Readers, with the exception of neoconservative William Kristol, appreciated the questions I raised about the Charlie Hebdo affair. Europeans sent me videos and news reports from Europe.
One video compares the car in which the killers escaped with the car in which the ID of one of the accused brothers was allegedly found and makes the point that the two cars differ. The car in which the ID was found apparently is not the escape car.
Another video, which seems to be part of a news report, shows a large force of police waiting as the metal screen over the deli storefront rises. This is the deli in which Amedy Coulibaly is reported to be holding hostages.
As the metal screen rises, police fire into the deli. There seems to be no return fire, and it is unclear who the police are shooting at. Perhaps it was the heavy firing by the police that killed the hostages.
Police enter and turn to the right. Then Coulibaly appears from the same direction as the police entered.He is in a running stumble as if he has been pushed into the line of fire. There is no weapon in his hands, which appear to be tied together. He falls or is shot down at the door in front of the police, who then fire more bullets into the downed man.
It looks like an execution. It most certainly is not a gun fight. Coulibaly was down and could easily have been captured and questioned. Instead, we have reports of pre-recorded confessions to take the place of capture and questioning.
The connection between Muslim murderous ire against French cartoonists and Coulibaly’s alleged attack on a Kosher deli is asserted but not explained. If Coulibaly was incensed over cartoons drawn by French persons, why wasn’t he with the killers in the cartoonists’ office? Why pick on random patrons of a deli unrelated to the reason for the attack?
Once you look at this independently of the official news presentation, there are problems everywhere.
The terrorist attacks, if that is what they are, are extremely convenient for Washington and Israel. France had just voted with Palestine against the US/Israeli position. French President Hollande had just stated that the sanctions against Russia must end. Among Europeans, sympathy was rising for the Palestinians, and support for Washington’s and Israel’s Middle East wars was declining. Now France is back under Washington’s foreign policy umbrella, and European sympathy has shifted from the Palestinians to Israel.
In my day in order to qualify for the Ph.D. degree, the candidate had to demonstrate French and German reading skill. Time and scant use have taken their toll of my skill, so I cannot state with any assurance the conclusions of these reports. I can only report what the videos show visually.
Also, the videos have come to me in forms that I do not know how to post. Those of you adept at Internet search possibly can find them.
I would welcome for this website a report from Europe. I believe that a report from a knowledgeable and aware European about the official news reporting and public reaction to it, and the extent to which inconsistencies and loose ends of the official story are recognized and challenged, would be welcomed by readers of this site.
I have been left with the impression that informed Europeans are uncomfortable about diverging publicly from accepted opinion. As long as you let me know who you are, you can remain anonymous. We in America would just like to know if your reporting is different from ours and if the European public, except for the anti-immigrationists, buys the official story.
The wars into which Europeans have been thrust by ambitious and deceptive leaders have been more devastating for European populations than the wars thrust upon gullible Americans. Perhaps Europeans are less willing to believe government assertions.
Paul Craig Roberts was Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Economic Policy and associate editor of the Wall Street Journal. He was columnist for Business Week, Scripps Howard News Service, and Creators Syndicate. He has had many university appointments. His internet columns have attracted a worldwide following. His latest book, How America Was Lost, is now available.
RSS
Charlie Hebdo update
Posted on January 19, 2015 by Paul Craig Roberts
Readers, with the exception of neoconservative William Kristol, appreciated the questions I raised about the Charlie Hebdo affair. Europeans sent me videos and news reports from Europe.
One video compares the car in which the killers escaped with the car in which the ID of one of the accused brothers was allegedly found and makes the point that the two cars differ. The car in which the ID was found apparently is not the escape car.
Another video, which seems to be part of a news report, shows a large force of police waiting as the metal screen over the deli storefront rises. This is the deli in which Amedy Coulibaly is reported to be holding hostages.
As the metal screen rises, police fire into the deli. There seems to be no return fire, and it is unclear who the police are shooting at. Perhaps it was the heavy firing by the police that killed the hostages.
Police enter and turn to the right. Then Coulibaly appears from the same direction as the police entered.He is in a running stumble as if he has been pushed into the line of fire. There is no weapon in his hands, which appear to be tied together. He falls or is shot down at the door in front of the police, who then fire more bullets into the downed man.
It looks like an execution. It most certainly is not a gun fight. Coulibaly was down and could easily have been captured and questioned. Instead, we have reports of pre-recorded confessions to take the place of capture and questioning.
The connection between Muslim murderous ire against French cartoonists and Coulibaly’s alleged attack on a Kosher deli is asserted but not explained. If Coulibaly was incensed over cartoons drawn by French persons, why wasn’t he with the killers in the cartoonists’ office? Why pick on random patrons of a deli unrelated to the reason for the attack?
Once you look at this independently of the official news presentation, there are problems everywhere.
The terrorist attacks, if that is what they are, are extremely convenient for Washington and Israel. France had just voted with Palestine against the US/Israeli position. French President Hollande had just stated that the sanctions against Russia must end. Among Europeans, sympathy was rising for the Palestinians, and support for Washington’s and Israel’s Middle East wars was declining. Now France is back under Washington’s foreign policy umbrella, and European sympathy has shifted from the Palestinians to Israel.
In my day in order to qualify for the Ph.D. degree, the candidate had to demonstrate French and German reading skill. Time and scant use have taken their toll of my skill, so I cannot state with any assurance the conclusions of these reports. I can only report what the videos show visually.
Also, the videos have come to me in forms that I do not know how to post. Those of you adept at Internet search possibly can find them.
I would welcome for this website a report from Europe. I believe that a report from a knowledgeable and aware European about the official news reporting and public reaction to it, and the extent to which inconsistencies and loose ends of the official story are recognized and challenged, would be welcomed by readers of this site.
I have been left with the impression that informed Europeans are uncomfortable about diverging publicly from accepted opinion. As long as you let me know who you are, you can remain anonymous. We in America would just like to know if your reporting is different from ours and if the European public, except for the anti-immigrationists, buys the official story.
The wars into which Europeans have been thrust by ambitious and deceptive leaders have been more devastating for European populations than the wars thrust upon gullible Americans. Perhaps Europeans are less willing to believe government assertions.
If not, more war is a certainty.
Copyright © 2015 Paul Craig Roberts
Paul Craig Roberts was Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Economic Policy and associate editor of the Wall Street Journal. He was columnist for Business Week, Scripps Howard News Service, and Creators Syndicate. He has had many university appointments. His internet columns have attracted a worldwide following. His latest book, How America Was Lost, is now available.