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November 30, 2008

Mumbai Twitter Conspiracy Blues

By Jennifer Hathaway

Was Mumbai a False Flag attack?

::::::::

I saw a post about the Citizen-Journalism being done on Twitter in Mumbai, and became intrigued, and soon was addicted. I read [and occasionally wrote] for the better part of the 60 hours that the traumas unfolded, and have come away troubled. My brain is like that.

The troubling part isn't from the coverage, nor from the heroic response of the Indians, nor from the mere fact of the violence- the visceral emotional level of things is a rerun of what I felt during and after 9/11. That is not the source of "trouble", that is plain, deep mourning. I mourn the pathetic baseness of a human race capable of perpetrating such horror on itself, and I mourn the dead and the pain of the living. No "trouble" there, it's quite clear.

What I am troubled by is the "why". Not the "why" of the terrorists themselves- it is obvious that they were unthinking [4th grade education], misled [satellite phones and gps for "escape"] and enraged.

The "why" is regarding the true purpose of this mission.

Why is a terrible question, always open to conjecture. I am extremely prone to conjecture, especially about humans and their motivations. I am unfortunately also prone to cynicism about same. Here are some of my conjectures. Conspiracy theories. Get the tarbrush out of the way, I always say, so there it is. What follows are my conspiracy theories. I think they're quite good- worthy of a Ludlum novel at least.

And if the mere phrase "conspiracy theory" conjures maddened homeless people speaking in incomplete sentences between swigs on a brown paper bag, so be it, although I sit in my home typing on my computer, and am swigging root beer.  I can see how the bubbles might go to my brain.

However it is quite apparent that this operation resulted from a conspiracy. The months of planning involved, the "control rooms" in the Taj and the way the operation evolved once it commenced made that much plain. So my "conspiracy theory" is entirely appropriate. Enjoy the twistings of my tiny mind for what they are.

On to the theory proper:

Why attack Mumbai, and why now? Well, there are many reasons. Mumbai is an international banking center. But it has been one all the time, year round, for several years now. It has sustained several terrorist attacks during that time, as well. So that in itself isn't a reason.

The timing is special here- this operation was being set up for months. What about the timing is special right now? What is different? And what else was being set up for months in advance? Well, Mumbai is a conference center as well, for international bankers and politicians involved in international finance. In fact, during the attacks, several European reps were present at the Taj. But the terrorists asked specifically for British and US passports.

What was THAT all about? WHY, if they represented Pakistanis angry at India regarding Kashmir, did they give a good goddamn about Americans? Why would they not be looking for the EU reps if they were looking for high-profile targets in order to call attention to some supposed plight?  Why make it plain that they wanted to piss off the US and Britain?  Hmm.

Why was Wolf Blitzer, et al. on air thumping that old drum that had been stashed after the Iraq war got exposed for what it was? Why were CNN and Fox people continually trying to link this to Al-Quaeda and to 9-11?  Why does this media behavior pattern feel so damned familiar? Hmmm.

Why was it that, when someone actually got two of them into media contact, and they were asked what their demands were, one of them turned to the other and asked, "What are our demands?" in a joking way? ...and then they spent some time coming up with "free all the Indian Mujahadeen". "Freedom fighter" terrorists would know what they were fighting for before they ever undertook any training. And why would these Pakistanis, now linked to Kashmiri terrorist groups, go to the trouble of trying to "pin" it on Indian Deccan Mujahadeen in the first place, when their accents were immediately clearly "Northern" to all of the Indians listening in? Why would they not make their own group- the source of their supposed righteous mindless fury and personal extremism- and its position known immediately? And why put said "cause" and their own people at the epicenter of a tidal wave of furious international reprisal? Hmm.

Back to the question of timing. My conjecture: this timing has nothing to do with India, or Mumbai. This timing has to do with the US, Britain, and Israel, and Thanksgiving, and the changing administrations. This had to do with whipping the mindless Foxfans and CNNheads into another frenzy. This was about making "terrists" the natural sworn enemies of freedom, democracy, and the 'merican way.

Pakistan does indeed have terrorist cells active near the Kashmir district. These boys were probably drafted from among the people near there. But they were not working from a religious or tribal fervor, they didn't have any deeply ingrained ideals driving their insanity- witness the utter lack of a clear "ideal" behind the brutality and the "escape plan" they were given. Terrorists who are fighting for Allah aren't that vague about it.

They had British IDs and were trained in the most modern of urban warfare techniques. The mountains of Pakistan don't have many urban landscapes, nor training centers, nor trainers. But Blackwater has training centers in Britain, and they train all sorts of people from all over the world in urban warfare techniques. They're also rather non-denominational in their mindsets.

But their services cost money. Who could put up the money for a bunch of non-denominational "mujahadeen"? Who would HAVE the money for boys who had no real dedication to any cause nor spiritual devotion to the plight of their people? And of those capable of paying for these services, who would WANT India and Pakistan to be at one anothers' throats?

Well, somebody who wanted Pakistan to be on seriously shaky ground... especially with popular opinion in the US, India, and Britain.

Who would be so callous, so brutal, and so ready to murder people? Who could have a vested interest worth the deaths and mutilations of hundreds in Mumbai and thousands- if not millions, should there be a war- on the ground in Pakistan and India? Who would want such a thing?

Gee, why does the whole damned Unocal [now owned by Chevron, also proud owners of the "Condoleeza Rice" supertanker] fiasco come to mind? You all remember Unocal, the company that worked with the Taliban to build a pipeline through Afghanistan, which would then go through Pakistan, and into India? If you don't know that story, please do look it up, it's quite interesting.

Just FYI, the pipeline is back in the news, here's a link that explains the whole dirty story, and why my suspicions are so strong:

http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig9/bacon6.html

Read it and weep, kids.

And then if you think these ideas have any merit, start making lots and lots of noise for the causes of peace and logic to prevail.



Authors Bio:
Mother of two adult children, freelance artist with fine works in private collections in 20 US states, 7 European countries, Africa, China, and Japan, concerned citizen of the US.

Overreaching corporate controls of food, housing, clothing, medicine, transportation, information, and education have been a serious concern of mine for decades. Consequently I've spent a great deal of time studying and practicing self-sufficiency/ removal from "the grid".

I no longer have credit cards, I raise my own vegetables and chickens, am an herbalist, a reiki master, a shiatsu practitioner who's worked with people with serious illnesses for more than a decade, as well as an ordained minister [I call myself a shamanist because it's the closest description of what I do, not because I'm from Tibet].

I've worked in construction for many years, and I've spent some time beating dead horses on the subject of independance from corporate control and learning to live a life of value as opposed to one of dehumanization.

My message to surburbanites: rototill your front lawn, grow vegetables, put up solar panels, stay home more often, make things for yourself, and cut up your credit cards.

Live your life as if truth, honor, and love were the most important things.

The corporate culture would have us believe that we owe someone rent for the privilege of being on the planet, that some pigs are more equal than others, that it's important to be royalty- as opposed to noble- and that happiness is available for purchase.

I spend a lot of time trying to figure out the truth of things.

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