There's That Other Theory On 9/11, And A Letter To The Editor
There's that other theory on 9/11
SSU hosts discredited academic who says U.S. could have planned attack
http://www1.pressdemocrat.com/apps/p...04/1033/NEWS01
By PAUL PAYNE
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Steven Jones had a theory about what really happened on Sept. 11, 2001.
So the Brigham Young University physics professor wrote a paper about it and posted it on the school's Web site.
The World Trade Center towers, he suggested, collapsed from the heat of explosive devices possibly placed by the U.S. government, and that the horrific plane crashes were orchestrated as a diversion.
In September the university where he had worked since 1985 placed him on paid leave. He retired last month during a professional review.
Now, the theory that has been condemned by scholars and other critics as groundless has found a new audience at Sonoma State University.
Project Censored, which is based at the university and publishes an annual volume of stories that it says are ignored by the mainstream media, named Jones' work one of the most important of the year.
"There is a conspiracy theory out there that 19 hijackers hit the towers, making them collapse," Jones told several hundred people gathered on campus Friday for keynote address at the start of Project Censored's two-day annual convention. "That is the official conspiracy theory."
Instead, Jones said the doomed jetliners were merely cover for a much more insidious explanation he has come to by testing molten metal at ground zero for the presence of explosives.
The impact of the planes alone, he said, could not topple the buildings.
Jones said his findings aren't definitive, but he called for further scientific investigation to test his theory along with the release of all relevant data by the government.
"Let's figure out what really happened here," he said to a receptive audience.
But his theory has drawn sharp criticism from other scholars, including members of BYU's own engineering professors, as being poorly researched.
And Sonoma State professors are questioning whether Project Censored has hurt its own credibility by presenting it as possibly true.
"It's in the same category of people who think NASA didn't really send astronauts to the moon," said Lynn Cominsky, the chairwoman of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at SSU.
Sonoma State President Ruben Armiñana did not return phone calls requesting comment.
Jones' theory rests on the question of whether molten metal present at the World Trade Center is evidence that a high-temperature incendiary called thermite, which can be used to weld or cut metal, was involved in the towers' destruction.
He concludes that thermite was present, suggesting someone might have used explosives to bring down the skyscrapers.
He first presented his research at a BYU physics department seminar in September 2005.
Shortly after the seminar, Jones made the paper available on the Internet. It was eventually published in a book of essays critical of the official version of the attacks, "9/11 and American Empire: Intellectuals Speak Out."
Jones was placed on leave in September. He said he retired to devote himself to explaining his theory.
Peter Phillips, a Sonoma State sociology professor and head of Project Censored, described the hypothesis as "serious scientific work" in his remarks introducing Jones.
Phillips told the audience that the world cannot rely on mainstream media to get their information.
"We have to rely on scholars," he said. "Steven E. Jones is one of them."
But the organization's direction is open to debate.
Longtime critic David Walls, a retired Sonoma State sociology professor, said Project Censored has established itself as a sanctuary for fringe conspiracy theorists who are trivializing a serious problem like censorship.
Walls said the group ignores science and has been wrong in the past.
In the process, it discredits activists questioning the government on other fronts.
"It tends to push them over into being associated with a fringe of people who are easily disparaged," Walls said.
letters@pressdemocrat.com
Letter To The Editor
To the editor of the The Press Democrat, and Paul Payne,
I recently read Paul's article entitled, "There's that other theory on 9/11: SSU hosts discredited academic who says U.S. could have planned attack." To my knowledge, Steven Jones has never been "discredited." BYU did not like his, "increasingly speculative and accusatory nature" towards elements within our Government according to Deseret Morning News, but as a professional, he has never been "discredited." Considering that only 16% of Americans believe the official story of 9/11 according to the latest CBSNews/NYTimes poll, it's safe to say the Professor would have a right to counter BYU's position as "increasingly speculative and accusatory" towards Muslims. That is, after all, who we're murdering by the 1000's in Afghanistan and Iraq. All because of 9/11.
They were also, "concerned that Dr. Jones' work on this topic has not been published in appropriate scientific venues." By "appropriate scientific venues", do they mean a venue that conforms to the official account, and doesn't dare to question what the Government is telling them? Professor Jones was VERY brave to come forward, as have millions of others. I suggest you listen to Professor Jones' last debate with Leslie Robertson.
http://www.911podcasts.com/files/aud...n_20061026.mp3
Also, I guess you're not aware, but the original members of the 9/11 Truth Movement have been busy as of late.
On August 4th, 2006, 9/11 family members Lorie Van Auken, Patty Casazza, Mindy Kleinberg, and Monica Gabrielle released a statement that questioned the "entire veracity" of the 9/11 Commission's report.
On September 5th, 2006, a documentary endorsed by the families that fought for the creation of the 9/11 Commission was released entitled, "9/11: Press For Truth."
On September 11th, 2006, at the National Press Club in Washington D.C., family members Donna Marsh O'Connor, Michelle Little, and Christina Kminek asked for, "a new investigation into the events of September 11th, and this time, a truly bipartisan, global, with families invested from the beginning, middle, and throughout the end."
On October 14th, 2006, Monica Gabrielle, Lorie Van Auken, Mindy Kleinberg, and Patty Casazza released a petition that calls for, "the immediate declassification and release of all transcripts and documents relating to the July 10, 2001 meeting that took place between former CIA Director George Tenet and then National Security Advisor, Condoleezza Rice" as well as "the declassification and release of both the redacted 28 pages of the Joint Inquiry Into The Terrorist Attacks of September 11, 2001 (JICI) and the CIA Inspector General’s report, "CIA Accountability With Respect To The 9/11 Attacks." In the span of three days, they managed o get 2041 signatures.
I think Paul needs to take a few more courses in journalism.
Sincerely,
Jon Gold
What was actually said...
No approval, no condemnation...Just a bit of healthy skepticism:
"Brigham Young University has a policy of academic freedom that supports the pursuit and dissemination of knowledge and ideas. Through the academic process, ideas should be advanced, challenged, and debated by peer-review in credible venues. We believe in the integrity of the academic review process and that, when it is followed properly, peer-review is valuable for evaluating the validity of ideas and conclusions.
"The university is aware that Professor Steven Jones's hypotheses and interpretations of evidence regarding the collapse of World Trade Center buildings are being questioned by a number of scholars and practitioners,
including many of BYU's own faculty members. Professor Jones's department and college administrators are not convinced that his analyses and hypotheses have been submitted to relevant scientific venues that would ensure rigorous technical peer review."
