the four hijacked commercial aircraft may become a hot topic on the Hill." [Newsweek, 9/13/2001]
September 11, 2001: For 35 minutes, from 8:15 AM until 9:05 AM, although widely known within the FAA and the military that four planes have been simultaneously hijacked and taken off course, no one notifies the President of the United States. It is not until 9:30 AM that any Air Force planes are scrambled to intercept, but by then it is too late. This means the National Command Authority waited for 75 minutes before scrambling aircraft, even though it was known that four simultaneous hijackings had occurred -- an event that has never happened in history. [CNN; ABC; MS-NBC; Los Angeles Times; New York Times]
Department of Defense (6/1/01) and FAA (7/12/01) procedure: In the event of a hijacking, the FAA hijack coordinator on duty at Washington headquarters requests the military to provide escort aircraft. Normally, NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) escort aircraft take the required action. The FAA notifies the National Military Command Center by the most expeditious means. [DoD, 6/1/01; FAA, 7/12/01; FAA, 7/12/01] If NORAD hears of any difficulties in the skies, they begin the work to scramble jet fighters [take off and intercept aircraft that are off course]. Between September 2000 and June 2001 fighters were scrambled 67 times. [AP, 8/12/02] When the Lear jet of golfer Payne Stewart didn’t respond in 1999, F-16 interceptors were quickly dispatched. According to an Air Force timeline, a series of military planes provided an emergency escort to Payne’s stricken Lear about 20 minutes after ground controllers lost contact with his plane.[Dallas Morning News, 10/26/99]
September 11, 2001:
8:20 AM (approx.): Air traffic controllers suspect Flight 11 has been hijacked. [New York Times, 9/15/01]
8:40 AM: NORAD is notified of hijacking. [New York Times, 10/16/01; Washington Post, 9/15/01]
8:46 AM: Flight 11 crashes into the World Trade Center north tower (approximately 26 minutes after controllers lost contact). [New York Times, 9/12/01]
8:46 AM: Bush later states, "I was sitting outside the classroom and I saw an airplane hit the tower. The TV was on.” [CNN 12/4/01] “When we walked into the classroom, I had seen this plane fly into the first building.” [White House, 1/5/02]
8:52 AM: Two F-15s take off from Otis Air Force Base. [Washington Post, 9/15/01] They go after Flight 175. Major General Paul Weaver, director of the Air National Guard, states "the pilots flew like a scalded ape, topping 500 mph but were unable to catch up to the airliner. We had a nine-minute window, and in excess of 100 miles to intercept 175. There was just literally no way.'' [Dallas Morning News, 9/15/01] F-15's fly at up to 2.5 times the speed of sound (1875 mph or 30+ miles a minute or 270+ miles in nine minutes) and are designed for low-altitude, high-speed, precision attacks. [BBC]
8:56 AM: By this time, it is evident that Flight 77 is lost. The FAA, already in contact with the Pentagon about the two hijackings out of Boston, reportedly doesn’t notify NORAD of this until 9:24, 28 minutes later. [New York Times, 10/16/01]
9:03 AM: Flight 175 crashes into the south WTC tower (23 minutes after NORAD notified, 43 minutes after air traffic control lost contact with pilots). [New York Times, 9/12/01, CNN, 9/12/01]
9:10 AM: Major General Paul Weaver states Flight 77 came back on the (radar) scope at 9:10 in West Virginia. [Dallas Morning News, 9/15/01] Another report states the military was notified of Flight 77 several minutes after 9:03. [Washington Post, 9/1/01]
9:24 AM [? – see above]: The FAA, who 28 minutes earlier had discovered Flight 77 off course and heading east over West Virginia, reportedly notifies NORAD. A Pentagon spokesman says, "The Pentagon was simply not aware that this aircraft was coming our way." [Newsday, 9/23/01; New York Times, 9/23/01] Yet since the first crash, military officials in a Pentagon command center were urgently talking to law enforcement and air traffic control officials about what to do. [New York Times, 9/1/01]
9:28 AM: Air traffic control learns that Flight 93 has been hijacked. [MSNBC, 7/30/02]
9:38 AM: Flight 77 crashes into the Pentagon (42 minutes or more after contact was lost, one hour after NORAD notification of first hijacking). [New York Times, 10/16/01; CNN, 9/12/01]
10:10 AM: Flight 93 crashes in Pennsylvania (42 minutes after contact was lost). [CNN, 9/12/02]
September 12, 2001: Senator Orrin Hatch says the US was monitoring bin Laden supporters and overheard them discussing the attack. [ABC, 9/1/01; Associated Press, 9/12/01]
September 13-19, 2001: Members of bin Laden's family are driven or flown under FBI supervision to a secret assembly point in Texas and then to Washington, where they leave the country on a private charter plane when airports reopen three days after the attacks. [New York Times, September 30, 2001]
In all of the speculations concerning pre-knowledge of this attack, one concept stands out above all the denials and accusations:
How could an obviously sophisticated terrorist plan involving perhaps as many as 50 identified persons and in training for at least two years, possibly escape the notice of our intelligence services, especially the CIA or the NSA? When one considers the number of people involved in this plot, the wide-spread geographical locations of the plotters, the fact that most of them used a telephone system long known to be thoroughly and completely compromised by the US NSA, for international calls, and that large amounts of cash were transferred from foreign banks to American accounts, the idea that none of the American intelligence and counter-intelligence agencies had the slightest warning of impending disaster, is completely impossible to believe.
zondag 3 september 2006
September 3, 2006
This will be a scrap bag of commentary this week. I had a medical check up at the U.S. Navy facility at Bethesda recently and my doctor was discussing Bush. He does not like him at all but, I stress, he is not Bush’s doctor. It is the general belief that Bush is probably suffering from Borderline Personality Disorder. He told me about this (you can check it out on Google) and listed some of the symptoms some of his colleagues (who have actually had contact with the President) noted. The symptoms are:
1. frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment.
2. a pattern of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships characterized by alternating between extremes of idealization and devaluation
3. identity disturbance: markedly and persistently unstable self-image or sense of self
4. impulsivity in at least two areas that are potentially self-damaging (e.g., spending, sex, substance abuse, reckless driving, binge eating).
5. recurrent suicidal behavior, gestures, or threats, or self-mutilating behavior
6. affective instability due to a marked reactivity of mood (e.g., intense episodic dysphoria, irritability, or anxiety usually lasting a few hours and only rarely more than a few days)
7. chronic feelings of emptiness
8. inappropriate, intense anger or difficulty controlling anger (e.g., frequent displays of temper, constant anger, recurrent physical fights)
9. transient, stress-related paranoid ideation or severe dissociative symptoms.
I am not now a medical person and make no claims to being one but much of this hits the nail right on the head. Make of it what you want.
Bush has run head on into the persona of General John Abizaid. The General is very competent in Middle East affairs and has run right up against Bush in public. Bush said there was no civil war in Iraq and the next day, the General flatly contradicted him. Abizaid, who is Lebanese and speaks the language, has stated that we need to win over the Arabs like Hezbollah does by taking care of the civil population and not just slaughtering them. Bush does not like the General and says unkind things about him…behind his back. The top military people, mostly Army and USMC brass, detest Bush and if he continues to ignore them while insulting them, he is in for serious problems. Note that Rumsfeld, whom the professionals hate as a stupid and pompous ass, ordered two armored units to be transferred from Germany to Iraq…and was promptly ignored. The units never left Germany and Rumsfeld has kept this insubordination very quiet. The Bush people have lost their power to frighten, both on the domestic and foreign fronts and that does not bode well for the next two years. When you have a highly irate, nasty President screeching at a public press conference that he will never leave Iraq as long as he is in office, this is a sign of severe psychological problems. There is not even an attempt at diplomacy, only a shrill child screaming child determined to have his way.
1. frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment.
2. a pattern of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships characterized by alternating between extremes of idealization and devaluation
3. identity disturbance: markedly and persistently unstable self-image or sense of self
4. impulsivity in at least two areas that are potentially self-damaging (e.g., spending, sex, substance abuse, reckless driving, binge eating).
5. recurrent suicidal behavior, gestures, or threats, or self-mutilating behavior
6. affective instability due to a marked reactivity of mood (e.g., intense episodic dysphoria, irritability, or anxiety usually lasting a few hours and only rarely more than a few days)
7. chronic feelings of emptiness
8. inappropriate, intense anger or difficulty controlling anger (e.g., frequent displays of temper, constant anger, recurrent physical fights)
9. transient, stress-related paranoid ideation or severe dissociative symptoms.
I am not now a medical person and make no claims to being one but much of this hits the nail right on the head. Make of it what you want.
Bush has run head on into the persona of General John Abizaid. The General is very competent in Middle East affairs and has run right up against Bush in public. Bush said there was no civil war in Iraq and the next day, the General flatly contradicted him. Abizaid, who is Lebanese and speaks the language, has stated that we need to win over the Arabs like Hezbollah does by taking care of the civil population and not just slaughtering them. Bush does not like the General and says unkind things about him…behind his back. The top military people, mostly Army and USMC brass, detest Bush and if he continues to ignore them while insulting them, he is in for serious problems. Note that Rumsfeld, whom the professionals hate as a stupid and pompous ass, ordered two armored units to be transferred from Germany to Iraq…and was promptly ignored. The units never left Germany and Rumsfeld has kept this insubordination very quiet. The Bush people have lost their power to frighten, both on the domestic and foreign fronts and that does not bode well for the next two years. When you have a highly irate, nasty President screeching at a public press conference that he will never leave Iraq as long as he is in office, this is a sign of severe psychological problems. There is not even an attempt at diplomacy, only a shrill child screaming child determined to have his way.
Abonneren op:
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