You’re staffing the Colorado 9/11 Truth tent and two Denver police officers approach.
Three people from New York City scream at you relentlessly and won’t leave.
A man who identifies himself as Muslim asks you a challenging question, then gives you a high five and thanks you profusely.
Photo to left: Passersby at People’s Fair stop to read our posters. Colorado 9/11Truth volunteer Don (blue baseball cap) stands by to answer questions.
These are but a few of the many interactions we had this summer at Denver’s Civic Center Park. We had booths at the People’s Fair (our ninth consecutive year) and the Denver International Festival. We also held an action at Colorado Remembers 9/11 – 15th Anniversary Ceremony hosted by Governor John Hickenlooper and Denver Mayor Michael Hancock.
Attendance at these events totaled over 200,000. Our signs, banners, and poster displays attracted crowds, many standing and reading the information for long periods. We distributed over 1,000 DVDs in addition to hundreds of flyers and brochures. Our knowledgeable and dedicated volunteers talked to countless numbers of people.
We also held an action in front of the Boulder NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) in order to promote a new website aimed at potential NIST whistleblowers. This was a coordinated action with the other NIST facility in Maryland. Check out NIST Errors.com. This was a street action along Broadway during rush hour, with an estimated 10,000 people driving by our signs and banners.
9/11 truth actions are challenging but also rewarding. We garner both positive and negative attention, and our volunteers end up in many fascinating interactions.
Below are some of our stories. Enjoy!
Photo to right: Marti listens to two visitors discussing 9/11.
Father and Son (Fran): As we were setting up our booth, a man and his young son on their bicycles stopped by. “I’m just stopping here to thank you for doing this, for educating the public.” We chatted for a few minutes before they both left.Cousin of Victim (Bob): A young man stopped by and was reading the World Trade Center 7 banner. When I asked him if he was aware of the collapse of Building 7, he said his cousin had died in NYC on 9/11 after saving a woman and her baby. He said his cousin had gotten them out of danger but then was buried in the rubble. The young man stayed quite a while reading the boards and listening in on Joseph’s conversation with a person knowledgeable about 9/11. He took our materials with him and quietly left.
Airline Pilot (Joseph): A family of five entered our booth. I offered some 9/11 bumpers stickers to the children, who were eager to choose one of the colorful stickers from the table. The father mentioned something about the 9/11 evidence, so I asked what kind of work he does. Hesitantly and vaguely, he replied that he works at the airport. As we started conversing, it seemed apparent that he knew quite a bit about the 9/11 evidence, particularly the airplane aspects, so I asked, “Are you a pilot?”
He finally acknowledged that he was a pilot and that he flies Airbus jet airliners. I mentioned that the hijack code (7500) was not pressed by any of the 8 pilots (4 pilots and 4 co-pilots of the 4 airliners), something that would have taken only a second or so. He said that it is even faster than that, since the pilots could have pressed a button for the radio stating a hijack was in progress. He was very supportive and appreciative of our booth, and he likely would have had more to share but was called away by his family.
Photo to left: Two Denver police officers read our Building 7 banner.
Denver Police Officers (Marti, Joseph, and Michael): On Sunday afternoon, two on-duty Denver police officers walked up to our booth and began reading our World Trade Center (WTC) Building 7 banner. We approached and asked if they had any questions. For the next 20 minutes, we engaged in a civil, back-and-forth conversation. One of the officers (junior in rank to the other) was clearly more open to the evidence; the other (a sergeant), completely closed. Nonetheless, it was a conversation in which everyone listened and exchanged ideas, beliefs, and evidence.
The officer who was resistant said that his main objection was that he has worked for the government for 20 years, and there was no way that our government was capable of pulling off such an operation as it was too incompetent. The more receptive officer said that he had seen our booth on Saturday and vowed to return during his shift on Sunday. Toward the end of the conversation, one of them said, “Well, okay, we’ll give you Building 7.”
All along, the officers refused to take any of the brochures or information that we repeatedly offered. However, as they began to leave, Joseph handed the more receptive officer a DVD of Experts Speak Out. By then, his superior officer had turned and walked off. The junior officer unobtrusively took the DVD, put it between his shirt and bullet-proof vest, and walked away.
Young Truth-Seeker (Joseph): A young boy, about 12 years old, stopped at the booth with his mother. He was very interested in the materials, so I showed him some of the display boards and gave him several different DVDs and documents. He mentioned that 9/11 was his favorite subject to research and study. When I asked him why, he stated very clearly and confidently, “I don’t like being lied to.” He also said, “It’s important to know the truth.”
NIST Police (Marti): During our NIST action in Boulder, we were approached by both a Boulder police officer and a NIST police officer. (Did you know NIST has its own police force?) Both officers were friendly and wanted to ensure our safety as well as those leaving work on a major Boulder thoroughfare. They declined to take our brochures, however. During this action, hundreds of NIST employees saw our NIST Errors.com banner, and many leaned out of their windows to snap a photo of it. Thousands more saw us as they drove by on Broadway, one of Boulder’s busiest streets.
Photo below: Colorado 9/11 Truth activists in front of NIST in Boulder holding signs and banner for the new NIST whistleblower website.
Deep Throat (Bob): A middle-aged man was looking at the photos of WTC 7 and the Twin Towers. He commented, “I know a lot about the military, and there is no way those buildings went down without explosives.” I offered him some materials and a DVD, but he said he couldn’t accept them. He came over and showed me a Department of Defense ID card. I asked if he was retired, and he responded that he was. So I asked if he therefore was free to do and say what he wanted. His response was, “No way!” He then left.
Photo above: Dorothy discusses the evidence with a visitor.
Truth-Friendly Family (Fran): A teenage boy came into our booth with friendly mischief in his eyes as he looked directly into mine. “What exactly do you all believe happened on 9/11?” Succinctly, I mentioned some evidence that demonstrates why the official story cannot be true. He thanked me and left hurriedly. About five minutes later he came back with his father and teenage sister. As the father and I talked at length about the evidence, I discovered that he was fairly well-informed. I turned to his teenage children, who were happily picking up some DVDs from our booth while halfway listening to the conversation between their dad and me. I asked, “What do each of you think about this?” The daughter said, “Oh, we agree with our dad. It’s just that we hear way too much about this at home, so it’s nice he has someone else to talk to!”
Photo below: Don and Fran discuss evidence with a visitor.
Ballot Petitioner (Marti and Bob): While we were on a lunch break, a young ballot petitioner on another issue approached us to sign his ballot. Both of us were wearing 9/11 Truth T-shirts. The petitioner asked us if we were with the 9/11 Truth booth, and he was happy and supportive when we said yes. When asked how he knew about the issue, he said that one of his high school teachers in Naples, Florida, showed a film that proved jet fuel couldn’t burn down steel-framed high-rise buildings.
Photo below: Bruce from We Are Change Colorado walks along Broadway during our action in front of NIST in Boulder.
International Couple (Joseph): A couple stopped at the display boards. I spoke with them briefly for a few minutes. When I detected an accent, I asked if they spoke another language, and they said that they were from Belgium and also spoke French, so I gave them the International Edition of Experts Speak Out along with some brochures. They were quite receptive to the information even though it appeared that the information was new to them.
Vietnam Vet (Marti): A man reading the posters identified himself as a Vietnam veteran. Although he was not familiar with the 9/11 Truth information, he was completely open to it and talked at length about how our government kills men of color. He was notably passionate about the Bush family, going back several generations and identifying them as “killers.”
Photo on right: The 56-story Republic Plaza, the tallest building in Denver and comparable in size to World Trade Center Building 7.
Photo below: Marti points to this building when talking about WTC 7 to a visitor. It makes the perfect prop!
Reluctant University Professor (Joseph): I observed a man in his late 50s who seemed to be quite interested in the text and photographic evidence on the display boards, spending time going from board to board. After a while, I approached him and asked what he thought about the evidence. He said that he recognized the validity of it and that he appreciated how it was laid out on the boards. He also mentioned that he has been studying the issue for several years and is completely convinced the official story cannot be true because the scientific evidence, including the laws of physics, disproves the official story.
When I asked him about his line of work, he hesitantly said that he is a professor at a university but declined to say which one. Curious as to his field of expertise, I asked him what department in the university. Again, hesitantly, he said structural engineering, and that he also has a PhD in physics. When I heard that, I gingerly pressed him for more feedback.
He answered, “Like most people, I never questioned what I was told about 9/11 by the media or government officials. When I was first introduced to the 9/11 evidence in 2008 by another scientist, I didn’t believe it and, initially, outright dismissed it. Only after I started analyzing the evidence for myself did I accept its scientific validity.”
I asked if he talks openly now within the university setting. “No, I don’t speak openly about this with my colleagues. Tenured professors in other universities have been forced out or fired because of their 9/11 research, or even for being outspoken about it. I don’t want that to happen to me.” I asked for more details, but he chose not to say more.
Photo below: Passersby stop to read and discuss the 9/11 evidence with booth volunteer Julie-Ellen.
Teenage Skeptic (Fran): A teenage boy walked into our booth, his sky-blue eyes challenging me: “Are you aware that you all are a laughing stock on many websites?” I responded calmly, “Yeah? Have you studied this material?” He answered, “Some of it I know about,” “And what is your opinion?” I queried. “Some of it is pretty interesting,” he admitted. “How old are you?” I asked. “Fourteen.” “You’re a pretty smart guy, aren’t you,” I asked rhetorically, detecting his curiosity and intellect. “I like to think so.”
Throughout this dialogue I had a good feeling about this kid. “Well, good for you for studying the issue and coming to your own opinion. Have you seen Experts Speak Out?” He responded, “Yeah. I saw it online. Definitely compelling.” His eyes had softened. “You are welcome to help yourself to any of the materials on display here.” I left him alone to browse the booth.
Photo below: Michael checks out our booth after setting up for the Denver International Festival. Close proximity to the line of portable toilets in 97-degree heat made this an especially fun day!
Appreciative Muslim Student (Marti): As we were packing up on Saturday night, a man stopped by to read the posters. When I approached him, he asked, “Who did this?” I said we didn’t know, but a book by Kevin Ryan called Another Nineteen identified Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld as prime suspects. Before I could continue, he stopped me, held up his hand, and gave me a high five. He identified himself as being a Muslim student from Singapore who was in the U.S. to complete his graduate work. He loved the U.S. but was extraordinarily upset at how we blame Muslims for the attacks of 9/11. He thanked us for our work.
Trials and Tribulations of Speaking about 9/11 Truth
While most of our exchanges were positive, some were not. From these negative experiences, we have an opportunity to learn how to dialogue more skillfully.
The Setup (Fran): A woman insistently asked, “What are you implying?” (by our literature and banners). She repeated her question a couple of times. “Well, the evidence trail leads to elements within our military, the White House, corporations…,” I honestly, but naively, answered.
Photo below: Passersby stop to look at the posters.
She whipped around and strode away from me, while saying in a tone of disgust, “That is so TOTALLY insane! That’s enough. You don’t deserve any more of my time!” I realized I had been set up, that I had ignored her covertly aggressive demeanor, and instead had responded to the content of her question. She was ready and waiting to angrily dismiss me, and just needed an excuse. It’s likely that nothing I could have done would have made any difference. But next time I’ll try not to bite the bait of a hostile person and instead say something like, “We are here to present the evidence and the facts. Once you have looked at it, then YOU can decide what the implications are. I’d be curious to know what you think about the Building 7 banner after you read it.”
“You Should Help the Victims!” (Joseph): A young woman with a small child in a stroller stopped at the booth and was looking at one of the display boards. She angrily opined: “You all should be helping the victims instead of this!” I responded that some of the 9/11 families support our efforts and spoke about all the victims of the subsequent 9/11 wars — the fraudulent “War on Terror.” I mentioned that there are millions of families and children that we are trying to help by exposing the 9/11 deception. I even showed her several documents reporting on the human casualties, including an article from Global Research which documents that 3.3 million innocent civilians were killed in Iraq (1990 – 2012), and that tens of thousands of Iraqi babies are being born with severe congenital malformations due to the U.S. military using Depleted Uranium radioactive munitions, and that our taxes are used for all this killing.
In spite of all this information, she angrily repeated herself: “Why are you here? You should be helping the 9/11 victims and families?” Again, I tried to tell her that that is exactly why we are here, to help all the victims by exposing the 9/11 deception. She didn’t want to hear it. She retorted, “I don’t care. I don’t care about the evidence. You should be helping the victims!”
She walked away disgusted, pushing the stroller with her child in it. I couldn’t help noticing the irony. It is people like her and her child that we are trying to save from devastation. However, in the end, we know that even the strongest evidence does not overcome powerful emotional barriers.
Photo below: Fran (purple T-shirt) and Julie Ellen (white T-shirt) discuss 9/11 with visitors inside our booth.
The New York Screamers
Marti: Doing the work of spreading the truth is not easy. In fact, it is often extremely upsetting. This was the case toward the end of the day on Sunday. Three people who identified as being from New York City approached and starting screaming at us. Pointing at our signs and banners, they yelled, “How can you do this?” They said that they were at Ground Zero, and therefore they knew exactly what had happened. How dare we say there is another “truth.” They also screamed, “Were you there? Did you smell 3,000 burning bodies? Did you see people jump from the towers and fall to their deaths?” Of course, we had not.
There was no dialogue. No conversation. Only constant screaming at us, two feet from our faces. After attempting to de-escalate the situation by offering empathy and support for what they had experienced, I realized it was a lost cause. My stomach churning, I offered a “wish-you-well” and walked away. It was a distressing note on which to end the fair, but this is part of the work that we all endure in order to pursue the truth, and hopefully, in the end, justice and healing for us all.
Joseph continues: Surprisingly, I remained calm, because I can get quite heated when someone screams at me. I responded that we also know people who were killed in the WTC towers and that many of the 9/11 victims’ families support the 9/11 Truth evidence. They continued yelling repetitively their argument at us for several minutes: “We have friends who died in the towers! This is stupid bullshit!” I responded several times by asking, “What is stupid about laws of physics?” That went on for a few minutes. Even trying to explain some of the scientific evidence didn’t change their aggressive behavior. We were going round and round getting nowhere. They kept yelling at me, “Terrorists flew those planes into those buildings because they hate us!”
Photo below: People attending the Colorado Remembers 9/11 event walk by our posters. We chose to maintain a quiet presence in order to respect the day.
Earl, who can usually calm people down, stepped in and tried to reason with one of the men, but to no avail. Fran, who had been occupied with another visitor at the time, came over.
Fran continues: I was curious about all the yelling from these three 40ish-something people, so wandered over. By this time only one of them remained, still blustering. (Marti told me later that he was the least aggressive of the three.) Without slowing his harangue, he turned it on me: “The Muslims hate us because of our freedoms. Look at how they treat their women who have to wear…whatever you call those things on their heads! They live in shitholes! They don’t have all the nice things we do, the cars, the nice homes, and they live in dictatorships — no freedom like we have here! They hate us, and make no mistake, they want to destroy us!” I let him go on, nodding my head that I was hearing him. Then, when he slowed down for a couple of seconds and took a breath, I replied, “I really get that this is your very strong belief.”
“Yes! This is my belief and the truth!” he said, with only slightly less aggression.
“Obviously, you really, really believe this, and that is okay,” I said, truly meaning it.
“You don’t believe this?”
“I’m perfectly happy for you to have your belief about this matter, but I do have a different belief,” I admitted. Then I enthusiastically added, “Aren’t we lucky to live in this country! Just think, you and I can have completely different beliefs about this controversial topic, and we can still talk openly about it, still disagree about it, and it’s okay! There are so many countries where we would not have that freedom.”
“Well, why do you not believe this, and what do you believe?” he asked with less aggression.
“Again, I’m not here to take away your belief. But the evidence really does not support it.”
“What evidence?” he queried, as though he had not heard a word Joseph, Marti, or Earl had said.
Many examples flooded into my mind, but I decided to keep it simple and to give one example: “Did you know that nanothermite was found in the WTC dust — if you extrapolate from what was found in the dust samples, then tons of nanothermite were in the WTC dust?”
Photo below: Military men and women parade directly past our Building 7 banner at the Colorado Remembers 9/11 Ceremony.
“Oh! Thermite is so available! I can buy it off the Internet! Anyone could have placed it there.”
“Well, this is nanothermite. It cannot be found on the Internet or anywhere by the public. It is only produced in military labs, such as Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore. There is no way Osama bin Laden’s al Qaeda could have bought it and placed it in the three buildings. And get this: researchers found evidence of exploded nanothermite as well as chips of unexploded nanothermite in the WTC dust.”
Now I see wheels turning. He is quieter and seems stumped. He queries, “Could it have been formed somehow in the heat of the building fires?” (This is actually a common and very good question for a layperson.)
“No, no. Not at all. It is a highly sophisticated, nano-sized chemical composition that only can be produced in military-type labs.”
Photo below: Bob and Fran hold a banner displaying the new NIST whilstleblower website at the Colorado Remembers 9/11 event. The Colorado State Capitol Building is in the background.
I continue, “I don’t want to push anything on you, but if you are open and want to know more about the nanothermite, I could give you an article that we have in our booth. Again, up to you. You could take it home and read it later.”
He hesitates, thinking about this offer. His two more aggressive friends approach, urging him to come with them. He replies, “No. I won’t take the article. I need to go.”
“Okay. I’ve enjoyed talking to you. Take care.”
The truth of the matter is that I was not invested in his crossing over to my way of thinking. Of course, that would have been a nice bonus, but also unlikely, judging from his angry state. I really was interested to find out if he and I could connect at all as people. Judging by the way the conversation evolved, I think we did, at least to a small degree. Later, I realized that this encounter was a good example of Ken Jenkins’ article, “The Truth is Not Enough.”
Photo above: Colorado 9/11 Truth volunteers left to right are Matt, Dorothy, Michael, Donna, John, Fran, Don, and Joseph.
We hope you have found our experiences enlightening. It’s not easy to educate people about evidence that shows our government has lied to us about 9/11, but we will persist. We hope you will, too.
https://www.facebook.com/CO911Truth/?hc_ref=PAGES_TIMELINE