On
September 11, 2001, four airliners flying out of Dulles
International, Logan International and Newark airports en route to
California were hijacked by Muslim extremists.
What happened
next would go down in infamy as the most cowardly attack on the United
States by foreign nationals since Pearl Harbor and define the course
of American policy both foreign and domestic well into the foreseeable
future.
The mainstream media reported the events to a world transfixed:
At
08:46:30 (Eastern Daylight Time) American
Airlines Flight 11
traveling at over 450 miles per hour (approximately 725 km/h) crashed
into the northern facade of the World Trade Center’s North Tower (1
WTC). On board were 11 crew, 76 passengers, 5 hijackers and 10,000
gallons (44,000 liters) of jet fuel. The ensuing fireball engulfed the
94th to 99th floors, caused catastrophic structural failure and led to
the buildings eventual collapse at 10:28 hours.
At 09:02:59
(EDT) United Airlines
Flight 175 after nearly colliding with Delta
Airlines Flight 2315 impacted the South Tower (2 WTC) between the 77th
and 85th floors at approximately 545 miles per hour (877 km/h) with 51
passengers, 9 crew, 5 hijackers and full fuel tanks. The intense heat
generated by the burning fuel caused the building to collapse 56
minutes and 10 seconds later.
A number of other buildings within
and adjacent to the WTC complex were also damaged that day, 7 World
Trade Center (7 WTC) becoming the third to suffer catastrophic
structural failure collapsed at 17:20 (EDT). Though located across the
road from the main complex it had been seriously affected by 1 WTC’s
demise, damage from debris extending as high as the 18th floor. An
ineffective sprinkler system coupled with low water pressure allowed
for the spread of fire to other levels and at approximately 14:00 a
bulge was noticed in the southwest corner between the 10th and 13th
floors where a huge conflagration had been burning for hours. Fearing
the worst Fire Chief Daniel Nigro halted search and rescue efforts
around 15:30, this timely action to prove decisive in preventing
further loss of life when within two hours the expected became reality.
American
Airlines Flight 77 slammed into the western side of the
Pentagon at
09:37:44 (EDT) killing its 53 passengers, 6 crew and the 5 hijackers.
The ensuing carnage also resulted in the deaths of 125 persons within
the Pentagon itself.
United Airlines Flight 93
crashed in a
Pennsylvania field about 150 miles (240 km) northwest of Washington
D.C. the resultant explosion killing the 33 passengers, 7 crew and 4
hijackers. The passengers and crew aware of the fate of the other
hijacked airliners through phone calls to family and friends had
attempted to regain control of the aircraft. Their heroic efforts
though not successful undoubtedly saved the lives of many in the
nations capital. The time of impact was placed at 10:03 hours (EDT).
Both
the American and British governments quickly announced their belief
that Osama bin Laden and his organization Al-Qaeda were responsible for
the attacks.
Bin Laden
for his part played fast and loose:
On
September 16, 2001, as though fearful of what he might have unleashed
he assured the world with the following statement via Al Jazeera “I
stress that I have not carried out this act, which appears to have been
carried out by individuals with their own motivation.”
While
still not admitting responsibility bin Laden stated on December 27,
2001, “Terrorism against America deserves to be praised because it was
a response to injustice, aimed at forcing America to stop its support
of Israel which kills our people.”
It
wasn’t until three
years after the event, on a tape broadcast by Al Jazeera October 30,
2004, that bin Laden at last acknowledged his involvement “We had
agreed with the Commander-General Muhammad Atta, Allah have mercy on
him, that all operations should be carried out within 20 minutes,
before Bush and his administration noticed” and then referring to
President Bush directly, “He reckoned it was more important to
preoccupy himself with the talk of the little girl about her goat . . .
than
with the planes and their strikes on the skyscrapers, giving us
three times the time required to carry out the operation, thanks be to
God.”
Final confirmation came when in September 2006 another
video was released on Al Jazeera, showing bin Laden along with Ramzi
Binalshibh a high level Al-Qaeda operative and two of the hijackers
Wail al-Shehri and Hamza al-Ghamdi preparing for the attack. [1]
While
the average person would probably accept the aforementioned as
reasonable and valid, conspiracy theorists though divided into two
differing camps, disagree with the mainstream version of events:
They
“Let it happen on purpose” (LIHOP). The supposition is that key members
of the United States federal government up to and including the Bush
Administration were aware of the impending attacks and deliberately
chose to ignore them. Some theorists go even further, alleging that
they deliberately weakened the countries defenses in order to insure
maximum damage. To be more specific this first group believes all or
part of the following:
The close business and personal
relationship between the Bush family and influential Saudis blindsided
both the President and the intelligence community regarding a possible
Al-Qaeda attack on the American homeland.
That 9/11 was a
convenient pretext, necessary in order to justify war and secure for
Bush and his business cronies one of the world’s largest remaining
reserves of oil.
That the U.S. air defense system was
deliberately neutralized or stood down on that day (standard NORAD
intercept procedures were not activated).
That the war games that took place on September 11 had been
deliberately timed in order to add to the confusion.
They
“Made it happen on purpose” (MIHOP). The supposition is that key
members of the United States federal government up to and including the
Bush Administration were actively involved in the attacks,
collaborating with al-Qaeda in their planning and later shifting all
culpability to the terrorist organization. To be more specific this
second group believes all or part of the following:
The attacks
were instigated by a shadowy organization composed of many of the
world’s power elite pulling strings behind the scenes in order to
achieve their goal of a new
world order. [2]
That a missile not an airliner struck the Pentagon, contradictory
eyewitness testimony notwithstanding.
That United Airlines flight 93 was shot down over Pennsylvania by
American fighter jets.
That
the computer systems on Flights 175, 11 and 77 had been pre-programmed
with the information needed to automatically guide them to their
targets.
That the actual collapse of the Twin Towers and Seven
World Trade Center was the result of a controlled explosion using high
explosives.
Its an unfortunate fact, but the
truth is we will probably never know the who, what, whys and
wherefores of that horrific day with any degree of certainty,
arguments aside, however, the following is irrefutable: 3,000 innocent
people, many while performing acts of incredible bravery, died on 9/11
and
hundreds of thousands have died since, many while performing acts of
incredible bravery, as a result of 9/11.
[1]
Osama bin
Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden
was killed May 1, 2011, following
an intensive almost 10 year manhunt, when American special forces
stormed a fortified
compound in Abbottabad, a Pakistani city 50 kilometers (30 miles)
north of Islamabad. He was buried at sea.
[2] A term
popularized by George Bush senior in a speech to Congress on September
11, 1990, when he referred to his “dream of a New World Order” and
then used again by David Rockefeller when addressing the United Nations
Business Council on September 14, 1994, with what in retrospect might
be
perceived as a prophetic somewhat ominous statement “We are on the
verge of a
global transformation. All we need is the right major crises and the
nations will accept the New World Order.”
Bin Laden
for his part played fast and loose: