Here we go again. I teach a course on terrorism and every once in a while the so-called “911 Hoax” comes up. (I suppose it doesn't help that a former governor of the state where I teach espouses this hateful re-writing of history!) I’ve addressed this issue elsewhere on this blog, as well as conspiracy theories more generally. Talking to people who believe that 911 was not the work of foreign terrorists but rather the Bush administration, Jews, the World Bank and just about anyone else is like talking to fanatical members of a religious sect. They have no proof that the Neocons, Mossad, or the CIA (at the behest of Israel of course) blew up the towers. They spit out things they’ve heard, third-hand evidence at best, without testing the “evidence.” Again, talking to these people is like talking to a religious fanatic, whose views are just as much based on hatred than anything else. And if you counter their view with reason and science, then they see you as either part of the cover-up or a dupe used as a pawn by the conspirators. Still, at the end of the day, the burden of proof lies with them.
