[MLUG - DISCUSSION] bin Laden video is a forgery!

[Mike Miller <EMAIL:PROTECTED>]

I find this to be a very credible claim:

http://www.boomantribune.com/story/2007/9/9/61032/95401

(The video freezes for the first time at about 1:56, not 1:36.)  It also 
seems to me that there are many points where the video breaks and restarts 
- like it was edited at many positions.  I don't know how hard it is for 
someone to impersonate bin Laden effectively, but I know that it would be 
easy for someone to fool me.

If the tape is fake, that explains a few things like bin Laden's beard 
color change, his newfound interest in Noam Chomsky and left-wing politics 
and the small number of references to religious principles.  Experts 
agreed that the content of bin Laden's speech on the tape was strange and 
surprising.  Trimming the beard is considered improper by many Muslims and 
dying the beard to look younger just doesn't seem like something bin Laden 
would do.

Here's more on the likely origin of the tape:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/09/09/wladen109.xml

My guess is that the tape is an obvious fake -- obvious to intelligence 
experts in the CIA and elsewhere.  They are not saying it is real but that 
they are studying it:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,296202,00.html

The appearance of the tape at this time is convenient because it gives 
Bush a chance to mess with our heads during the time when the Petraeus 
report is about to come out.  Here are some of Bush's comments:

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gXnUxn3LxuLFhLpIceTq5bQjxGhA

"It's important that we show resolve and determination to protect 
ourselves, to deny al-Qaida safe haven and support young democracies, 
which will be a major defeat to their ambitions.

"I found it interesting that on the tape, Iraq was mentioned, which is 
reminder that Iraq is a part of this war against extremists. If al-Qaida 
bothers to mention Iraq it's because they want to achieve their objectives 
in Iraq, which is to drive us out and to develop a safe haven. And the 
reason they want a safe haven is to launch attacks against America or any 
other ally.

"The tape is a reminder about the dangerous world in which we live, and 
it's a reminder that we must work together to protect our people against 
these extremists who murder the innocent in order to achieve their 
political objectives."


So part of the message is that Osama is linked to Iraq, in a sense, and 
this justifies further military action there.  The idea that American 
intelligence had the tape before it hit the Islamist web sites is 
especially disturbing.

Mike

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