James H. Fetzer

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James Henry Fetzer (born December 6, 1940 in Pasadena, California) is an American philosopher and Distinguished McKnight University Professor Emeritus at the University of Minnesota Duluth.[1]Fetzer has published extensively on the nature of science and the theoretical foundations of computer science, artificial intelligence, and cognitive science. Two of his most recent books have focused upon the evolution of intelligence and philosophical aspects of the Christian Right's crusade against science. He is also known for his advocacy of the 9/11 conspiracy [2] and Kennedy assassination theories. He has published three collections of studies on the death of JFK, co-authored another on the plane crash that took the life of Senator Paul Wellstone, and edited the first book from Scholars for 9/11 Truth, an organization he founded. Fetzer makes frequent appearances on radio and television and co-hosts a radio program that deals with controversial issues.

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[edit] Biography

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James H. Fetzer was born in Pasadena, California in 1940, and attended South Pasadena High School where he received The Carver Award for leadership. After completing high school, he went on to study philosophy at Princeton University and graduated magna cum laude in 1962. After four years as a commissioned officer in the Marine Corps, he resigned his commission as a Captain to begin graduate work at Indiana University. In 1970 he completed his Ph.D. in the history and philosophy of science.

Fetzer taught at various schools including the University of Kentucky, the University of Virginia (twice) and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill before he received tenure at the University of Minnesota Duluth, where he taught from 1987 until his retirement in June 2006.[3]At the University of Kentucky, he was selected to receive the first Distinguished Teaching Award from the UK Student Government, which was presented to one of 135 assistant professors.

[edit] Works

Fetzer has published more than 100 articles and 20 books[4] on philosophy of science, computer science, artificial intelligence and cognitive science. He also founded the international journal, Minds and Machines, which he edited for eleven years, and the professional library, Studies in Cognitive Systems, which includes thirty volumes.

[edit] Controversial views

Fetzer holds several views of recent American history. He has written about the John F. Kennedy assassination[5] and has been interviewed on his theories about the September 11, 2001 attacks, by Richard and Kate Mucci, hosts of Out There TV, and radio hosts such as Laura Ingraham, Jerry Springer, Donny Deutch and several hosts on Air America, among others. He has been interviewed on Hannity & Colmes twice and on The O'Reilly Factor as well as other television programs.

Some have questioned[citation needed] his apparent endorsement of a military coup to overthrow the Bush administration,[3] members of which he believes have betrayed the country and violated their oaths of office.[citation needed] He has recently begun a new radio program on the Genesis Communications Network, gcnlive.com, "The Dynamic Duo" with Kevin Barrett, an outspoken 9/11 activist, in which they discuss and interview guests on controversial subjects, including 9/11.

[edit] Assassination of John F. Kennedy

Fetzer maintains that John F. Kennedy was assassinated as the result of a well-planned and precisely executed conspiracy, which included altering the autopsy X-rays, substituting another brain, and recreating the Zapruder film using sophisticated techniques of optical printing and special effects. He has edited three collections of studies on the assassination, chaired or co-chaired four conferences on the subject, and made numerous talk show appearances on the topic.[6] In June 2007 he published a review and rebuttal of Vincent Bugliosi's review of the assassination, Reclaiming History for the journal Assassination Research; he refers to Bugliosi's work as "A closed mind perpetrating a fraud on the public."[7]

[edit] September 11, 2001 attacks

Fetzer supports the assertion that elements within the U.S. federal government orchestrated the September 11, 2001 attacks for political and economic gain and that World Trade Center One and Two were destroyed using a novel form of controlled demolition from the top down, while World Trade Center Seven was brought down by a conventional controlled demolition from the bottom.[8] Fetzer also believes the hijackings were staged and that calls from passengers to relatives and operators were phony.

During recent lectures, Fetzer encourages the study of the possibility that high-tech weapons, including ground or space-based directed-energy military weapons, may have been used to bring down the Twin Towers. [3] He has not endorsed any specific hypothesis about the destruction of the WTC, but he has expressed skepticism that conventional explosives, including thermite/thermate, could have brought about such devastating effects.

On June 22, 2006, Fetzer was a guest on Fox News Channel's Hannity and Colmes where he discussed his stance on several 9/11 conspiracy theories.[citation needed] Later that month, he appeared at the 9/11 + The Neo-Con Agenda Symposium in Los Angeles, California.[9]On December 18, 2006, he was the featured guest on a 3 1/2 hour television program devoted to 9/11, which was broadcast live from Athens by satellite worldwide.[10]

In July 2006, Fetzer discussed Bill O'Reilly's remark that, if Kevin Barrett had been at his alma mater, Boston University, "this guy'd be in the Charles River floating down, you know, toward the harbor", stating, "When public threats can be made to a citizen's life for expressing his opinions on a controversial topic and neither the government nor the media respond, that is a sure sign we are living in a fascist state." This opinion did not, however, prevent Fetzer from agreeing to appear on O'Reilly's show again on October 12, 2006.[11] Fetzer has detailed his research and theories during the Midwest Social Forum held on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in a joint presentation with Kevin Barrett, also a member of Scholars for 9/11 Truth, which they recently reprised at the University of Wisconsin-Madison[12]

Fetzer is founder and co-chair of Scholars for 9/11 Truth, "a non-partisan association of faculty, students, and scholars dedicated to exposing falsehoods and to revealing truths behind 9/11".[13] Differences in attitude and approach toward the science and the politics of 9/11 research led to a split with Steve Jones, whom Fetzer had invited to be his co-chair, in December 2006, almost exactly one year after its creation. Many 9/11 activists support Jones over Fetzer. A recent interview in which Jones was Fetzer's guest, which revealed the depth and breadth of their differences, elicited dozens of negative comments[14]

[edit] Explaining the explanandum

Fetzer has spoken positively of Judy Wood and Morgan Reynolds, who left Scholars due in part to disagreement with the organization, objecting to the unwillingness of the society to consider 'no big boeing' theories (theories arguing that no big boeings hit the World Trade Center and that video evidence of the planes hitting the towers have serious inconsistencies showing them to be "doctored").[4] Fetzer has been impressed by their efforts to clarify the extent of devastation at the World Trade Center and mentions a wide range of theories, including that a "satellite-mounted military weapon" may have been used to destroy it, as among those that deserve investigation. He has written that "the range of alternative explanations that might possibly explain the explanandum must include non-classic controlled demolition from the top-down using mini-nukes, and...non-classic controlled demolition from the top-down using directed energy weapons...The specific weapons used to destroy the WTC could have been ground based or space based." [5] For Fetzer, "Judy [Wood] appears to have done far more to develop her "proof of concept" than has Steve [Jones]". [6] Steven Jones and others claim to have refuted the mini-nuke hypothesis[15][16] Jones has responded to Reynolds and Wood directly, but they have not viewed his remarks as refutations.[17]Wood and Reynolds both contributed chapters to his latest book and have rejoined Scholars.

[edit] Death of Paul Wellstone

Fetzer has co-authored a book in which the authors argue that Minnesota Senator Paul Wellstone's death in an airplane crash was not accidental but resulted from a small-scale conspiracy to ensure Republican control of the Senate.[18]

[edit] Disinformation

In Fetzer's words, “in this day and age, we all have to become experts on disinformation.”[19][20] According to Fetzer, "disinformation... should be viewed more or less on a par with acts of lying. Indeed, the parallel with lying appears to be fairly precise." [21] The difference between disinformation and misinformation is described by Fetzer: "while ‘misinformation’ can be simply defined as false, mistaken, or misleading information, ‘disinformation’ entails the distribution, assertion, or dissemination of false, mistaken, or misleading information in an intentional, deliberate, or purposeful effort to mislead, deceive, or confuse."[22] As an author of scholarly articles on the subject, Fetzer describes five levels of disinformation.[23] Ironically, Fetzer has been criticized for using many of these same types of disinformation in his 9/11 research. [24][25][26]

[edit] Publications

Philosophy of Science:

  • (June 1984) Principles of Philosophical Reasoning. Rowman & Littlefield, 292 p.. ISBN 0-8476-7341-3. 
  • (1991) Definitions and Definability: Philosophical Perspectives. ASIN B000IBICGK. 
  • (October 1992) Philosophy of Science (Paragon Issues in Philosophy). Paragon, 197 p.. ISBN 1-55778-481-7. 
  • (January 1993) Foundations of Philosophy of Science: Recent Developments (Paragon Issues in Philosophy). Paragon, 512 p.. ISBN 1-55778-480-9. 
  • (March 1993) Glossary of Cognitive Science (A Paragon House Glossary for Research, Reading, and Writing). Paragon, 288 p.. ISBN 1-55778-567-8. 
  • (January 1997) Philosophy and Cognitive Science (Paragon Issues in Philosophy). Paragon, 191 p.. ISBN 1-55778-739-5. 
  • (November 1997) Minds and Machines: Journal for Artificial Intelligence, Philosophy, and Cognitive Science, Vol. 7, No. 4. Kluwer. ASIN B000KEV460. 
  • (December 2000) Science, Explanation, and Rationality: The Philosophy of Carl G. Hempel. Oxford, 384 p.. ISBN 0-19-512137-6. 
  • (January 2001) Artificial Intelligence: Its Scope and Limits. Springer, 364 p.. ISBN 0-7923-0548-5. 
  • (May 2002) Consciousness Evolving (Advances in Consciousness Research). John Benjamins, 251 p.. ISBN 1-58811-108-3. 
  • (2005) The Evolution of Intelligence: Are Humans the Only Animals With Minds?. Open Court, 272 p.. ISBN 0-8126-9459-7. 

Conspiracy Research:

  • (October 1997) Assassination Science: Experts Speak Out on the Death of JFK. Open Court, 480 p.. ISBN 0-8126-9366-3. 
  • (August 2000) Murder in Dealey Plaza: What We Know Now that We Didn't Know Then. Open Court, 496 p.. ISBN 0-8126-9422-8. 
  • (September 2003) The Great Zapruder Film Hoax: Deceit and Deception in the Death of JFK. Catfeet Press, 480 p.. ISBN 0-8126-9547-X. 
  • (November 2004) American Assassination: The Strange Death Of Senator Paul Wellstone. Vox Pop, 188 p.. ISBN 0-9752763-0-1. 

[edit] References

  1. ^ James H. Fetzer, UMD page
  2. ^ Pope, Justin. "9/11 Conspiracy Thriving", ABC News > U.S., ABCNews Internet Ventures, 2006-08-06. Retrieved on 2006-08-21. 
  3. ^ a b John Gravois, "Professors of Paranoia?: Academics give a scholarly stamp to 9/11 conspiracy theories", The Chronicle of Higher Education, June 23, 2006.
  4. ^ James H. Fetzer, UMD page
  5. ^ Gatehouse, Jonathon. "Hijacking the truth on 9/11", Macleans, 2006, May 16. 
  6. ^ James H. Fetzer, UMD page
  7. ^ Online version of the review/rebuttal
  8. ^ London Daily Mail: Fury as academics claim 9/11 was 'inside job'
  9. ^ American Scholars Symposium
  10. ^ [1]
  11. ^ Jim Kouri, "Activist Kevin Barrett Claims Bill O'Reilly Threatened Him", National Ledger, July 23, 2006.
  12. ^ Megan Twohey, "Lecturer denounces critics of his 9-11 teachings: 'Inside job' theory draws calls for firing, UW probe", Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, July 9, 2006.
  13. ^ Scholars for 9/11 Truth - Who Are We
  14. ^ [2].
  15. ^ Testing the Hypothesis that Mini-Nukes Were Used on the WTC Towers
  16. ^ Theories that Nuclear Weapons Destroyed the Twin Towers
  17. ^ Jones: Reply to Reynolds & Wood
  18. ^ Dameron, Eva. "Author makes case for murder", Daily Lobo (University of New Mexico), 2005, October 31. 
  19. ^ Jim Fetzer, "Disinformation, the Use of False Information, Minds and Machines, 14: 231–240, 2004."
  20. ^ Arabesque, "9/11 Disinformation and Misinformation: Definitions and Examples"
  21. ^ Jim Fetzer, "Disinformation, the Use of False Information, Minds and Machines, 14: 231–240, 2004."
  22. ^ Jim Fetzer, Information: Does It Have To Be True? Minds and Machines, 14, pp. 223–229."
  23. ^ Jim Fetzer, Signs of Disinformation."
  24. ^ Arabesque, "9/11 Disinformation and Misinformation: Definitions and Examples"
  25. ^ Jim Hoffman, "ScholarsFor911Truth.org: Muddling the Evidence"
  26. ^ Victoria Ashley, "Discrediting By Association: Undermining the Case for Patriots Who Question 9/11"

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