9/11 CultWatch

Caption Competition Winner!

Congratulations to Totnesian for this little beauty:

"Remember that little brasserie we used to visit with those American 'attachés', darling?"

A copy of the next Notes From The Borderland will be sent to you free of charge!

Nasty Namaste?

Namaste magazine is one of those glossy green/New Age magazines cluttering up most of the bigger newsagents.

It first came to our attention due to one of the worst articles yet on 7/7 - a rambling monologue linking the attacks to Freemasonry and numerology that any decent editor would have filed in the bin. (See Vol 9 issue 1 to understand what we are on about)

The current issue, Vol 9 Issue 4 turns to 9/11 with a three page piece by an American, Debbie Lewis.

The motivation behind the article appears to be disgust at the BBC's February 18th "9/11 Conspiracy Files" programme. The article starts badly - it seems with this documentary "The BBC Joins The Ranks of The Untrustworthy United States Media". As if the BBC had never made a mistake in its history, or never been used by non-progressive forces! And there we were thinking the BBC had vetted their staff for generations to keep the 'wrong types' out. Once again we see the 9/11 "truth" activists acting as if history began on 11 September 2001.

As with any 9/11 "thinker" Lewis is keen to push a documentary - 911 In Plane Site. She does give some credence to Senator Bob Graham - interviewed in the BBC programme - but naturally shows no interest whatsoever in his concerns re the Saudi involvement in 9/11. Next up is standard US racism - as evidenced by both Dr Jim Fetzer and Jim Marrs - 'how can these 19 Arabs do this to us, under the control of a man in a cave, when we have so much money and power?'. It is that feeling of incredulity that fuels much of the 9/11 "Truth" movement.

Oh and the need to sell videos to one another - at the end of the article we find out that Debbie Lewis is the wife of William Lewis - who produced 911 In Plane Site. Small world!

Exposing the University of East London 'Truth Movement'

One of the few active student "truth" societies has been at the University of East London. After a particularly over the top article by UEL Truth activist Zubair Islam, 9/11 Cultwatch's Paul Stott penned this article to the Student Union magazine Re:Fuel.

I was disappointed but not surprised to read the article by Zubair Islam on the 9/11 and 7/7 "truth" campaigns. Mr Islam is of course free to set up whatever societies he wishes to, but his article fails to cover any of the weaknesses, or indeed the dangers of the movement he is a part of. As an example - to say he has "the support of the families of the deceased" is a big claim that I very much doubt he can back up.

It is easy to mock some of the dafter conspiracy theories that are to be found in his scene - the theory that no planes hit the twin towers at all on 9/11 is actually widely accepted, but Zubair does not mention that. Perhaps the presence of not one but two self declared former MI5 officers at the top table of the UK "Truth" movement explains some of the digs at groups like Respect or Stop The War Coalition - this is old fashioned red-baiting, from people used to working against "reds under the beds". A 9/11 Truth meeting at the 2005 Anarchist Bookfair was typified by a bullying and threatening approach to anyone who dared to criticise those who know the "truth". Given this cult like behaviour, is it any wonder activists from the groups listed above do not rally behind the 9/11 "cause"?

Another issue is racism. I have no problem with criticising the state of Israel for its treatment of the Palestinians, or its murderous conduct in Lebanon last year. However ten minutes spent on the discussion forum of the UK 9/11 Truth movement will expose the casual reader to routine anti-semitism, that seeks to
finger "the Jews" and "Zionists" for all manner of crimes. Zubair does not mention that his society is one in which one racial group in our society (at least) would soon feel very uncomfortable.

Finally it is worth considering exactly where the 7/7 "truth" movement is coming from. Such theorists want
us to believe that none of the four July 7 suicide bombers played any role in the mass murder of Londoners that day (even those who made suicide videos of themselves before the attacks!) Instead we are supposed to believe any one of a series of shifting conspiracy theories that usually blame Israel, the UK or American governments - or sometimes a combination of all three.

There are sadly a very small minority of British Muslims who do hold extreme views, and who support terrorist attacks on civilians in the name of religion. 7/7 conspiracy theories make the recognition of this fact harder, and indeed weaken the cause of all those who want to see a progressive, multi-cultural society. That is why they are not just wrong, but dangerous.

If you wish to find out more about the real nature of the 9/11 "Truth" movements, you can visit these
websites.

http://www.911cultwatch.org.uk/

or

http://paulstott.typepad.com/911cultwatch/

Paul Stott

Total:Spec On The 9/11 Truth Movement

Hello to readers of Total:Spec magazine.

The May 2007 issue of Total:Spec contains a major six page article on "9/11 Untruths" and an interview with 9/11 Cultwatch writer Larry O'Hara.

The article focuses on the cult-like behaviour of 9/11 "truth" activists and the reaction whenever there beliefs are threatened. You can buy Total:Spec in most big newsagents, or order it directly from their website.

Taking It To The Valleys

Notes From the Borderland took four collective members over to Swansea last week for the Green Party spring conference. As well as running a stall of political and parapolitical magazines, leaflets and books, we leafleted Green party members and supporters expressing our concern at the “9/11 Cult”, warning that only principled opposition to the US/UK war machine can undermine and ultimately defeat Blair, Bush and co.

Sideways For The Greens?
The conference itself could not realistically be described as a huge success. Attendance was not high – perhaps a couple of hundred delegates at most – and divisions clearly remain within the Green Party, particularly from a “modernist” wing, who seem determined to have a “leader” and paid staff, in the expectation that aping the major parties will lead to more serious media coverage. Trust us, it won’t. Politics are always more important than politicians.

Sometimes at political conferences it is the fringe events, socials and stalls that see the best of the action. Not so here – the NFB stall was arguably the largest, and others – such as the Legalise Cannabis Campaign – were rather sorry specimens. Whilst the case for medicinal use of cannabis is arguably made, the overall case for legalisation is weaker now than ever before – something that appears to be passing the LCC by.
The Young Greens and Greens in the Trades Unions both had (quiet) stalls, whilst it is hard to see the point of Simple, sorry Simpol-UK, a theory of Simultaneous Policy supported by one man and a van.

9/11 Cult Harried
Saturday saw a meeting to discuss a proposal that the Green party should support the call for a second inquiry into the 9/11 attacks, proposed by Shane Collins of Lambeth Green Party. 9/11 writer Ian Henshall, plus Justin Walker of the UK 9/11 Truth Campaign were produced to back up this call.
Thanks in no small part to the work initiated out by 9/11 Cultwatch, many in the Green party saw an iceberg as soon as they read this proposal. Conspiracy theories and anti-semitism do not tend to go down well on the doorsteps for any electoral party.
An amendment was thus put forward (signed by, amongst others Greater London Assembly member Darren Johnson) although it was hastily written - even getting the date of the attacks wrong, and making the absurd statement that to accuse the US security forces of involvement in 9/11 was in "poor taste". Those across the world subject to US intervention over the years, whether it be subverting democracy (Operation Gladio), or supporting coups/coup plotters (Chile 1973, Venezuela 2002 etc) as well as targetted assassinations (e.g. multiple attempts on Castro) will hardly regard the possibility as poor taste in principle. Rather, each allegation has to be examined case by case--and for 9/11, thus far, that case has not been made.
Given this NFB’s Larry O’Hara (a Green Party member) proposed this amendment instead, which did not rule out the call for a fresh inquiry, but added some important riders.

ON CURRENT EVIDENCE, THE GREEN PARTY BELIEVES THAT AL- QAEDA WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ATTACKS. IN LINE WITH OUR ANTI-RACIST BELIEFS, WE VIEW WITH ABHORRENCE THE ANTI-SEMITIC ELEMENTS WHO APPEAR TO HAVE ATTACHED THEMSELVES TO THIS CAMPAIGN THUS FAR. WE HOPE ANY INQUIRY WOULD LOOK AT THE HANDLING OF INTELLIGENCE PRIOR TO THE ATTACKS OF 9/11, THE EVENTS THEMSELVES, AND THE POLITICAL RESPONSE, WITH ITS DEVASTATING LONG-TERM EFFECTS ON INTERNATIONAL SECURITY. IF, AFTER AN INQUIRY, CRIMINAL CHARGES SEEM APPROPRIATE, AND WE REGARD THE BASIS FOR SUCH AS SOUND, THE GREEN PARTY WILL DO WHAT WE CAN TO HELP THAT PROCESS HAPPEN.

Ian Henshall, who was taking the lead for the 9/11 cult, rejected this amendment, because he did not agree to the Al Qaeda reference at the start--despite the fact it was far stronger than the original motion, in referring to criminal charges. The unmistakeable implication is that adhering to one version of the truth (their own) is more important to the 9/11 cult than actually holding anybody responsible.

At The Fringe
The fringe meeting itself (Saturday 24 March) was addressed by Henshall, who set out the arguments, and some of the sources, for his next book (9/11: The New Evidence) in a fluent and in some ways impressive manner. While very disparaging of the book 'Debunking 9/11 Myths', he had more praise for the 9/11 Commission Report, saying it had "loads of good evidence" though the conclusion "bears no relationship to the evidence". He was also impressed by the work of Peter Lance (as are we).
George Monbiot came in for particular scorn, following his Guardian piece attacking the cult--he has apparently "gone rogue", and is "in bed with" Senator John McCain, who introduces 'Debunking 9/11 Myths'. A stark image that really is in 'poor taste'.
He also made the good point that there is a clutch of 9/11 whistle-blowers, gagged up till now (like Sibil Edmonds) who are giving strong hints they would like to be subpoenaed by Congress in order to speak their minds. The crux of Henshall's presentation was the description of 9/11 as a "joint effort between Osama Bin Laden and George Bush" meaning there was "conscious or unconscious collaboration in the 9/11 attacks".

Returning The Serve
Under incisive questioning from one (female) audience member, he explained that 'unconscious collaboration' would be "if Osama Bin Laden thought he was solely responsible, but unknown to him, the CIA were allowing the attacks to happen". The very fact that Henshall can't be more specific than this, indicates how much some of his assertions are built on shifting sands. If you claimed a burglar may have 'consciously or unconsciously' collaborated with others, the assertion would be laughed out of court--indeed, the burglar themselves might even escape legal retribution. We come in for stick from some for describing 9/11 cultists as a cult, but one intervention in the meeting illustrated just why that description is apt.

Cultwatch Comments
One NFB collective member, sitting away from Larry O'Hara so as to be sure of a chance to speak, made two clear and incisive points:

1) How could 9/11 have been covered up so effectively, especially as regards planting of explosives, if Operation Condor or Watergate couldn't be covered up, this latter for more than a few weeks?
2) After the 1st Gulf War, when US bases in Saudi Arabia were expanded and made permanent, the likes of Bin Laden moved into a position of hostility to the USA, and 9/11 was merely an extension of that--in other words, a clear motive for Al Qaeda doing the bombing has been established.

Right from the start of him making his points, he was interrupted, shouted down, declared to have a 'closed mind' (this by Henshall), and all in all treated to such a hostile reception as to confirm we truly were in a cult setting. The reason this did not happen to the female questioner earlier was telling--her intervention was too nuanced and complex for most cultists present to understand!

In the end, all this frenetic discussion and amending proved academic – in the best tradition of party conferences, the motion was talked out by the pressure of other business, and not debated. All this means is that the issue remains on the table – and the 9/11 Cult need to be aware that we will keep pushing to isolate crackpot theories, spooks and anti-semites as far away as possible from green and leftist political circles.
This is a war for position – and it is not one we intend to lose.

On The Fence?

It is not often the 9/11 Truth Movement appears to hide its light under a bushel.

What else can you say about the description of last months William Rodriguez meeting at the University of East London, which appears in the 10 March issue of The Newham Mag?

The regular UEL column has a snippet devoted to the meeting, but manages not to mention the 9/11 Truth Campaign at all! The quote from Rodriguez, and his description as a "campaigner for the families of victims" is so bland as to be anodyne.

It could be that is how the UEL 9/11 Truth Society wanted the meeting to be reported. It could be.

Is not a far more likely version that the University of East London tempered the report because it is shy of making itself look stupid promoting such nonsense throughout its home borough?

The Truth Movement's Prime Minister

It is hard to know whether to laugh or cry at the news that Michael "Rachmann" Meacher is going to stand for the Labour Party leadership.

Oldham's dodgiest landlord has been pretty quiet in recent years, save for his odd foray into 9/11 conspiracy circles.

Perhaps he will challenge Gordon Brown to debate the respective virtues of LIHOP v MIHOP? Or even "no-plane theory".

Meacher's intervention does mean one thing however - those betting on John McDonnell coming bottom of the leadership poll may lose their money!

Expecting Higher Standards Of Their Opponents.....

The toys have been flying out of the pram this week in the world of the UK and Ireland "truth" movement.

It seems a picket of the BBC is planned for this lunchtime to respond to Sundays 9/11 documentary. And what devastating action are they planning?

Is David Shayler going to project a hologram onto the side of the White City building? Is Tony Gosling going to re-enact an attack on the twin towers by a crack Mossad hit squad? Will we see Annie Machon shout "Lets Roll" before the BBC is stormed and its most reactionary journalists beaten to death with old MI5 wage slips?

No - they are going to give out a leaflet, complaining about the standards of the BBC's investigation into 9/11. The words pot and kettle rather leap to mind.

We suspect, despite this intervention, that the BBC may well survive another week......

George Monbiot On The 9/11 Cult

Well, it is not just us who has spotted what is going on.

You can read George Monbiot's Guardian article here.

Amongst the usual rambling responses from the 9/11 "Truthers" is this prescient comment from one person in Devon who seems to have seen through these clowns.

I live in Totnes in Devon. Long known as a kook-magnet, the town naturally has a particularly active 911-denier group. Their antics illustrate a couple of themes not mentioned in your article.

First, antisemitism. The local 911-deniers recently planned to show a DVD interview with one Eustace Mullins, billed as 'one of America's foremost historians'. He's actually a particularly vile Jew-baiter with a decades-long record of fascist activism. His self-published tract, 'The Biological Jew', compares Jews to rats. At the beginning of the video in question he states that Israeli 'neo-Zionists' intend to destroy all Muslims, neatly parrotting bin Laden's ideas. The screening was cancelled after what should have been obvious racism was pointed out to the organisers. The original medieval conspiracy theory featuring satanic Jews undermining Christendom from within has clearly found a new home in the 911-denier movement, as John Ronson found out when he visited the forum of the British 9/11 Truth Campaign (chaired by Annie Machon) a few months ago.

Second, the presence of David Shayler and Annie Machon, ex MI5 agents. These two jumped into the 911-denier milieu from the Stop The War Coalition before they could be pushed, and the movement has embraced them. They've been to Totnes at least twice. As far as I'm aware, nobody here has yet asked them why in 2002, the time of Shayler's high media profile, neither he nor Machon said a dickie bird about a 911 conspiracy. Similarly no one in the movement is asking why Machon's 2005 book 'Spies, Lies and Whistleblowers - MI5, MI6 and the Shayler Affair', attributes the 911 attacks to intelligence failures rather than an impossibly large, impossibly efficient cabal of impossibly clever murderers. Yet in June 2005, interviewed by the bullhorn buffoon himself, Alex Jones, Shayler says he was suspicious from the start.

The comment then finishes with this link.

Top Secret

There appears to be some problem in the ranks over at the 9/11 Truth Movement.

Not content with having a public forum for discussion and organising, it now appears a second private forum is required. This is invite only, and you apparently only get on if you get the nod from two existing 9/11 Truth leaders. Larry O'Hara and myself are not holding our breath for our invitations!

All in all entrance to this inner sanctum for the positively vetted sounds a bit like joining the Freemasons. No doubt we will soon be hearing plenty of noise from those 9/11ers excluded from the elite - the cries back and forth of "shill" are likely to be deafening.

Either way, 9/11 Cultwatch would like to suggest a logo for this new, top secret board. Who better but Secret Squirrel!

Tomorrow The World!

One characteristic of the UK 9/11 Truth Movement is its feeling of self-importance, its almost messianic zeal.

Take this line from the University of East London 9/11 Truth Society, in the UEL magazine Re:Fuel

"The goal is to turn UEL into a 911 and 7/7 Truth University, something brave and courageous, yet ultimately righteous. To be that spark that will spread from campus to campus, country to country. Just like the Student Anti-Vietnam War campaigns."

They are not many certainties in life. But one is that Stratford is not the Sorbonne, nor is the 9/11 Truth movement remotely comparable to the 1960s anti-war movement.

William Rodriguez Meeting Analysed

To the University of East London's Docklands campus, where last night the UK and Ireland 9/11 Truth Campaign held a public meeting, with William Rodriguez topping the bill.

Annie Machon's Introduction
A good 150 people attended this meeting, which unfortunately started nearly an hour late. Annie Machon spoke for five minutes, discussing her background and the issue of false flag terrorism. It is noteworthy that whilst she cites this as a major reason why she and David Shayler left MI5, she does not mention the issue flase flag terrorism once in her 2005 memoirs "Spies, Lies and Whistleblowers". Machon correctly illustrated how, post 9/11 a legal assault had been launched in most Western democracies, with certain long standing rights ripped up, and new powers given to the police and security services. She sees the basis of this in the west's thirst for oil.

Whilst this is hard to disagree with, it is important not to look at 9/11 as a sort of year zero - Machon herself appears happy to forget that the decades from 1969 onwards saw some very dubious legal machinations used, mostly in Northern Ireland, but also against the Irish community in England and its supporters. As a former MI5 officer who made use of such laws, she can hardly be unaware that we have been here before.

Although the meeting was not the full room the organisers would have been hoping for, Ms Machon argues the 9/11 Truth Movement is on the up and up, and is open to people of all religions, classes and political persuasions. I wonder if Ms Machon reads some of the routine anti-semitism on the 9/11 Truth Movement forums, and actually believes the movement is welcoming to - for example - Jewish or Israeli people?

Reply to Liverpool Echo Shayler Interview

David Shayler has given a typical contradictory interview in the Liverpool Echo of 22 January. You can view the interview here.

Here is a reply from 9/11 Cultwatch's Larry O'Hara, published on the Echo's forum:

I read with amusement the naive article by your reporter who not only took Shayler at face value, but doesn't seem to understand that despite complaining about being misunderstood Shayler in this interview (or should that be audience?) repeats the 'No Plane' nonsense that many even in the 9/11 cult see as a distraction introduced to divert attention from the truth.

On an equally serious note, and in the interests of balance, may I point your readers to the web-site www.911cultwatch.org.uk that provides perspective and sanity on this issue, from the viewpoint of researchers genuinely opposed to MI5 dirty tricks, something which does not apply to Shayler/Machon. On that pair's infiltration of the 9/11 'Truth Movement' read the article from Notes From the Borderland magazine issue 7 that can be found on the above web-site here.

Might I respectfully suggest that before the Echo gives free publicity to suspect characters like Shayler, you get your reporters to do some proper research?

Meanwhile, in the real world, Everton as League Champions in 2009? Here's to hoping so (From a life-long Blue)

Sexton Blakes?

One of the worst elements of the 9/11 Cult is its belief that anyone who disagrees with their take on 9/11 is therefore outwith radical politics.

For daring to criticise the 9/11 "Truth" Movement, one of the writers of this blog is routinely described as a "fake anarchist". Surely whether someone is an anarchist or not is determined by their views on political organisation, government, hierarchy, ecology, class etc, not whether they take a particular view on one terrorist attack. Indeed Anarchism has existed as an ideology for some 150 years before 9/11!

It is interesting how other political ideologies seem to escape the wrath of 9/11 cultists. There are no doubt plenty of Labour party activists who think Michael Meacher MP is barking up the wrong tree with his views on 9/11 - are they fake Labourites? On this logic, are Muslims who condemn attacks such as 9/11 or 7/7 "fake" Muslims?

One possible exmplanation for why Anarchists are termed "fakes" for refusing to buy into the 9/11 Cult package could be the presence of former MI5 officers at the core of the UK and Ireland 9/11 Truth Movement. These are people after all who were previously paid to lie about and indeed to sabotage Anarchist and other progressive movements.

Perhaps old habits die hard?

The Haymarket Martyrs. But what were their views on 9/11?

Who Speaks Out?

Browsing the discussion forums on the UK and Ireland 9/11 Truth Movement's website, can be a depressing experience.

To see what we mean, have a look at the board itself. You only have to be on there for ten minutes to see the casual anti-semitism that infects the 9/11 "Truth movement" like a festering sore on the backside.

We are not going to illustrate our point by linking to some of the sites seen promoted on the 9/11 boards (why improve the web hits of racist sites?) suffice to say that any movement that tolerates the likes of Tony Gosling, Rodin or Blackcat gets the reputation it deserves, especially when such nonsense appears to go unchallenged by the silent majority.

Activists like Ian Neal really do seem to be voices in the wilderness.

Get Right On One Matey!

Seeing David Shayler on Sky News recently discussing the Stevens Report was a bit of a shock.

Far from cutting the style of an upstanding civil servant cum spook or even the look of a later day searcher for truth and justice, Shayler seems to have come over all Ravey Davey Gravey on us.

Indeed Shayler looked as if he had been up all night before his interview working himself through a box of party smarties. Let's hope when he and Annie were chewing the fat with Lord Stevens and assuring him that MI5 could not have played any part in Princess Diana's death, he looked a little bit more presentable.

Come on David, don't get all Operation Julie on us now!

Anarchist Federation Article On David Shayler

An amusing incident in Manchester on the 23 September anti-war march is related by the AF here.

It appears these 9/11 types do not like it up 'em!

I Salute Your Indefatigability

I think George Galloway coined the term - and now we know what he meant!

Congratulations to the UK and Ireland 9/11 Truth Campaign activist (who we won't name as Annie will no doubt be telling him off in private, and we have no desire to add to his embarrassment) who according to IP records has now posted on this board under the remarkable total of five different names.

This is no "5 Star" performance however, as the cretinous comments of "crybaby", "fakeanarchist", "fucktardkiller", "happey" and "ConcernedCitizen" demonstrate. Indeed he even warns me against "hassling people", then threatens me with "a war", all extremely needless language when this blog - and its companion 9/11Cultwatch merely ask questions and ask people to think. No more, no less.

Still, if it keeps him away from circulating rubbish to the general public, I guess this blog will have performed a public duty.

The Players

I have added David Icke to the photographic list of 9/11 Truth "players".

He's there for both his ideological influence and for being a "conspiraloon" before the term was even coined.

Is it wrong to judge a movement by the supporters it attracts?

The Cuckoos Change Nests

"The Cuckoos Change Nests", a major examination of the behaviour of Annie Machon and David Shayler in joining the 9/11 "Truth" movement is now on-line for the first time. You can view it here

Thanks to Ian Neal for his encouragement in making sure we got it on-line.

Comments on this article are of course welcome. Let us hear your views - and that does mean your opinions, not 30 links to youtube videos about 9/11!