But The Thrill We've Never Known...
Is the thrill that'll gitcha when you git your picture on the cover of the Rolling Stone!
Well, the Loosers don't get their picture on the cover of the Rolling Stone, but they do get it on the webpage accompanying this terrific article by Matt Taibbi.
I don't have the space here to address every single reason why 9/11 conspiracy theory is so shamefully stupid, so I'll have to be content with just one point: 9/11 Truth is the lowest form of conspiracy theory, because it doesn't offer an affirmative theory of the crime.
Forget for a minute all those Internet tales about inexplicable skyscraper fires, strange holes in the ground at Shanksville and mysterious flight manifestoes. What is the theory of the crime, according to the 9/11 Truth movement?
Strikingly, there is no obvious answer to that question, since for all the many articles about "Able Danger" and the witnesses who heard explosions at Ground Zero, there is not -- at least not that I could find -- a single document anywhere that lays out a single, concrete theory of what happened, who ordered what and when they ordered it, and why. There obviously is such a theory, but it has to be pieced together by implication, by paying attention to the various assertions of 9/11 lore (the towers were mined, the Pentagon was really hit by a cruise missile, etc.) and then assembling them later on into one single story. But the funny thing is, when you put together all of those disparate theories, you get the dumbest story since Roman Polanski's Pirates.
Hat Tip: Shrinker at the JREF forums.
posted by Pat @ 4:33 PM
17 comments
17 Comments:
Could you stop making me feel somewhat good about publications and people I've hated since I was 15?
(Although that asshole did go overboard when he compared Fox watchers to conspiracy theorists. He needs to learn about strawmen.)
I can't wait to read the responses and see which diversions are tossed in this time.
Might Nesnyc rear his ugly head?
I have to say that is one of my new favorite articles.
The BUSH/CHENEY/RUMSFELD dialogue had me rolling off my chair.
Awesome.
TAM
To properly imitate NesNYC, you must also post a link to some vaguely related Google results.
If it helps, Shawn, I've got one Taibbi Scalp on my wall--I forced him to issue a retraction to a story a couple years ago.
Slightly off-topic; Spooked911 has
declared American democracy dead.
I offered him some "monday morning quarterbacking". But I don't think he took it well.
I don't know why he still lets me post there.
Like hey, man, I mean, we posed for that picture 'cause we're cooler than you!
Oh, man I'm glad they used that one - you can't tell if Korey took the lens cap off can you?
Box cutters ha ha ha ha
Dylan,
Why did you make me get on my knees for that picture?
I was just reading through the comments on that R.S. article (which was hilarious, a very thorough mocking) and it was a little discouraging. In fact, I've noticed that most online articles critical of 9/11 conspiracy theories get an overwhelmingly negative response. Even on Youtube, the debunking stuff is consistently rated lower than Loose Change (and its clones).
A lot of it is probably just high-school internet rebellion, but that concerns me even more. All this 9/11 conspiracy propaganda is poisoning a whole generation of youngstas minds. Even if most of them grow out of it, a lot of people with otherwise healthy brains will spend the rest of their lives never learning to examine evidence and come to rational conclusions.
Not all the CT's are off their rocker or stupid. Take joanbasil, for instance. She's (I presume she) clearly savvy and well-spoken. She has no outward emotional investment in conspiracy theories - e.g. nesnyc's hatred of jews. Yet she's here almost every day, cutting-and-pasting the latest truth-cult red herring.
What are we - the real truth movement - doing wrong that we're not getting through to people like her? Should we even care about the emerging subculture of paranoia in America? OK, sorry about the rant. I don't have any answers, it was just something I had on my mind this morning.
Should we even care about the emerging subculture of paranoia in America?
Well, the consolation prize is that even as America completes its transition to a knowledge economy we'll still have a large base of people to launder our shirts, put our fast food into bags, seperate recyclables from the waste stream, etc. You know how progressives like to be concerned about income inequality? Well, by meeting the twoofers you're basically interacting with the future unequal.
Joan:
Why were the Bukharis ever in the mix of 9/11 as suspects, Mr. Taibbi?
Are you retarded? Seriously? How many times do you need to have the same thing explained to you before you'll "get it"?
Burke:
Take joanbasil, for instance. She's (I presume she) clearly savvy and well-spoken.
I don't know about that. Her constant repetition of talking points coupled with her inability to actually understand any of the answers we give her....well she certainly doesn't seem "savvy", let's just say that.
She has no outward emotional investment in conspiracy theories - e.g. nesnyc's hatred of jews.
No outward emotional investment maybe. Doesn't mean there isn't an emotional investment though, just that it's harder to see. My guess? She went through life not believing in much. Was probably successful enough in everything she attempted, but never found any real meaning to any of it. As they get older, people in her situation tend to find religion, or meditation, or try to save the environment. For her, it's the 9/11 denial movement. It gives her life some meaning, makes her feel like she's part of the fight for a worthwhile cause. That's definitely an "emotional investment".
So this week the Bukhari's are the "topic of the week" for the CTers. Last week it was "the Pakistani Connection". Whats next week Joan...can ya give us the heads up on what you and the CTers will be derailing every blog post with next week??
TAM
I just get a little worried when I see things like this. Somehow the CT's have managed to convince over a third of Americans (if the Scripps poll is to be believed) that they're at least partially right.
It is funny you don't see any mass protests, though. It's like they're embarrassed to admit their convictions.
hopefully the anchor-thing worked, I've never tried it in a blogspot comment...
*sigh*
Joan, you're an idiot, but this ONE LAST TIME, I'm going to answer your idiotic Bukhari question. You must have missed this part of the same wiki page that you quoted:
"Bukhari gave lessons to Saudi Arabian Airlines pilots at the FlightSafety Academy in Vero Beach, where several of the hijackers had trained."
So we've got a Saudi/Muslim instructor at the same flight school where the hijackers did their training. Sorta raises suspicion, huh? Not exactly conclusive evidence, but that would probably be why HE WAS RELEASED.
More importantly, what the hell does any of that have to do with your idiotic conspiracy theories? You think George Bush planned the world's greatest conspiracy, and then forgot to make sure that the people he was going to blame for it were under his control? Are you that daft? And why would the FBI release him? If they're going to frame a bunch of hijackers, might as well frame him as well. If it had been a conspiracy they'd know that releasing him would open them up to exactly the sort of questions you're asking now.
Once again, none of what you're suggesting makes sense. All that you can do is "ask questions", but when we ask for an alternative theory you have absolutely nothing to offer.
How could these men have been in the mix of 9/11 unless someone was collecting Arab identities?
You said it yourself. They found his name on some identification cards in Mohammed Atta's rented Nissan. You're right about one thing, someone was collecting Arab identities: Mohammed Atta and the hijackers. Probably for aliases, I don't know. It makes sense that the hijackers - some of whom were in the country illegally - would keep false ID's of legal Arab pilots on hand.
Nothing about this incident shows U.S. complicity in, or foreknowledge of, the attacks. It's just an example of the confusion in the days after the attack. If anything the incident reinforces how little the U.S. government knew at the time.
I didn't start hearing about the 9/11 Truth Movement until late last year or early this year and now its everywhere.
It isn't "everywhere". You'd be surprised how many people aren't up on internet fringe groups.
being named by the Fat Osama
You mean the Osama, that if you watch the entire video, looks exactly like OSama bin Laden?
There's a picture of me that makes me look like the lead singer of Alien Ant Farm, but if you watched a video of me you'd never make the connection.
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