The Ground Truth: The Story Behind America's Defense on 9/11

Another book from the 9/11 Commission that claims the whole thing was a fraud, this time from Senior Counsel John Farmer. I know most of you won't trust Farmer because of his bio, but I think we should consider his opinion as a member of the Commission, especially since he seems to be very critical of it. The book is supposed to come out April 14. - simuvac

The Ground Truth: The Story Behind America's Defense on 9/11

Product Description
The story that John Farmer, Senior Counsel to the 9/11 Commission, tells is one of monumental bureaucratic failure encompassing our entire government. Farmer exposes "the story behind the story", as the false congressional testimony given by an array of agencies and individuals, as well as misleading reports in the media culminated in the Commission staff's dawning recognition that the public had been seriously misled about what occurred during the morning of the attacks. What emerges with painful, stunning clarity is that "at some level of the government, at some point in time...there was an agreement not to tell the truth about what happened." The implications of this are profound. And Farmer argues that these lies have prevented real and necessary changes that would make our nation more secure and responsive to subsequent threats and catastrophes--domestic, man-made and natural. Farmer pulls no punches in drawing these conclusions, or making explicit what will have to change to make our nation safe. There is a dispassionate beauty in Farmer's writing and the way in which he allows the facts of this story to unfold. He takes the readers through these terrifying events and revelations with calm, impartial and utterly compelling relentlessness. "The Ground Truth" is the definitive account of all the needs to happen following the tragedy of September 11th.

About the Author
John Farmer served as Senior Counsel to the 9/11 Commission, where his areas of responsibility included assessing the national response to the terrorist attacks and evaluating the current state of national preparedness for terrorist attacks and natural disasters, he also served as attorney general of New Jersey (1999-2002), as chief counsel to Governor Whitman, and as a federal prosecutor. He recently served as a subject matter/rule of law expert on security to the special envoy for Middle East regional security. He is currently a partner of a New Jersey law form and an adjunct professor of national security law at Rutgers University Law School. His editorials and articles have appeared in "The New York Times" and elsewhere.

The Ground Truth houghtonmifflinbooks

http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/catalog/titledetail.cfm?titleNumber=...

The Ground Truth
The Ground Truth: The Story Behind America's Defense on 9/11
by: John Farmer

Description:
As of the 9/11 Commission’s one of the primary authors report, John Farmer is proud of his and his colleagues’ work. Yet he came away from the experience convinced that there was a further story to be told, one he was uniquely qualified to write.

Now that story can be told. Tape recordings, transcripts, and contemporaneous records that had been classified have since been declassified, and the inspector general’s investigations of government conduct have been completed. Drawing on his knowledge of those sources, as well as his years as an attorney in public and private practice, Farmer reconstructs the truth of what happened on that fateful day and the disastrous circumstances that allowed it: the institutionalized disconnect between what those on the ground knew and what those in power did. He reveals — terrifyingly and illuminatingly — the key moments in the years, months, weeks, and days that preceded the attacks, then descends almost in real time through the attacks themselves, revealing them as they have never before been seen.

Ultimately Farmer builds the inescapably convincing case that the official version not only is almost entirely untrue but serves to create a false impression of order and security. The ground truth that Farmer captures tells a very different story — a story that is doomed to be repeated unless the systemic failures he reveals are confronted and remedied.

even the limited/twisted hangouts

have contained useful, damning and important information- and documenting contradictions is important, as it shows more clearly what's false, even if it doesn't reveal the whole truth.

Farmer was in charge of the FAA/NMCC/NORAD/NEADS investigations that gave a completely bogus account of standard procedures and the failure to respond to any of the off-course flights, a major hole in the OCT.

i'll be checking this out of the library as i doubt Farmer deserves a dime

thx for posting.

http://911reports.com

The 9/11 Commission

I believe Philip Zelikow had the last say or at least a large say as to what went into the final report. MSNBC reported:

"Around 9:35 on the morning of 9/11, Cheney was lifted off his feet by the Secret Service and hustled into the White House bunker. Cheney testified to the 9/11 Commission that he spoke with President Bush before giving an order to shoot down a hijacked civilian airliner that appeared headed toward Washington. (The plane was United Flight 93, which crashed in a Pennsylvania field after a brave revolt by the passengers.) But a source close to the commission, who declined to be identified revealing sensitive information, says that none of the staffers who worked on this aspect of the investigation believed Cheney's version of events."

So Cheney's version of events might have been in the final report, but it seems that many on the Commission didn't believe him.

Yet another limited hangout to pan for gold nuggets.

Hopefully, there will be more than in Shenon's The Commission.

Another desperate attempt to slow the swelling tide of truth.

I'm going to hazard a guess that NORAD is going to take the fall in this one, and if we're lucky we may see a little more on the war games and Mr. Cheney and Mr. Rumsfeld's "incompetence".

EDIT: The book is not due to be released until September 8, 2009.

http://www.borders.com/online/store/TitleDetail?sku=1594488940

I, too, will be checking my local library for it.

Thanks for posting this, simuvac.

Cheers!

Gatekeeping?

I have had some interesting email chats and discussions with a John Farmer [I think?] about NORAD, the FAA , radar, NEADS and the Pentagon...and I am of mixed opinion about his allegiances.

Maybe a gatekeeper...maybe not?

I also believe that it will be quite some time before we get to all the inside realities about what happened on 9/11...although the 9//11 TRUTH for PEACE Movement has got most of it correct as we forge ahead [sans Tarpley, Reynolds and the Fetzer types...].

I've ordered the book and will check in later after I read it.

The John Farmer that I dealt with may or may not know that the approach that I took with him allowed enough rope to hang himself...or enough room to remove the noose from his neck and do the right thing for our country. Someone noted that he settled in with that JREF outfit...not sure...could be troubling...or he could be fishing JREF's waters too.

Actually, he probably does know this because he is without any doubt...brilliant....but so was Nixon!

Interesting times we live in AYE?

love, peace and progress...with

PUBLICALLY FUNDED ELECTIONS using HAND COUNTED PAPER BALLOTS on a NEW PAID FEDERAL VOTING HOIDAY...

...so that we may throw the criminals OUT of congress...

[criminals=MOST millionaire politicians...]

Robin Hordon

PS: In my view, the criminality and lack of integrity of the recent USofA presidencies and politics in general are some things that we will be able to deal with only AFTER election reforms.

For now, we have to deal with the Wall Street, AIPAC, the Military Industrial/Congressional Complexes, and all the EnormoCorps [such as the oil boys] that buy and lock-up politicions who then thrive and become rich during their time spent "inside the beltway"...

This country has long been "hacked" by the HI PERPS and MONEY EXCHANGERS and the common citizen has yet to grab onto these truths...they are totally "American Heroed" into blindness....

It seems that the common citizen who had a tiny hand in electing Obama [mostly by voting] has come to feel SMUG in that since they have elected a "black guy" [who most likely will serve as the 12-24 month reality buffer...aka..."mother's little helper"] as the citizens of the good ole USofA develop their NEW boundaries of being comfortably mis-informed while being satisfied that they have discovered that they INDEED had been so misinformed and misused in the PAST, but not now with their vote for Obama. Comfortably numb indeed.

Knee-jerk lefties are the bain to any progress because they can be seduced into trusting the simplest and latest "shiny thing" that is dangled in front of their needy eyes by the existing powers to be...

For example...like that Obama did NOT make it clear in his campaign that he would ramp up forces in Afghanistan...and that the single payer national heathcare approach was not ever considered...and that he was going to expand the military...

HELLO????

BUT, these TRUTHS may be denied for a long, long time by those people easily seduced into the "CHANGE" rhetoric crafted by Obama and his regional spokespersons as he manipulated the country into believing his "rhetorical-fence sitting" words...only some of which the naive believers actually even heard.

However, on the real good side, Obama has made it clear that if citizens speak-up and stand -up...he will then be able to make some changes looking towards the future. He is on record about this and has basically asked citizens to become more involved in their own governances.

SOOOOO...the rubber hits the road here...citizens will need to oppose existing corporate powers and political influences, speak-up and stand-up, demand better ways to exist and a better governemnt, get involved in their governements at all levels, and FORCE some changes. Or, they will effectively be shut up...pretty simple formula I'd say. Its critical to keep raising expectations and demanding changes or, we will go back to sleep in what is now called...

"THE GREAT GRAY NAP"

...a 30-40 year [and growing] "napping experience" that has made most "GRAY HAIRS" [NOT those still active in self governance] remain nearly 30 years behind the times...

Its the cluster of the tens of millions of these GRAY HAIRS that have been at "citizen controls" since the 70s...and its these citizens whose children and grandchildren have recently taken the keys to the "car-citizenship" from them because of this ongoing NAP while at the wheel.

Lets hope that the openness and curiosity that we Truthers find on the streets with the younger "connected" kids as they deal with 9/11 Truth [for Peace], spreads upward in age. Only THEN will there be hope or real change.

If the slumbering of this group of GRAY HAIRED citizens continues, the ruling class will have once again, "comfortably numbed" or disenfranchised the next generation of younger citizens now in the pipeline. In this instance it will have been accomplished with the development and installment of a political placebo named Obama.

It would be nice if the 9/11 Truth [for Peace] Movement would encourage citizens to demand a better democracy when we are doing our thing...its a really good idea. rdh

...

Who Is John Farmer?


Do these people deserve to know how and why their loved ones were murdered? Do we deserve to know how and why 9/11 happened?

I think that there are two John Farmers...but?

One John Farmer was a player on the 9/11 commission itself...as alluded to in this thread.

Another? John Farmer is a bright fellow/cop/scientist/mathematician or whatever who worked with Mark Gaffney in his book: The 9/11 MYSTERY PLANE which taps into FAA, NORAD and radar data all around WDC...and much more of course.

This Farmer had obtained radar data via FOIA and asked my advice on some of the stuff. From my view there was enough information to bury both the FDR of AA77? AND the radar data provided by the Pentagon's RADES radar facility. This was pointed out to Farmer and at every junction of where "the rubber hits the road"...he terminated the conversation. Hmmm? CIT thinks this Farmer is on the inside with Langley...Hmmm? Don't know...

RADES seems to be a handy-dandy military radar analysis outfit that stands at the ready to prepare radar data that's needed...or perhaps NOT needed for exposure. BTW...an interesting radar target analysis came out of Indianapolis Center created by an FAA employee who acknowledges that he was not certified to perform such tasks...and who also noted that he had the help of several military types who happened to be in the vicinity to offer that helping hand...Hmmm?

Out of these conversations with this Farmer came a very viable explanaition about WHY NEADS could not see a HUGE B757 target in the vicinity of Albany, NY when for decades that exact target had ALWAYS been able to be seen there. Gaffney wrote one sentence about it in the book [a big sentence yet to be fully understood]. Should there be another investigation, chances are that we will discover the computer radar trickery used to "eliminate" certain targets from NEADS radar scopes...and of course, the quiet little room or airbourne platform handling-managing this data in "The 9/11 Attacks War Game Scenario". A scenario that perhaps Cheney had something to do with when hanging around in the PEOC?

Think video games and "zapping" certain electronically generated images into oblivion...and mix in the infamous 24 second delay in radar data delivery to NEADS on 9/11. Its a virtual world in there at NEADS...and programs can be reprogrammed...

Anyway, I may be mixing up my John Farmers here...

love, peace and progress...

robin hordon

thx Jon- more on Farmer's views and values in the 911 records

Farmer has more integrity than I assumed; from your 'who is' link, it looks like he was the main force behind NORAD being subpoenaed for withheld records, and the referral for the 'misstatements'

From the 9/11 Commission's records:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/14141959/NYC-Box-2-AzarelloBrown-FAA-Docs-Fdr-...
3) "Speaking of new ground rules: Having spent the weekend immersed in the contrast between what actually occurred and the way it has been presented to the public, I am persuaded that Col. Marr — and perhaps others who have been part of the public presentation (Dooley and Sanderson come to mind) — should be interviewed under oath."

4) "One of the lines of questioning I plan to pursue with Col Marr will be his input to the early explanations of what occurred, beginning with Gen. Myers's Congressional testimony the week of 9/11, in which he professed involvement in virtually every important defense decision, and then completely botched the scramble story. Marr is critical to understanding the evolution of the administration's defense of its actions on 9/11."

Dana Hyde on John Farmer's memo prior to the public hearing where they disclosed the NORAD Timeline discrepancies- also says Team 8 was considered "zealots" by Zelikow's Front Office:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/14353662/DH-B5-Team-8-DraftsMemos-Fdr-Dana-Hyd...
"If asked my opinion on the substance of the memo I will say just that; I will emphasize that the facts we have uncovered show deception, and that you feel it is important to pursue whether such deception was purposeful."

http://911reports.com

To clarify, this John Farmer

To clarify, this John Farmer is apparently not the John Farmer of AAL77 who was recently attacking the new Active Thermitic Material paper with Mackey et al on JREF.

Hmm....

Are you sure? I was aware that the John Farmer who was on the 9/11 Commission and the one who ran the AAL77.com website were different. However, I believe the John Farmer who did the AAL77 website and the one attacking the new Active Thermitic Material paper were the same. Please, correct me if I am wrong.

I believe that John Farmer posts under the name "911flies" at JREF. This is one of his early posts at JREF.

"Moderating and maintaining an online presence which lends to open debate is a monumental task at times. It is one that I prefer not to deal with since it distracts from actually getting any work done. So I will leave AAL77.COM up as a resource for other researchers, but I have decided to use JREF to announce new materials or present any of my work. I look forward to a mutually beneficial exchange of ideas here at JREF."
http://forums.randi.org/showpost.php?p=4262112&postcount=1

"911Files" also posted this about Steven Jones's recent paper,

"Sorry, I don't have 800 bucks to spend on a "pay to play" journal. However, that does not excuse the fact that Dr. Jones did NOT present enough control samples in his work. Until someone comes up with a control sample of thermite spectra that I requested 20 pages ago, then I have to go with the paint chips hypothesis and charge that Dr. Jones did not follow scientific protocol. Perhaps that is why he had to go "pay to play" and was unable to get a reputable scientific journal to run it. "
http://forums.randi.org/showpost.php?p=4596790&postcount=783

He appears to be the same John Farmer.

One-Eyed Man in Land of Blind

I've been though a lot of the commission stuff lately and come away with the impression that Farmer was probably one of the better/less bad investigators on the commission. He (a) actively searched for a found original source material (b) insisted that subpoenas be issued and (c) wanted the commission to get a prosecutor to look at statements he thought military leaders made falsely (which somebody on the commission - Philip Zelikow, I'm looking at you - managed to thwart).

Zelikow carried Rice's water, Grewe carried the CIA's water, you might disagree with Farmer's conclusions, but I don't think he was carrying NORAD's water. Having said that, he couldn't find out who represented the Pentagon in the White House video conference? How hard can that have been?

Look Who Else is "Exposing the Truth"

The Emperor's New Clothes: Exposing the Truth from Watergate to 9/11 (Hardcover)
by Richard Ben-Veniste (Author)

This title will be released on May 26, 2009.

http://www.amazon.com/Emperors-New-Clothes-Exposing-Watergate/dp/0312357...

Yeah, saw that

It doesn't seem to be focused on 9/11, though. But definitely worth a look, for whatever tidbits we can find.

Ben-Veniste

Will be interesting to see which way Ben-Veniste steers the responsibility given the connections Daniel Hopsicker found him to have with some major players in the suppressed underground expose Barry & the Boys (which connects up Watergate and our Central American/Cuban/CIA drug trade/usual suspect shenanigans).

Not expecting much here

'Will be interesting to see which way Ben-Veniste steers the responsibility....'

Likely not in the direction of the truth, given said connections.

9/11 Commission Counsel: Government Agreed to Lie About 9/11

http://www.infowars.com/911-commission-counsel-government-agreed-to-lie-...
9/11 Commission Counsel: Government Agreed to Lie About 9/11

Paul Joseph Watson
Prison Planet.com
Tuesday, April 14, 2009

9/11 Commission Counsel: Government Agreed to Lie About 9/11

The senior counsel to the 9/11 Commission - John Farmer - says that the government agreed not to tell the truth about 9/11, echoing the assertions of fellow 9/11 Commission members who concluded that the Pentagon were engaged in deliberate deception about their response to the attack.

Farmer served as Senior Counsel to the 9/11 Commission (officially known as the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States), and is also a former New Jersey Attorney General.
featured stories 9/11 Commission Counsel: Government Agreed to Lie About 9/11

Farmer’s book about his experiences working for the Commission is entitled The Ground Truth: The Story Behind America’s Defense on 9/11, and is set to be released tomorrow.

The book unveils how “the public had been seriously misled about what occurred during the morning of the attacks,” and Farmer himself states that “at some level of the government, at some point in time…there was an agreement not to tell the truth about what happened.”

Only the very naive would dispute that an agreement not to tell the truth is an agreement to lie. Farmer’s contention is that the government agreed to create a phony official version of events to cover-up the real story behind 9/11.

The publisher of the book, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, states that, “Farmer builds the inescapably convincing case that the official version not only is almost entirely untrue but serves to create a false impression of order and security.”

In August 2006, the Washington Post reported, “Some staff members and commissioners of the Sept. 11 panel concluded that the Pentagon’s initial story of how it reacted to the 2001 terrorist attacks may have been part of a deliberate effort to mislead the commission and the public rather than a reflection of the fog of events on that day, according to sources involved in the debate.”

The report revealed how the 10-member commission deeply suspected deception to the point where they considered referring the matter to the Justice Department for criminal investigation.

“We to this day don’t know why NORAD [the North American Aerospace Command] told us what they told us,” said Thomas H. Kean, the former New Jersey Republican governor who led the commission. “It was just so far from the truth. . . . It’s one of those loose ends that never got tied.”

Farmer himself is quoted in the Post article, stating, “I was shocked at how different the truth was from the way it was described …. The [Norad air defense] tapes told a radically different story from what had been told to us and the public for two years…. This is not spin. This is not true.”

As we also reported in August 2006, released portions of NORAD tapes from 9/11, which were featured in a Vanity Fair article, do little to answer skeptic’s questions about the impotence of U.S. air defenses on 9/11 and if anything only increase focus on the incompatibility of the official version of events with what is actually known to have taken place on that day.

Make no mistake, Farmer is not saying that 9/11 was an inside job, however, Farmer’s testimony, along with that of his fellow 9/11 Commission members, conclusively demonstrates that, whatever really happened on 9/11, the official story as told to the public on the day and that which remains the authorities’ version of events today, is a lie - according to the very people who were tasked by the government to investigate it. This is a fact that no debunker or government apologist can ever legitimately deny.