A 9/11 conspiracy virus is sweeping the world, but it has no basis in fact

The Guardian ^ | February 6, 2007 | George Monbiot

[neverdem]

Loose Change is a sharp, slick film with an authoritative voiceover, but it drowns the truth in an ocean of nonsense

There is a virus sweeping the world. It infects opponents of the Bush government, sucks their brains out through their eyes and turns them into gibbering idiots. First cultivated in a laboratory in the US, the strain reached these shores a few months ago. In the past fortnight, it has become an epidemic. Scarcely a day now passes without someone possessed by this sickness, eyes rolling, lips flecked with foam, trying to infect me.

The disease is called Loose Change. It is a film made by three young men that airs most of the standard conspiracy theories about the attacks of September 11 2001. Unlike the other 9/11 conspiracy films, Loose Change is sharp and swift, with a thumping soundtrack, slick graphics and a calm and authoritative voiceover. Its makers claim that it has now been watched by 100 million people.

The Pentagon, the film maintains, was not hit by a commercial airliner. There was "no discernible trace" of a plane found in the wreckage, and the entrance and exit holes in the building were far too small. It was hit by a cruise missile. The twin towers were brought down by means of "a carefully planned controlled demolition". You can see the small puffs of smoke caused by explosives just below the cascading sections. All other hypotheses are implausible: the fire was not hot enough to melt steel and the towers fell too quickly. Building 7 was destroyed by the same means a few hours later.

Flight 93 did not crash, but was redirected to Cleveland airport, where the passengers were taken into a Nasa building and never seen again. Their voices had been cloned by the Los...

[neverdem]

LOL!

[Tzimisce]

Never thought of that - good point.

[raybbr]

[poobear]

Wow, I had never seen that one! Go Danny!

[Ultra Sonic 007]

Personally, I prefer Penn & Teller's take.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVTKoPK7gaQ

Language warning.

[ishabibble]

This is one good way to refute the tinfoil crowd. The Muslim pilot's voice on the black box recorder chanting, "Allah Akbar Allah Akbar Allah Akbar..." as he slammed that jet into the ocean floor.


http://www.emergency.com/1999/egyp990.htm

[murdoog]

The difference with Flight 800 is that those who disbelieve are not all people who believe in the bizarre counter theories. Some of those who doubt -- simply doubt.

That's one difference.

Another difference is that with 9/11 conspiracy theories you have to explain away the 4 airplanes that were hijacked that day. There is no such hurdle with Flight 800.

Another difference is what witnesses saw. On 9/11, lots of witnesses saw planes fly into the World Trade Center and the pentagon. With Flight 800, lots of people saw something that saw looked like a missile hit the plane. Thus with 9/11 eyewitnesses tend to support the official version, and with Flight 800 eyewitnesses tend to support the conspiracy theory.