Conspiracy Theories Abound as 10th Anniversary of 9/11 Approaches

A BBC news program being aired today in Britain, and scheduled for later on BBC World News, reports on a survey of 1000 Brits and a like number of Americans. One in seven said s/he believes that the 9/11 attacks were orchestrated by conspirators within the US government. One in four of those surveyed, between the ages of 16 and 24, believes this.

The conspiracy theorists --- the more knowledgeable ones, that is --- hang their hats primarily on the collapse of World Trade Center Building Seven, which imploded suddenly following the initial attacks. The best-known film focused on this theory is:

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The producer of this film, interviewed on BBC World News this morning, claims to have accumulated 1600 architects and engineers who question the official version of what happened.

Conspiracy theories abound. A quick visit to the website Conspiracytheories.com will quickly confirm this. Persistent ones include:

1. FDR knew about the attack on Pearl Harbor, but allowed no warning to be issued, because he was determined to get the US in WWII.

2. JFK was assassinated by: The CIA/FBI; Fidel Castro; the Mafia.

3. The 1969 moon landing was faked in a TV studio.

4. The Oklahoma City Bombing was masterminded by Iraqi intelligence agents.

Here's a fifth one straight out of my head: For decades, multi-national corporations have been closing US manufacturing facilities and moving jobs overseas. Ala Thomas Friedman's THE WORLD IS FLAT, they recognize the decline of the US vis a vis China, India, South America. They have given up on the American middle class and are leaving us to fend for ourselves. Thus the lack of willingness to step up and pay more taxes to alleviate the national debt.

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When I was doing a weekly newspaper column for much of the last decade I delved into some of these conspiracy theories. Between now and September 11th, I'll revisit some of that material and share it with you. I'll also add some news stuff in this space.