Bradley County Commission to grant a zoning change for the proposed new airport at Old Tasso. The Bradley County Regional Planning Commission had already refused to vote on the rezoning and, true to form, this would have been the end of the matter until planners changed their decision. Here is where the conspiracy part kicks in. Knowing that there will be five new members on the county commission this month and not knowing their reaction to the grass roots opposition directed against the new airport proposal, the airport authority, with  the aid of commission chairman, Ben Atchley, steamrollered the vote before new blood could be sworn in. Four of the five retiring commissioners voted to approve the zoning change when conscience and ethics should have dictated they abstain on such an important and controversial vote. Also, the vote was scheduled by Atchley for a 10am meeting, the last voting meeting before changing the guard, when it is known the least opposition would be present due to opponents being at work. It is my opinion that it was a genuine conspiracy to deny citizens the right to petition their elected government at a time fair to them and to give the advantage to the pro airport lobby which mainly consists of vested interest and government officials. Because Atchley's handling of the issue was not in the spirit of open and equitable government and a underhanded slap in the face for the democratic process it would not be unreasonable for the new commissioners to demand a chance to vote to overturn what was obviously a rigged result.

Those commissioners voting to approve zoning for the airport were Ben Atchley (Chairman), Mike Smith (retiring), Connie Wilson (husband is Joe Wilson, 911 Center Director and a pilot who uses Hardwick Field), Matt Brown (retiring), Lisa Stanbery, Jeff Yarber, Bill Ledford, Ralph Creel (retiring), Mike Plumley, Bill Varnell (retiring). Those supporting the airport against local residents wishes were officials and members of the Cleveland - Bradley Chamber of Commerce, members of the Cleveland Municipal Airport Authority, Lynn Devault (Chairman, also President of Jones Management Services, part of the group that includes Jones Airways LLC), Mike McCoy (Vice Chairman), Lou Patten (Secretary - Treasurer), Jim Sharp and LeRoy Rymer, Jr. It is interesting to note that almost all of the major proponents hold quasi-official (government) positions appointed by the City of Cleveland, and the rest have a vested personal interest in constructing a new airport. Was there a premeditated conspiracy to ramrod an airport site over objections from citizens? I think so.

What do you think?

Finally, the 911 conspiracy.
Over the years many conspiracy theories have surfaced suggesting what actually happened on September 11, 2001, was not the official version. I have always treated conspiracy theories with the utmost skepticism for obvious reasons but there have been times when the ideas proposed and the evidence quoted seem to at least warrant investigation. Most times investigation material is posted on the internet from unofficial sources, so itself is opinion and suspect, but occasionally statements  are made that defy explanation - such as how a cell phone could be used while an aircraft is flying at 400 plus miles an hour over cell towers that would lose contact before a message could be picked up. There may be a simple explanation to this anomaly, so will someone please enlighten me so I can pass it on to our readers.

Among the unsigned mail this month was an anti-Semitic and anti-Bush letter with an attached printout, probably from the internet, highlighting unanswered questions proposed by an unknown person. There were many queries that seemed worth making, such as the warnings given US intelligence in July 2001 by British, Russian and German authorities? And why Andreas von Bulow, a former German government minister, wanted to know how the identities of the alleged hijackers could be released just minutes after the attack if they weren't prepared beforehand? How was the smaller tower imploded so quickly after the two main towers fell? This was done for safety reasons but how was it planned so quickly when it is so difficult to bring a building of that size down safely? What about the gold bullion and currency alleged to have been stored in a bank vault beneath the World Trade Center, what happened to it? These are the sort of questions that fuel conspiracy theories and they rarely seem to get answered. Was there some involvement of the Bush administration in the September 11 attack? I sincerely doubt it - it would be unfathomable to think a government could plan such a terrible act against its own people, but then again history has proven otherwise. Conspiracy theories are just theories but they sure do make interesting reading.
What do you think?

"What do you think?" Continued
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