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:: september 11, 2001 [updated: january 1, 2002]

 


               *911 keys
ground zero

> events development
> internet related media
> tech and sciart net communities reactions

> media evolution
> related issues

 



^  

 
 

events development log


:: december 29, 2001
pakistan urges talks as villagers flee border homes
tehran times. middle east news online
"pakistan urged india to withdraw its troops so that islamabad too could pull back its recent reinforcements, and to sit down for talks to defuse fears of war... tensions between the two nuclear-capable foes have mounted since the december 13 attack by armed men on india's parliament, prompting their biggest military buildup in 15 years... having persuaded islamabad to join the u.s. anti-terror coalition to drive the taliban out of afghanistan the last thing washington wants is for pakistan to start a new war on the afghan border... new delhi is demanding islamabad move against pakistan-based separatists fighting indian rule in kashmir. it blames them for the attack on india's parliament in which 14 people died, including the five assailants... since partition in 1947 when the subcontinent's muslim population established pakistan as a separate state, the two neighbors have seen tensions spill over into war three times -- twice over kashmir."

:: december 14, 2001
northern alliance captures u.s troops, loses town
"in a new twist to the afghan war the northern alliance, which has so far been backed by the americans during its military campaign against the taliban, has captured 10 united states and two australian soldiers, said the afghan islamic press. the agency said the u.s soldiers had reached pul-i-khumri, scene of fighting between the alliance and an ismaili faction... town lies on one of the main roads from kabul to the northern cities of kunduz and mazar-i-sharif, and has changed hands at least three times in the past 12 months."

:: december 10, 2001
the first international human rights day of the 21st century
"the world does not need a war against 'terrorism', it needs a culture of peace based on human rights and justice for all, said irene khan, amnesty international's new secretary general, while lighting the symbolic amnesty international candle, surrounded by afghan children in jalozai refugee camp... we cannot stand by as politicians erode hard-won human rights provisions in the name of security."

:: december 10, 2001
closing down debate: ashcroft's attack on dissent
by bryan keefer. spinsanity
"since september 11, we have seen several serious attacks on anti-war dissent and critics of the administration, but until last week, such attacks were limited to media pundits. but with ashcroft and tucker joining the fray, the danger of further harm to our dialogue over how to best combat terrorism is substantial. such high-ranking officials have a responsibility to refrain from attempts to shut down debate on government policies."

:: december 8, 2001
afghan scenario: rewind to 1992
by ikram sehgal. gulf news online

"the last vestiges of afghan's ruling taliban crumbled yesterday as the militia's spiritual ruler mullah omar agreed to surrender kandahar... no country has traversed such a broad spectrum of extreme ideological change in less than three decades and in such a vast and diverse ethnic cauldron. all this in the absence of basic education for over 90 per cent of the population. the u.n. is certainly to be commended for convening the bonn talks, but in practical terms what is it worth when the broad mass of the population will not accept the paper it is written on? ...what will happen is exactly what happened, this time with royalist participation, between 1992 and 1994 - a central government without authority over the provinces, each ruled by a local warlord."

:: december 5, 2001
agreement on provisional arrangements in afghanistan
pending the re-establishment of permanent goverment institutions

united nations talks on afganistan. bonn, nov-dec 2001

"an interim authority shall be established upon the official transfer of power on 22 december 2001... an emergency loya jirga shall be convened within six months of the establishment of the interim authority... shall decide on a transitional authority to lead afghanistan until such time as a fully representative government can be elected through free and fair elections to be held no later than two years from the date of the convening of the emergency loya jirga."

:: november 29, 2001
we are the war criminals now
everything we have believed in since the second world war
goes by the board as we pursue our own exclusive war

by robert fisk. independent digital

"after 11 september, we went mad. we bombed afghan villages into rubble, along with their inhabitants ­ blaming the insane taliban and osama bin laden for our slaughter ­ and now we have allowed our gruesome militia allies to execute their prisoners... bush has signed into law a set of secret military courts to try and then liquidate anyone believed to be a "terrorist murderer" in the eyes of america's awesomely inefficient intelligence services. and make no mistake about it, we are talking here about legally sanctioned american government death squads. they have been created, of course, so that osama bin laden and his men should they be caught rather than killed, will have no public defence; just a pseudo trial and a firing squad."

:: november 29, 2001
most detainees are pakistanis
by tahir mirza. dawn

"attorney-general john ashcroft, under pressure to release details of those being kept in federal custody, said 641 people were in detention of whom over 200 came to the united states from pakistan. these are among 548 held on immigration charges... more than 1,182 persons have been arrested since the attacks, although more than 400 have since been cleared and released... the attorney-geneal's refuse to provide a full accounting of everyone who had been detained and the reasons for detention."

:: november 26, 2001
marines sent into afghanistan
force to set up base near kandahar, track members of al qaeda
by thomas e. ricks and bob woodward. washington post
"about 1,200 marines began moving into southern afghanistan last night, marking the introduction of conventional ground troops into the seven-week-old war... thus far, the united states has had only a few hundred special forces troops inside afghanistan, working along with an unusually large number of cia operatives and paramilitary units. the troops and cia personnel have worked mainly as liaisons with, and target designators for, the opposition afghan forces... moving into kandahar could prove controversial, even if the taliban leaves the city. urban operations are among the most difficult military missions. the u.s. military has struggled to improve its ability to fight in cities in recent years.. many of the high-tech advantages of the u.s. military are eroded by the urban environment."

:: november 20, 2001
opposition/terrorists 'in standoff' at kunduz, kandahar
by gerry j. gilmore, american forces press service
"about three-quarters of afghanistan is now in the hands of opposition forces, while concentrations of taliban and al qaeda troops continue to be bottled up in the cities of kunduz and kandahar... american and coalition military forces continue to support opposition requests for "on-call" air strikes... marines on ships in the theater of operations are under u.s. central command chief army gen. tommy franks, who is in charge of u.s. military operations in afghanistan."

:: november 14, 2001
what's next for the taliban?
ground war strategies. strategic forecasting

"the taliban have withdrawn from major afghan cities and dispersed into the countryside. however, they are far from defeated; they have simply abandoned positional, frontal warfare for the guerrilla tactics more suited to their numbers and resources. in doing so, they have also reset the clock on the conflict in afghanistan. the taliban war will play out over the years rather than days."

:: november 13, 2001
the people of afghanistan do not accept domination of the northern alliance!
rawa's appeal to the un and world community
"to pay urgent and considerable heed to the recent developments...before it is too late. we would like to emphatically ask the un to send its effective peace-keeping force into the country before the na can repeat the unforgettable crimes they committed (when they were ruling afghanistan from 1992 to 1996). the un should withdraw its recognition to the so-called islamic government headed by rabbani and help the establishment of a broad-based government based on the democratic values."

:: november 10, 2001
holding city could open a route for arms and aid
by bradley graham, washington post
"the reported capture yesterday of mazar-e sharif, if the rebel gains prove sustainable, would give u.s. and anti-taliban forces an important strategic foothold in northern afghanistan... the strategic crossroads city has served as a crucial link in the taliban's ability to resupply its troops in northern afghanistan." sudden collapse or strategically withdrawn of taliban forces?

:: november 10, 2001
osama claims he has nukes: if u.s. uses n-arms it will get same response
by hamid mir, interview for dawn
"if america used chemical or nuclear weapons against us, then we may retort with chemical and nuclear weapons. we have the weapons as deterrent... i am ready to die. my cause will continue after my death. they think they will solve this problem by killing me. it's not easy to solve this problem... i cannot gain anything by adopting this way of life. i am fighting because they are killing us. we are the victims and they are the aggressors so we have no other option but to fight back."

:: november 3, 2001
osama bin laden's statement
"it is primarily a religious war. the people in the east, the muslims, have sympathized with fellow muslims against the people of the west, the crusaders... the leaders of the region are shunning and shying away from supporting their brothers. what is worse is that they are preventing muslims from supporting their brothers."

:: november 2, 2001
escape and evasion. what happened when the special forces landed in afghanistan?
by seymour m. hersh, the new yorker
"in the wake of a near-disaster during the assault on mullah omar's complex -- october 20th --, the pentagon was rethinking future special forces operations inside afghanistan."

:: november 1, 2001
beyond this war on terrorism by donald h. rumsfeld, secretary of defense
"the united states' historical invulnerability has been replaced by a new era of vulnerability... adapting to surprise must be a condition of 21st century military planning... we must shift our defense planning from the "threat-based" model to a "capabilities-based" model."

:: october 26, 2001
president bush signs patriot
anti-terrorism bill into law

:: october 25, 2001
pentagon seeks ideas on combating terrorism
"specifically seeks help in combating terrorism, defeating difficult targets, conducting protracted operations in remote areas, and developing countermeasures to weapons of mass destruction. its objective is to find concepts that can be developed and fielded within 12 to 18 months."

:: october 11, 2001
rawa statement on the us strikes on afghanistan
taliban should be overthrown by the uprising of afghan nation "america, by forming an international coalition against osama and his taliban-collaborators and in retaliation for the 11th september terrorist attacks, has launched a vast aggression on our country."

:: october 11, 2001
library of congress, internet archive, webarchivist.org and the pew internet & american life project announce sept. 11 web archive
"the archive preserves the web expressions of individuals, groups, the press and institutions in the united states and from around the world in the aftermath of the attacks in the united states on sept. 11, 2001."
source = september 11 web archive

:: october 8, 2001
stop the military intervention in afghanistan - stop the revenge
"the attack against afghanistan represents another crime against peace and against humanity. this attack represents a part of patriarchal system of vengeance. the cycle of vengeance started with the brutal attacks on new york and washington on september 11th 2001."

:: october 7, 2001
osama bin laden's statement

"neither america nor the people who live in it will dream of security before we live it in palestine, and not before all the infidel armies leave the land of muhammad"
source= the times english translation from broadcast on the al-jazeera tv


:: october 2001
al-qa'ida & usama bin laden
description of the organization and its major funder.
source= federation of american scientists

:: september 19, 2001
why did bin laden phenomena emerge
"if bin laden was not there, you would have another bin laden... that's why we call it phenomena not a person... he's a product of a new social structure. a new social feeling in the muslim world."
source= pbs interview with dr. saad al-fagih

:: september 19, 2001
statement by the leaders of the g8
over last week's terrorist attacks in new york and washington.

" the 12 united nations counter terrorism conventions set the standard for international action in the fight against terrorism. "

:: september 25, 2001
letter to political leaders
"those who perpetrated the violence must be brought to justice under international law ... we urge all political and military authorities, national and international, to turn away from strategies of war and combine their efforts in seeking strategies for an inclusive, just and equal global society. without that, we will never see peace."
source = women in black, an international network of women opposed to war and militarism

:: september 14, 2001
rawa statement on the terrorist attacks in the u.s.

"our constant claim that fundamentalist terrorists would devour their creators is proved once more"
source= revolutionary association of the women of afghanistan

:: september 12, 2001
statement of g7 ministers of finance and central bank governors
on attacks in united states

"we are committed to ensuring that this tragedy will not be compounded by disruption to the global economy"
source= g8 information centre

islamic state of afghanistan [site now cracked]
source= afghan goverment

:: september 11, 2001
remarks by the president after two planes crash
into world trade center

source= white house


^  

 
 

internet related media


web resources for journalists covering the terrorist attacks
source= paul grabowicz, berkeley graduate school of journalism

analysis of early media coverage
by christopher mitchell. september 11, 2001
source = indymedia

scripting news weblog [september 11, 2001]
source= dave winer's scripting news

updated news on attacks in u.s.
source= google

islamic news media
source= islamicworld.net

yahoo! dailynews
source= yahoo! full coverage

what are the hot topics in the weblogging community today?
source = daypop

top recent links in the weblog community
source = blogdex, wired vox populi


^  

 
 

tech and sciart net communities reactions


:: september 26, 2001
icann meeting, preliminary announcement

on stability and security of the net's naming and addressing systems
source= icann

:: mid-september, 2001
cpsr statement on the terrorist attack

source= computer professionals for social responsibility

:: september 11, 2001
internet use after "attack on america"
and words for all of us
by vinton cerf.
source= internet society


:: september 18, 2001
thousands dead, millions deprived of civil liberties?
source= richard stallman

:: september 11, 2001
decentralism against terrorism

source= eric s. raymond


:: october 1, 2001
protect the Internet
hacktivism. ethical hackers to protect the internet program
by vinton cerf
source= cyberangels special message

:: september 13, 2001
ccc condemns attacks against communication systems.

source= chaos computer club


:: september 15, 2001
justice not retaliation! seattle 911 peace coalition

source= seattle civic network


:: september 20, 2001
in defense of freedom declaration
source= in defense of freedom

:: september 19, 2001
Improve security not eliminate freedoms

source= Electronic Frontier Foundation


:: september 23, 2001
artist and scientist in times of war

by roger malina.
source= leonardo electronic almanac

:: mid-september, 2001
911—the september 11 project: cultural intervention in civic society

source= rhizome.org


^  

 
 

media evolution


:: october 14, 2001
personal web logs put a face on a faraway disaster
by renee tawa, los angeles times
"since the terrorist attacks and u.s. retaliation in afghanistan, blogs nationwide have taken on unprecedented visibility and, in some cases, new identities as a source of alternative news or "personal journalism." during the recent news events, when traditional media sites crashed or lacked timely updates, online readers jumped to fast-loading blogs... a blogger spins news into a context that regular readers come to trust, with a worldview that is likely to parallel theirs and dig up web links that would resonate with followers of similar sensibility... blog e-mail is posted instantly, an instant community sounding... before sept. 11, blogs had begun to emerge as a distinct net subculture."

:: october 1, 2001
the effects of september 11 on the leading search engine [google]
by richard w. wiggins, first monday

:: september 30, 2001
webloggers offer views media can't
by dan gillmor, san jose mercury news
"in the first hours following the sept. 11 atrocities, consumers of news learned the "what" about the attacks, thanks to the television... then we learned some of the "how" and "why" as print publications... via e-mails, mailing lists, chat groups, personal web journals and non-standard news sources, they received valuable context that the major american media couldn't, or wouldn't, provide. they were witnessing -- and in many cases were also part of -- journalism's future."

:: september 20, 2001
second sight. the atrocity through the eyes of weblogs
by nick denton (founder and chairman of moreover technologies), the guardian
"the suicide attacks on the world trade centre, and the aftermath of the disaster, have been a defining test of old and new media... in weblogs, the web has become a mature medium."

:: september 19, 2001
video on the web moves to mainstream after attacks
by sue zeidler, reuters
"video on the internet has emerged as a critical conduit of news about last week's devastating attacks on the united states... those who already have high-speed access are using it to watch more video on their computers -- sometimes as a substitute for television... the trend toward high viewership has continued in the days since, a harbinger of an emerging trend, experts said."

:: september 15, 2001
amateur newsies top the pros
by leander kahney, wired
"one of the most striking things about the terrorist attacks in washington and new york was the outpouring of outstanding internet coverage from ordinary citizens... and not only was citizen-produced coverage sometimes more accessible than professional news organizations, it was often more compelling... most of the amateur content would be inaccessible, or at least hard to find, if not for many of the web's outstanding weblogs, which function as "portals" to personal content."


^  

 
 

related issues


> architecture

 

:: december 12, 2001
learning from urban disasters
"workshop hosted by new york university's institute for civil infrastructure systems (icis) to bring together researchers, public officials and other experts to address the september 11th response, recovery, and rebuilding efforts."

:: december 3, 2001
structural engineer describes what went wrong
inside the world trade center on sept. 11
"while acknowledging the many innovations that went into the design of the wtc towers in the 1960s - including one of the earliest applications of computer stress analysis - several features made the buildings vulnerable to the intense fires that ultimately caused their collapse... the question is, should fire protection standards be changed in some significant way in the aftermath of sept. 11 and should structural engineering designs include consideration of fire load and the response of structures? right now, structural engineers know very little about fire."

:: november 22, 2001
rebuilding of wtc site to start next year
"real-estate mogul larry silverstein has promised new york mayor-elect michael bloomberg to start rebuilding the world trade center complex as soon as next year... silverstein, with partner westfield america inc., paid $3.2 billion in july for the 99-year lease on the world trade center from the port authority of new york and new jersey just a few weeks before the september terror attacks."

:: november 16, 2001
damage to buildings near world trade center towers caused by falling debris and air pressure wave, not ground shaking, seismologists report
8:46:26 a.m. edt [1240 utc] aircraft impact - north tower magnitude
0.9 9:02:54 a.m. edt [1302 utc] aircraft impact - south tower magnitude
0.7 9:59:04 a.m. edt [1359 utc] collapse - south tower magnitude 2.1
10:28:31 a.m. edt [1428 utc] collapse - north tower magnitude 2.3

:: october 25, 2001
buildings system withstands impacts at over 100 mph
"a new protective building system designed to reduce the impact of man-made or natural disasters has been developed by barrier construction systems of colorado and recently tested at the missile impact facility."

:: october 22, 2001
buildings could be built to make jet planes bounce off
"describe a system they envision that is capable of reducing the amplitude of a physical impact it receives by at least 95-98 percent ... it may be possible to turn the dissipated energy from a shock wave into usable thermal energy."

 


> armament

 

:: december 12, 2001
afghan 'kamikaze camels' warning
"during their war with soviet forces during the 1980s afghanistan's mujahideen were known to strap explosives to camels and send them towards enemy positions."

:: november 8, 2001
send in the drones
"the conflict in afghanistan is a testing-ground for unmanned-aircraft technology."

:: october 26, 2001
boeing's pilotless fighter could make jsf obsolete
by david bowermaster, the seattle times
"could cost two-thirds less and eventually render jsf and the pilots who fly them obsolete. indeed, the quickly advancing capabilities of unmanned combat aerial vehicles, or ucavs, has led many defense experts to predict jsf could be the last manned fighter ever built."

:: october 26, 2001
lockheed-martin team wins joint strike fighter competition
by jim garamone, american forces press service
"has won the largest military contract ever, a possible $200 billion competition to build the joint strike fighter... is scheduled for delivery in fiscal 2008. the f-35 is actually a family of three aircraft designed to replace aircraft in the air force, navy, marine corps and the british military."

:: october 21, 2001
secret weapons: sting-ray weapon could be used against taliban
the sunday times
"new weapons, such as stealth helicopters and "directed energy weapons", which drive off approaching infantry with painful rays, are already in the arsenal of military planners... up to $500 billion has been spent in 20 years on such weapons as part of what are known as 'black projects'."

 


> bioterrorism

 

:: november 11, 2001
bin laden denies knowledge of anthrax mail

:: october 29, 2001
anthrax dectectors are coming

:: october 29, 2001
sandia decontaminant cleaning up anthrax locations

:: october 27, 2001
usps begins buying electron beam systems to sanitize the mail

:: october 24, 2001
air cleaning system destroys anthrax, other pathogens

:: october 23, 2001
researchers discover secrets of anthrax's killer toxin
"these reports greatly increase our understanding of how anthrax toxin destroys cells and offer promising ways to develop treatments for advanced disease by attacking the toxin itself."

:: october 21, 2001
anthrax attacks now being linked to u.s. right-wing cranks
by chris blackhurst, the independent
"the letters could have been sent by a right-winger, trying to stir up racial tension in the wake of 11 september and using the hijackings as cover ... the anthrax used ... are all from the ames strain, a variety of anthrax developed in the u.s. but also exported overseas ... anthrax terrorism is not a new phenomenon, especially in the u.s."

:: october 3, 2001
the invisible nightmare
by andrew leonard, salon.com
"if not osama bin laden, then someone, somewhere, sometime... that an event of bioterrorist horror will happen seems inevitable. the question then becomes how to defend against it... the best thing we can do is invest in public health."

:: may 12, 1999
about the potential for biological terrorism articles
- smallpox, anthrax, plague, botulinum toxin and tularemia as biological weapons -
source= journal of the american medical association

 


> computing

 

:: october 25, 2001
is xp an open door for open source?
by jane black, business week
"analysts doubt that companies with suddenly tight technology budgets will upgrade quickly from earlier versions of windows. additionally, system upgrades make many chief information officers leery, since a changeover often causes crashes and requires extra training -- two things no one wants to deal with during a budget crunch."

:: october 10, 2001
association for computing machinery's committee on u.s. public policy expert, eugene spafford, takes computer security to congressional committee
"the incredible growth of our society's deployment of computing has too often been conducted with concerns for speed or lowest cost rather than with concern for issues of safety, security and reliability... of more concern, in recent years cost-cutting measures have driven funding agencies to focus more on short-term research than on basic research... researchers also need more access to real-world data for analysis and validation... in several instances, research into novel forms of information security has been curtailed because patent holders have threatened researchers."
source= committee on science sobering news on nation's cyber-security

 


> economics

 

:: december 13, 2001
final world trade center deals
"german computer experts are working round the clock to unlock the truth behind an unexplained surge in financial transactions made just before two hijacked planes crashed into new york's world trade center on september 11. were criminals responsible for the sharp rise in credit card transactions that moved through some computer systems at the wtc shortly before the planes hit the twin towers? or was it coincidence that unusually large sums of money, perhaps more than $100 million, were rushed through the computers as the disaster unfolded? a world leader in retrieving data, german-based firm convar is trying to answer those questions and help credit card companies, telecommunications firms and accountants in new york recover their records from computer hard drives that have been partially damaged by fire, water or fine dust."

:: november 30, 2001
pakistan, iran agree to lay gas pipeline
"pakistan and iran have agreed on construction of a multi-million dollar gas pipeline between the two countries which would ultimately supply gas to india."

:: november 26, 2001
the business-cycle peak of march 2001

"the nber's business cycle dating committee has determined that a peak in business activity occurred in the u.s. economy in march 2001. a peak marks the end of an expansion and the beginning of a recession. the determination of a peak date in march is thus a determination that the expansion that began in march 1991 ended in march 2001 and a recession began... before the attacks of september 11, it is possible that the decline in the economy would have been too mild to qualify as a recession. the attacks clearly deepened the contraction and may have been an important factor in turning the episode into a recession."

:: november 1, 2001
the next society
by peter drucker, the economist
"the new economy may or may not materialise, but there is no doubt that the next society will be with us shortly. in the developed world, and probably in the emerging countries as well, this new society will be a good deal more important than the new economy (if any). it will be quite different from the society of the late 20th century, and also different from what most people expect. much of it will be unprecedented. and most of it is already here, or is rapidly emerging."

:: september 10, 2001
internet II: rebooting america
by michael s. malone, forbes asap
"(we come towards) a breakout in IT. we've seen such conjunctions before--in 1958, 1970, 1976, and 1996--and each (the integrated circuit, the microprocessor, the PC, and the Web) set off an explosion that reverberated throughout the world... we can do the same now for the convergence of 2004-2005, and give it a name: internet II, the great global grid... there's only one problem: It might not happen. america's infrastructure is already crumbling... the great economic boom of the 1990s, the largest and most sustained in u.s. history, was built on the foundation of america's investment in infrastructure in the 1950s and 1960s... internet II is coming, but we aren't ready. if we aren't ready soon, we may have to wait until 2015 or 2020, and perhaps visit frankfurt or shanghai to see what we missed."

 


> emergency response

 

:: september 28, 2001
mceer researchers study structural engineering and emergency response
in wake of world trade center attacks.

source= multidisciplinary center for earthquake engineering research

:: september 26, 2001
proposing a national emergency technology guard (net guard)
net guard would repair, restore communications in crisis
source= wyden issues call for emergency technology corps
[senator wyden chairs the senate commerce subcommittee on science, technology and space]

 


> geopolitics

 

:: december 13, 2001
bush: u.s. pulls out key 1972 missile treaty
"i have concluded the abm [anti-ballistic missile] treaty hinders our government's ways to protect our people from future terrorist or rogue state missile attacks... my decision to withdraw from the treaty will not, in any way, undermine our new relationship or russian security... the 1972 abm treaty was signed by the united states and the soviet union at a much different time, in a vastly different world. one of the signatories, the soviet union, no longer exists. and neither does the hostility that once led both our countries to keep thousands of nuclear weapons on hair-trigger alert, pointed at each other... today, as the events of sept. 11 made all too clear, the greatest threats to both our countries come not from each other, or other big powers in the world, but from terrorists who strike without warning, or rogue states who seek weapons of mass destruction."

:: november 29, 2001
musharraf a big loser, says paper
by latafat ali siddiqui. dawn
"musharraf has ended up at a disadvantage on the political chessboard... has few allies in the interim afghan government that was fashioned out of anti-taliban opposition groups last week. he has not won political support for pro-pakistani independence groups fighting against indian rule in occupied kashmir. and he has not been able to counter the strengthening of u.s. relations with india... we are looking at a picture of fundamental realignment at the international level, where the u.s., india, israel and russia seem to be coming together on a variety of issues and poor pakistan is left out in the cold."

:: mid june, 2001
declaration of shanghai cooperation organization
kazakhstan, china, the kyrgyzistan, russia, tajikistan and uzbekistan agreement on fighting terrorism and extremism.
"to maintain global strategic balance and stability under the international circumstances at present is of special significance." "we declare once again that the threat facing central asia today is a threat facing the whole of eurasia. the source nourishing terrorism and extremism is the instability in afghanistan."
source = people's daily online

:: winter, 1998
the geopolitics of oil in central asia
by constantine arvanitopoulos
"energy resources are reshaping the geopolitical map in eurasia. eventual control of the development of oil deposits as well as the eventual pipeline routing will determine the political and economic future of russia, turkey and the central asian states; it will determine iran's position in the region and its relations with the west; it will determine the realignment of the strategic triangle among the us, russia and china; and it will have strategic consequences by lessening dependence on persian gulf oil."
source = a journal of foreign policy issues

 


> network

 

:: december 12, 2001
fbi confirms 'magic lantern' project exists
"an fbi spokesman confirmed that the u.s. government is working on a controversial internet spying technology, code-named "magic lantern'', which could be used to eavesdrop on computer communications by suspected criminals."

:: november 28, 2001
u.s. assumes global cyber-police authority
by mark rasch. the register
"every country has the right to protect its own citizens, property and interests. no country has the right to impose its will, its values, its mores or laws on conduct that occurs outside its borders even if they may have a tangential effect on that country. the new legislation permits the u.s. government to do just that, and is unwise and unwarranted."

:: november 23, 2001
u.s. shuts down somalia internet
"somalia's only internet company and a key telecoms business have been forced to close because the united states suspects them of terrorist links... both companies have stated they are not linked to terrorists. along with denying all internet access to somalis, the closures have severely restricted international telephone lines and shut down vitally needed money transfer facilities...80% of somalis depend on money they receive from relatives outside the country."

:: october, 2001
chilling effects of anti-terrorism
eff page
"attempts to convey the chilling effect that responses to the terrorist attacks of september 11, 2001, have had on information availability on the internet as well as some sense of the effect on people trying to provide this information."

:: october 18, 2001
beyond carnivore: fbi eyes packet taps
by max smetannikov, interactive week
"fbi has spent the last two years developing a new surveillance architecture that would concentrate internet traffic in several key locations where all packets, not just e-mail, could be wiretapped. It is now planning to begin implementing this architecture using the powers it has under existing wiretapping laws."

:: october 10, 2001
govnet planned to protect critical government i.t. functions from cyber attacks
"at the request of the president's cyberspace security advisor, the u.s. general services administration today released a request for information (rfi) to the u.s. telecommunications industry seeking information and suggestions for the development of a special telecommunications network. akey feature of this network, called govnet, is that it must be able to perform its functions with no risk of penetration or disruption from users on other networks, such as the internet. govnet is planned to be a private voice and data network based on the internet protocol (ip), but with no connectivity with commercial or public networks."
source= u.s. general services administration

 


> psychology

 

:: december 21, 2001
did kohl around bin laden's eyes poison his brain?
"many arab cultures have a history of prolonged lead exposure through kohl [black makeup made with lead], lead poisoning should especially be considered a possible factor in recent events because many arab fighters, including some of the taliban, traditionally use kohl around their eyes. some pictures of osama bin laden certainly suggest he might be wearing kohl, and it is known that he suffers from kidney problems. lead poisoning could explain bin laden's kidney problems and could only contribute to the madness of suicide bombers under the influence of malignant religious views... earlier studies revealed that hyperactive children and criminal offenders have significantly elevated levels of lead, manganese, or cadmium compared to controls; high blood lead at age seven predicts juvenile delinquency and adult crime."

:: november 29, 2001
checking attitude changes about arab muslims online
"how much they changed is difficult to assess, but individuals have the opportunity to measure their own level of unconscious prejudice toward arab muslims by taking a test on the internet - http://www.tolerance.org - developed by university psychologists... the new test is a spin-off of a psychological tool called the implicit association test... measures unconscious or automatic associations that underlie prejudice... our minds may be more contaminated than we recognize."

:: november 8, 2001
trauma resource
online information and resources for those who are having personal difficulty coping with the sept. 11 terrorist attack and its aftermath. the site can be found at this url: <http://www.socialwork.buffalo.edu/Trauma.htm> and is intended both for mental health professionals and the general public.

:: october 7, 2001
new study offers insight to why many are having trouble with concentration and normalcy after terrorist attack.
"during heightened anxiety, people have difficulty turning their attention away from threatening stimuli."
source= american psychological association

 


> security agencies

 

:: november 28, 2001
ex-fbi officials criticize tactics on terrorism
detention of suspects not effective, they say
by jim mcgee. washington post

"justice department is resurrecting tactics the government rejected in the late 1970s because they did not prevent terrorism and led to abuses of civil liberties."

:: november 8, 2001
secret cia units playing a central combat role
by bob woodward. washington post. november 18, 2001
"the cia is mounting a hidden war in afghanistan with secret paramilitary units on the ground and predator surveillance drones in the sky that last week provided key intelligence for concentrated u.s. airstrikes on al qaeda leaders... on sept. 27, one of these units was the first u.s. force to enter the country... the units are part of a highly secret cia capability, benignly named the special activities division."

:: november 2, 2001
if cia and the goverment weren't involved in the september 11 attacks
what were they doing?

by michael c. ruppert, from the wilderness magazine
a "timeline listing crucial events both before and after the september 11th suicide attacks, which have been blamed on bin laden, establishes cia foreknowledge of them and strongly suggests that there was criminal complicity on the part of the u.s. government in their execution. It also makes clear that the events which have taken place since september 11th are based upon an agenda that has little to do with the attacks."

:: october 21, 2001
cia told to do 'whatever necessary' to kill bin laden

by bob woodward, washington post
"president bush last month signed an intelligence order directing the cia to undertake its most sweeping and lethal covert action since the founding of the agency in 1947 ... the president also added more than $1 billion to the agency's war on terrorism, most of it for the new covert action. the operation will include what officials said is "unprecedented" coordination between the cia and commando and other military units ... the cia has studied bin laden and his al qaeda network for years. a special unit or "bin laden station," created in 1996, works round the clock at headquarters."

:: october 14, 2001
attackers did not know they were to die

by david rose, the observer
intelligence failure in context

:: april 27, 2000
intelligence challenges through 2015
by john c. gannon.
source= cia

 


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