Posted on 05/29/2004 4:43:14 AM PDT by Raebie
Posted on Fri, May. 28, 2004 Berg's sister confused over Moore's taped interview
BY WILLIAM BUNCH
Knight Ridder Newspapers
PHILADELPHIA - (KRT) - The sister of Nick Berg, the contractor from the Philadelphia suburbs who was beheaded earlier this month in Iraq, says she's dumbfounded by reports that liberal icon Michael Moore had filmed an interview with her late brother for his new anti-war film.
"I'm very skeptical of this," said Sara Berg, a Virginia attorney whose brother's beheading sparked a global uproar.
But she said there was no way to confirm that Moore had sent a tape of the reported 20-minute interview to their parents' home in West Chester, as the filmmaker suggested in a statement Thursday, because the couple has been away.
Moore's acknowledgment that he had interview footage of Berg that had been shot - but not used - for his highly controversial "Fahrenheit 9/11" documentary may be the strangest twist yet in the increasingly weird saga of Berg and his Iraqi travels, which led to his slaying.
The initial story that touched off the controversy appeared Thursday on the online magazine Salon.com.
It said the interview took place in the United States late last year, before Berg, a radio-tower technician, made the first of two trips to Iraq seeking work there as a private contractor.
So, how would a completely unknown young wannabe contractor like Berg come to the attention of Moore, whose anti-President Bush screed "Dude, Where's My Country?" was the best-selling book in the nation at the time?
Stranger than that: Why would Moore or his crew interview Berg for "Fahrenheit 9/11" for 20 minutes, when Berg's family insists the slain contractor was pro-Bush and supported the American military action in Iraq?
The film, which just took top honors at the Cannes Film Festival, blasts Bush and shows graphic war footage from Iraq.
We may never know the answers, because Berg is dead and Moore says he has no plans to release the interview footage to the public.
"We have an interview with Nick Berg," Moore's terse statement said. "It was approximately 20 minutes long. We are not releasing it to the media. It is not in the film. We are dealing privately with the family."
Friends of Berg, the Henderson High School grad, say he was an adventurous, inventive and perhaps naive young man who simply wanted to help in the rebuilding of Iraq but disregarded safety warnings, traveling solo and in private taxis.
Berg was arrested by Iraqi police on March 24, held in custody for 13 days, and released - only to disappear again on April 10. His headless body was found on a Baghdad overpass on May 8, three days before the video of the decapitation was posted.
Despite some contradictory evidence, the CIA claims the execution was done by an al Qaeda terrorist, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
Since then, some have questioned why Berg had been in Iraq, as well as some of his strange connections.
The FBI questioned Berg in 2002 to find out why his e-mail password had ended up with an Oklahoma terror suspect linked to al Qaeda terrorist Zacarias Moussaoui.
In Iraq, Berg partnered with an ex-Philadelphia Iraqi expatriate who'd been convicted in a Russian-exile crack-vial ring before becoming the highly visible leader of an anti-Saddam Hussein group backed by the Bush administration.
I still don't understand why the company would not be incorporated, given the potential liability involved in tower servicing, and was not even registered as a partership/sole proprietorship in PA. I'm solidly libertarian, but this in itself is a sign that something shady was going on.
Interesting connection--someone else connected some dots showing Berg was in the prison area during a period when incriminating pictures were made/released; now his dad has connections with AI?
Gosh, there are so many "coincidences" in this story.
>> A much more likely explanation is that the leak of the existence of the tape was not planned and the tape itself is damaging to "The Cause", namely the defeat of George Bush in 2004. <<
I think the whole bruhaha with Miramax refusing to release the film is a red herring. They are in cahoots with Moore. This allows the shlockumentary to get high praise and awards without being seen (Cannes). It also gets lots of *free* publicity.
I expect some "brave" company to release the film in early October just in time for many American voters to see it right before November 2.
It's possible that Berg never knew that he was being interviewed by Moore's people. They could have just represented themselves as "journalists" or "documentarians".
Try my link on #54 of this thread. No subscription required!
>> Just tinfoiling along with my first cup of coffee, daddy could have given Nick a couple of "business contacts" to vist. <<
Like an "Iraqi Uncle's brother" who Nick emailed home that he'd helped to set up *email* for? An Iraqi uncle through marriage to Michael's dead Jewish sister which I personally think really stretches all credibility.
There is no question in my mind that you are right about this. Disney wants this picture shown but feels for some reason that they need some political cover. The sale to the Miramax executives is just too transparent for words of course but is apparently good enough the Eisner Clan.
Add this one to the list . . .
A very interesting line of thought. This aligns with the idea of a subtle intelligence and political battle that has been posited by others here.
Thanks Miz. Crack dials are pretty much what I thought they are. My daughter used to date a Russian immigrant and the stories he told about the Russian mob apparently are more true than I ever gave him credit for.
I thought it was a clever name considering the type of work he did.
Was Berg's computer ever recovered? I did not see it in the list of his belongings published.
Make that "the published list" of his belongings.
Thanks Howlin.
End of Feb to March 12, 2004 Nick installs antenna and transmission line for WHWK
March 14, 2004-2nd trip to Iraq
March 24, 2004 - Nick picked up by Iraqi police
March 30, 2004 - Nick fails to arrive at airport in US
April 5, 2004 - Family files lawsuit
April 6, 2004 - Nick released and immediately emails family.
April 9, 2004 - Nick calls home
NO ONE SEES OR HEARS FROM NICK AFTER APRIL 9TH TO MAY 12TH
May 12, 2004 Video of beheading is broadcast.
Note: While we assume it was in real time, can we be sure? It is time stamped but not date stamped. and there is an 11 hour gap between the time the "murderers" read their statement and the time when Nick was beheaded. (I can set my camera date/time for anything I want).
Note: Michael's sister (now deceased) married an Iraqi (who became close to Nick, according to his father). These are relatives that he visited in Mosul (at least during his first trip).
E-mail from Nick to Mark Humphrey in early January: I am taking photos - where allowed. It's actually pretty sad - I just got off one of two 320 meter monster towers in Abu Gharib (also home to the main political prison) which use to support most of Baghdad area's VHF and UHF. (There's more and he says he'd like to put a presentation together for SBE and PAB inferring before and after repair status of the towers). I think his sadness refers to the destruction of the facilities and buildings etc. He says nothing of our soldiers in this email(that I know of). Surely, they were friendly to him AND knew him. In fact, he had to be well known by quite a few folks. Where are they? You don't go climbing towers without being questioned and given permission by our soldiers or the Iraqi soldiers.
Moore won't release it because it gives lie to the fathers contention that the son was pro Bush.
The son was a subversive agent, like the father, and Moore, another subversive, is going to have to give up the tape as part of the murder investigation.
If he refuses, they will throw his fat commie ass in jail.
The other thing that is gnawing at me is: Nick's sister (now deceased) was married to an Iraqi. (A Jew and a Muslim?) Wondering just a tad about her death.
BUMP TO THE TOP. Reasonable suspicion. The disconcerting and anomalous facts just don't add up to the public story. Attempted subversion by the Left is a possibility. Needs more checking, though.
Prometheus Methods Tower Services, Inc.
Lots of good information and speculation on this thread. I think you summed it up well that we have an anti-American treasonous crime family here.
I also think the video before Nick's trip to Iraq was going to show how he supported the Bush administration and then re-videoed after the trip showing how he now hated Bush. That was the plan. The Bergs so hate Bush and this country they can't come to grips with the fact that their Al-Quadea buddies are more evil than they are and were double crossed by them.
We're following the money to Moore, don't forget to follow the rest of the way to Soros.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.