Monday, February 9, 2009

The Petition of the Religious Leaders for 911 Truth

The religions of the world share universal values of love, truth, and justice, and believe in helping those who are oppressed or otherwise in need. Many religious persons try to engage in activities to make the world a better place, and they trust in a Higher Power to assist them.

When faced with actions that conflict with the universal moral principle that we should not do to others what we would not want done to ourselves or our loved ones, members of faith communities have a responsibility to voice their opposition to those actions. Many religious leaders throughout history have publicly challenged morally unacceptable practices---recently, for example, in the civil rights and anti-apartheid movements.

A significant moral challenge has emerged due to glaring discrepancies between the official version of the events of September 11, 2001, and the results of extensive independent research by individuals with relevant scientific or professional expertise.

“Independent” here means independent from the U.S. administration that was in power at the time of the 9/11 attacks. The official reports about 9/11 were not independent in this sense. The 9/11 Commission was run by its executive director, Philip Zelikow, who was closely associated with the Bush administration. The official reports on the World Trade Center were produced by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, which, as an agency of the U.S. Commerce Department, was run by people employed by the Bush administration.

The independent research, which has led to conclusions that differ radically from the official account, has been carried out by scientists and professionals in many relevant fields. It has led to the creation of several professional organizations, including Veterans for 9/11 Truth, S.P.I.N.E.: The Scientific Panel for the Investigation of Nine-Eleven, Pilots for 9/11 Truth, Scholars for 9/11 Truth and Justice, Architects and Engineers for 9/11 Truth, Firefighters for 9/11 Truth, Lawyers for 9/11 Truth, Healthcare Professionals for 9/11 Truth, and Political Leaders for 9/11 Truth.

As a result of this extensive research carried out by scientists and professionals, it can now be seen that the official account of 9/11 is false beyond any reasonable doubt.

This conclusion presents a significant moral challenge because this false account has been used as the pretext for the so-called War on Terror, which has had enormous negative consequences, including:

  1. the killing and maiming of millions of innocent people;
  2. the portrayal of Islam as an inherently violent religion, of Muslims as especially likely to be terrorists, and of Muslim nations as devoid of any right not to be attacked;
  3. the employment of torture, extraordinary rendition, and other practices---including curtailment of the civil liberties of American citizens---that violate the US Constitution, international law, and the moral conscience of the world;
  4. the expenditure of hundreds of billions of dollars for militaristic, imperialistic purposes; and
  5. the acceleration of the ecological destruction of our planet, including widespread radioactive poisoning caused by depleted uranium munitions.
Because the false account of 9/11, besides being an enormous lie told to the American public and the world as a whole, has led to all these evils, it is incumbent on religious leaders, once they realize that the official account is a lie, to speak out, because to fail to speak out is to acquiesce to the cover-up.

Religious leaders from every tradition are encouraged to sign the petition and thereby become members of Religious Leaders for 9/11 Truth. "Religious Leaders" are here defined as people who exercise (or have exercised) a leadership role, whether in a lay or professional capacity, in or on behalf of some religious community or organization, or who teach (or have taught) religion from a faith perspective.

Becoming a member of Religious Leaders for 9/11 Truth will not necessitate any further action other than signing the petition---although further action to spread 9/11 truth is certainly encouraged.

If you are ready to join Religious Leaders for 9/11 Truth and would like to sign the petition, go to the Sign the Petition page and state your name, religious affiliation, and leadership role, along with (optional) anything you would like to say about your reason for signing.

PETITION

WHEREAS religious leaders seek to promote various universal values, including love, justice, and truth; and

WHEREAS religious leaders throughout history have spoken out on moral issues; and

WHEREAS the official account of 9/11 has been shown by scientists and professionals in relevant fields to be false beyond a reasonable doubt; and

WHEREAS the official account of 9/11 has been used as a pretext for wars that have killed and maimed millions of innocent people and caused enormous ecological damage to our planet; and

WHEREAS the official account of 9/11 has been used to increase military spending and thereby to withhold needed spending for health, education, welfare, infrastructure, and the environment; and

WHEREAS the official account of 9/11 has been used to indict Islam as an inherently violent religion and to justify discrimination against Muslims and attacks on Muslim countries; and

WHEREAS the official reports about 9/11 have been produced by individuals closely affiliated with, or even employed by, the Bush administration;

THEREFORE we, the undersigned members of Religious Leaders for 9/11 Truth, ask President Obama to authorize a new, truly independent, investigation into the attacks of 9/11 immediately, because such an investigation is long overdue, being owed to the 9/11 families, the American people, and the peoples of the world - especially the peoples of Afghanistan and Iraq.

Text taken form here.

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