9/11 Conspiracy Theory

Madcow asks: What was going on in Venice, Florida?

Venice, Florida is the biggest September 11th crime scene that wasn’t reduced to rubble. And a big piece of the 9/11 puzzle will fall into place when we know the answer to this question:

....FBI agents harassed and intimidated witnesses to the 9/11 terrorist conspiracy's activities in Florida, issuing warnings to avoid talking with reporters, say current and former residents in Venice, Florida.

At least one eyewitness, who knew Mohamed Atta because he lived next door for a time, received regular visits for over six months after the attack from FBI agents eager to ensure she continued to remain silent. Several said they felt unfairly singled out because what they saw and heard is at considerable variance with the official story of the terrorist cadr's time in Florida.

With reporters literally camped at her doorstep, [Amanda Keller, who lived with Atta for a brief time in Venice] told us she had been so intimidated into silence by the FBI that she spoke barely a dozen words. "The newspaper quote you read was accurate, she said. "'I can’t really say anything. I'm afraid I'll get in trouble.'"

"A N.Y. Times reporter named Chris—young, tall, kind of heavy, dark hair and a dark goatee—came to my house," she explained. "And he was mad because I wouldn't talk to him. This dude would NOT leave me alone. I stood outside arguing with him forever, and he was trying to trip me up and get me to say something."

"And so I called the FBI agent that had been calling me—right while this reporter guy was standing there—and told him this reporter won't leave me alone. The agent said let me talk to him, so I handed him the phone. And I don't know what was said, but after that he left me alone."

Why had she remained silent? "Because of the intimidation by the FBI," she replied. "They told me not to talk to anybody, to keep my mouth shut."

...The Sandpiper Apartments manager, Charlie Grapentine, is a grizzled Korean vet in his early 60's. The FBI did not [receive] his recollections any more warmly than they had those of Stephanie Frederickson.

"Atta always carried a fanny pack around his waist," Grapentine told us. "I remember Amanda once telling him that she needed some new clothes, and he reached in and peeled off a few hundreds from a thick roll of cash he had stuffed inside the fanny pack."

Grapentine turns grim on the subject of the FBI's treatment. "They called me a liar, and told me to keep my mouth shut," stated the ex-marine through clenched teeth. "Nobody likes to hear that: that they didn't see something they know they saw."

...Longboat Key fire captain Carroll Mooneyhan was waiting in the lobby of the hotel President Bush was staying at the night before the attack, for Bush to come out for his morning run when he saw something he shouldn’t have. Something pretty big, actually…

After talking with local reporters he clammed up. When we finally reached him by phone, Mooneyhan, who witnessed the launch of an attempt to assassinate the President, told us: "I was visited by the CIA and the Secret Service after 9/11. I have a career to think about. I have to be careful what I say."

And that was the last we heard from him.

You can count the number of investigative journalists who have followed the trail of the 9/11 terrorist conspiracy during their time in the U.S. on one hand and pick your nose at the same time.

Its time for a change.

....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.