I remember sitting in an Anthropology class years ago, when, way off the subject matter, the professor declared that the Soviet Union was superior to the US, and Communism would prevail because it was more efficient. Gorbachev came to disagree with this, but that’s not the point.
In response to the professor, one student remarked how the US had safely landed men on the moon, while the Soviets hadn’t come close. The professor retorted that the Russians stayed up longer in space, and that was “harder”. This is of course totally false. The Professor had no idea what was involved in space flight, let alone the greatly complex differences between simple orbits and actual landings.
But the Professor had tenure, and could say whatever he wanted to. Still, the lesson I took away was that just because a person is an expert in one field, doesn’t mean they know anything about another. Added to this is the fact that when people speak as experts far from their actual area of awareness, it undercuts the import of statements they try to make within their own field of endeavor. This guy knew nothing about space travel, not to mention socio-economic systems. Could it be he didn’t know that much about the ascent of human beings as well?
Fast forward to yesterday, when I clicked on the website of a guy who reports on cameras. Lots of people think he gives terrible advise, but I’ve found some information on certain cameras useful.
Even so, on the “what’s new” page, I came across this:
“While we’re on the subject of conspiracies, what makes us New Yorkers laugh is how few people outside of New York realize that a third World Trade Center tower, WTC 7, also fell on September 11th. This is a bit odd, because no plane hit it; the plane that was supposed to crash into it fell instead into a field in Pennsylvania thanks to Mr. “Let’s Roll,” but the building still mysteriously fell straight down exactly like the others. Curious? Nah.”
Notice the part I highlighted. It’s total nonsense.
Flight 93 was re-routed by the hijackers and bound for DC. WTC 7 was likely unknown to the 9/11 plotters because they were totally fixated on the Towers. They were headed for landmarks.
So, I sent an email to the grand pontificator, correcting his info, but got a very defensive and incorrect response about the tickets for Flight 93! Well, in fact, the original destination of 93 was San Francisco. The plan was to hijack planes loaded with fuel for very long flights, hence increasing the damage at the crash sites.
I was a chaplain, working on a weekly basis for 9-months at Ground Zero. So, I’ve tried to keep my head in the game as to what actually transpired there, beyond what I saw first hand.
As it happens, many of my images captured on-site are now part of the national 9/11 Memorial archives.
Still, it seems that when looking for some updated advise on things photographic, I need to be more discerning in the sites I frequent. The internet affords people a certain tenure that was unavailable years ago. But a fancy website doesn’t necessarily coincide with actual knowledge held by the author.
This guy knows little about 9/11. Perhaps his awareness about photography isn’t so reliable either.
Posted by billkeane 
BillKeane Perceptions 