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Broadcasted Interviews |
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A
Peace to End All Peace
How
the West Created the Modern Middle East
In order to understand the United States' current involvement
in the Middle East, it is essential to understand the origins
of Western intervention in the region during World War I.
While Lawrence of Arabia was helping to organize Arabs
to fight for the Allies during World War I, Britain and France
conducted secret negotiations to carve up the Middle East into
new nation states under their control. The resulting Sykes Picot
treaty may have resolved the rivalry of Britain and France, but
it suppressed Arab self-determination and inaugurated a century
of western intervention in the region. The "war to end all
wars" resulted in "a peace to end all peace".
We discuss this critical period with our guest, David
Fromkin, Professor of International Relations, History and Law
at Boston University. Professor Fromkin is the author of A
Peace to End All Peace, The Fall of the Ottoman Empire
and the Creation of the Modern Middle East which was a national
bestseller in 1989 and was on the short list for the Pulitzer
Prize.
First broadcast on WPKN 89.5
FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
July 3, 2008.
Duration approx. 28 min. |
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Plum
Island
Lyme
Disease and BioWar Research
For over 50 years, the United States government has experimented
with the world's deadliest viruses at a research facility on
Plum Island, located just 2 miles from Long Island, New York
and 85 miles from New York City. Conceived as part of the United
States government's biowar program, Plum Island was used for
the development of germ weapons designed to devastate a nation's
livestock and, thereby, destroy its people's food supply.
Our guest, Michael Christopher Carroll, explains the
operations of the Plum Island virus research facility and the
important role played by Nazi Germany's top bioweapons scientist
in its establishment. He, also, presents the evidence linking
the virus research at Plum Island to the emergence of Lyme Disease.
This debilitating and, as yet, incurable illness first appeared
in 1975 in nearby Old Lyme, Connecticut and is one of the fastest
growing infectious diseases in the United States.
Michael Christopher Carroll devoted 7 years to researching
the government's activities at Plum Island and is the author
of Lab 257, The Disturbing Story of the Government's Secret
Germ Laboratory. Mr. Carroll is a graduate of St. John's
University Law School where he was editor of the Law Review.
He now practices law in California. His website is www.michaelchristophercarroll.com.
First
broadcast on WPKN 89.5 FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk,
NY, on
June 1, 2008.
Duration approx. 28 min.
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The
Creature from Jekyll Island
How
Private Bankers Created the Federal Reserve
In the fall of 1910, seven powerful Wall Street financiers boarded
a private railroad car for a secret meeting at a private resort
where they drew up plans for a central bank for the United States.
Born in secrecy, their creation was to become in 1913 the Federal
Reserve.
Our guest, G. Edward Griffin, tells the story of this
fateful meeting and answers these important questions: Who were
these seven men? Why did they do it? Who profited from their
creation of the Federal Reserve? How did they sell their plan
to the public, to Congress and to the President? What impact
has their creation had on the economic well being of American
families and on the cycles of panics and depressions?
G. Edward Griffin is the author of The Creature
from Jekyll Island: A Second Look at the Federal Reserve.
The Creature From Jekyll Island is, not only, a classic
study of the origins and operations of the Federal Reserve, but
also, a history of the money system. Originally published in
1994, The Creature From Jekyll Island is now in its 20thth
printing. Mr. Griffin is the President of Freedom Force International,
a network of men and women from 52 countries who seek to shape
public policy in their respective countries in favor of personal
and global freedom. His website is freedomforceinternational.org.
First broadcast on WPKN 89.5
FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
May 1, 2008.
Duration approx. 28 min.
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The
Execution of Martin Luther King
An
Act of State
Months after the April 4, 1968 assassination of Dr. Martin Luther
King, the authorities proclaimed that the crime had been solved.
The murderer, they said, was a lone gunman named James Earl Ray
with unclear motives who acted on his own behalf and no one else's.
It was a familiar story, but was it true?
In 1999, the family of Dr. Martin Luther King brought
a civil wrongful death action against persons other than Ray
who the family believed had assassinated Dr. King. After a four
week trial, it took the jury only 59 minutes to return at verdict
that Martin Luther King had been assassinated by a number of
conspirators including government agents.
Our guest in this program is William F. Pepper, the
attorney who represented the King family in the 1999 wrongful
death action. Mr. Pepper who is both a British barrister and
an American lawyer investigated the murder of Dr. King for over
a quarter century. For several years, he represented Dr. King's
supposed assassin James Ray in Ray's legal efforts to obtain
a trial. Mr. Pepper is the author of An Act of State, the
Execution of Martin Luther King.
First broadcast on WPKN 89.5
FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
April 3, 2008.
Duration approx. 28 min.
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Julius
Caesar, the Last Roman Populist
The
truth behind the tragedy
On the Ides of March of 44 BC, Julius Caesar was murdered by
his colleagues on the floor of the Roman Senate. Shakespeare
aside - what were the real motives of his assassins?
In this startling re-examination of the career and
murder of Julius Caesar, our guest, political analyst and author
Dr. Michael Parenti shows that Julius Caesar was the last in
a century long line of populist leaders in the late Roman Republic.
Caesar like his predecessors fought for the rights of the common
people against the growing power and wealth of the large landowners.
All these leaders and many of their followers met the same fate
- murder at the hands of death squads.
Dr. Parenti, also, discusses the parallels between
contemporary American history and the late Roman Republic. These
include the curtailment of civil liberties, the undermining of
democratic institutions and the concentration of power in the
hands of the few.
Dr. Parenti received a PhD from Yale University in
political science. He has written 20 books and 275 articles and
lectures to academic and other groups throughout the country.
His most recent book Contrary Notions: the Michael Parenti
Reader was published in 2007 by City Lights Books. He is
the author of The Assassination of Julius Caesar: a People's
History of Ancient Rome which was chosen Book of the Year
for non-fiction in 2004 by On Line Review of Books.
First broadcast on WPKN 89.5
FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
March 2, 2008.
Duration approx. 28 min.
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Lies
Our Teachers Tell Us
Are
history textbooks making our children dumber?
Are American students learning the true story about their own
history? You may be surprised to learn that some of the most
important events in American History are omitted from many textbooks.
In some cases, important figures are trivialized. In other cases,
important figures are placed on an undeserved pedestal, their
sins ignored.
Professor James Loewen spent two years evaluating 12 leading
high school textbooks on American History. The result is his
fascinating book called Lies My Teacher Told Me. Join
us as we talk to Professor Loewen about his observations and
surprising conclusions.
Lies My Teacher Told Me received the American
Book Award in 1996. It was recently republished by Touchstone
and has sold over 800.000 copies. Professor Loewen's other books
include Mississippi: Conflict and Change, Sundown Towns
and Lies Across America: What Our Historic Sites Get Wrong.
He is currently working on Surprises on the Landscape: Unexpected
Places That Get History Right. Professor Loewen received
a PhD in sociology from Harvard. He taught race relations for
twenty years at the University of Vermont. Previously he taught
at predominantly black Tougaloo College in Mississippi.
First broadcast on WPKN 89.5
FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
February 3, 2008.
Duration approx. 29 min.
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General
Smedley Butler
"Maverick
Marine"
The military career of Marine Corps General Smedley Butler reads
like a history of American foreign military intervention in the
late 19th and early 20th century. He served in practically every
campaign from the Spanish American War, both in Cuba and the
Philippines, to the U.S. expedition in China in the late 1920's.
Starting as a 16 year old recruit he became the 2nd highest ranking
general in the Corps and was awarded two Congressional Medals
of Honor along the way.
However, Butler's career was even more remarkable
after his retirement. In the 1930's, General Butler became the
most celebrated anti-imperialist in America. From the public
platform and on radio and in print Butler denounced America's
foreign military interventions as a government racket to enrich
large well connected corporations.
Please join as we talk about the life and times of
General Smedley Bulter with his biographer Professor Hans Schmidt.
Professor Schmidt who taught history at universities from Zambia
to Hong Kong is the author of Maverick Marine, General Smedley
Butler and the Contradictions of American Military History.
First broadcast on WPKN 89.5
FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
January 6, 2008.
Duration approx. 29 min.
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Mother
Jones
"The
Most Dangerous Woman in America"
Before modern "women's liberation" - even before women
got the vote, Mother Jones wielded more power on behalf of American
workers than any man of her generation. Born in Cork, Ireland
as Mary Harris, Mother Jones traveled America fighting on behalf
of coal miners, textile workers and child laborers. Unafraid
of the goons and soldiers sent to harass her, she was called
by one prosecutor "the most dangerous woman in America".
Please join us as we talk to Mother Jones' biographer
Professor Elliot Gorn, author of Mother Jones, the Most Dangerous
Woman in America. A graduate of the University of California
at Berkeley, Professor Gorn received a PhD in American Studies
from Yale University. He is Professor of History at Brown University
where he chairs the American Civilization Department. Professor
Gorn specializes in the social and cultural history of the United
States in the 19th and 20th centuries and is now writing a book
about the bank robber John Dillinger.
First broadcast on WPKN 89.5
FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
December 2, 2007.
Duration approx. 29 min.
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Assault
on the Liberty
Justice
for Veterans of the USS Liberty?
On June 8, 1967, the Liberty, a U.S. Navy ship, was the target
of an unprovoked attack by the Israeli air force and navy while
stationed in international waters off the coast of Gaza. The
attack took place during the Six Day War in which Israel launched
a surprise attack against its Arab neighbors. The United States
was a neutral in this conflict.
In the Israeli attack, two thirds of the Liberty's
crew were either killed or wounded. The ship itself was left
barely afloat. However, in the 40 years since the assault no
surviving veteran of the crew has ever had the opportunity to
testify about it to a congressional committee.
In this program, we speak with James Ennes, a retired
U.S. naval officer who was serving on board the Liberty during
the assault. He describes the bloody details of the attack and
the events that immediately followed. He, also, addresses the
following important questions: Why did Israel attack the Liberty?
Why has the U.S. government not given the surviving veterans
an opportunity to publicly testify about the attack before Congress?
James Ennes is the author of Assault on the Liberty,
his account of the attack, and is one of the creators of the
U.S.S. Liberty Memorial website located at www.USSLiberty.org.
First broadcast on WPKN 89.5
FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
November 4, 2007.
Duration approx. 28 min.
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Pearl
Harbor: Day of Deceit
What
did FDR know?
The United States entry into World War II was precipitated by
Japan's December 7, 1941 attack on the United States military
at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. American leaders claimed that the attack
was an unprovoked surprise. Blame for failing to anticipate and
prevent the attack was placed on Admiral Husband Kimmel and General
Walter Short, the Pearl Harbor commanders.
In this program we take a new look at Pearl Harbor
with Robert Stinnett,
author of Day of Deceit: The Truth About FDR and Pearl Harbor.
In years of researching U.S. government archives, Mr. Stinnett
discovered many important documents revealing the actual state
of U.S. military intelligence in the days leading up to the attack.
Additionally, he discovered a US Naval intelligence memorandum
- some would call it the smoking gun - which revealed the U.S.
government's secret Japanese strategy:
Mr. Stinnett served in the U.S. Navy during World
War II earning ten battle stars and a Presidential Unit Citation.
He has worked as a journalist and photographer for the Oakland
Tribune, and he is a consultant on the Pacific War for the BBC
and for Asahi and NHK Television in Japan. He is currently a
Research Fellow at The Independent Institute, a non-profit public
policy research organization located in Oakland, California.
First broadcast on WPKN 89.5
FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
October 7, 2007.
Duration approx. 29 min.
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9/11
Unanswered Questions
Dare
we ask?
In a special one hour premier edition of History
Counts, we discuss many disturbing questions relating
to 9/11 with Professor David Ray Griffin, the leading independent
9/11 scholar.
The terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and
the Pentagon are the casus belli of what the United States calls
its global war on terror. Yet the official sources have yet to
produce convincing evidence as to who planned and carried out
the attacks. In our discussion with Professor Griffin, we consider
questions such as what may have struck the Pentagon and why the
United States Air Force failed to intercept any of the three
aircraft before they struck their targets. We also look at how
the attack and its aftermath relate to the larger U.S. foreign
policy objectives.
A widely published theologian, David Ray Griffin,
is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy of Religion and Theology
at the Claremont School of Theology in California. His books
on 9/11 include The New Pearl Harbor: Disturbing Questions
about the Bush Administration and 9/11 published in 2004
and Debunking 9/11 Debunking published in 2007 which responds
to the defenders of the official conspiracy theory.
First broadcast on WPKN 89.5
FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
September 9, 2007.
Duration approx. 59 min.
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The
Art of Propaganda
How
do you manufacture consent?
How is the populace manipulated even in a democracy? It's accomplished
through the sublime and too little studied art of propaganda.
In this extended interview with author and scholar
Mark Crispin Miller, we take a close look at the well established
techniques of modern government propaganda from its origins during
World War I. We, also, discuss the work and writings of the founders
of modern American propaganda, Creel, Lippmann and Bernays -
men whose names should be well known to all citizens but who,
in fact, are rarely mentioned.
Mark Crispin Miller is professor of culture and communications
at New York University. He is a prolific author on politics and
media. His books include Cruel and Unusual: Bush/Cheney's
New World Order and Fooled Again: How the Right Stole
the 2004 Election & Why They'll Steal the Next One Too (Unless
We Stop Them). He has, also, been featured in the documentary
films, "Stealing America: Vote by Vote" about the 2004
Presidential election and "Orwell Rolls in His Grave"
about corporate control of media.
First broadcast on History Counts on WPKN 89.5 FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM,
Montauk, NY, on
17 June 2007.
Duration approx. 56 min.
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Soldiers in
Revolt
What
happens when an army refuses to fight?
In this special program, our guest, long time peace activist
and author David Cortright, discusses GI resistance during the
Vietnam War - both in the combat zone and on bases in the United
States. We, also, consider the implications of the resistance
by U.S. soldiers during Vietnam War for the current Iraq War.
David Cortright is the president of the Fourth Freedom
Forum, a peace advocacy foundation. He has advised United Nations
agencies and national governments on how to resolve conflict
without war. His books include Soldiers in Revolt and
Gandhi and Beyond: Nonviolence in an Age of Terrorism.
First broadcast on WPKN 89.5
FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
13 May 2007.
Duration approx. 41 min.
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Going Solar
Can
it work in your house?
In this program we take a close look at solar power for the home.
Solar power is a clean renewable energy which can help families
save money, become more energy independent and play a direct
role in protecting the environment.
Our guest, Gordian Raacke, a civil engineer and energy
policy expert, explains two different types of solar systems
- solar electric which provides power for appliances and lights
and solar thermal which provides for domestic hot water and space
heating. We discuss the cost of sample systems and the amount
you might save on your energy bills.
Mr. Raacke is the founder and Executive Director of
Renewable Energy Long Island, a membership-based, not-for-profit
organization promoting clean, sustainable energy for Long Island.
He has participated in numerous proceedings before the New York
State Public Service Commission including the proceeding which
led to the requirement that 25% of New York State's electricity
come from renewable sources by 2013.
First broadcast on
WPKN 89.5 FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
15 April 2007.
Duration approx. 47 min.
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Ireland
and the Invention of America
It's a lot more
than beer and parades.
Irish have been settling in America since colonial times. From
big eastern cities to the Wild West, these Irish Americans have
been an important element in creating both our American democracy
and our unique American identity.
Whether your ancestors are Irish or not, you will
want to listen to noted Irish author and journalist Fintan O'Toole
as he discusses notable Irish who have shaped American history.
He explores how they helped invent a country while at the same
time retaining something that was and remains uniquely Irish.
Fintan O'Toole is the drama critic, as well as, columnist
for the Irish Times. From 1997 to 2001, he was, also,
the drama critic for the New York Daily News. He is the
author of numerous books including A Traitor's Kiss, the
critically acclaimed biography of Irish playwright Richard Brinsley
Sheridan and White Savage, William Johnson and the Invention
of America.
First broadcast on
WPKN 89.5 FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
11 March 2007.
Duration approx. 45 min.
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The
Heat Is On
Global Warming:
The clock is ticking!
Our guest, veteran journalist and author Ross Gelbspan,
explains global warming from A to Z. What causes it? How do we
know human activities are responsible? Is a disaster around the
corner? What can and should be done to combat global warming?
How much time do we have to act?
A longtime reporter and editor with the Philadelphia
Bulletin, The Washington Post and the Boston Globe, Mr. Gelbspan
began focusing on the issue of climate change over 10 years ago.
He has written two books on the subject, The Heat is On
and Boiling Point. In his books, Mr. Gelbspan analyzes
the growing body of scientific research on global warming and
presents the science in an understandable fashion for the general
audience. Mr. Gelbspan has, also, created a website, heatisonline.org, where he reports on the
latest scientific developments on global warming and presents
specific proposals for combating this looming environmental crisis.
First broadcast on WPKN 89.5
FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
14 January 2007.
Duration approx. 50 min.
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Who Stole
Christmas?
Does
Christmas leave you stressed out and overextended? Is this a
symptom of an American lifestyle that is long on consumption
and short on joy?
You'll want to listen to our
guest - best selling author and environmentalist Bill McKibben.
Leading off with a discussion of his book, Hundred Dollar
Holiday - The Case for a More Joyful Christmas, Mr. McKibben
recounts how Christmas became a shopping frenzied season. From
there, he explores the larger issues of materialism and environmental
sustainability. He takes us on a journey to communities in foreign
countries that have learned to "live lightly on the earth"
- people who have achieved a high quality of life with much less
wealth than Americans.
Mr. McKibben's many books include
the classic End of Nature, the first book on global warming
for the general audience. It has been translated into 20 languages
and an updated edition was published in 2006. For more information
on Mr. McKibbin's books and articles, go to http://www.billmckibben.com
First broadcast on WPKN 89.5 FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7
FM, Montauk, NY, on
17 December 2006.
Duration approx. 30 min.
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Overthrowing
Governments 101
Have you
ever wondered how to pull off a coup d'etat?
The
United States government has a long history of coup making around
the world. Our guest, author and former New York Times Bureau
Chief Stephen Kinzer, tells us how they were done - the motives,
the means and the price.
In our discussion, Mr. Kinzer
takes a detailed look at the American overthrow of governments
in Iran 1953, Guatemala 1954 and Chile 1973. As he examines these
coups, we learn the tried and true techniques employed by governments
to destabilize and bring down foreign governments. He also examines
the corporate interests which typically provide the impetus for
coups and the price paid by the local populace.
Mr. Kinzer demonstrates a detailed
grasp of coup making in his book, Overthrow as he narrates
the history of 14 American coups ranging from Hawaii in 1893
to Iraq in 2003. Indeed, this book could be considered the "how
to" reference guide for would be coup makers. This latest
book greatly complements his earlier work as author of All
the Shah's Men, An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East
Terror and co-author of Bitter Fruit: The Untold Story
of the American Coup in Guatemala.
First broadcast on
WPKN 89.5 FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
10 December 2006.
Duration approx. 40 min.
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The
Truth About the Assassination of President Kennedy
What
role did the US intelligence agencies play in the assassination?
Our guest is Temple University
Professor Joan Mellen, author of A Farewell to Justice,
subtitled, "Jim Garrison, JFK's Assassination, and the Case
That Should Have Changed History." We focus on the evidence
linking the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other
intelligence agencies to the assassination of President John
F. Kennedy in Dallas, Texas on November 22, 1963.
In A Farewell to Justice,
Professor Mellen tells the story of New Orleans District Attorney
Jim Garrison who conducted the only criminal prosecution ever
undertaken in the 43 years since President Kennedy was murdered.
But her book is more than a history of the Garrison prosecution.
Professor Mellen, also, studied the enormous amount of evidence
regarding the assassination that has been made public in recent
years. Through her research, she had been able to present a much
more complete picture of the role of the CIA and other intelligence
agencies appear to have played in the assassination of President
Kennedy.
First broadcast on
WPKN 89.5 FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
19 November 2006.
Duration approx. 55 min.
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Darfur: War
of the Future
Is it about religion? Is it about race? Is it about oil?
Over the past three years, as
many as 500,000 people have been killed and over two million
made refugees in Darfur in what United States Secretary of State
Colin Powell described in 2004 as "genocide". One half
of the surviving population of Darfur is now dependent upon outside
food aid to survive.
The program features guest David
Morse, a journalist who has written extensively about the Darfur
crisis in Sudan in publications including CommonDreams and TomDispatch.
Mr. Morse explains the origins of the internecine fighting in
Sudan since the country gained independence from Britain in 1956.
He also discusses in detail the important role that oil and foreign
countries, particularly China, have played in the ongoing humanitarian
disaster.
First broadcast on
WPKN 89.5 FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
5 November 2006.
Duration approx. 40 min.
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Why Indeed
Did the World Trade Center Collapse?
Was it a controlled
demolition?
Professor Steven Jones, renowned
physics professor of Brigham Young University, discusses the
evidence supporting the hypothesis that the Twin Towers and WTC
building number 7 of the World Trade Center were destroyed in
a controlled demolition on 9/11.
In particular, Professor Jones
cites the vertical, symmetrical free fall of the buildings and
the pulverization of the building materials as indicative of
a controlled demolition. He gives particular attention to World
Trade Center Building Number 7 which was not struck by a plane.
Professor Jones, also, discusses the scientific data indicating
that an incendiary such as thermite would have been used to achieve
the temperatures required to destroy the buildings steel supports.
To read the scientific article by Professor Jones "Why Indeed
Did the World Trade Center Collapse", go to the following
link: http://www.scholarsfor911truth.org/WhyIndeedDidtheWorldTradeCenterBuildingsCompletelyCollapse.pdf
First broadcast on
WPKN 89.5 FM, Bridgeport, CT and WPKM 88.7 FM, Montauk, NY, on
10 September 2006.
Duration approx. 1 hr.
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