Trio of Texas Premieres brings new AE911Truth Documentary to the Public

Following the 32-city world premiere tour of 9/11: Explosive Evidence – Experts Speak Out, AE911Truth took yet another whirlwind trip through Texas from July 14-16, showing the compelling documentary in Houston, San Antonio, and Dallas. Media outlets from across the state and local activists joined Richard Gage, AIA, and other respected architects to screen the film and discuss the push for a new 9/11 investigation. Here is a recap of those influential events.

Richard Gage, AIA, was interviewed live by Jackie Carpenter (center) and Garry Smith (left), who host an excellent Houston cable TV program about 9/11 Truth

Houston: Local Media and Free Thinkers Unite with AE911Truth

We received quite positive media coverage before our Houston presentation. The night before the event, Mark Bebawi from KPFT radio at 90.1 FM interviewed Gage on his radio program, “The Monitor”, during the station’s pledge drive. KPFT is a Pacifica station – listener-sponsored and commercial-free.

The day of the event, Gage and Garry Smith, the assistant event coordinator, were interviewed live on Houston MediaSource, the local public-access television station. Our lead event coordinator, Jackie Carpenter, hosted the show. During the one-hour program, she showed video clips of buildings collapsing “naturally,” pointing out that the collapses were uneven

Gage was interviewed on Houston's listener–sponsored Pacifica station KPFT 90.1 FM, where renowned talk show host Hitaji Aziz offered the “Experts Speak Out” DVD as a premium to listeners who pledged $80 or more

and that the buildings did not turn to dust. In contrast, she showed a video of the symmetrical, even destruction of WTC7 – clearly a controlled demolition. The program delved into the facts of 9/11, implying that it appeared to be some kind of “inside operation,” a conclusion reached by most unbiased people who examine the World Trade Center evidence.

The show covered not only the evidence but a philosophical outlook on what responsibility we have as individuals in the face of this information. Ms. Carpenter commented that “If the mainstream media ignore this issue, in spite of the reality that so many credible people agree that it needs to be discussed, people will lose confidence in the mainstream media. The scary thing is that currently too many people still blindly trust traditional media to tell them the truth. Not nearly enough people use alternative media. We know it’s painful for people to hear this information, and we want to offer it to them in a non-threatening way if we can.”

After his television interview, Gage returned to KPFT for another radio show, this time with the highly energetic Hitaji Aziz on the program “Earth 101.” The station once again offered the two-disk Experts Speak Out DVD set as a pledge premium.

Derrick Broze of HoustonFreeThinkers.com engages the audience at the Bayland community center in Houston to discuss the many ways to enlighten friends, relatives and public officials about the destruction of the World Trade Center skyscrapers

One of Gage’s earliest AE911Truth presentations was in Houston in 2007, when he received a standing ovation before he even began to speak. He had no video to show, but instead gave a dynamic PowerPoint presentation entitled “9/11: Blueprint for Truth.”

For our venue this time around, we were honored to have the free use of the Bayland Community Center, a place with a colorful past. Named after a state orphanage established in 1866, the building was briefly incarnated as offices and locker rooms for the now defunct Houston Gamblers professional football team.

There were 117 attendees at our Houston premiere. “The Monitor” radio show brought in 24 of them and 4 people came from the “Earth 101” program. One person heard about the event via the community-access television show. An email bulletin to the 26,000 people on our mailing list brought in 15 attendees.

Before seeing the film, 5 people believed the government story about the building collapses and 18 were unsure. The remaining 117 attendees already agreed with the evidence for controlled demolition. After viewing the evidence in the documentary, nobody believed the official tale, and just one person was still unsure. This is a testament – not to Gage’s charm – but to the overwhelming evidence supporting the hypothesis of explosive demolition.

Houston high-rise architect Dan Barnum, FAIA, joins Gage on the platform to answer the tough questions from the Houston audience of over 100

After the film, structural engineer Joe Olsen came up to the podium and described the structural system of the Twin Towers. Then, Dan Barnum, FAIA, a Houston city planner and high-rise architect who appears in the film, answered questions from the audience, including “who did 9/11 and why?” Barnum noted, “what is critical is that we first understand the forensic evidence: that we get an authoritative investigation that examines all of the evidence and uses the scientific method to evaluate it. We must use subpoena power and offers of immunity to bring forth witnesses, and testimony must be taken under oath. And then we will let the chips fall where they may. It is not incumbent on AE911Truth to speculate about who might have been responsible for these nefarious deeds. This is the job of criminal investigators and enterprising journalists.”

Gage then introduced activist Derrick Broze, who helped promote the event. Broze spoke about the mission of his group, saying, “The Houston Free Thinkers were proud to work with AE911Truth, and we are looking forward to working with Gage again in New York for the September 11 activities this year.”

Garry Smith, who teaches disadvantaged high school youth, is also dedicated to the cause. After the event he said, “AE911Truth is top-notch. They are accomplishing many things that other 9/11 truth groups aspire to. Their successful fundraising, a high level of professional involvement, and their successful way of conveying the message are all admirable.”

Attendees completely bought out our stock of DVDs, undoubtedly to share them with friends and family. The audience also gave generously to support the work of AE911Truth.

After the event, 20 people joined us at Pico’s Mexican Restaurant to continue our conversation. During his stay in Houston, Gage also networked over dinner with Jackie Carpenter, Garry Smith, and Derrick Broze. Barnum served as Gage’s host for five days, giving Gage and the event coordinators an interesting tour of downtown Houston, including several high-rise buildings for which he had major responsibility in designing.

Yet another Houston high-rise by architect Dan Barnum, FAIA. Dan joined the AE911Truth board of directors in September of 2012

The next day we were on our way to San Antonio.

McQueeney (San Antonio Area): WeAreChange SanAntonio and Local Architect Make Premiere a Success

Deborah Stevens (left), Matthew Medina (right), and other members of WeAreChange San Antonio have made an impact in educating their community about the 9/11 evidence

From San Antonio, we drove 25 miles east to McQueeney, Texas, for our presentation in the unique Silver Eagle Tap House. The Tap House has hosted many patriots over the years, and there is quite a bit of 9/11 truth activism in the area. Although the bar itself is no longer active, the building is still available for special events like ours.

Gage felt right at home in the area. In March of 2010, Ron Avery, an architect and owner of the venue, joined Gage for a presentation at the University of Texas in Austin. Avery brought an extraordinary scale model of the World Trade Center and fielded questions with Gage. The two teamed up again recently at Austin’s Brave New Books for the premiere of Experts Speak Out in June 2012.

Local Architect Ron Avery created the magnificent model of the WTC complex that has traveled all over Texas

Most people who attended the McQueeney event learned about it from our email messages and from We Are Change San Antonio email blasts. Event coordinator Matthew Medina and the other WAC activists did a great job of setting up and promoting the event on short notice. Medina and Cody Hess even broadcasted our event live from the Tap House on their show, Truth Exposed Radio, interviewing Gage during the film’s screening with penetrating questions like “How did your life change after becoming aware of the truth about 9/11?” Their program is hosted by Deborah Stevens’ Rule of Law radio network, which broadcasts across 20 AM/FM radio stations nationwide, including 90.1 FM in Austin.

Avery introduced Gage and videotaped the event. After showing 9/11: Explosive Evidence - Experts Speak Out, Gage took comments and answered questions from the audience for an hour. He also invited the WAC members in attendance to come on stage and discuss their experiences in educating people regarding the evidence about 9/11/01.

There were 43 attendees at the presentation. Avery speculated that the low attendance was probably because the Taphouse was 30 minutes outside San Antonio and Gage had been in Austin, only 90 miles north, only two months earlier.

Before seeing the documentary, two people believed the government theory about 9/11, and one was unsure. Those three people were not aware of the collapse of WTC Building 7. After viewing the film, every attendee agreed with the evidence that all three buildings were brought down by controlled demolition.

Although many of the attendees already owned copies of the DVD, others eagerly bought them. Mike Hanson, author of Bohemian Grove, donated all sales of his new book at the event to Architects & Engineers for 9/11 Truth.

Avery, as one of the event coordinators, spent most of his time overseeing the details of the event. He is also an impressive addition to the array of experts who are active with AE911Truth, and he was the 23rd architect or engineer to sign our petition.

Cody Hess, talk show host for “Truth Exposed”, interviews Gage during the San Antonio premiere of “9/11: Explosive Evidence – Experts Speak Out”

He has a broad architectural background, including working with the large international firm Caudill Rowlett Scott (popularly known as CRS) in Houston. For two years he worked on the design of a $2 billion project in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, called the King Abdul Aziz Military Academy. This planned city was designed to house many thousands of people, with residential housing, marketplaces, hospitals, and mosques. He noted that printing the blueprints alone cost $1 million! He also helped design the University of Petroleum and Minerals in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.

Avery was Gage’s host during his visit. The lead event coordinator was Matthew Medina, assisted by several WAC members. After we helped Avery close up the Tap House, a group of volunteers joined Gage for an early pancake breakfast. We had a series of great conversations that extended beyond the evidence into its dark implications. Gage flew out of San Antonio to Dallas the next day.

Dallas: City of the Kennedy Assassination —

A Sobering Locale for Influential Screening

Gage gave his third presentation in as many days at the Dallas Unity Church, whose pastor was quite tolerant of our alternative approach to 9/11. Joe Stokes, founder of North Texans for 9/11 Truth, got the ball rolling to organize and promote this event, and members and non-members pitched in. The promotion covered a wide spectrum: flyers, posters, emails, word of mouth, Meetup groups, Internet event announcements and ads, Facebook pages & their comments, and online publications.

People from all walks of life turned out for the event, including several engineers, filmmakers, and attorney James Gourley, the founder of the International Center for 9/11 Studies and the author of several published scientific papers on 9/11. When the government ignored his FOIA requests for the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) data regarding its World Trade Center reports, he filed a lawsuit against NIST. They ultimately released massive amounts of important videos and documents to him, which he has made available to the public at 911datasets.org. Gourley, who is also a chemical engineer, was one of the coordinators for the Toronto Hearings, a three-day event where 9/11 researchers were summoned to present the evidence not found in official reports. The evidence collected at the hearings has recently been released on a DVD. 

Gourley introduced Gage to the 78 event attendees. Before viewing the documentary, 5 people believed the government’s story about the collapse of the WTC buildings and 21 were unsure. The remainder agreed with the evidence for controlled demolition. Seven people didn’t know anything about WTC 7. After seeing the film, just two people believed the official story, and only three were unsure.

In addition to its website, North Texans for 9/11 Truth has an active Meetup group that, over the past few years, has made more than 50,000 9/11 Truth DVDs and handed them out to the public. Joe Stokes was the event coordinator, and Tom Theimer gave him a lot of help. Another major player in bringing us to Dallas was Rob Wrinkle. He personally funded our flight from San Antonio, for which we are deeply grateful.

After the event, a dozen people met across the street at the Sundown at Granada Beer Garden. 

Thanks go to Joe Stokes for hosting Gage in Dallas, including a fascinating tour of the site of the assassination of President Kennedy and The Sixth Floor Museum in the Old Book Depository building. Gage noticed that there is an ‘X’ on the street where President Kennedy’s vehicle slowed to a crawl, at which time the shots occurred. Gage also had a long conversation outside the museum with a gentleman who authored one of the many alternative accounts of the 1963 shooting. The man, who was 13 at the time, described standing underneath the Book Depository window, hearing shots from above and from the direction of the grassy knoll.

After this sobering tour, Gage reflected that “the 9/11 events provide our biggest opportunity to straighten out our country. Let’s not let it pass us by and set ourselves up for another decade of ‘false flag’ operations by unseen forces. Do your part to educate your friends, neighbors, associates, the media, and government officials about the truth of 9/11.”