Friday, May 28, 2004

Major newspaper tackles Berg controversy

The Sydney Morning Herald has a good, balanced round-up of the conotroversy surrounding Nick Berg's decapitation. Allegations of conspiracy are neither embraced nor pooh-poohed: There are no crazed warnings about the New World Order or the Illuminati, and no smarmy references to black helicopters and tin foil hats. Just a summary of the claims.

The end of the piece references Nick Possum's analysis. I've already voiced my problems with his view. The article does not go into suspicions (denied vehemently by the family) that Nicholas Berg was tasked by an intelligence agency to make contact with Al Qaeda operatives at the University of Oklahoma. Relatively few commentators (such as yours truly) have taken an interest in that angle.

Which reminds me: I called the university library to ask whether Nick Berg ever worked there, and was relayed to the school's legal affairs department. Apparently, I was not the first to make inquiries. Berg's work history should be a public matter soon.

At that time, we will know if there is anything to the rather startling suggestion that he was the white male library employee who purchased an airline ticket on behalf of one of the 911 hijackers. Right now, I'd bet against the idea. Still, we live in very odd times; anything's possible.

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