We start with Mark Crispin Miller on the phrase 'conspiracy theory', became current since the 1960s, when books began to be published which cast doubt on the findings of the Warren Commission. He mentions a declassified CIA report of 1967-04-01 recommending the use of "propaganda assets and friends in the media" to counter suggestions of conspiracy within the state by using a set of 5 arguments commonly used today.
We continue with Tony Gosling interviewing Danielle Ganser on Operation Gladio, an international conspiracy organised within NATO. Although it has been admitted that NATO planted bombs resulting in hundreds of people being killed or injured, why has no one been called to account? After some comment from Martin Summers, Tony Gosling interviews Tony Farrell piece, a former principal intelligence analyst for South Yorkshire police. Charged with investigating terrorist threats, he reported to his bosses that Islamic terrorism was not a great danger. On learning that he did not believe the official narrative that 7/7 was the work of Islamic fundamentalists, but thought it was a false flag attack, he was promptly dismissed, and is now fighting a case for unfair dismissal.
Next we look at the Anthrax attacks carried out in US in the weeks following Sep 11th. The closed their investigation in 2010 after an expenditure of around $100,000,000. Their full report is secret, but they conclude it was the work of a 'lone nut' inside the US military machine, the late Bruce Ivins. We hear Scott Horton interviewing Meryl Nass, an anthrax expert whose testimony contradicts the FBI's report. After introducing anthrax and relating her experience of Bruce Ivins she highlights some shortcomings of the FBI's report. She concludes that the most likely source of the anthrax attacks was a conspiracy within the US deep state, but that the FBI investigation was instructed to deliberately overlooked a lot of important evidence by 'somebody at a high level'. This continues for a few minutes into our second hour.
Our main piece this week is Bonnie Faulkner's Guns and Butter, Connecting the Anthrax attacks to 9/11. This hour long interview looks at the structural, historical and symbolic approaches to understanding the 2001 Anthrax attacks. When they occurred, the 'Hollywood style' anti-Zionism and pro-Muslim cues helped the two attacks become part of a single threat in the public mind - and Anthrax was sent not to random US politicians, but to those who were vocal in championing civil liberties against the 'Patriot Act'. At the time, claims were made of evidence suggesting that foreign terrorists were behind the attacks, but the claim that Islamic terrorists were responsible quickly collapsed as evidence emerged that the form of Anthrax used was heavily suggestive of a source inside the US military machine.
Thanks to Bonnie Faulkner from Guns and Butter for the Graeme MacQueen interview, to Tony Gosling for the interviews from Bristol Broadband Collective, and to Scott Horton for the Meryl Nass interview.