Posted on 02/27/2007 8:58:30 AM PST by EdLake
Hatfill Settles $10M Libel Lawsuit
By JOSH GERSTEIN Staff Reporter of the Sun
February 27, 2007 A former Army scientist named by investigators as a "person of interest" in the 2001 anthrax attacks, Dr. Steven Hatfill, has settled his $10 million libel suit against Vanity Fair and Reader's Digest after the two magazines agreed to retract any implication that the bioweapons specialist was behind the deadly anthrax mailings.
A statement issued today by a lawyer for Dr. Hatfill, Hassan Zavareei, said the case "has now been resolved to the mutual satisfaction of all the parties." He did not indicate whether any money changed hands.
A spokeswoman for Reader's Digest, Ellen Morgenstern, confirmed the settlement, but she would not elaborate. "All I can tell you is we're very satisfied with the results. I can't get into any detail," she said. A call seeking comment from Vanity Fair's parent company, Condé Nast Publications, was not immediately returned.
(Excerpt) Read more at nysun.com ...
"The purified powder in the Senate letters was made the way insecticides are made. It was NOT made the way bioweapons are made. Any expert in making insecticide or anti-fungal powders out of Bacillus thuringiensis or Bacillus globigii would know how to make the powder found in the Senate letters."
yep, that there BG is some real nice stuff...[IF you believe everything the government tells you]
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=BG%2C+%22project+shad%22%2C+fact+sheet&btnG=Google+Search
I'm just a tad skeptical when it comes to the "coulda - shoulda - woulda" approach to "research"....that's all.
BUMP
GOOD SCENARIO OVERALL, HOWEVER:
" Terrorists were trained and a deadly bug was cultured.
The vessels were chosen as airline tickets were purchased
and postage paid envelopes were obtained. The terrorists
boarded fuel laden planes and the anthrax was loaded into
the envelopes. The jet aircrafts took off and the envelopes
were placed in the drop box. The system was now the
delivery means for terror. The only difference was that
the cargo was now perverse."
We diverge here. My thoughts on the matter is that the two parties were NOT working in concert [Thank GOD] and could have produced MUCH more dramatic results if they had been.
Here's a few of my presumptions, for which I will no doubt be attacked by folks to whom this reply is NOT intended....
[experts gotta spurt, you know]
1. The "group" performing the anthrax attacks could be as small as ONE person. No need for backup to mail a few letters.
2. The attacks happened more or less sequentially from Florida to New England.
3. Outside of the manufacture of such substances, the attacks WERE diabolical...but nonetheless, AMATEURISH.
4. The handwriting samples look mighty similar.
5. It's not just foreigners who would have a chip on their shoulder regarding the U.S. Government, but you'd have to have a pretty extreme gripe to kill innocent bystanders just to send a message.
None of this "requires" foreign nationals.
My THEORY is that someone used the 9-11 hubbub to make it APPEAR as if the two incidents were linked....and the attacks would have been perpetrated by the same nutcase anyway....just handy timing. The MAIN reason I'm contending that it was not a PURELY "terrorist" attack is that it could have been carried out in a WAY more effective manner for very little added "cost" or preparation and planning.
I'm NOT going to speculate publicly on HOW this could have been accomplished...as I do NOT want to give any other maniacs any "good ideas".....nor should you.
Let's just say I've thought long and hard about this and I've heard NOTHING from the start to now that precludes a disgruntled American, probably in the employ of the government, with something to "prove"...including their own cleverness...who, for now, has GOTTEN AWAY WITH IT.
Furthermore, REAL terrorist groups invariably CLAIM RESPONSIBILITY for the attacks...sometimes several at once...and to MY knowledge, no such message has ever emerged. No, this is someone who means to evade capture by not becoming known.
In EVERY case of 'sudden jihad syndrome' whining hereabouts there is a KNOWN perpetrator with a KNOWN agenda.
THIS act was meant to "terrify" by its mysterious origins.
A LOT of serial killers have been caught because they wanted the NOTORIETY and EGO BOOST from showing how they could "outsmart" the law enforcement personnel.
One MORE scenario is a possibility which is not being discussed....the perpetrator may have ALREADY been found and "nullified"...in which case, we're NEVER going to hear the truth....the government could be banking on the eventuality of flagging interest to achieve a "cover up". The purpose in this case would be to SAVE FACE....[and it's not like that has never been done before]
Hmmm.....
And I suppose you don't find it surprising that the authorities knew within a few days after 9/11 that the terrorists had taken flight training in Florida. They had all the records and eyewitness testimony.
And you don't find it "surprising" that FIVE AND A HALF YEARS LATER and the authorities have found NO evidence that al Qaeda was behind the anthrax attacks. In fact, ALL the evidence seems to dispute such a belief.
You can BELIEVE that al Qaeda was behind the anthrax attacks, but it is just a BELIEF that goes contrary to all the facts.
You can see from these discussions that some people BEGIN WITH A BELIEF and then they rationalize everything to fit that BELIEF. They can even rationalize that al Qaeda would take precautions to avoid harming Americans and would not follow with another attack even after al Qaeda members were hunted down and killed.
It just goes to show that people can rationize anything to suit their needs and beliefs.
But it has nothing to do with what really happened.
How many thousands of people would have to be involved in this "cover up"? How many government agencies? How do they recruit people for this vast conspiracy?
Do you really believe that every single person they asked to participate in this "cover up" went along with it and NO ONE blew the whistle? Or do you think the CIA's ninja warriors dropped from black helicopters and "nullified" everyone who even thought about blowing the whistle? Where did they recruit the ninja warriors who were willing to kill innocent Americans just for speaking the truth?
Why is it so hard to believe that some scientist could take precautions when sending out these letters and create a situation where it is REALLY difficult to accumulate enough SOLID evidence to convict him in court?
The whole new science of "Microbial Forensics" was created starting in Sepember of 2002 to develop bioforensic evidence which CAN be used in court.
The FACTS seem to clearly indicate that the FBI knows who sent the anthrax letters, but they cannot arrest that person until they have a SOLID case to take to court. To arrest a respected scientist (who will undoubtedly plead innocent) and fail to convict would be a major disaster for the Department of Justice, bigger than ANYTHING in the past. They'd never hear the end of it.
You are calling the obvious explanation ABSURD and then come back with (as far as I can tell although I'm not entirely sure) a theory about some right-wing Islamophobic neocon who wanted to start a war and get the Patriot Act passed. And NO ONE knows that it WAS NOT an "intentional terrorist attack". And bad choice of words on your part anyway since mailing anthrax is by definition an "intentional terrorist attack" no matter who sent it or what the motive was.
What was the letter supposed to say? Something like: "Ha Ha. Enclosed you will find a white powder and you will soon DIE! PS. Do not go to the hospital."
And why would your American-born middle-aged Republican with an interest in politics and a degree in chemistry assume that Senator Daschle would open his own mail? Was there any real chance that he would have actually killed the Senator? Could the purpose of that letter have been to cause terror?
The FBI seemed pretty certain in the Summer of '02 that
they had the perpetrator then. The term "Person of Interest"
was coin at that juncture. The litigation from that
statement will be reverberating for years to comes....JJ61
Take a breath.....
"How many thousands of people would have to be involved in this "cover up"? "
ONE...with a silencer....and one to authorize the SILENCE.
Otherwise, "nullify" COULD mean "captured and held"...
Do YOU personally "know" how many individuals have been apprehended by PATRIOT Act measures...???....I DON'T.
But, THANK YOU for going hyperbolic nonetheless.
~~~~~~~~
Do you REALLY "think" there is NO possibility of covert anti-terrorist actions being taken here on our shores...???
~~~~~~~~
Or for THAT matter that the U.S. government would 'NEVER' consider expending a few personnel to achieve their goals...???
Bwaaaaahahahaahhaahahhohohohoheeheehee....
No, I'm NOT a "9-11 truther".
Just a plain ol' Navy veteran with some reading comprehension skills:
http://www1.va.gov/SHAD/
Now, I ask YOU....regarding my reference...
"How many thousands of people would have to be involved in this "cover up"? How many government agencies? How do they recruit people for this vast conspiracy?
Do you really believe that every single person they asked to participate in this "cover up" went along with it and NO ONE blew the whistle?"
No doubt YOU were aware of this situation for DECADES...and I guess the REST of us must bow to your ego....???
OH, and by the way...I CAN answer those questions you so handily formulated...but, it's your move.
I agree with your postulation, but it still doesn't preclude an "insider" doing the deed.
I'm very famiiiar with 'compartmentalization' and its long term effectiveness in keeping a secret.
If you have to distort and twist things to make a point, your point becomes that you have to distort and twist things in order to make a point. I.e., you can't effectively respond without distorting facts.
And why would your American-born middle-aged Republican with an interest in politics and a degree in chemistry assume that Senator Daschle would open his own mail? Was there any real chance that he would have actually killed the Senator? Could the purpose of that letter have been to cause terror?
I don't know that he has an interest in politics. How did you dream that up?
I don't know that he has a degree in chemistry. I would assume that he has a degree in microbiology.
And why are you so hung up on the idea that the Senators don't open up their own mail? What difference does that make? The anthrax mailer clearly wasn't intending to kill anyone. The senate letters stated that the powder was anthrax, and anthrax is NOT immediately fatal. Everyone in Senator Daschle's office took antibiotics, and NO ONE came down with a case of anthrax. The deaths from the senate letters were ALL unpredictable.
Were the senate letters intended to "create terror"? They were clearly intended to motivate the two Senators to reconsider their efforts to delay and water down the Patriot Act. And that was done with letters that were deliberately made to appear to be from Muslim terrorists.
I can't argue that there was no intention to "terrorize" behind the sending of the letters. The question is: How do those letters fit into the pattern made by all the other evidence? And the answer to that is: The evidence shows that the anthrax mailer wanted to show the Senators what could happen if America failed to round up every Muslim in America who could even SEEM to be dangerous.
Distorting and twisting facts and arguing over the definitions of words isn't very productive.
I don't find it productive to respond endlessly to conspiracy theorists. It's a pointless excercise, since the conspiracy theorist will always rely on things which he thoroughly believes and which no one can prove are untrue.
You may consider it to be "proof" of a conspiracy in this case if the government was involved in some kind of real or imagined conspiracy in the past, but that is NOT proof of any kind.
To be productive, the arguments have to be about things which CAN be proven or disproven, not things which CANNOT be disproven.
It may have SEEMED that way to you, but the FBI never had ANY evidence of ANY kind that Dr. Hatfill was behind the anthrax attacks. They ONLY investigated him PUBLICLY because they were under enormous pressure to do so. Click HERE for details.
The term "Person of Interest" was coin at that juncture.
The term was coined to mean that Dr. Hatfill was just someone AMONG MANY who the FBI had an interest in. The media distorted it to mean he was a "suspect".
The litigation from that statement will be reverberating for years to come.
Maybe not. The litigation was delayed for about four months because the judge was handling the "Scooter" Libby trial. Now that that trial is just about over, he has started hearing motions again. A key motion will be heard on March 19th. It's VERY possible that that entire lawsuit will be concluded before summer.
Why do you have to be "certain of the sender's identity" to see that those two senators were in the news EVERY DAY at that time as they fought to keep the Patriot Act from trampling civil rights for all Americans? America had just suffered a devastating attack from Muslim terrorists, millions more could be killed in a followup biological attacks, and those two senators were concerned with "civil rights."
Maybe I have more facts than you and all the facts fit. Or maybe I look at facts differently from you.
"I don't find it productive to respond endlessly to conspiracy theorists. "
The government can and DOES on occasion perpetrate some rather questionable "programs" in the name of "national security".
You did NOT even LOOK at the link I provided, DID you...???
This is no "conspiracy", pal....
www1.va.gov/SHAD
Yep, a MINIMUM of 10,000 people [conspirists to YOU] involved....$4 Billion expended....good Ol' JFK and Robert McNamara having a ball....
gassing and otherwise endangering U.S. Servicemen [and civilians] with NO "informed consent"...no chance of filing a VA Disability Claim..
and kept SECRET over three DECADES....!!!
~~~~~~~
Now, I ask you....just like you posed to ME:
HOW could anyone even IMAGINE this could happen here?
HOW did they "recruit" so many participants?
What KIND of motivation would people have [over 10,000] to keep this a TOTAL secret for so long?
WHERE are the whistle blowers...???
~~~~~~
You are SO certain of your expertise when it comes to Biological Weapons I thought YOU of all people posting here could rattle off the rationale, the methods, the concentrations, the manufacture, the application, and the LEGALITY of such acts.
Why be so SHY...???
~~~~~~~
Just as I PREDICTED, you jumped in and criticized my reply to someone ELSE....who appears to be able to have a civil conversation even though we disagree.
What is YOUR agenda?
Why won't YOU look at the truth...???
Does it "bother" you in the least that I'm not PRETENDING to know "facts"...??? This, unfortunately is real, gritty, really ugly, and QUITE "un American" [Project SHAD/112]
If it IS a "conspiracy theory" then it's a darn GOOD one...because THIS conspiracy is still being perpetrated in the the Servicemen who were involved in MOST cases cannot even GET their full Service Medidal Records or Service Personnel Records and are being left to DIE so that the "test program" can round out its statistics.
Seems like a BIT of a "waste" wouldn't YOU say...???
But, hey...don't believe ME.
http://projectshad.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=1059
"Age 68, of Redford.
Larry attended schools in Pontiac, MI, and recently he and his wife, Doreen, attended the 50th anniversary of their high school graduation class."
"He joined the US Navy intending to have a lifetime service career. He was stationed at various places while receiving medical training as a corpsman and laboratory technician, including aboard the USS Pine Island, two years in the Philippines and stateside duty. In 1964, he was selected for Project 112/Project SHAD, which was a top secret project of biological and chemical warfare tests. He had various duties for SHAD, and in addition to his laboratory research work, he was assistant safety and exposed to many agents. He was injured in the line of duty but could not receive medical discharge due to the top secrest nature of his duties."
That would be his OBITUARY...!!!
And, from the SAME site:
"WELL ANOTHER PROJECT SHAD TECHNICAL STAFF MEMBER HAS DIED WITHOUT ANY DECISION ON HIS APPLICATION FOR MEDICAL DISABILITY CLAIM (PUT IN CLAIM MARCH 2006)"
Perhaps YOU had better get on OVER there and straighten those cowardly, unpatriotic, liars out...???
[In the MEAN time, I wouldn't be so cocksure of what the folks at Fort Detrick would or would not DO...!!!]
Yes, I suppose if your objective is to rationalize why al Qaeda would have attacked a liberal Democrat, that's probably the best you can come up with. And you can simply ignore the fact that there are probably a HUNDRED politicians in Washington who would be a more likely target for al Qaeda.
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