"It's Just One of the Gaps in History"

Nature Abhors a Vacuum

1. Sept. 1939

"Reich Leader Bouhler and Dr. med. Brandt are charged with the responsibility of enlarging the competence of certain physicians, designated by name, so that patients who, on the basis of human judgment [menschlichem Ermessen], are considered incurable, can be granted mercy death [Gnadentod] after a discerning diagnosis. 

— Adolf Hitler 

The Hitler Order.

"It's just one of the Gaps in History."

Raul Hilberg

"As the Nazi regime developed over the years, the whole structure of decision-making was changed. 

At first there were laws. 

Then there were decrees implementing laws. 

Then a law was made saying, "There shall be no laws." 

Then there were orders and directives that were written down, but still published in ministerial gazettes. 

Then there was government by announcement; orders appeared in newspapers. 

Then there were the quiet orders, the orders that were not published, that were within the bureaucracy, that were oral. 

Finally, there were no orders at all. 

Everybody knew what he had to do.”

Raul Hilberg

Author of "The Destruction of the European Jews"

In earlier editions of Destruction, in fact, Hilberg discussed an "order" given by Hitler to have Jews killed, while more recent editions do not refer to a direct command. Hilberg later commented that he 

"made this change in the interest of precision about the evidence[...]." 

Notwithstanding Hilberg's focus on bureaucratic momentum as an indispensable force behind the Holocaust, he maintained that extermination of Jews was one of Hitler's aims: 

"The primary notion in Germany is that Hitler did it. As it happens, this is also my notion, but I'm not wedded to it" 

(qtd. in Guttenplan, p. 303).

The Spot.

Lincoln's "Spot Resolutions," made in response to President Polk's claim that Mexico had invaded US territory and shed American blood. 

The proposed resolutions, demanding that the exact location where the blood had been shed be revealed, were not debated in the House, nor did they receive any response from the President.

"Spot Resolutions" on Mexican War.

Offered in the United States House of Representatives. December 22, 1847.

Whereas, The President of the United States, in his message of May 11, 1846, has declared that "the Mexican Government not only refused to receive him [the envoy of the United States], or to listen to his propositions, but, after a long-continued series of menaces, has at last invaded our territory and shed the blood of our fellow-citizens on our own soil."

And again, in his message of December 8, 1846, that "we had ample cause of war against Mexico long before the breaking out of hostilities; but even then we forbore to take redress into our own hands until Mexico herself became the aggressor, by invading our soil in hostile array, and shedding the blood of our citizens."

And yet again, in his message of December 7,  1847, that "the Mexican Government refused even to hear the terms of adjustment which he [our minister of peace] was authorized to propose, and finally, under wholly unjustifiable pretexts, involved the two countries in war, by invading the territory of the State of Texas, striking the first blow, and shedding the blood of our citizens on our own soil."

And whereas, This House is desirous to obtain a full knowledge of all the facts which go to establish whether the particular spot on which the blood of our citizens was so shed was or was not at that time our own soil; therefore,

Resolved, By the House of Representatives, that the President of the United States be respectfully requested to inform this House—

First. Whether the spot on which the blood of our citizens was shed, as in his message declared, was or was not within the territory of Spain, at least after the treaty of 1819 until the Mexican revolution.

Second. Whether that spot is or is not within the territory which was wrested from Spain by the revolutionary Government of Mexico.

Third. Whether that spot is or is not within a settlement of people, which settlement has existed ever since long before the Texas revolution, and until its inhabitants fled before the approach of the United States army.

Fourth. Whether that settlement is or is not isolated from any and all other settlements by the Gulf and the Rio Grande on the south and west, and by wide uninhabited regions on the north and east.

Fifth. Whether the people of that settlement, or a majority of them, or any of them, have ever  submitted themselves to the government or laws of Texas or of the United States, by consent or by compulsion, either by accepting office, or voting at elections, or paying tax, or serving on juries, or having process served upon them, or in any other way.

Sixth. Whether the people of that settlement did or did not flee from the approach of the United States army, leaving unprotected their homes and their growing crops, before the blood was shed, as in the message stated; and whether the first blood, so shed, was or was not shed within the inclosure of one of the people who had thus fled from it.

Seventh. Whether our citizens, whose blood was shed, as in his message declared, were or were not, at that time, armed officers and soldiers, sent into that settlement by the military order of the President, through the Secretary of War.

Eighth. Whether the military force of the United States was or was not so sent into that settlement after General Taylor had more than once intimated to the War Department that, in his opinion, no such movement was necessary to the defense or protection of Texas.

Flights AA-11 and AA-77

September 11 2001

Source: U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS).

Return Radar Track for American Airlines Flight 77

Cleveland, OH - Arlington, VA.

September 11 2001

World Trade Centre Gold 

(1993 and 2001)

"Two Brinks trucks were at ground zero on Wednesday to start hauling away the $200 million in gold and silverthat the Bank of Nova Scotia had stored in a vault under the trade center.

A team of 30 firefighters and police officers are helping to move the metals, a task that can be measured practically down to the flake but that has been rounded off at 379,036 ounces of gold and 29,942,619 ounces of silver ."

Unknown to most people at the time, $650 million in gold and silver was being kept in a special vault four floors beneath Four World Trade Center. 

An article in the TimesOnline gives the following rundown of precious metals that were being stored in the WTC vault belonging to Comex. 

Comex metals trading - 3,800 gold bars weighing 12 tonnes and worth more than $100 million

Comex clients - 800,000 ounces of gold with a value of about $220 million

Comex clients - 102 million ounces of silver, worth $430 million

Bank of Nova Scotia - $200 million of gold

Physical Proof of the Existance of Rainbows

"It's not there."

Phil Jupitus

World Trade Centre Dead

World Trade Centre Office Contents

Owner of Additional Leg, 

Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building,

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

April 19th 1995

August 8, 1995

Unidentified Leg Found in Bomb Rubble

By JOHN KIFNER

OKLAHOMA CITY, Aug. 7— A new mystery surfaced in the Oklahoma City bombing today, just days before formal charges were to be lodged, when the State Medical Examiner disclosed that a severed leg and foot clad in a combat boot had been found deep in the rubble. 

The brief announcement, more than two months after the authorities said all victims were accounted for, came after the lawyer for Timothy J. McVeigh, the prime suspect in the bombing which killed 167 people, said he would ask prosecutors to explore information that a severed leg had been found that could not be matched to a body. 

The lawyer, Stephen Jones, speculated that the leg and foot may have belonged to "the real bomber" who could have been blown apart in the April 19 explosion. 

The finding, which raises the possibility of there being another participant, came as the deadline neared for Federal prosecutors to bring indictments for the Federal Building blast against Mr. McVeigh and another Army veteran, Terry L. Nichols. A third member of the same Army unit from Fort Riley, Kan., Michael Fortier, is also likely to be indicted, although he has been negotiating for leniency in exchange for his testimony and may face lesser charges. 

Mr. Fortier's wife, Lori, was brought to the Federal Courthouse here today for a 15-minute meeting with a judge in which she was granted immunity in exchange for her testimony before the grand jury, expected on Tuesday. The grant of immunity for Mrs. Fortier was a chief element in the deal that Mr. Fortier was attempting to strike with the Federal prosecutors. 

But the existence of an unknown body could cast the case in a new light. One possibility is that the leg belonged to the second man some witnesses reported seeing with Mr. McVeigh in the period just before the bombing but whom investigators have never been able to identify. Thus far, despite a huge search for a "John Doe No. 2," Federal investigators have not identified any other participants. 

The Medical Examiner's office, in a statement issued today, said it was continuing to analyze unidentified human tissue recovered from the Federal Building, among which was "a traumatically amputated left thigh and lower leg recovered on May 30, 1995." 

"This leg was clothed in a black military type boot, two socks, and an olive drab blousing strap," the statement continued. "Anthropological analysis of this specimen reveals the individual to be light skinned, dark haired, probably less than 30 years of age, male (75 percent probability), and having an estimated height of 66 plus or minus three inches." 

The Medical Examiner's office said that the leg had not been matched to any other known victims or survivors. 

The operations director of the Medical Examiner's office, Ray Blackeney, said the severed leg was found after the last three identified bodies were removed from the building, an operation that was delayed until after the building was demolished because of fears that the structure would collapse. 

At the time of the recovery of the three bodies, Mr. Blackeney had dismissed the possibility that a bomber was killed in the blast, saying: "As far as I'm concerned, he's not there. We have found the people where we thought we would find them. We didn't find anybody we didn't think was there." 

Because the leg was found after the building was demolished by controlled explosions on May 23, it may be difficult to determine its original location. But because the area above the three bodies was thoroughly searched, and the wreckage sealed off and guarded, it would appear that the leg had been further down in the rubble, near the center of the blast. That location would be consistent with someone in or near the exploding truck. Further, Mr. Blackeney said the leg was the largest identifiable body part, suggesting that the rest of the individual had disintegrated from the force of a nearby explosion. 

The "olive drab blousing strap" mentioned in the Medical Examiner's report is a thin elastic band commonly used in the military to "blouse" trousers by tucking the bottoms around the strap and pulling them down over the tops of high combat boots for a neat appearance. 

The military personnel -- mostly recruiting officers -- inside the Federal Building were all accounted for. However, a veteran or someone who, like Mr. McVeigh, favored military garb might be likely to use blousing straps. 

Asked in a telephone conversation why the Medical Examiner's office had not made the existence of the severed leg public before, Mr. Blackeney replied; "Why should we?" 

"I knew about it," he said. "We all knew about it here at the Medical Examiner's." 

He said that the Medical Examiner's technicians had been working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation using DNA and other tests on the severed leg and other pieces of tissue in hopes of establishing identifications. 

"This has come out a little bit premature," Mr. Blackeney said. "This is the last piece of the puzzle and I hope at some point to offer an explanation."

Sgt. Timothy McVeigh,

U.S. Army Special Forces

"Sgt. McVeigh was an outstanding soldier. He did what he was told, anticipated what had to be done (and) took pride in his work," 

- Capt. Jesus Angel Rodriguez, 

McVeigh's commanding officer during the Gulf War, 

testifying at his sentencing hearing

“The shallow breathing continued... or what appeared to be shallow breathing... even after they pronounced him dead.” 

- Susan Carlson reporting on McVeigh’s execution for WLS Chicago, 

broadcast minutes after the sentence was carried out.

Iraqi Weapons of Mass Destruction 

(Post-1998)

Evidence of Criminal or Moral Guilt on the Part of President Richard Nixon Relative to the Watergate Break-in

Bob Woodward, The Guardian (3rd June, 2005)

"Somewhat to my astonishment, Felt was an admirer of Hoover. He appreciated his orderliness and the way he ran the bureau with rigid procedures and an iron fist. Felt said he appreciated that Hoover arrived at the office at 6.30 each morning and everyone knew what was expected. 

The Nixon White House was another matter, Felt said. The political pressures were immense without being specific. I believe he called it "corrupt" and sinister. Hoover, Felt and the old guard were the wall that protected the FBI, he said."

When the Pentagon Papers were leaked in 1971, Richard Nixon initially wasn’t all that concerned. 

But that was before Secretary of State Henry Kissenger complained to the president that the leaks were compromising secret negotiations with the North Vietnamese.

And that could’ve jeopardized Nixon’s re-election.

Dean says this is when Nixon began ordering break-ins. Dean learned about one such plan from an underling who had just come to him from former White House Counsel Chuck Colson’s office.

“And he said, ‘Chuck had asked me to firebomb the Brookings Institute.’"

"I said, ‘What?'"

“He said, ‘He thinks I should firebomb the Brookings Institute. When the fire department is responding it’ll be a diversion. And I’m to send a safecracker in to break into the safe at the Brookings and get out the Pentagon Papers.’”

Dean thought the plan was absurd. And he also knew there was no point arguing with Colson. So he went straight to his superior and top Nixon aide John Ehrlichman.

“He was in San Clemente, I jumped on the next plane, flew out there, told him of this," Dean said. "And he simply picked up the phone, called Chuck Colson, and said, ‘Young Counsel Dean is out here, doesn’t think the Brookings plan is a very good one, Chuck. Cancel it.’ Turned to me and said, ‘Anything else, Counselor?’ I said, ‘No, that’ll handle it.’”

As it turned out, Colson wasn’t the originator of the idea.

“It isn’t until years later when the tapes come out," Dean says, "That I learn the order for the break-in really came from Richard Nixon, who is at one point literally pounding on the desk, saying, ‘I want a break-in! I want it yesterday, nobody’s exercising, nobody’s following through.’”

Dean’s adamant that Nixon didn’t directly order the Watergate break-in. But he also says that outbursts like that made it clear to the staff what was expected.

Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, The Final Days (1976)

John Dean, the President's former counsel had been fired on April 30 and was now busily leaking stories all over Washington about the Watergate scandal. Some of them hinted that the President was involved in the cover-up. Dean seemed to have some record of White House misdeeds; he told Judge John Sirica that he had removed certain documents from the White House to protect them from "illegitimate destruction". Dean had put them in a safe-deposit box and given the keys to the judge. The New York Times, also citing anonymous informers, said that one of its sources "suggested that Mr. Dean may have tape-recorded some of his White House conversations".

William Sullivan, The Bureau: My Thirty Years in Hoover's FBI (1979)

"I suppose the Kennedys did that kind of thing with Hoover," Dean said. I told him truthfully that the Kennedys had been so wary of Hoover that they never used the FBI at all if they could help it. Dean didn't look as if he believed me. "What about Johnson?" he asked quickly.

Once again I answered truthfully. "Compared to Lyndon Johnson," I told him, "the current administration is spartan in its use of the FBI." Dean's tongue was practically hanging out of his mouth as I talked. I couldn't tell him about every one of Johnson's illegal uses of the FBI-DeLoach was the one who could - but I could tell him enough. I told him about the FBI surveillance I'd helped to set up on Madame Chennault. I told him how Johnson had praised Hoover and the FBI for keeping tabs on Bobby Kennedy at the Democratic convention in Atlantic City by tapping Martin Luther King's phone. I told him about the behind-the-scenes wheeling and dealing done by LBJ, Abe Fortas, and Deke DeLoach after Walter Jenkins was arrested in Washington, and I told Dean that Johnson had asked the FBI to dig up derogatory information on Senator Fulbright and other Democratic senators who had attacked Johnson's policies. Of course, the FBI wasn't chartered to do that kind of work, but Hoover loved to help his friends - and those he wished were his friends.

Dean asked if I would write a confidential memo for "White House use only" detailing some examples of previous illegal political use of the FBI. He didn't tell me, and I certainly never guessed, that Dean would give the "confidential information I'd supplied to the Watergate prosecutors. I did realize, though, that I could be heading into stormy waters, so I told Dean I'd send the memo, but that I'd only write about events that I would be willing to testify to publicly. Dean readily agreed.

Then he sat back in his chair and said, "I'd like you to write a second memo after you've done that one. I'd like to pick your brains. You've been around Washington for years, and I'd like your opinion on how we should cope with the situation we have with the Plumbers."