Today is the anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the Twin Tower and the Pentagon. Unlike the Kennedy assassination, which lent itself to many conspiracy theories, 9/11 took place in the age of the internet and thus conspiracy theories reached a much larger audience and did not have to get past book editors or news reporters. I will go over some of the conspiracy myths and why they are not true. If you are a teacher, please do not pass on these myths to your students.
- MYTH – The towers came down due to controlled explosions from within. The same type of explosions used to collapse buildings on site in preparation for rebuilding on that site.
– it is inconceivable that the placing of the explosives could have been done without anyone knowing
– there was no evidence of enough of the material used on controlled explostion in the debris
– fire from jet fuel CAN weaken steel due to the fire that spread to the elevator shafts; the temperature was hot enough
– as far as the puffs that were supposed explosions, the collapsing stories would have forced air out the sides
– FACT – the National Institute of Standards and Technology concluded the collapses were due to jet fuel catching fire in the interior which weakened the steel and gravity helped with the collapse
- MYTH – The Pentagon was hit by a missile launched by people in the government to force the U.S. to intervene in the Middle East.
– The claim that the hole in the Pentagon did not match the wingspan of the airliner occurred because both wings were sheared off before the plane hit the building. The hole was 75 feet, not 16 as some conspiracy theorists claim.
– The black box was found in the debris, as were body parts that were DNA matched to passengers.
– Phone calls from the plane proved it was hijacked.
– The supposed lack of debris was due to most of it being in the Pentagon.
– If you want to believe this one, you will have to explain what happened to the plane and its passengers.
FACT – Terrorists tried to crash American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon. They actually hit outside it and the plane crashed into the building.
- MYTH – United 93 was shot down by an American fighter jet.
– Theorists claim the debris field was too spread out for a plane hitting the ground. For instance, they point out that the engine was found miles away from the crash site. Actually, the engine was found just 300 feet away. The debris that was found miles away was light stuff like papers. Some point out that debris was found at Indian Lake, six miles away, but the 6 miles is by road. The actual distance is about a mile.
– Theorists point to a small, white plane that was seen over the crash site. It was supposedly the missile-firer. The small plane was a private plane that had been asked by traffic control to fly over the site to investigate.
– Keep in mind that if United 93 had reached Washington, D.C., it would and should have been shot down.
– FACT – The passengers attempted to take over the plane and the terrorists crashed into the ground.
- MYTH – Jewish worker were warned by Israeli officials not to go to work that day. This was because Israel was involved in the attack in order to get the U.S. more involved in the Middle East.
– FACT – 270-400 Jews were killed. That is close to the percentage of Jews who worked in the World Trade Center.
- MYTH – Iraq was involved.
– The Bush administration hinted at this and it convinced many Americans that we needed to go to war with Iraq because of 9/11. However, the Bush administration was unable to provide proof. If there was proof, Bush would have trumpeted it.
– Saddam Hussein was not on good terms with Al Qaida.
– FACT – The attack was by Al Qaida.
- MYTH – The nearby World Trade Center 7 collapsed for reasons unassociated with the Twin Towers. It must have been a controlled explosion.
– Debris from the collapsed towers smashed into the side of the building. 25% of the building was damaged and fires were started that after hours caused the collapse.
– FACT – World Trade Center 7 collapsed for the same reason that the Twin Towers collapsed.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/9/11_conspiracy_theories
https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna3080840
https://www.history.co.uk/article/the-biggest-911-conspiracy-theories-debunked
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