Indulge my Copy and Paste, here. These guys are not only funny (hands down, the best political cartoonists in my opinion), but insightful. Enjoy.**Addendum - 5/4
Ok, sorry, I just realized that a lot of the links below are old and outdated. However, if you want to read more debunking the boogereaters - something I ask myself why I even bother worrying so much about - clink on the links right below the picture of the boogereater to the right.
There is one boogereater in particular that I have a lot of disdain for. He posts a lot of bizarre stuff at Newsbusters under the name of "Liberty or Death" and does so with quite the chip on his shoulder. Something that I have noticed about these "9/11 Truthers" - its quite comical, actually - is how arrogant and condescending they are. When you hear them discussing their odd theories, they talk to you as if YOU are the idiot - a "well, duh" attitude. That's something that I just cannot get over. Lately the exchanges between "Death" and I have gotten really personal and ugly. I've spent a considerable amount of time at Newsbusters over the last six months parodying him and just generally making fun of he and his traveling companions. Based on his reactions to my calling him a boogereating kook - something I call everyone of the "truthers" - he has a lot of hostility pent up.
In addition to all the links and just general common sense regarding this that I have posted here, there are two big problems that the boogereaters have to overcome before they can be taken seriously. The first and most obvious is, how many THOUSANDS of people would have to be kept quiet to pull something like this off? This administration cannot even keep the NSA foreign surveillance program away from the press, could this government REALLY control that many people, without one of them coming forward and giving a CREDIBLE report to the media about it? Second, if there is ANY credibility to the theories of these kooks, where is the Mainstream Media? The Useful Idiots would gobble this up until George Bush was in the gas chamber if there was one shred of CREDIBLE evidence to these theories. Even the Bush hating MSM won't touch these theories - simply because they are what they are: the wishful rantings of a bunch of boogereating kooks.
But, according to them, you are an idiot that worships the state and are naive sheep if you don't play along. I just can't stop laughing at that.
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The 9/11 conspiracy theorists (or "truthers") were out in force at Ground Zero on the 5th anniversary (see photos here, here and here). We touched on this issue in our Sept. 8th cartoon but decided to devote a cartoon to it, as well as compile more links (there are new links below plus the links from the previous post).
Debunking 9/11 Myths: Why Conspiracy Theories Can't Stand Up To The Facts by David Dunbar and Brad Reagan, both editors at Popular Mechanics, is the must-read book on the subject.
The New York Post published an editorial by Popular Mechanics Editor-in-Chief James B. Meigs that sums up the book: Conspiracy Cranks.
The Glenn & Helen Show have a podcast interview with the book's authors.
Michelle Malkin also reviewed the book in New York Post: Five Years After 9/11: Tinfoil Hats Attack. She also has numerous other related links in this post.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology issued a detailed report on their investigation of the collapse of the World Trade Center. The Web site not only has the report but photos and video of various fire experiments and computer simulations.
Democracy Now TV featured a debate between the authors of Debunking 9/11 Myths and the most prominent 9/11 conspiracy theorists, makers of the film "Loose Change." Hot Air posted the video (see final update with four videos).
Screw Loose Change by Mark Iradian is an excellent site dedicated to debunking the "Loose Change" film frame by frame.
This Web site details some of the contradictions in "Loose Change," but it also highlights the crass, sadistic manner in which the filmmaker blames victims for being in on a conspiracy (hat tip Tman in Tennessee). You can hear the comments in this video, also by Mark Iradian, which contrasts the recorded comments with photos that put things into perspective.
It's bad enough that these guys are defiling the very victims of the attacks by laying blame on them and their government. But they are also giving a pass to the Islamic fundamentalists who committed the murders and whose ideological brothers want to continue murdering us. These conspiracy "theories" find fertile ground in the Middle East as this video from MEMRI documents: The Arab and Iranian Reaction to 9/11 -- Five Years Later. One quote from the film: "I have a sneaking suspicion that George W. Bush was involved in the operations of September 11, as was Colin Powell."
And finally, Little Green Footballs posted a conspiracy theorist's personal account of his 9/11 "truth" protest at Ground Zero: The Mind of a Truther.
Some Jew looking dude in a suit came up to me and asked "where are you from?" I said "PA", and he said "you should go back to PA, asshole" and walked away. It took me by suprise, and I started laughing, I thought about saying "you should go back to Israel" but instead just shouted to him "you have a nice day too sir" and smiled.
UPDATE -- Sept. 15: More links:
Screw Loose Change blog has lots more information debunking the movie.
Other notable debunking sites:Debunking 9/11 Conspiracy theories and Controlled Demolition Myths9/11 Myths ... Reading Between The Lines
eSkeptic posted a report this week: 9/11 Conspiracy Theories: The 9/11 Truth Movement in Perspective by Phil Molé, who attended a "truther" meeting in Chicago. (hat tip David Tribble)
ImplosionWorld.com has posted an analysis (in pdf form): A Critical Analysis of the Collapse of WTC Towers 1, 2 & 7 from an Explosives and Conventional Demolition Industry Viewpoint by Brent Blanchard. (hat tip Tim Sumner who has additional commentary: Liars descend on 9/11)
