Citizens for Debunking 9/11 Myths

The "9/11 deniers" are consistent in only one thing: their total inconsistency. There are as many "conspiracy variations" as their febrile imaginations can create. However, there are a few general benchmarks that are useful in juxtaposing their lies and myths to the facts.

"HOP" means "Happen On Purpose". The term relates to the "9/11 denier" claims of alleged involvement by our federal government in the execution of the 9/11 attacks. As you will see below, the spectrum generally runs from no "HOP" (government had no involvement, the truth) to "LIHOP" (Let It Happen On Purpose) to "MIHOP" (Made It Happen On Purpose).

Level Zero: The Official Report
Basically, the findings of the 9/11 Commission. AlQaeda was responsible. The various parties (airlines, DoD, federal government) did their best but institutional problems made it difficult to prevent the attack.

The conspiracists love to call this one "the official version" which is clever semantics, implying that it is only a "version". They also love to call it the "official conspiracy theory" in an effort to reverse the stigma of being identified as a "conspiracy theory". Another favored "9/11 denier" descriptive for the 9/11 Commission report is "19 Arabs With Boxcutters". It is used derisively to suggest that it is impossible for such terrorists to have pulled off the job.

Level One: Incompetence Doctrine (Should Have Prevented It)
At this level, the official story is still acknowledged as true, but we begin the slide down into the idea of "Let It Happen". The incompetence doctrine asserts that there were enough warnings, enough evidence, enough opportunity to have prevented the 9/11 attacks. However, due to incompetence and/or negligence, the warnings weren't recognized, the evidence was dismissed, and the opportunity was missed.

The recent statements by some 9/11 Commission members that they felt that the Pentagon was being less-than-forthcoming have fueled the incompetence doctrine.

Level Two: Let It Happen On Purpose (LIHOP)
The conspiracists start showing up at this level. The overall myth is that "those in charge" knew about the impending terrorist attack and allowed it to happen. Of course, there are variations on exactly who was "in charge". Generally, the allegations range from President Bush (and "gang"), to rogue neocons, to the CIA, and all the way out there to the "invisible rulers of the world", etc. There is also a spectrum of speculation on how much support, if any, might have been provided to the terrorists. These myths range from simply "looking the other way", to delaying a prompt military response, to providing various assistance, and on out to the idea that the terrorist cells were infiltrated and "those in charge" guided the operation.

For LIHOP, you'll often hear about PNAC (Plan for New American Century) and the neocon agenda, a "stand down order" to the military on 9/11, various "peculiar" military training exercises on 9/11, the ineptness of the radar tracking of the hijacked planes, and a constant questioning that ask "who benefited the most" from 9/11. In other words, "those in charge" had significant motivation to allow the attacks to happen.

Level Three: Made It Happen On Purpose (MIHOP)
And here's where the conspiracy theorists really lose touch with reality. The overall myth at this level is that there were no terrorists, rather 9/11 was orchestrated and executed by "those in charge". Again of course, there are major variations of this overall theme.

PNAC still figures prominently in MIHOP. But you also hear about the "Dumbya dictatorship", or the New World Order, or Northwoods, or false-flag operations, and any number of "secret masters of the world" that allegedly masterminded the plot.

It is at this level that you see the many myths about "alternative explanations" of the WTC collapses, the Pentagon, and Flight 93. Prominent myths include the "controlled demolition" of the WTC, the Pentagon being hit by a missile not a plane, and Flight 93 being shot down rather than forced down by the passengers rushing the hijackers.

Conclusion
So there you have it. I, the Masked Protester, am somewhere between the official report and the incompetence doctrine. I am convinced of al-Qaeda's role in executing the attacks. However, there appears to be differing levels of incompetence in terms of identifying the threat, the lax security measures that allowed the hijackers to get on the planes, and in lack of procedures for a military response to hijackings by terrorists.

My blog will be focusing on MIHOP myths first and then get to LIHOP later. I envision a response to every major conspiracy myth variant. Until then, I hope you enjoy this work-in-progress.

(Note: "HOP Level" was coined by Nick Levis in his paper "What is Your HOP Level? Ten Scenarios of What May Have Happened on September 11th, 2001" originally written in April 2004 and recently updated in May 2006. I have boiled his ten paradigms down into four and added my own commentary.)