Friday, August 18, 2006

Debunking the Myth Makers

Austin Bay (and others) review the new book from Popular Mechanics titled Debunking 9/11 Myths: Why Conspiracy Theories Can't Stand Up To The Facts:

"Debunking" begins with an insightful and blunt foreword by Sen. John McCain, who observes,
"Conspiracy mongering is no small phenomenon. ... These theories come in nearly infinite variety, but all reach essentially the same conclusion: that the U.S. government, or some shadowy group that controls it, organized the attacks as part of a master plan for global domination. But the truth is more mundane. The philosopher Hannah Arendt described the banality of Nazi evil; the 9/11 hijackers were also ordinary, uninteresting men with twisted beliefs."
Counterterrorism expert Richard Clarke's blurb for the book describes it as "reliable and rational" and that the government "isn't competent enough to pull off such conspiracies and too leaky to keep them secret."
Book editors David Dunbar and Brad Reagan frame the content with the late Senator Pat Moynihan's classic quip: "Everyone is entitled to his own opinion. He is not entitled to his own facts."


I think I agree with Clarke on this. You can also read the original magazine article online the book is based on.