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2 December 1925 – 20 December 2019
General Ben Partin was one of the most influential innovators in developing focused energy and precision guided weapons. He was a close friend of missionary to the communist world, Rev. Bill Bathman, a member of the Board of Frontline Fellowship and a very good friend of our family and Mission. United States Air Force Scientist General Partin was born in Lumberton, North Carolina. He entered active military service in the Aviation Cadet programme, January 1944. After World War 2, he returned to North Carolina State College, where he earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemical Engineering, graduating June 1949. As a Reserve Officers Training Corp Distinguished Military Graduate, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Air Force. August 1949, he was assigned to Strategic Air Command as Assistant Operations Officer, 91st Reconnaissance Technical Squadron at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. In March, 1950, he entered Pilot Training at Randolf Air Base, Texas and completed Advanced Flying Training at Vance Air Force Base, Oklahoma, by March 1951. ![]()
Korean War
During the Korean War, after C-54 Training at Great Falls Air Force Base, Montana, he was assigned to 1263 Air Transport Squadron in the Military Air Transport Service at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii. He flew in support of the Korean airlift and nuclear weapons tests and also served as Assistance Aircraft Maintenance Officer. Aeronautical Engineering In September 1953, General Partin entered the Air Force Institute of Technology in the first graduate Air Ordinance programme, where he earned his Master of Science Degree in Aeronautical Engineering, by 1955. Weapons Development In September 1955, he was assigned to the Ballistics Research Laboratories, Aberdene Proving Grounds, Maryland. There, as an Inter-service Exchange Project Engineer, he worked on a variety of armaments projects and developing warheads and fuses for both Air Force and Army missiles. July 1957, General Partin was assigned to the Air Weapons Directorate, Headquarters Air Research and Development Command, Baltimore, Maryland. He later moved with the Command headquarters to Andrews Air Force Base, MD. ![]()
LASER
There he was assistant for Advanced Weapons Concepts. During this assignment, he served as Technical Secretary to the Weapons Committee and joined the Committee on Limited Warfare in 1958. There he pioneered a Coherent Optical Frequency Generator, which generated the acronym: LASER (Light Amplification Stimulation Emission Radiation). Research and Development From 1959, General Partin served as Systems Analyst in Research and Engineering, Headquarters Air Force Systems Command, Andrews Air Force Base. Later he was a Research and Development Analyst at AFSC. From June 1961 to Mach 1964, General Partin studied Operations Research at Case Institute of Technology and Statistics at Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. He was assigned, March 1960, to the Deputy Chief of Staff, Research and Development, Headquarters, US Air Force. There, his duty was to be the Development Engineer in the Directorate of Development. He participated in the establishment of the Armament Systems Division and formulation of the Accelerated Ordinance Programme. He also served as Tactical Systems Development Plans Officer in the Directorate of Development Plans. ![]()
Precision Guided Weapons Development
In January, 1969, General Partin was assigned special duty in the Office of the Secretary of Defence (OSD) as the First Chairman of Development of Defence, Air Ammunition Requirements and Development Committee. With organisational changes in OSD in 1970, additional responsibilities were assigned to him as Assistant for Aircraft and Air Ordinance in the office of the Assistant Director of Land Warfare. June 1970, General Partin was transferred to Elgin Air Force Base, Florida, where he served as Commander of the Air Force Armaments Laboratory. In June 1972, he was assigned as Deputy Director, Development and Acquisition, Deputy Chief of Staff, Research and Development, Headquarters US Air Force, Washington DC. Awards and Decorations On 1 September 1972, General Partin was promoted to Brigadier General. In July 1975, he was appointed Deputy for Aeronautical Systems Division at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. He was a Command Pilot and wore the Missileman Badge. His military decorations and awards included the Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit with two Oak Leaf Clusters and the Air Force Commendations Medal. As a Military Command pilot and Command Missileman, he flew 4,000 hours, including 37 hours combat. General Partin’s education qualifications included: a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering; Master of Science in Aeronautical Engineering and he completed the classwork and assignments for a PHD in Operations Research and Statistics. ![]()
An Innovative Engineer, Scientist and Precision Guided Weapons Pioneer
In all, General Partin served in the US Air Force for 31 years of active duty. He was a pioneer of precision guided weapons on a scientific, technical and executive level, directing organisations engaged in research, development, testing, analysis, requirements generation and acquisition management of precision guided weapon systems. His assignments varied from laboratory to the office of the Secretary of Defence. Among General Partin’s contributions in the fields of research and development management included: Cluster bombs, for which he developed button batteries; designing Puff the Magic Dragon side firing Gatling gun system, mounted in C-47 aircraft; Cruise missiles; GPS (Global Positioning Systems) to deliver precision guided missiles to exact addresses and the development of LASER focused energy weapons. ![]()
White House Appointment
In 1989, the White House appointed General Partin Special Assistant to the Federal Aviation Administration, to prepare the white paper on Federal Aviation Administration policy on the use of Global Positioning Systems (GPS), operational life for commercial aircraft, anti-terrorism, airport and airway capacity, requirements in the FAA acquisition process and FAA leadership and management development. Published Papers Some of his publications include: Global Terrorism Analysis on the Sino-Soviet Conflict; Deadly Failures in Intelligence Analysis and Defence Unpreparedness; The Oklahoma Bombing Murrah Federal Building and TWA-800 Shoot Down. Christian Family Man General Partin surrendered his life to Christ as a youth and maintained a strong Faith throughout his life. He was a generous, thoughtful and hardworking Christian who cared very deeply about his country and the church worldwide. He loved his family and is survived by his four children: Kirk Partin (was married to Dallas) of Columbia, South Carolina; Wayne Partin (married to Becky) of Chester, Virginia; Bruce Partin (married to Terry) of Hollace, New Hampshire and Bonnie (married to Mike) Kidd of Fairfax Station, Virginia. He had 13 grandchildren and 18 great grandchildren. ![]()
First and Foremost Friend
The first home I stayed in the United States was General Partin’s home, in Captains Row, on the Potomac River, close to Mount Vernon, the farm of George Washington. No one organised more meetings, drove me to more events, or hosted me longer in their home, than General Partin. From the first time I landed in the United States, January 1988, General Partin was my most enthusiastic supporter and guide as to how to best communicate to Americans the threat posed to Christians in Africa by Communism and radical Islam. Networker General Partin introduced me to senators, congressmen, military leaders, radio and TV presenters, key-media people and church leaders. On many occasions, the General drove me hundreds of miles across Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania and throughout Washington DC for businessman’s’ luncheons, prayer breakfasts, political meetings, military meetings, radio and TV broadcasts and to give testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations committee, Defence Intelligence Agency, Senator Jessie Helms’ office and many more. ![]()
Strategic Thinker
During the many months that we worked together on different projects, we spent many hundreds of hours discussing geo-political issues, history, military technology, contemporary issues and most importantly, Biblical, practical solutions to reclaim our countries for Christ. On the Potomac General Partin loved taking me out on his motorboat on the Potomac River, where we could see eagles and other bird life and the imposing Mount Vernon home of America’s first president, George Washington. I enjoyed staying at the Partin home for many reasons, one was the beautiful George Washington Memorial Parkway Forest path, that I often ran along in the early mornings. There’s a Snake in the Laundry One funny incident, which showed the difference in our cultures and communication styles was in February 1988. I heard the General calling out loudly: “Peter! Come here! There is a snake in the laundry! Get rid of it!” I dashed down into the basement, which, while lower than the street level, was on the level of the garden, which led directly to the Potomac River. I opened the door to the laundry, collected a broom and a rake and proceeded to coax a 4-foot long snake out from behind the washing machine into the garden and then wrapping the snake around the rake, carried him off the property and deposited the snake into the bushes, some distance away. Cross-Cultural Communication As I returned, the General stood there in obvious shock: “You let it go!” he admonished me. “You told me to get rid of it, Sir.” I responded. “I meant kill it!” declared the General. As a conservation-minded South African, that thought had never crossed my mind. “It was not poisonous, Sir.” I responded. “How do you know?” demanded the General. “Well, General, it was a very plain snake without any exotic markings and was probably a simple mole snake, of no threat to humans.” The General related this story on numerous times to friends at various meetings. Here he told this African to get rid of a snake and I had just released it into the wild, without killing it! ![]()
Strategic Bombing Meant Collateral Damage
The General related to me how distressed he was in studying the strategic bombing of cities during World War 2 and the enormous loss of civilian lives. “63 Cities in Germany were devastated with over 2 million people killed by the RAF and USAAF Strategic Bombing Offensive, during WW2. As a Christian, I knew that such an enormous loss of civilian life was unacceptable. I prayed for the Lord to guide me as to how we could bring about precision bombing, to take out for example, the bridge, without destroying the entire town around the bridge.” “The bombing of cities was not only unethical, but counter-productive, wasting vast amount of ordinance on civilian targets, it lengthened the war, rather than shortening it.” From Peenemünde to Precision Guided Weapons He related to me how tonnes of advanced research came out of the German Army Research Centre at Peenemünde Test Site. Professor Wernher von Braun and his scientists were “decades ahead of the rest of the world” in missile and rocket development and precision guided technology. They devised a wire guided bomb with which they managed to destroy a Soviet Warship. On this basis, General Partin became a pioneer of precision guided weapons in the US Air Force. Some of these weapons, he tested during the Vietnam War, for example, taking out a strategic bridge with a single bomb, without any “collateral damage” amongst the civilians living on each side of the river. ![]()
Exposing the Oklahoma Bombing as a False Flag
When, on 19 April 1995, the Alfred Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, collapsed, killing 168 people, General Partin immediately declared: “Someone is lying!” As one of America’s foremost weapons experts, General Partin could immediately see that the damage pattern on the building was not consistent with a truck bomb on the road, but could have only been the result of a building demolition team imbedding explosives in the actual reinforced concrete pillars holding up the building. General Partin declared that the pattern and magnitude of the damage in the Oklahoma bombing was “technically impossible without supplementing demolition charges on the columns and header beam.” The smooth failure modes and exposed steel rebar, were clear signs of contact charges. The positioning of the collapsed columns and header beam also showed that it could not have been caused a truck bomb. Otherwise they would have been blown at least slightly inward, but instead they had come straight down. The General declared that is was absurd to hold that a truck bomb blast was powerful enough to take down large, steel reinforced, concrete columns and still leave sheet rock, planters, furring strips and other light decorative materials virtually undamaged. The structural damage was consistent with a professional demolition team, who had imbedded the explosives in the heavily reinforced concrete beams and columns.
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Bomb Damage Analysis by Military Scientific Engineer
By 13 July 1995, General Partin released his 23-page report entitled Bomb Damage Analysis of Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, Oklahoma City. The study includes five-full page colour photographs taken of key areas of the crime scene and the General provided “irrefutable evidence that at least 4 demolition charges were set off at 4 critical columns of the reinforced concrete structure at floor level.” The report also included an important aerial view diagram of the Murrah Building, showing the position of the truck bomb in relation to the building damage and a computation, by the General, of the damage potential of the blast wave pressure in concentric circles as it radiated out from the blast force. The General diagrammed the effects of the bombing, showing light building materials basically untouched, yet heavily reinforced columns disintegrated, far from the truck bomb. “Now you can’t have the blast reaching clear into column B3 and bringing down that heavily reinforced column at the same time, not even blowing off this light covering from the column!” ![]()
The Official Story Violated the Laws of Physics
The General made clear in official reports given to congressmen and to the FBI and on TV Shows and public meetings, that the official story, that the horrendous damage to the building had been caused solely by a truck bomb, simply just did not add up. The reported facts contradicted, not only the laws of physics, but also a lifetime of personal experience of a weapons ordinance developer. There could be few engineers in the world with more impeccable credentials in the field of explosives, than General Ben Partin. He had field tested all types of explosives on a broad spectrum of structures and targets, was the earliest advocate for the Focused Energy Weapons Programme and the first Chairman of the Office of Secretary of Defence Joint Service Air Munitions Requirements and Development Committee responsible for Air Munitions Development for the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines. ![]()
Courageous Christian Crusader
General Partin was a brave and tireless crusader for the truth. He worked hard to provide me with platforms to speak up for the Persecuted Church in Mozambique, Angola, Zimbabwe and Sudan. He also provided practical insights, which assisted the Sudanese Peoples Liberation Army (SPLA) in their fight for freedom against Islamic Jihad in Sudan. We praise God for this innovative scientific genius, who loved the Lord, his family, his country and the Church worldwide. General Partin was a true friend and a great example. Faithful General Partin can declare: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the Faith.” 2 Timothy 4:7 We praise God that our Lord Jesus Christ is “…the Resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live…” John 11:25 Yours in sure and certain hope of the Resurrection. Rev. Dr. Peter Hammond Frontline Fellowship P.O. Box 74 Newlands 7725 Cape Town South Africa Tel: 021-689-4480 Email: mission@frontline.org.za Website: www.FrontlineMissionSA.org Visit www.GeneralPartin.com to view some of General Partin’s Global Terrorism Analysis articles.
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![]() “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life [the life that was in him] was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” --John 1: 1-5 “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’” --John 8: 12 “So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, ‘If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.’” --John 8: 31-32 “You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.” “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” --Matthew 5: 13-16 My father was a student of light, a student of optics and the energy contained in that light. Much of his military career was centred around the research and development of focused energy and how that energy might be exploited for advancing the strike capabilities of the US Air Force. So intense was he in this endeavour that he could say with confidence that he knew as much as an ophthalmologist about the physics of light and how we see.
Whenever dad was exposed to new technologic developments or if there was an unfamiliar area of scientific research dad would take several weeks and scour the library for technical literature on the subject and, within 3-4 weeks, he would be as knowledgeable regarding that subject as those who had spent their entire lives working in that discipline. It was our custom to gather around the table after Sunday dinner and discuss current events and many other subjects as they arose. I was always amazed at the breadth of dad’s knowledge and how he was able to satisfy the curiosity of our collective minds. He was keen to bring truth to our every question, as if he was arming his subordinate warriors with the necessary light to engage the forces of darkness wherever it was discovered. Dad emphasized the importance of pursuing and applying truth to every area of study and endeavour. Sitting at his knees we learned that light could be used as a metaphor for how we should approach life in general. The light of truth was to shine upon every endeavour we might pursue. There are truths that we can discover and know regarding history, polity, economics, and about life in general. That there are absolute, knowable truths that can be discovered was a radical concept, especially in this post-modern age when our culture has rejected the idea of absolute truth. We learned that ideas have consequences, that “good ideas have good consequences and bad ideas victims.” Scripture teaches “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Proverbs 1:7). This was dad’s starting point. He had a reverential awe regarding his Lord and Saviour and recognized his duty to serve God—fulltime—in every undertaking. A military colleague once quipped that he was retiring from the Air Force so that he could devote his life—full time—to vocational ministry. Dad’s response was, “I am already engaged in full time ministry”. Dad’s ministry centred around his endeavours to cast the sanitizing effect of light upon darkness, wherever it was found. Dad had huge fuses and a circuity in his mind that made it possible for him to interpret current events and their implications; he could “connect the dots”. Often, this meant he had to carry in his heart the burden of foreseeing and understanding these developments while labouring to bring them to light so that effective countermeasures might be employed. Dad was a “watchman on the wall” and the sound of his trumpet was clear and unmistakable. He, like the sons of Issachar, knew the times and what he ought to do (see I Chronicles 12: 32). One of my favourite quotations is that of Alexander Hamilton, III, regarding the nature of light and darkness; darkness is the absence of light. Darkness fills the space wherever light is withdrawn, individually and culturally. “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing” (Sir Edmund Burke). “Darkness is not an affirming power; it simply reoccupies the space vacated by the light.” Alexander Hamilton, III Dad was a student of truth and understood the connection between light and truth. His intention was to push back against the darkness, wherever it was found, with the light of truth. Dad understood that it only takes a little light to overcome the darkness. He understood that there cannot be freedom apart from truth and there cannot be truth apart from light, and, according to Scripture, there cannot be life apart from light. In closing I will retell an urban legend to underscore the function and purpose of light and our responsibility to let our individual “lights so shine” wherever God has planted us. This is the transcript of a radio conversation of a US naval ship with Canadian authorities off the coast of Newfoundland in October, 1995. Radio conversation released by the Chief of Naval Operations 10-10-95.
The chief attribute of lighthouses is they don’t move. Dad was an immovable light in his generation. The challenge before us, as dad lays down to rest from his labors, is who amongst us will pick up his torch and carry the light of truth to this generation? May the Lord find us so doing when He returns. ![]() By Benton K. Partin, Brigadier General, United States Air Force (Ret) In the development of major weapon systems, it may take 10 years from the definition of a requirement until the weapon system becomes an effective and integral part of our force structure. If the system remains in the force structure for a nominal 20 to 30 years, then in what operational scenarios will that weapon system be expected to perform 10 to 40 years in the future? It is those potential operational scenarios that determine many specifics in the definition of the requirement. What kind of crystal ball is used to foresee 30 to 40 years ahead in such detail? In my 31 years in the Air Force - (25 spent in Research and Development from the laboratory to the Office of the Secretary of the Defense) - 1 have never seen but two bases for such extrapolation. One is the evolution of technology whose extrapolation is a sophisticated science itself, and the other is the Program of the Communist International Adopted at Its 6th Congress in Moscow on September 1, 1928. [Reference: The Communist International 1919-1943 Documents. The Communist International 1919-1943 Documents, Jane DeGrasse, ed., Volume 11, 1923-1928, London, Oxford University Press, 1960.] It is the almost universal ignorance in the non-communist world of the latter basis for extrapolation that makes massive subversion and disinformation almost unrecognizable. In such complex matters, it is often difficult to differentiate between ignorance, incompetence and treason. In the short term, the apparent difference may be only a matter of intent - but quite often - predictable intent.
World Congress Of Communist / Socialists Parties During the late 1940s, 50s and early 60s, I thought I knew everything there was to know about the brew of Communism / Bolshevism / Socialism / Globalism / illuminism / Nazism / Fascism / Marxism / Leninism / Maoism / Babeuvism / Jacobinism / Occultism / Central Banking / Humanism / H.G. Well's "Z" Society / New World Order / World Order / etc., etc. However, it was only after I studied the program documents of the Executive Committee Communist International (ECCI) did I have any basis for a reliable prediction of the future course of world events that were being orchestrated by that brew as a program for total world conquest with the end objective being World Communism as they define it - or if you prefer - the euphemisms Globalism, World Order, New World Order, New Economic World Order, etc. At no point in its 250 year evolution has the program for global communist conquest been as completely structured, defined, adopted and published as in the program documents of the Third International's Sixth Party Congress held in Moscow in 1928. It was a world congress for the Communist / Socialist leadership from all over the world. There were 532 delegates of which 25 (20 voting) were from the USA. The World Congress was a precursor to the United Nations. Defined Program or Ambiguous Conspiracy They called it a "Program". Is it a conspiracy? Yes - in part. But it is an open conspiracy. The 1928 Program states: - "communists disdain to conceal their views and aims. They openly declare that their aims can be attained only by the forcible overthrow of all the existing social conditions." If we recognize a threat as only a "conspiracy," how can we develop a program to counter that "conspiracy" unless we can reliably and predictably define the program of that "conspiracy" I have developed programs for new weapons and programs for weapons to counter other new weapons, but I would be at a total loss to conceptualize a program to counter a conspiracy, unless I could first define its program, track its progress and refine its predictability. We deny ourselves the potential of recognizing, developing and orchestrating effective counteraction when we define a threat only as a "conspiracy" without understanding, in a predictable way, its program toward its ultimate objective. When people go to a theater to see a play, they are given a program, not a plan, not a conspiracy and not a piece of propaganda. The Communist World uses the term program in much the same way a theater uses the term program. The Program of the Third International was orchestrated from 1919 to 1943 by an almost Pentagon size organization, staffed with people from all over the world, headquartered in Moscow and called the COMINTERN. After World War II the name was changed to COMINFORM. In the mid 1950s, the name was changed again to the International Department, but is now called the GORBACHEV FOUNDATION, with new branches in several target countries. [Note: The Gorbachev Foundation is reported to be building a new " 1 kilometer square" office complex in Moscow.] It is The Program of the Third International and the extrapolation of technology that offers the only sound basis I have ever found for the long term extrapolation of military hardware requirements. For example: the program states that in World Communism: - "Instead of destroying countless lives and untold wealth in class wars and national wars mankind will use all its energies in the struggle with the forces of nature... ", i.e., this is the program basis for the present massive, global environmental front at the expense of defense preparedness and ultimately national sovereignty. The program also states that: -"once having abolished private property in the means of production and made them public property, world communism will replace the spontaneous forces of the world market, planless sway of competition, the blind operation of social production, by the socially planned regulation of production". For this we now have the World Trade Organization and the present consolidations toward global cartels for the production and distribution of goods and services. The Diamond Cartel leadership has funded much of the Communist led ANC takeover in South Africa (led by now deceased KGB Colonel "Joe Slovo"). The Sino-Soviet Conflict Hoax In 1957, as the Special Assistant for Advance Weapons Concepts in the Air Force Systems Command Headquarters, I started the Focused Energy Weapons Program. In 1958, I participated in a series of budget briefings in the Pentagon, in which I was defending the Focused Energy Weapons Program budget. In that series of briefings, I was shocked to see certain force structure assumptions based on the high risk hypothesis that there was a genuine and irreversible Sino-Soviet conflict, What shocked me was the long term national risk. Two hypothesis could readily be made. One, the Sino-Soviet split was genuine and irreversible, or two, the Sino-Soviet split was either a hoax or was reversible. Force requirements would vary greatly between these two hypothesis, depending on the threat. At that time, I considered three levels of threat: Case I: Dual Threat - Communist China and Russia would team up if either were directly involved with the U.S. and its allies in a major conflict. Case II: Either Threat - Either China or the Soviet Union would remain neutral if the other was involved in a major conflict with the U. S. and its allies. Case III: Either Allied Threat - Either Soviet or Chinese forces would join the U.S. and its allies in a major conflict with the other. Our Risk The risks involved here can easily be seen. If the assumption is made that the Sino-Soviet split is real and irreversible, and years ahead there is a confrontation by a Dual Threat, then the U. S. would be placed at extreme - if not fatal - risk. It would be like passing at the crest of a hill on a busy single lane highway. Much would be placed at risk for little possible gain. Neither the legitimacy of the Sino-Soviet split nor its irreversibility could be assured with sufficient confidence to not consider it a potential hoax. We are now those Years ahead and we are confronted by a Case I Dual Threat plus an expanded communist controlled world. The naive liberal and leftist solution is to surrender by "convergence" into their global scheme. Their Gain I continued collecting information on the Sino-Soviet split for another decade. While attending the Air War College in 1967, 1 had the opportunity to review the 1928 Program of the Communist International. I concluded that the Sino-Soviet conflict, as a hoax, was one of the highest payoff strategies of the entire communist world movement in its then 200 plus year history. I then wrote a thoroughly documented 155 page report on the Sino-Soviet split hoax entitled: Sino-Soviet Conflict, Competition and Cooperation: Risks In Force Structure Planning. The proposed wide distribution of the report was turned down by the approving group because one member was a propagandist for the legitimacy of the split. Several hundred copies were unofficially distributed to key senior leaders. In that report. written 30 years ago, I listed 50 advantages to the implementation of the 1928 program if the West could be convinced of the legitimacy and irreversibility of the Sino-Soviet split. The first ten of those advantages to implementing the World Communist Program were as follows: "1. It justified a major reduction in Free World forces and, at the same time, justifies a high level of defense preparedness for both Russia and China." [It resulted in an inversion of the balance of power in the world.] "2. It induced a complacent, do nothing, if not indifferent attitude toward the critical military balance of power." [It became politically incorrect to even question the Sino-Soviet conflict's legitimacy.] "3. It justified a more aggressive Soviet program in 'competition' with China in Asia, Africa and South America." [They were both involved in the generation and support of communist "Wars of National Liberation".] "4. The 'peaceful coexistence' role of the U.S.S.R. and the supposedly more aggressive role of China complement each other in reducing the Free World. For example: one approach worked better in Syria and the other approach worked better in Tibet." [That performance has been repeated many times.] "5. The Sino-Soviet split helped get the U.S. committed in a big way, but not too big for Russia and China, in a land war in Southeast Asia - supported by both Russia and China." [While we were dissipating Forces in Vietnam they were consolidating power in the Middle East and North Africa.] "6. The alleged breakup of the world communist monolith into supposedly 'loose and pluralistic grouping(s) of communist states,' justifies for many the disintegration of the Free World Alliances buildup over many years, for containing communism. 'Polycentrism in the East breeds polycentrism in the West.' [30 years later, we have a new rendition in Perestroika and a communist world push for a "comprehensive" UN controlled security system under a communist dominated UN. Effort to move NATO into East Europe is part of the dialectic for a new "European Soviet".] "7. The split justifies a repolarization of the world struggle along specious and phoney lines, i.e., The basic conflict is not between the U.S. and Russia, nor even between the U.S. und China. It is between Soviet Communism and Chinese Communism [Disinformation.] "8. The Sino-Soviet split has been used to justify a weakening of NATO, i.e., "it may have outlived its usefulness." [The central push is now for former Soviet Union countries to come into new groupings in the move toward a "comprehensive" security system extending from the "Atlantic to Vladivostok".] "9. The Sino-Soviet split hoax, along with the war in Vietnam, has been used to force the isolation of America on the international scene." [The U.S.A. almost stood alone in opposing a second five-year term for Boutros-Ghali as Secretary General of the United Nations.] "10. The Sino-Soviet split and the resulting reapproachment between East and West European countries has contributed to the rise of nationalism in East Europe and a weakening of the West European coalition." [Orchestrated for convergence.] Report Conclusions - (written 30 years ago!) "1. For military force structure planning purposes, the Sino-Soviet conflict must be considered a hoax so as to reduce, if not minimize, long-term national risk." "2. There is sufficient documented evidence available to severely challenge the popularly held view that the Sino-Soviet split is genuine, deep and irreversible." From all the arguments and evidence supporting the hypothesis of a genuine split, there are at least as good arguments, and perhaps more consistently reliable information which supports the idea that the popular view of the Sino-Soviet split is specious, misleading and a masterful deception." "4. The Sino-Soviet split payoff to the communist world, even as a highly advertised genuine conflict, is so great that both Russia and China would be foolish not to exacerbate it for the eyes and ears of the Free World." "5. The Sino-Soviet split, as a hoax, is one the highest payoff operations of the entire world communist movement since its very beginning." "6. The Sino-Soviet split payoff to the Communist World, as a hoax, is sufficiently great to make the deception a major foundation - - if not cornerstone of Sino-Soviet foreign policy. Almost no expense or inconvenience would be too great to assure the continued Western faith that the split is genuine." "7. In the Free World, the Sino-Soviet split thesis offers something to everyone. Almost everyone wishes to believe it. Disbelief creates too many problems in required actions. Therefore, there is a natural propensity to reject any idea that the Sino-Soviet split is not genuine. Moreover, with all the affirming publicity, much stemming from within the Sino-Soviet Camp, we are well conditioned to believe it in much the same way Pavlov's dogs responded to the bells." "8. The 1928 Program of The Communist International tempered by personality factors, historical necessity, and opportunism, provides a consistent, coherent, reasonably predictably model of understanding of the world socialist movement and Sino-Soviet relations. The popularly held model of Sino-Soviet conflict understanding is inconsistent, incoherent, and unreliable as a basis for prediction and expectation." "9. Part of the foundation on which the Sino-Soviet split thesis is built, is in fact specified as part of the 1928 COMINTERN Program." "10. The Future of a free and independent United States and Free World depends to a considerable extent on an accurate understanding of the alleged Sino-Soviet conflict and taking appropriate courses of action." "11. Assuming as true the model of understanding of the Sino-Soviet split and the world revolutionary processes, hypothesized, developed, and tested in this paper, we should expect the following.." Predictions - (made in 1967 - 30 years ago)"a. Secret Sino-Soviet cooperation in the democratic penetration, subversion, economic warfare and - in the more backward countries - externally supported flagrant aggression and orchestration of wars of national liberation." [Proven by time.] "b. Continued efforts of communist forces to expand the war in Southeast Asia to increase U.S. commitments." [Proven by time.] "c. That India will either move peacefully and reliably into the Marxist camp or the liberation struggle will soon move into the violent phase." [Moved toward the Marxist camp.] "d. The Marxist world will soon exercise hegemony over the Moslem Middle East." [Mostly done.] "e. A gradual increase in the numbers of Wars of National Liberation in the more advanced 'semi-colonial' countries." [Done. In Canada the conflict thesis is French Separatist, in the U.S.A. it is racial, in Ireland it is Protestant vs. Catholic, in Rwanda it is tribal, Tutsi (mostly Christian) versus Hutu (mostly Animist).] "f. A continued, but reduced, public exacerbation of the Sino-Soviet split thesis by both Russia and China until they are ready for a major showdown with the U.S." [Proven by time.] "g. An increased level of urban guerrilla warfare and arson in the U.S. in concert with increased violence in South Vietnam and increase pressure against mobilization." [Watts, D.C., TET, Tricontinental Congress, etc.] "h. A globally coordinated attempt by the Marxist world to over saturate U.S. commitments, to force a U.S. back down in Southeast Asia, with tactical nuclear weapons if necessary." [Dunkirk type evacuation, Tricontinental Congress success.] "i. The above sequence fulfillment would be regarded as the completion of another step - in the struggle for world domination - that was basically programmed in the 1920's." Report Conclusions Continued "12. The strategy of deterrence and massive retaliation tended to ignore the gradual revolutionary processes of wars of national liberation, as they were originally planned and are still being conducted - with some refinements." "13. The strategy of flexible response reacts to wars of national liberation after they have reached the violent phase, and after they have undergone many years of previolent preparation. A more applicable strategy is needed." "14. Although there are many causes on which the pre-violent phase of wars of national liberation feed - and if causes do not exist they are created - however, under the 1928 Program hypothesis, it is orthodox, doctrinary and practical that the liberation forces require and are provided, external assistance from the Marxist world." "15. The World Socialist Movement has progressed to the point where the advantages accruing from the Sino-Soviet split thesis will start to diminish. Under the 1928 Program hypothesis, world socialist solidarity will then become more popularly acclaimed. [Proven by time - the chiefs of state have already hugged and kissed in public in the treachery of the Leninist/Gramscian Perestroika deception.] Sino-Soviet Split - A Disinformation Program!When KGB defector Anatoliy Golitsyn published his book New Lies For Old in 1984, I could ascribe considerable confidence to it because the chapter on the Sino-Soviet split was in total agreement with my research and analysis of the same subject at the Air War College 17 years before. Golitsyn called the Sino-Soviet split a DISINFORMATION PROGRAM - I called it a HOAX. We both identified it as a high payoff Sino-Soviet strategy. What is so amazing is - that to my knowledge - our own senior intelligence people have never deduced the Sino-Soviet split as a disinformation program or a hoax - at least not for publication. With the new intelligence monopoly being set up under challengeable leadership, it will become even more politically incorrect to call it what it really is. He who controls the National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) controls future capabilities. In Golitsyn's 1995 book, The Perestroika Deception, he concludes that the Sino-Soviet split is the main Soviet disinformation program on which all other disinformation programs depend. Complex as it may seem, the Sino-Soviet split dialectic is rather simple and straightforward when compared to the dialectics involved in the U.S. "winning the Cold War," the "disappearance of the Soviet threat," the "disintegration of the Soviet empire," and the "democitization of the former Soviet Union" (now ruled by former communists, ex-communists, non-communists and communists). If at the end of World War II, all of the Chiefs of State in Eastern and Western Europe were former Nazis, ex-Nazis, and Nazis, would anyone believe that we had won World War II?? Alexander Solzhenitsyn Sees Another Big Lie Alexander Solzhenitsyn has been back in the "former Soviet Union" long enough to have a good appreciation of its true state of affairs. According to a 1-4-97 Op-Ed page article by Solzhenitsyn, he contends that western observers do not focus on "Russia's overall condition and the forces at work in that country but on the latest developments, such as elections to the Duma, the firing of Alexander Lebed and Boris Yeltsin's heart surgery. Any broad, deep view of what's happening gets lost." Solzhenitsyn continues. "As far as I can judge, two strongly held opinions are widely shared in the west: that during the last few years democracy has unquestionably been established in Russia, albeit one under a dangerously weak national Government, and that effective economic reforms have been adapted to foster the creation of a free market, to which the way is now open." "Both views are mistaken." "All that really exists is the Government hierarchy, from the President and national Government on down." World Commonwealth of Independent States and Globalization The Sino-Soviet split has now played a major role in the relative ascendancy of communist world power and a diminution of the free world and its alliances. The communist world goal was to have a World Commonwealth of Independent Socialist States by the year 2000. The "former Soviet Union" now calls itself the Commonwealth of Independent States or CIS. The United Nations is a CIS. A commonwealth is a loose federation. What follows the Commonwealth of Independent States has been in preparation for decades: 1. Global cartels for the production and distribution of goods and services. [Some multinational corporations were established originally for that purpose.] 2. A world socialist division of labor. [Certain production is already being shifted from the U.S.A. in the move toward global "interdependence".] 3. A global security system. [We now have extensive official cooperation among policing and intelligence services between the free world and the communist/former communist world.] 4. A global military system under the UN (in the UN Charter). According to the program, no indigenous forces would be required to go against their own people in a UN police keeping operation. Thus if the French Separatist movement in Canada or the racial tension in the U.S.A. became violent, a UN peace keeping operation would have to use non-indigenous forces. [This is probably the ultimate reason for the large number of foreign troops undergoing UN police action training in the USA.] 5. A global judiciary system. 6. A global environmental control with population reduction. 7. A global banking system. [IMF and World Bank.] 8. A global anti-crime and anti-terrorism organization. There is considerable evidence that counterterrorist sting operations and terrorist acts are being instigated to deliberately justify repressive legislation and expand policestate-like powers - but that is the way the dialectic works. 9. A global this and a global that Globalism. Withering Away Of The StateThen we are to have a "withering away of the state?" This does not mean doing away with government, but the establishment of a top down global system of regional government, i.e., a world without nations ... a world without nationalities ... a world without boundaries. This is by their definition COMMUNISM. It is also the New World Order and Globalism. In the past, world communist leadership would say they have been "building socialism," "building democracy" or "building communism." They used these words almost interchangeably. Now they use Peace, Globalism and New World Order for the same purposes. ActionI would encourage all readers to do everything possible, with sacrificial time and resources, to work as they have never worked before, to assure that our next president and our next elected Congress supports our Constitution, understands, and are concerned about more important issues than just term limits, balanced budgets and alternative life styles. Don't wait until November to vote - start now in the candidate selection and nomination process. ![]() By Benton K. Partin, Brigadier General, United States Air Force (Ret) When we have an aircraft incident like TWA-800, with massive casualties and never-ending grief, there is also massive empathy and massive concern about how it happened and what has to be done to preclude a repeat performance, or something else even more horrible. There must be no cover-up, and a full spectrum of applicable technology must be brought to bear on identifying the cause and providing solutions. The victims, the American people and those people all around the world, flying American designed and manufactured aircraft have a right to know the truth. All of those people involved in aircraft development, operations, maintenance and security have an urgent need to know the truth. After an 18 month investigation under the dominant control of the FBI, and after the expenditure of over $100 million, the American people still do not know what really happened other than some vague "mechanical failure" that resulted in the near empty center wing fuel tank blowing up in a most improbable manner - directionally - "forward to the right and down." On October 4, 1996, seven weeks after the TWA incident, I sent a fax to the chief TWA-800 investigator in New York. The fax stated as follows: "I did the initial design, development, and test of the first several continuous-rod warheads for the MOMARC missile in the 1956-7 time period. This was done at the Ballistic Research Labs at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds in Maryland. I carried several to Socorro, New Mexico for testing in a special arena nearby. "A proximity fused, continuous-rod (CR) missile warhead is the only target destruction system I know that would be consistent with all damage assessment information I have seen in the open media. "The destructive mechanism is unique to that type of warhead. You would not see blast or blast-frag damage. Neither would you see residuals from explosives. The instantaneous kill is unique to that warhead type, The CR warhead is the most difficult to perfect even with many design iterations. "I would encourage you to have someone reassess the recovered structure who is familiar with the unique structural kill of a CR warhead. "If I can be of any help, let me know." The fax also included a brief resume that contained my special training and extensive work experience in relevant areas. I received no reply. Few people in this country would have been more qualified to make the above assessment. After another 16 months of apparent obfuscation and misrepresentation of the facts, I believe it could have been stated then and can be stated now, with a high level of confidence that TWA-800 was shot down by a surface to air missile with a continuous rod warhead. Moreover, there is much circumstantial evidence that the shoot down may have had a foreign origin. WHAT HAPPENED TO TWA-800? With all the plethora of information available on TWA-800, one needs to "separate the wheat from the chaff' to see the naked truth. There is only a very limited set of information one needs to know and understand what happened to TWA-800. Other information either corroborates or obfuscates. The short list is as follows: 1. The testimony of the former Air National Guard pilot, Major Frederick Meyer. He is probably the most qualified witness, who observed the disaster from the very beginning. 2. The guidance, control and fusing systems for all weather surface-to-air missiles. 3. The terminal ballistics of continuous-rod warheads. 4. The two-page spread picture of the reassembled aircraft fuselage in the hangar on Long Island that was published May 11, 1997 in the New York Times Magazine, and, 5. Engineering knowledge of aircraft stability and control, aircraft structures and flight dynamics. The incident metallurgical reports and distribution array of the debris are also helpful. Major Meyer's Testimony I have discussed in excruciating detail, with Major Meyers, what he saw. He was airborne, headed toward the scene of the incident and was searching for reported nearby traffic. He observed a missile ascending from the surface, arching in a vertical plane near his line of sight and then making a small change in direction to the left of that vertical plane as it reached it's maximum altitude. He then saw the unmistakable brilliant white flash of a high-explosive warhead. Major Meyer was a Vietnam veteran who had flown rescue missions up north and had witnessed surface to air missiles in action. He then saw a second explosion that grew into a descending fireball that later erupted into a massive fuel explosion. Guidance, Control and Fusing Surface-to-air missiles designed for all weather conditions, operate on longer wavelengths than the small infrared seeking missiles which are, generally, only useful in visual target acquisition modes. Whereas, a small infrared seeking missile may have a circular error probable (CEP - radius of a circle around the aim point that would contain one-half of the hits) on the order of three feet, the CEP for an all weather missile may be ten times as large, ie, 30 to 40 feet. An all weather missile could be command guided or use automatic terminal homing with active or semi-active radar, a beacon, a transponder, a carrier wave or some combination thereof A compatible 360 degree fuse sensor would provide proximity fusing. Continuous-Rod Warhead Terminal Ballistics If an enemy aircraft, carrying an atomic weapon, is headed toward an aircraft carrier or a city, it would be desirable to terminate the strike mission as quickly and as decisively as possible under all weather conditions. To do this the continuous-rod warhead is the only non-nuclear unitary warhead that can produce instant catastrophic structural failure compatible with all weather guidance accuracy. High explosive, fragmenting warheads have a relatively small envelope for structural kills and only punching holes may give the strike mission time to get over target. The CR warhead cut on the right side of the aircraft was so far behind the wing faring leading edge that one would also expect damage to the right inboard fuel tank and possibly the cut off of the inner end of the leading edge slat. The right side cannot be seen, but one would expect similar damage depending on how much the missile was off bottom center. The continuous-rod warhead was close enough to the aircraft for the warhead blast to dimple the fuselage skin between the stringers on the bottom of the forward cabin section. This also accounts for the front-wheel doors being blown inward into the wheel well. The dimpling between the stringers ends at the leading edge of the wing faring because the shockwave was dissipated by the faring which was torn away. Skin blast damage is more severe further forward under the second deck. The maximum blast seen by the aircraft would have been forward of the cut and on the fuselage bottom. Forward because of the tilt of the plane of the cut and because of the forward cone angle of the continuous-rod projection, due to missile velocity and the direction of the detonation wave in contact with the rods at the time of detonation. The warhead's end effect blast would also contribute to the blast forward of the cut. Engineering Knowledge and Aircraft Stability and Control The aircraft was in a climb mode at the time the CR warhead cut through the fuselage. There were five major forces acting on the forward fuselage section: 1. Warhead blast impulse from below (peak pressure was probably on the order of 10 psi). 2. Cabin pressurization forcing the fore and aft fuselage sections apart (about 5 psi integrated over the cross-sectional area). 3. Some body lift because of climb angle and aerodynamic drag. 4. Inertial reactive forces, particularly from the upper deck and overhead storage regions above the warhead blast area (many times the force of gravity). 5. Depending on the time the center wing tank blew, it could also have contributed to the separation. With the above array of forces acting, the forward cabin section would have quickly separated forward and up while stripping off the top skin above the cut and back over the wing. This is why there is no soot in front of the CR warhead cut. The second break in the fuselage, about 20 feet ahead of the CR warhead cut, is due to outside blast from below and vertical accordion-like collapse of the side walls is due to inertial forces from the upper deck and overhead baggage. The severely damaged weak section, containing both cabin doors in front of the wing, would have disintegrated. The break across the fuselage, in front of the second cabin door, almost appears as another CR warhead cut. We know it separated at both points because of the ground debris pattern. The cut closest to the wing was the first separation because of the evident explosive decompression petaling. The vertical collapse of the section under the upper deck with blast from below, and downward inertial forces from above, can fully account for the second lateral separation across the fuselage. The damage to the section with the door is a continuum of the damage under the upper deck. Therefore, that damage under the upper deck had to be part of the initial breakup in the air - not ocean surface impact. With the rapid departure of everything in front of the CR warhead cut, the aft-end of the remaining part of the aircraft would have violently rotated downward. This is like two kids on a well-balanced seesaw - when one jumps off the other one bumps his bottom. All modeling exercises and artist conceptions showing anything but a violent downward rotation of the tail section are absolute folly. As the tail rotates downward, the angle of attack quickly increases and both wing tips snap off at their weakest point - just outboard of the outboard engines. As the angle of attack continues to increase toward the vertical, the main wing span breaks at its maximum stress point within the center wing tank. This break would be in the direction at the top of the wing, with the top of the wing in compression. The top of the center wing tank thus failed in compression, the bottom in tension. The wings then broke free from the remaining fuselage. When the wing spans broke, there would have been a massive and violent exposure of fuel which resulted in the larger descending and disintegrating fuel blast. The second explosion seem by Major Meyers would most probably have been the center wing tank. Diversionary Investigative "Evidence" Throughout the TWA-800 incident, some investigation reports given to the media tended to put blinders on what really happened. The following are typical examples: 1. It was reported that TWA-800 could not have been brought down by a missile because all four engines had been recovered and none showed missile damage. A reasonable statement if there were only small infrared guided missiles to be considered. 2. All observers were grouped into one specious category - all witnesses had only seen what happened after the center wing tank exploded. 3. The missile expert from China Lake concluded that no contact fused missile hit the aircraft. That is not an inclusive conclusion. 4. The inability of the investigation to establish missile intercept is a clear indication of another coverup. Across the nation, there have been many reports of a TV showing of the missile intercept very soon after the incident. Employees state that it was shown on the NY-1 cable system that serves two to three million homes. According the NY-1 employees, the FBI confiscated the video after two showings. FRIENDLY FIRE OR AN ACT OF FOREIGN TERRORISTS?The Friendly Fire diversion had its origin in Moscow - not Paris. Christopher Story in his Soviet Analyst special report dated June 5, 1997, traced the origin of the friendly fire diversion story back to Moscow ten days after the TWA-800 shoot down. The long planned G-7+1 meeting in Paris immediately after the TWA-800 incident was devoted to global organized crime and terrorism. According to the same issue of Soviet Analyst, "one of the main outcomes of that summit was an agreement that all participants - including, of course, Russia - would have access to each other's organized crime and terrorism files. This means that soviet intelligence gained a window into the files of the FBI." Is this all for a new "global justice system?" In Australia, Martin Bryant went out on a Sunday afternoon in April 1996 and killed 35 people and wounded 19. The media used this to help traumatize the nation, and in two weeks, legislation was introduced to disarm the Australians. During the year-long gun confiscation and buy-back program, gun crime actually increased 13 percent. The question is, did the real perpetrators of the TWA-800 shoot down, the bombing in Oklahoma, the bombing of the New York Trade Center, and the bombing in Saudi Arabia have ultimately complementary objectives? They all have either the marks of International State-sponsored terrorism or a counter-terrorism sting operation, with agents provocateurs, either gone bad or planned like a train wreck. Benton K. Partin Brigadier General USAF (Ret) October 4, 1996 To: NTSB TWA-800 I did the initial design, development, and test of the first several continuous rod warheads for the BOMARC missile in the 1956-7 time period. This was done at the Ballistic Research Labs at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds in Maryland. I carried several to Socorro, New Mexico for testing in a special arena nearby. A proximity fused, continuous rod (CR) missile warhead is the only target destruction system I know that would be consistent with all damage assessment information I have seen in the open media. The destructive mechanism is unique to that type of warhead. You would not see blast or blast-frag damage. Neither would you see residuals from explosives. The instantaneous kill is unique to that warhead type. The CR war-head is the most difficult to perfect even with many design iterations. I would encourage you to have someone reassess the recovered structure who is familiar with the unique structural kill of a CR warhead. If I can be of any help, let me know. Sincerely, ![]()
One of the earliest calls placed by THE NEW AMERICAN in our investigation into the Oklahoma City bombing was to Brigadier General Benton K. Partin (USAF, retired). As one of the world's foremost experts in both the theoretical and practical applications of explosives technology, General Partin possesses virtually unparalleled qualifications to authoritatively evaluate the public-source information available on the bombing.
From the start, the general expressed very strong misgivings about the "official" story - that the horrendous damage to the federal building had been caused solely by the reported truck bomb. Too many facts, he said, "simply just don't add up" to support that convenient explanation. For Partin, the reported "facts" contradicted not only the laws of physics, but a lifetime of personal experience as well. ![]()
Appeal for Delay
In a letter to Senator Don Nickles (R-OK), which he personally delivered to the senator’s Washington office on May 18th of last year, General Partin appealed for action to delay destruction of the Murrah Building until a full, independent forensic examination of the site could be conducted. In that letter, which was also personally delivered to the offices of 23 other senators and some 30 members of the House, the general offered his initial analysis of the bombing evidence and explained: "I am concerned that vital evidence will soon be destroyed with the pending demolition of the Federal Building in Oklahoma City. From all the evidence I have seen in the published material, I can say with a high level of confidence that the damage pattern on the reinforced concrete superstructure could not possibly have been attained from the single truck bomb without supplementing demolition charges at some of the reinforced column bases. The total incompatibility with a single truck bomb lies in the fact that either some of the columns collapsed that should not have collapsed or some of the columns are still standing that should have collapsed and did not." "To produce the resulting damage pattern on the building," wrote Partin, "there would have to have been an effort with demolition charges at column bases to compliment or supplement the truck bomb damage. A careful examination of the collapsed column bases would readily reveal a failure mode produced by a demolition charge. This evidence would be so critical, [that] a separate and independent assessment should be made before a building demolition team destroys the evidence forever." ![]()
General Partin was not offering another "wacko conspiracy theory." He was offering solid, compelling, methodical, scientific analysis backed by a sterling career and impeccable credentials. Twenty-five of his 31 years of active service in the Air Force were involved in intensive research, design, development, testing, and management of weapons at all levels. This included extensive hands-on work at the Ballistic Research Laboratories and field-testing of all types of explosives on a broad spectrum of structures and targets. He served as commander of the Air Force Armament Technology Laboratory and was the first chairman of the Office of the Secretary of Defence (OSD) joint service Air Munitions Requirements and Development Committee, responsible for munitions development for the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines.
General Partin is recognized as a major guiding force behind our modern precision guided weapons systems. As far back as the late 1950s, he developed the earliest focused energy weapons program, wrote the first contract for laser weapons development, and pushed for deployment of a functional "Star Wars" missile defense system decades before it became the hotly debated issue of the 1980s. General Partin was a Command Pilot and Command Missileman, a Distinguished Graduate of the Air War College, a recipient of the Distinguished Service Medal, and thrice a recipient of the Legion of Merit. In short, General Bentoil Partin is an "expert's expert," and his carefully reasoned analysis should command a respectful hearing. U nfortunately , he received no hearing whatsoever from political officialdom or from the arbiters of "acceptable" debate in the Establishment media. ![]()
Glaring Inconsistencies
General Partin' s analysis focuses on a number of crucially important and glaring inconsistencies in the forensic evidence of the Murrah B uilding that continue to challenge the official truck bomb scenario. These include: ·Pattern and magnitude of the damage. These were "technically impossible without supplementing demolition charges," says Partin. · Demolition charge signatures on columns and header beam. The smooth failure modes and exposed steel rebar are clear signs of contact charges. ·Position of the collapsed columns and header beam. If caused by the truck bomb, they should have been blown at least slightly inward, but instead came straight down. · Contradictory damage to light and heavy materials. It is "absurd," says Partin, to hold that the truck bomb blast was powerful enough to take down large, steel-reinforced, concrete columns and still leave sheet rock, furring strips, and other light, decorative materials virtually unfazed. ·Structural soundness of the remaining building. If the blast from the truck bomb was sufficient to cause the damage seen at the Murrah Building, much greater structural damage would have been sustained by the remainder of the building which was left standing. However, structural apalysis revealed that it was relatively sound. ![]()
Evidence of Blast Charges
General Partin has repeatedly emphasized some of the basic physics problems associated with the single-truck-bomb scenario which seem to be lost on most laymen - and even many professional demolitionists - who are unduly impressed with the huge blast wave associated with the Ryder truck explosion. "First, blast through air is a very inefficient energy-coupling mechanism against heavy reinforced concrete beams and columns," the general points out. "Second, blast-damage potential initially falls off more rapidly than an inverse function of the distance cubed. That is why in conventional weapons development, one seeks accuracy over yield for hard targets. Columns in large buildings are hard targets for blast." This principle was very well illustrated, he noted, in the bombing of the World Trade Centre. In that case, he told THE NEW AMERICAN, a similar truck bomb blew a large cavity through several floors above and below the bomb but caused very little lateral damage. "The floor areas directly above and below the bomb were accelerated by the blast force and completely stripped away, but you can see in the published photos that the reinforced concrete column is standing there in the middle of the cavity with no damage." The entire building in Oklahoma City could have been collapsed with relatively small demolition charges against the base of the columns and with even less explosives if linear cavity cutting charges had been used," General Partin wrote in his letter to Senator Nickles. Partin's point was dramatically illustrated with the final demolition of the Murrah Building on May 23, 1995. As that event demonstrated, a very small amount of explosives is required to bring down a large building - if the demolition charges are strategically placed within, or in direct contact with, the key structural points of the building. A spokesman for Control Demolition, Inc. informed THE NEW AMERICAN that less than 150 pounds of explosives placed in 420 locations were used to fell the three- fourths of the building left standing after the April 19th explosion. ![]()
Exhaustive Study
On July 13, 1995, General Partin released his 23-page report entitled Bomb Damage Analysis of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The study includes five full page colour photographs taken of key areas of the crime scene which the general asserts provide "irrefutable evidence that at least four demolition charges were set off at four critical columns of the reinforced concrete structure at the floor level of the third floor.” The report also includes an important aerial-view diagram of the Murrah Building showing the position of the truck bomb in relation to the building damage and a computation by Partin of the damage potential of the blast wave pressure in concentric circles as it radiates out from the blast source. (The photo under “Diagramming the Blast” is based on the Partin diagram.) THE NEW AMERICAN stands virtually alone in having published not only all of the report's photographs and the building diagram, but a substantial portion of the text as well, together with interview comments from General Partin. (See our August 7, 1995 issue, "Explosive Evidence of a Cover-up.") Space does not permit us to duplicate that valuable and extensive coverage here, so we have summarized some of the most compelling points made by General Partin. It is particularly worth noting that no developments in the ensuing months have impeached or seriously challenged Partin's compelling analysis. Indeed, quite the contrary. One of the more interesting examples of the general's vindication can be found in the "official commemorative volume" of the Oklahoma City tragedy, In Their Name. This "officially authorized" book, with an epilogue by Governor and Mrs. Frank Keating, contains many moving photographs and stories, as well as much useful data and many valuable illustrations. In the middle of the book is a large illustration of the Murrah Building spanning two pages (pages 86-87) and detailing the damage caused by the April 19th blast. What is quite striking about the illustration is that the artist has obviously moved the bomb crater to the left so that it is aligned with the deep blast cavity that extends into the building where the 83 column was collapsed, thus "solving" one of the glaring inconsistencies in the crime scene evidence pointed out in the Partin analysis. That this placement of the crater is clearly wrong can be verified by an examination of almost any aerial photo of the building which shows the crater. In fact, In Their Name provides just such a shot a few pages earlier in the book (pages 82-83) which patently contradicts the illustration. What this episode demonstrates is that - whether consciously or unconsciously - the illustrator (and/or the book's producers) have attempted to reconcile the conspicuously conflicting data by altering the evidence to fit the official story. However, this only serves to reinforce the trenchant arguments advanced by Partin. ![]()
Diagramming the Blast
General Partin's bomb-damage diagram illustrates the fact that in the first row of columns facing the street where the truck bomb was parked (row A), seven columns (A2, A3, A4, A5, A6, A7, A8) collapsed, while in row B only B3 failed. Unlike rows B and C, where all 11 columns ran from the ground floor to the top of the building, in row A the bases of the even-numbered columns stood on a heavy reinforced horizontal concrete header which was supported by the odd-numbered columns. "The truck bomb was not in front of column A3," the general explains, "but instead, as the crater shows, between columns A4 and A5, which means that column 84, which did not come down, would have received about 40 percent more blast pressure than B3 which did come down. If any columns were going to come down in the B row it would have been columns B4 and B5. You don't have to go any further than that to know that you had a demolition charge on column B3 - unless you believe in magic." Additionally, the photographs reveal a number of other troubling dilemmas. "If you look at those B-row columns," says Partin, "you can see that they still have furring strips and sheetrock on them.... Now, you can’t have the blast reaching clear in to column B 3 and bringing down that heavy reinforced column and at the same time not even blowing off this lighter covering from the column." ![]()
Restating his earlier point about the tremendous falloff of blast pressure travelling through air, General Partin makes this important observation: Using the official estimate usually cited for the amount of explosive in the truck bomb - 4,800 pounds - would yield a sphere of ammonium nitrate about 4Y2 feet in diameter with a blast pressure of about Y2 million pounds per square inch at the detonation point. But by the time the blast wave travels through the air to the nearest of the columns in the A row (A5) it dropped off too around 375 pounds of pressure per square inch, and by the time it reaches the B row columns it's down in the range of 27 to 38 [pounds per square inch]. And out at column A 7 it's down around 25 to 35 pounds per square inch. The yield strength of concrete is around 3,500 pounds per square inch, and yet we're supposed to believe that this large, reinforced concrete column is going to be brought down by 25 to 35 pounds of pressure? It's absurd.
According to General Partin's authoritative analysis, the blast wave from the truck bomb would have carried sufficient force to cause considerable damage to the face of the building and to some of its floors, but would have fallen far short of the force needed to cause the massive structural damage experienced at the Murrah Building. ![]()
Other Examples
This opinion is consistent not only with the bomb damage at the World Trade Centre cited earlier, but from the results of other terrorist bombings as well. One of those which closely parallels the Oklahoma City incident is the 1989 bombing of the DAS (Colombia' s police intelligence) headquarters in Bogota, Colombia by drug lords of the Medellin cartel. An estimated l, 300 pounds of dynamite (which is much more powerful, pound-for-pound, than the ammonium nitrate mixture suspected in the Oklahoma City Ryder truck) packed in a bus was detonated in front of the 11-story DAS building. Although witnesses and survivors compared the explosion, which caused damage in a 26-block area and took dozens of lives, to "a mini-atom bomb," the blast did not cause the kind of severe structural damage seen in Oklahoma City. Another strike against the single-truck-bomb theory is the structural integrity of the remainder of the Murrah Building after the explosion. A single bomb large enough to cause the devastation seen in that structure would also cause considerable structural damage to the rest of the building. However, architects involved in the structural safety assessments said that this was not the case. Architect Ed Kirkpatrick told THE NEW AMERICAN that most of the building was structurally sound and worth rebuilding. Jim Loftis, the architect who designed the award-winning building, concurred, stating, "I think technologically we could have removed the damaged part of the building and rebuilt it....”. BY WILLIAM F. JASPER Other Related Articles: False Flags, Active Measures, Disinformation and Subversion Campaigns The Bombing of Cities in World War II Were Atomic Bombs Necessary to End World War Two? The Battle for the Mind in the News Media How Propaganda Changes Perceptions and People Dealing With Deceit Deadly Failures in Intelligence Analysis and Defense Unpreparedness ![]() Are Firearms to Blame? In the aftermath of the Joker Massacre at the Dark Knight screening in Colorado, (20 July 2012) some sought to blame firearms. Yet evil does not reside in cold metal inanimate objects. Evil comes from human hearts. Far more to the point would be to ask what role Hollywood has played in glamourizing evil, portraying extremely sadistic violence and desensitising youth to cruelty. An excellent resource that exposes this is the Death by Entertainment DVD by Jeremiah Films. Are Firearms for Self - Defence Permissible? "But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the Faith and is worse than an unbeliever." 1 Timothy 5:8 Fathers and husbands are required by Almighty God to provide for their families. This includes not only providing food, housing, clothing, education, medical care, love, discipleship and spiritual guidance, but also protection. Of what worth is all the other provision if one does not provide protection as well? Anyone who fails to provide for their family has denied the Faith and is worse than an unbeliever. In fact, those who refuse to protect their young are worse than an animal. What animal will not fight to protect its offspring? God has equipped every one of His creatures with some weapons - whether horns, claws, teeth, talons, stings, and hooves for fight or flight. Why would humans alone be excluded from self-defence? Our Lord Jesus Christ told His disciples that: "He who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one." Luke 22:36 The Law of God is clear. "If the thief is found breaking in, and he is struck so that he dies, there shall be no guilt for his bloodshed." Exodus 22:2 The Law of God establishes the basic right of self-defence. Any person is justified in defending himself, or his family, whenever they are attacked or their lives are endangered. Any weapon is permissible for use in self-defence. The Law of God does not say that the homeowner is guilty if he uses a sword, but innocent if he uses a club. The issue is not one of weapons, but the right and duty of self-defence. Faith and Action We should not be too quick to judge and condemn others for doing what the Bible commands them to do - to take reasonable precautions for self-defence and for the protection of their families. Yes, of course, our primary weapons are the Bible, prayer, faith and persuasion. Just as our primary spiritual food is the Word of God. But that does not stop us planting seeds, harvesting crops, shopping and preparing food! Christians must be balanced and we need to recognise that sin comes from the heart of man (Mark 7:21-23). There is no point blaming a tool, a cold metal inanimate object, for the evil in men's hearts. Pacifism is in defiance of historic Christian teaching. The 39 Articles, the Foundational Statement of the Church of England, states clearly in Article 37: "It is lawful for Christian men to carry weapons." The Westminster Catechism, considered the finest expression of Biblical teaching, states under the 6 th Commandment that the prohibition against murder requires as our duty: "All careful studies and lawful endeavours to preserve the life of ourselves and others by resisting, by just defence, against violence, protecting and defending the innocent." (Q135). "Like a muddied spring or a polluted well is a righteous man who gives way to the wicked." Proverbs 25:26 Liberty Teeth The first president of America, George Washington, declared: "Firearms stand next in importance to the Constitution itself. They are the American people's liberty teeth and keystone under independence. To secure peace, security and happiness, the rifle and the pistol are equally indispensable. The very atmosphere of firearms everywhere restrains evil interference. They deserve a place of honour with all that is good." Switzerland's Strategy for SurvivalIf you want peace, prepare for war . Peace is achieved through superior firepower. This sums up the Swiss attitude towards peace and freedom. The land of William Tell, Ulrich Zwingli, William Farel and John Calvin, with its deep mistrust of central governments, its abiding love for God's Word and for life and liberty, remain a bastion of freedom through armed neutrality. "The nation will continue to exist only if it is strong enough to defend itself." "We have a small army, yes, but it is made strong by our traditions." General Guisan in his book: "Our People and its Army" asserted that military defence has two essential components - moral force and material force. A young man at his Confirmation received a sword and could not marry unless he possessed a Bible and a firearm. The local assemblies of lawmakers each carried a sword as a symbol of liberty when they gathered for legislation. Days of military recruitment were festivals with processions, flags and music. Being capable of military service is a physical certificate of health. The warrior spirit exhibits itself in the arts, literature and architecture. The army is the incarnation of the federal republic. The people are the army, the army is the people. The army provides education for citizenship. "We owe it to our ancestors, always appreciate freedom and independence… It is better to die than to live in slavery!" The Swiss Shooting Federation (SSV) was formed in 1824: "To the promotion and perfection of the art of sharpshooting, an art beautiful in itself and of the highest importance for the defence of the Confederation." Shooting festivals became one of the most important unifying activities in the community. It has always been Switzerland's high level of military preparedness, as a nation of sharpshooters on skis, that has proved an effective deterrent to would-be aggressors. Switzerland is the only European nation which has proclaimed that, in the event of an invasion, any announcement of surrender is to be regarded as enemy propaganda, that every soldier must fight to the last cartridge, and then with the bayonet. Their published and openly proclaimed military strategy is to make any invader pay a severe penalty for violating their neutrality. The standing order is: Keep fighting. No surrender. No retreat. Fight to the last bullet and blade. Foundations for Freedom To limit a person's access to lethal weapons is to limit his ability for self and family defence. Weapons control interferes with our basic right and responsibility for self-defence. Ultimately gun control can deprive you of your right to life. The right of citizens to use lethal force to defend themselves is a great deterrent against thieves and attackers. Those who choose not to have firearms still benefit from those who do. Even if only one in twenty people are armed, it still acts as a restraint on potential attackers who are not certain who is armed, and who is not. The deterrent value of armed citizens against crime cannot be overestimated. "Do not be afraid of them, remember the Lord, great and awesome, and fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives and your houses." Nehemiah 4:14 From these, and many other, passages of Scripture (including Numbers 32:20; Judges 5:8; 1 Samuel 13:19-22), we can see that a man is responsible to be armed and prepared to protect his household. "A righteous man who falters before the wicked is like a murky spring and a polluted well." Proverbs 25:26 The Deadly Deception of PacifismWhen these Scriptural principles are ignored the results can be tragic: The Christians at the Elim Mission Station in Rhodesia were such convinced pacifists, that even within a few kilometres of Marxist Mozambique during a vicious war, they refused to be armed. They had neither fence, nor dogs to protect them. They refused to allow the security forces to station some guards for their protection. When communist terrorists visited Elim, the missionaries provided them with food and medical supplies. On one fateful night, 23 June 1978, ZANLA terrorists of Robert Mugabe herded the nine missionaries and four children onto one of the fields. In front of the parents, they hacked the children to death. Then, in front of the husbands, they raped and tortured the women to death. Finally, they brutally murdered the men. Yet, so effectively had their pacifist beliefs neutralised them, that there was no attempt at resistance. The men stood by and watched ruthless terrorists butcher and abuse their loved ones. In November 1987 a similar massacre took place at New Adams farm in Zimbabwe. Their sincere belief in pacifism disarmed the 16 precious Christians and made them helpless victims to a frightful slaughter. English Legal Tradition English legal tradition has always recognised the right of free citizens to possess and carry weapons for self-defence. King Alfred the Great (871 - 899) laid the foundation for English law. The Ten Commandments of Exodus 20 formed the preamble for these laws. While abuses, such as disturbing a meeting by drawing a sword, were prohibited - the basic right to bear arms was entrenched. The laws of King Cnut (1020 - 1023) declared self-defence to not only be a right, but a duty. Those who failed to assist a person under attack were to be fined. Similarly, anyone who "illegally disarms a man" were to be fined. The Magna Carta of 1215, the first written restriction on the powers of government, and the grandfather of all Bills of Rights, guaranteed the right of all free men to bear arms. The English Declaration of Rights of 1689 recognised "the right of having and using arms for self preservation and defence." Other free states entrenched this right to obtain, own, carry and use weapons for self defence, including most notably the United States of America and its Bill of Rights. So important and basic was this considered by the American Founding Fathers that they placed it in the Second Amendment - straight after religious freedom! If these foundational principles for freedom seem extreme, or outdated, then consider recent history: Rwanda was a Gun Free Zone On 6 April 1994, one of the most dreadful campaigns of mass murder was unleashed upon the Tutsi people of Rwanda. In just over 6 weeks more people were killed with machetes and clubs than had died from atomic weapons in all of history. The MRND Hutu government of Rwanda instigated, organised and launched the systematic slaughter of the Christian Tutsi minority after enforcing a rigorous gun control. As the population had been previously disarmed, they were helpless to defend themselves against the state which now had a monopoly of weapons. Over 800,000 Tutsi Christians were murdered. The confiscation of weapons made the massacres possible - by disarming the targeted victims. The holocaust in Rwanda again confirmed that limiting the ability of law-abiding citizens to defend themselves and their families is an open invitation to criminals to attack the innocent. Gun Control Precedes Genocide The genocides perpetrated upon the Christian Armenians in Ottoman Turkey from 1915 - 1917 were preceded by gun control and gun confiscation. The massacres of millions of Christians by communists in the Soviet Union were preceded by gun control and gun confiscation. The massacres in Europe from 1939 - 1945; in Red China from 1949 - 1976; in Uganda from 1971 - 1979; in Cambodia from 1975 - 1979; and in Rwanda in 1994 – all were preceded by gun control legislation, which effectively disarmed the targeted victims. The Greatest Killer A gun free sticker would not have helped these people, because the greatest threat to life is not from firearm accidents, nor even from criminals. The greatest killer in the 20th Century was secular governments who had disarmed their own citizens. Approximately 160 million people were killed by their own governments, in over 40 communist states, just in the 20th Century alone. These were not foreigners killed by invading armies during times of war, these were citizens killed by their own governments in times of peace. Tyrants Prefer Unarmed Victims Gun control deprives potential victims of their best means of protection. A free people need to be armed. Disarmed people can be easily exploited and oppressed. If a government does not trust its citizens with weapons, then the citizens cannot trust the government with power. A government that fears its people is itself to be feared. No government should ever have a monopoly of force or weaponry. Deal with the Murderer The underlying arguments for gun control seem to be that the availability of weapons causes crime. But this has not been the Biblical position. Genesis 4 records the first murder when Cain killed Abel. God's response was not to ban rocks, knives, clubs, or whatever murder weapon may have been used, but to banish the murderer. It is the murderer’s heart that is the problem, not the weapon used. In Genesis 9:5-6, God instituted capital punishment for murder. "Whoever sheds man's blood, by man his blood shall be shed; for in the image of God He made man." This death penalty for murder was repeatedly restated (Exodus 21:12-15; Leviticus 24:17-22; Numbers 35:33; Matthew 5:17-18; Acts 25:11; Romans 13:1-4; Revelation 13:10). However, nowhere does the Bible advocate weapons control. The Bible does record the control of weapons by the Amalekites and the Philistines (Judges 5:8 and 1 Samuel 13:19-22) but it condemns these restrictions on individual defence as a pagan attempt to centralise excessive power. A Bad Workman Blames his Tool If firearms caused crime, then Switzerland would be a violent, lawless country, because every citizen has weapons of war stored in his home. Yet, despite having millions of military type rifles, and a great many other firearms and weapons of war, in private homes, overall firearm abuse is so low as to be insignificant. Switzerland has the lowest burglary and murder rate in the industrialised world. How many mass murders take place in gun shops, on shooting ranges, or in police stations, where firearms abound? Also, in 1945, at the end of the Second World War, when tens of millions of soldiers returned to their homes, with millions of surplus firearms sold on the open market (the South African government were selling .303 rifles for just R2 each), and hundreds of thousands of captured souvenir weapons, there was actually a sharp decline of violent crime in the USA, Britain, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. However, later, with the advent of "the permissive society", and as church attendance decreased, along with the explosion of the drug culture and the sexual revolution - then violent crime increased. Clearly, guns do not cause crime. People in rebellion against the Laws of God cause crime and violence. Gun Free is No Guarantee Nevertheless, we in South Africa have an organisation called Gun Free South Africa which regularly claims that: "a person who uses a firearm in self-defence is more likely to be shot than someone who does not" and "the cases of people attacked and robbed of their guns - and often shot with their own guns - far outnumbered occasions when somebody successfully defends themselves with a gun!" (Loaded Issues, GFSA leaflet). The same leaflet asserts that criminals are more likely to attack armed victims! Criminals Prefer Unarmed Victims These incredible assertions are decisively refuted by the facts. A US Department of Justice report on a Survey of Incarcerated Felons found that the greatest deterrent to crime is armed citizens. 60% of convicts agreed that they would never attempt to rob a victim if they thought that he or she might be armed. 74% declared that their greatest fear was being shot by a victim. 57% stated that they feared armed citizens more than police. Every year, armed citizens legally shoot four times more criminals than do policemen. Crime Control An American study, Crime Control by Gary Kleck, reported than a million times a year US citizens use firearms to defend themselves against criminals and to prevent a crime (2,740 times a day). In 98% of these cases, the mere brandishing of the firearm proved sufficient to deter the attacker. Only in 2% of the cases did the citizen find it necessary to kill, or wound, the criminal. Gary Kleck began his studies as a gun control advocate, yet, after his research, became convinced that it was counterproductive. He now opposes government interference in the rights of citizens to obtain and use firearms for self-defence. A Rapist's NightmareA US Justice Department study of more than 32,000 rapes or attempted rapes, found that the best protection against rape is for a woman to be armed. When a potential victim of rape was armed with a firearm, or a knife, only 3% of the attempted rapes succeeded (Law Enforcement Assistance Administration, Rape Victimisation). Resistance Increases Chances of Survival A South African study, by John Mann of SAGA, researched 206 cases of armed private defence (not including police or military personnel) in the Gauteng area. In summary he calculated: 677 attackers to 246 defenders/victims; 81% of attackers had weapons, 71% had firearms. 36% of the attackers were killed, or arrested, by the defenders. 64% of the attackers fled. Only four armed defenders/victims died (confrontational survival rate of 31 to 1). No bystanders/innocent parties were injured by actions taken by the defenders. In his conclusion, Mann observed: Potential victims can expect multiple attackers. When an intended victim has used a firearm in defence, four out of ten attackers were killed, or arrested; six out of ten attackers ran away. When an armed victim resists, their chances of surviving the attack are increased by 31 times (3,100%). More Guns - Less CrimeJohn Lott of the University of Chicago law school conducted an exhaustive study on the relation of firearm ownership to crime. His 18 years of thorough research of all the data, for over 3,000 counties of the United States, was published under the title: "More Guns, Less Crime: Understanding Crime and Gun Control Laws." Lott's scholarly study exposes the falsehood and folly of many Gun Free SA guestimates, claims and assertions. For example, the GFSA claim that most people are killed by a friend, family member, or someone they know. The often quoted statistic is that 58% of murder victims are killed by an acquaintance. What most people do not realise is that this so-called "acquaintance murder" category includes gang members killing other gang members, drug buyers killing drug pushers, taxi drivers being killed by customers they picked up for the first time, prostitutes and their clients and so on. Zero Tolerance The vast majority of murders are not committed by previously law-abiding citizens. 90% of adult murderers have had previous criminals records as adults. It was this fact that led the New York Police Commissioner to institute the successful Zero Tolerancecampaign that dramatically decreased the incidences of crime in New York City. They observed that serious violent crime was committed by people who had committed a wide variety of minor crimes first. To counteract this early contempt for the law, New York police now deal severely with all breaches of the law - to instil an early respect of the law and for the rights of others. Concealed Carry Deters Crime John Lott documented in his comprehensive study that states with the largest increases in gun ownership also have the largest decreases in violent crime. Those states that allow adults to carry concealed handguns have seen a consistent annual decrease in murders, rapes and robberies. As more people obtain concealed carry permits there is a greater decline in violent crime rates. This he attributes to the fact that criminals are deterred by higher penalties and the most significant deterrent for a criminal is the possibility of being shot by a victim. Lott also documented that each additional woman carrying a concealed handgun reduces the murder rate for women by about three to four times more than an additional man carrying a concealed handgun reduces the murder rate for men. Violence Predates Firearms Gun Free South Africa advocates imaginatively promote the "dream... of a country where there are no guns." The suggestion that violence would magically decrease if we could only have gun control reveals an ignorance of both history and human nature. Of course, history records that violence was prevalent prior to the invention of firearms in the 15th Century! Attila the Hun, Ginges Khan and Shaka Zulu managed to kill millions of people without firearms. The Sharp and Blunt Facts In fact, contrary to the impression created by GFSA, most murders in South Africa do not involve firearms at all. Knives and other sharp objects and clubs are used to murder more South Africans than firearms do. Does GFSA suggest we ban all knives, sticks and rocks? E-TV Debate This was very humorously demonstrated during a TV debate that I took part in with a judge who supported GFSA. The interview took place downtown at the E-TV studios in Cape Town. The judge, answering the question as to how he got involved in supporting Gun Free South Africa, said that he had been involved in dealing with the brutal Bains Kloof murder some years ago. It was a terrible, gruesome murder he said. "Although it didn't actually involve firearms" he noted, in fact, the terrible way in which they were suffocated in plastic bags made him wonder whether it wouldn't have been more merciful had they been murdered by firearms. Nevertheless, he realised that "something had to be done" to outlaw firearms! The Big Question On another TV interview on SABC 2, The Big Question, I was debating Rev. Alan Storey of Gun Free South Africa. When the interviewer asked me to justify my position I quoted a number of Scripture verses mandating self-defence and family defence. The interviewer turned to Alan Story and said "Well, Peter has quoted a number of Scripture verses in support of his position. What verses from the Bible can you quote to support Gun Free South Africa's position?" Rev. Storey spluttered and stammered. "Well, actually, there aren't any" he admitted. "But, not everything in the Bible is Biblical!" As the studio audience exploded in laughter, he added: "Well, what I mean is not everything in the Bible is Christian!" There was even more laughter and I responded: "What kind of theology is this?" Sometimes one's opponents in a debate destroy their own arguments more effectively than you can do yourself. Some people do use firearms for evil purposes, but far more people use firearms for defensive purposes - to prevent crimes from being committed. Children Injured by Guns On another occasion, I was debating two Gun Free South Africa advocates in Cape Town in a public meeting. Dr. Van As, of the Red Cross Children's Hospital, called for tougher gun laws because he was sick and tired of treating children wounded and crippled by gunfire. This was the first time that I had heard this argument, so, in trying to understand the situation, I asked him: "How many of these children are gang members or criminals that were shot by police, or in self-defence, by victims of their crimes?" His answer was: "All of them!" Later, upon investigation, I found out that only four patients a month at the Red Cross Children's Hospital were gunshot victims, and almost all of those were from illegal guns in the hands of gangsters. Numerous of the patients were actually gang members themselves. The Main Causes of Injury to Children It does not seem logical to disarm licensed firearm owners when they are not even the problem. But further research revealed that the vast majority of casualties admitted to the Red Cross Children's Hospital that year were for falls (2,338 cases), motor vehicle accidents (1,030), burns (532), assault with blunt or sharp instruments (208), and poisoning (744). Even dog bites (91) were more numerous than firearm wounds (50) for that year. Vastly more children die each year from bicycle accidents, car accidents and drownings than from firearms. Children are 1,450% more likely to die of a car accident than from a firearm. Should we outlaw all motor vehicles? During the height of the Gun Free South Africa campaign I wrote the following letter styled on GFSA arguments, which was published in a number of newspapers in the country: Car Free South AfricaEveryday the newspapers, the radio and television carry stories of yet more South Africans killed, or maimed, by one of the most dangerous weapons that the state allows our private citizens to possess. Children are mowed down in front their schools and homes, and others are orphaned, when their parents fall victims to these same instruments of death. Doctors in emergency units in hospitals countrywide are daily inundated with victims. Last year there were 511,605 incidents involving these lethal devices. In these incidents 7,260 lost their lives, 21,265 sustained major trauma, and a further 52,097 were fortunate to escape with only minor injuries. Everyday too, the media reports yet more of these dangerous devices stolen from their rightful owners by criminals. Many of these are subsequently used in the commission of robberies, cash-in-transit heists, hijackings and murders. The number of unlicensed or in-illegal-possession is impossible to estimate. Even those in the possession of law-abiding citizens have led to lethal accidents. All too often we read of children that use their parent's vehicle to show off and, who through unfamiliarity, lack of training, or negligence, kill themselves, their brothers or their friends. It can be argued that law-abiding citizens derive pleasure from these lethal implements and that many people are collectors that own them for their aesthetic appeal, or as investments. Others require them in the course of their daily work, or involved in one of the many sports that use them. Yet, despite the rising death toll, and injuries, caused by these lethal weapons on our streets, and the horrific and graphic images that assault us daily in the media, the numbers of vehicles in the hands of South Africans continues to increase. The proliferation of these lethal devices should be of major concern to all citizens, yet figures show that last year 859,752 new licences were issued in South Africa. Data on the number of vehicles in the hands of police and other government departments are less readily available. Each year, more people are killed by motor vehicles in South Africa than by firearms. Should we outlaw all cars? Improve Safety Features No, the solution to the horrific carnage on the roads is not to ban motor vehicles, but to improve safety features in vehicles, to educate drivers, promote the use of seat belts, and severely punish drunken or reckless driving. As with motor vehicles, it would not be right to erode everyone's rights, or to take away everyone's freedom, because of the criminal activities and carelessness of some. Doctors Kill More People than Firearms Do Actually, vastly more people die of medical malpractice each year than from firearms. The American Medical Association recognised that 93,000 patients die each year due to medical malpractice by doctors. Another 110,000 patients die from unforeseen reactions to prescribed medicines. We can also add the number of babies killed by doctors through abortion. Approximately 80,000 babies are killed by abortion, legally, with taxpayers money, in South Africa alone, each year. In the light of the fact that doctors kill more people each year than firearms do, it seems very hypocritical for any medical officer to blame a cold, metal inanimate object, a tool, for the evil that some people do. Armed Citizens Save Lives However, we recognise that doctors save more lives than they take. That is exactly the same for motor vehicles and firearms. Transport carries life-giving food and medicines to those who most need it, and patients to hospitals where they will be treated. Everyday countless crimes are prevented, hundreds of potential victims are protected, and many tragedies are averted, by armed citizens. Armed citizens save lives, but unarmed citizens all too often become helpless victims. When three PLO terrorists opened fire on a cafe in Jerusalem, they were promptly shot by armed bystanders. The one wounded, surviving, terrorist was recorded as complaining: "We were never told that the civilians in Israel were armed!" It is every man's duty to be armed and prepared to protect the innocent and to defend the defenceless. May God enable us to be fast and accurate. "But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially those of his household, he has denied the Faith and is worse than an unbeliever." 1 Timothy 5:8 Dr. Peter Hammond ![]() It is no accident that the most vicious terrorism originates from the least evangelised area of the world. The Muslim Middle East represents the most complex political challenge and potentially an enormous military threat to the free world. It is also the greatest missionary challenge to the Christian Church. Muslim states are the most severe persecutors of Christians. And radical Muslim extremists are the most vicious terrorists, hijackers, kidnappers, suicide bombers and assassins. The failure of the Christian Church to fulfill the Great Commission in the Middle East continues to have far-reaching and disastrous consequences. Islam is a challenge that we cannot ignore. Yet, very few Christians understand Islam or know how to respond to it. Terrorism’s Missionary Vision The primary suspect for the multiple, co-ordinated terrorist attacks on the United States, Osama Bin Laden, aside from his extensive business and terrorist connections, is also a major sponsor of Islamic missionary activity. Bin Laden has been a financial contributor to the Islamic Propagation Centre International, based in Durban, South Africa. I have visited the IPCI on numerous occasions and debated these Muslim extremists in the biggest Mosque in the Southern Hemisphere. The IPCI credited Bin Laden with personally financing the translation of the Qur’an into Zulu. He has been known to make donations of up to $1,000,000 at a time to the IPCI. Clearly Bin Laden is a radical Islamicist with a broad strategy and a world vision. His hatred for America is apparently more religiously motivated than political. Although many would see America as a secular country with a large number of Christians, to radical Islamicists like Bin Laden, America is the largest and strongest Christian nation on earth and the primary supporter of Christian missions worldwide. By striking at the financial centre of America, one of his aims could have been to cause a drop in support for Christian missions – even as he helps finance a massive continent wide Islamic offensive to turn Africa into a Muslim continent. A Global Agenda The multi-national Al-Qa’ida organisation set up by Bin Laden during the time he was based in Sudan (1991–1996) seeks the "global radicalization of existing Islamic groups and the creation of radical Islamic groups where none existed. Al-Qa’ida supports Muslim fighters in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Chechnya, Tajikistan, Somalia, Yemen and now Kosovo. It also trains members of terrorist organisations from ... Philippines, Algeria and Eritrea. Al-Qa’ida’s goal is to unite all Muslims and to establish a government which follows the rule of the Caliphas … by force … to overthrow nearly all Muslim governments, which are … corrupt, to drive Western influence from those countries, and eventually to abolish state boundaries." (Al-Qa’ida, FAS 17/9/01) "Africa For Islam" In October 1995 Muammar Gaddafi hosted a two-week conference in Tripoli, which was attended by Muslim leaders from 80 countries. At this Muslim Leaders Conference, strategies to transform Africa into an Islamic continent were discussed. Participants openly admitted that their goals were to make Arabic the official language of the continent and Islam the official religion. One South African member of Parliament, Farouk Cassim declared: "It will probably be the biggest revolution to sweep Africa." The head of the Islamic Propagation Centre International (IPCI) at that time, Yousuf Deedat, announced afterwards that South Africa was high on the agenda of the Islamic offensive: "We are going to turn South Africa into a Muslim state. We have the money to do it," he said (Sunday Times, 22/10/95). At present, less than 2% of South Africans are Muslims. About 40% of the population of Africa are Muslims. 17 of the 55 countries in Africa are officially Islamic states. Understanding Jihad What few Westerners understand is that Muslim leaders who call for the overthrow of all governments and the establishment of an Islamic superstate controlling all aspects of life, for every person on earth, are not necessarily extremists on the fringe of Islam. Jihad, the subjugation and forcible conversion of all people to Islam and world domination are, in fact, central tenants of Islam. Jihad is the sixth pillar of Islam. Jihad was so important to Muhammad that he declared it to be the second most important deed in Islam. "Allah’s apostle was asked, ‘What is the best deed?’ He replied, ‘To believe in Allah and his apostle.’ The questioner then asked, ‘What is the next (in goodness)?’ He replied, ‘To participate in Jihad (religious fighting) in Allah’s cause.’ " – The Hadith, Al Bukhari, Vol. 1 no 25. Now, of course, most Muslims are neither terrorists nor terrorist sympathisers. While many Muslims publicly rejoiced over the news of the horrific terrorist attacks on New York and Washington D.C., most did not. We need to be careful not to blame all Muslims for what certain individuals do in the name of Islam. Of course, those peace-loving, law-abiding Muslims are not being consistent with the Jihad teachings of the Qur’an. They are probably more influenced by the Christian ideal of loving your neighbour than the Islamic doctrine of Jihad. Quranic Roots Of Jihad In fact, Muslims are often allies of Christians in the campaigns against gambling, pornography, homosexuality, abortion, evolutionism and atheism. Muslims and Christians also agree that God is both the Creator and the eternal Judge of the whole world and everyone in it. However, it is important for us to recognise the Quranic roots which are quoted by the Muslim terrorists to support their atrocities. If this violent position does not represent Mainstream Islam, Muslim leaders must clearly denounce the literal application of these Jihad verses and declare apostate all Muslims who resort to terrorism as murderers destined to an eternity in hell. The Quran teaches that Muslims are superior to all others: "Ye (Muslims) are the best of peoples evolved for mankind …" Surah 3:110. Muslims are forbidden to befriend Jews or Christians. "O ye who believe! Take not the Jews and the Christians for your friends and protectors. They are but friends and protectors to each other. And he amongst you that turns to them (for friendship) is one of them …" Surah 5:54 Islam instructs its adherents to fight until all their opponents submit. Christians and Jews may be spared if they pay "Jizya" – a penalty tax – with willing submission. "Fight those who believe not in God nor the last day … Nor acknowledge the religion of truth, (even if they are) of the people of the Book, until they pay Jizya (tribute taxes) with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued." Surah 9:29 "Fight and slay the pagans wherever ye find them and seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait (ambush) for them in every strategem (of war)." Surah 9:5 (also 2:193) "Therefore, when ye meet the unbelievers (in fight), smite at their necks; at length, when ye have thoroughly subdued them, bind a bond firmly (on them); thereafter (is the time for) either generosity or ransom: until the war lays down its burdens, thus (are ye commanded)". Surah 47:4 For those who resist Islam – execution or mutilation is decreed: "The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and his apostle, and strive with might and main for mischief through the land is: execution or crucifixion, or the cutting off the hands and feet from opposite sides or exile from the land …" Surah 5:36 Now, all of these texts appear to be contradicted by Surah 2:256, which states: "Let there be no compulsion in religion." But there seems a clear break between the early Muhammad, and the later Muhammad. The early Muhammad was married to only one wife, Khadeja, courageously spoke out against idolatry and polytheism in Mecca and encouraged friendship with the Christians. The later Muhammad, after the death of his first wife and flight to Medina, accumulated at least 14 more wives, including 9 year old Aisha, started raiding caravans, massacred 600 Jews for failing to acknowledge him as the prophet, and propagated the doctrine of Jihad. In a sense, there are two Muhammad’s and two Qurans. The early pre-Medina Surahs demonstrate tolerance and respect for Christians, whereas the later Surahs unleashed Jihad. The Benefits Of Jihad In the Mishkat the rewards for participation in Jihad are spelled out: "the Messenger of Allah said: To, whichever village you go … its one fifth is for Allah and his Messenger and the remainder is for you." (Mishkat II, page 412). " … the soldiers of Islam fought tooth and nail. They would get Paradise in case of death in a holy war, and booties in case of conquest, Jihad is therefore the best source of all acquisitions." (Mishkat II, page 440). "Jihad is one of the chief meritorious acts in the eye of Islam and it is the best source of earnings." (Mishkat II, page 340). "This is the best method of earning both spiritual and temporal. If victory is won, there is enormous booty and conquest of a country, which cannot be equalled to any other source of earning. If there is defeat or death, there is everlasting Paradise and a great spiritual benefit. This sort of Jihad is conditional upon pure motive, i.e. for establishing the kingdom of Allah on earth." (Mishkat II, page 253). In the Hadith, Muhammad is quoted as decreeing that Muslims may not be punished for killing a non-Muslim: "No Muslims should be killed for killing a kafir (infidel)." (vol. 9:50) Those who die in holy war are guaranteed to go to Heaven. "The person who participates in Jihad (Holy battles) in Allah’s cause and nothing compels him to do so except belief in Allah and his apostle, will be recompensed by Allah either with a reward or booty (if he survives) or will be admitted to paradise (if he is killed)." (vol. 1:35) Many assume that the concept of Jihad, or holy war, is an aberration not truly representative of Islam. Some leaders have stated that "Islam teaches a God of love just like Christianity and Judaism" and "no religion condones violence or terrorism." Unfortunately that is not true. Islam is no ordinary religion. "There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death." Proverbs 14:12 Sharia And The House Of War Islam divides the world into two sectors: Dar-al-Islam (the House of Islam) and Dar-al-Harb (The House of War). The only countries considered to be at peace are those where Islamic law (the Sharia) is enforced. All other countries, as part of Dar-al-Harb, are considered legitimate targets. It is significant that the calendar of Islam does not begin with the birth of Muhammad, nor the onset of his "revelations", nor the assembling of the first Muslim community, nor the flight of Muslim refugees to Abyssinia. The 12 years of persecution in Mecca were not considered the start of their new religion. The Muslim calendar only begins when Islam became a political state, under Sharia Law, in Medina. Islam in Arabic means submission, surrender or subjugation. A Muslim is one who submits. The Arabic word for peace is Salam. Islam is the active form of Salam. Muslims see themselves as a "peace-making force" using argument, intrigue, commerce, threats, terrorism, warfare and every other means possible to secure Islam as the only religion worldwide. "And fight them on until there is no more tumult or oppression, and there prevails justice and faith in Allah altogether and everywhere." Surah 8:39 In the light of these teachings, it should be no surprise to learn that since 1948, the 21 Arab countries have suffered 30 wars, 63 successful revolutions, at least 75 unsuccessful revolutions, and 36 heads of state were murdered. In the Arab world, revolutions and assassinations have been the most prevalent means of political expression and attaining power. One out of every three barrels of oil sold by the Mideast has gone to pay for weapons. (Muslim Misery in the Middle East, www.frontline.org.za). The Many Faces Of Jihad It may be hard for Christians to understand the concept of such a militant religion, but the primary aim of Islam is not spiritual but political. (One exception to this would be the Sufi’s – mystical Muslims who re-interpret these Jihad passages to apply to a spiritual fight against sin). The ultimate purpose of Islam is the establishment by force of a worldwide Islamic state where Sharia law is enforced on all. To achieve this is the goal of Jihad. Islamic scholars identify a multitude of forms that Jihad can take: There is the Jihad of Words, using oratory, in a war of nerves, to inspire their own side, and to undermine the morale of the enemy; the Jihad of Deception to confuse the enemy; the Jihad of the Sword to kill the enemy, loot his possessions and take hostages for ransom; the Jihad of Taxation on non-Muslims and Financial Reward to provide incentives for converts to Islam; theJihad of Slavery as a weapon to subjugate non-Muslims and as an economic incentive for the mujahadeens (or holy warriors); the Jihad of Sharia Law which degrades non-Muslims to a lower status, denied equal access to the law because their testimony is not valid against a Muslim; theJihad of Polygamy which is designed to give Muslims a disproportionate numerical advantage through having up to 4 wives at a time; and the Jihad of the Spirits. (For more information see Jihad - Islamic Holy War on FF’s website: www.frontline.org.za.) Jihad And "The Crusades" Inevitably when one deals with the contemporary problem of Islamic Jihad, someone will bring up the historical issue of the Christian Crusades. Of course, the word crusade does not appear in the Bible nor is it commanded in Scripture. However, Jihad is both commanded in the Quran and practised by numerous Muslim groups and governments today. To put the Crusades in their proper context, one needs to study the rapid expansion of Islam, by the sword, across North Africa, into Spain, throughout Asia Minor and into the Balkans. The Islamic Jihad of the seventh to the tenth centuries wiped out more than half of the church worldwide. Prior to this, Christianity was the predominant religion of North Africa and the Middle East. The Crusades of the Middle Ages were a reaction to the Islamic invasion of the Holy Lands (those places where our Lord was born, lived and ministered, was crucified and raised from the dead) and centuries of Islamic Jihad. The Saracens (as the Muslim invaders were called) had desecrated Christian places of worship and were severely persecuting Christians. Pilgrims were being prevented from visiting those sites sacred to their faith. To this day many Muslims continue their "holy war" against Christians - for example in Sudan. Millions of Christians have been slaughtered through the centuries by Islamic militants – such as the over 1 500 000 Armenians murdered in Turkey in 1915. Jihad And Colonialism Others have sought to justify the Islamic practise of Jihad because they were "victims of colonialism"! This is quite a bizarre argument because the Muslim Arabs have been, perhaps, the most pervasive colonialists in history. Within the first century after Muhammad’s death, the tribes of Arabia under the Caliphas had conquered Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Spain, Portugal, Persia, parts of Byzantia and even parts of France. The Muslim conquerors then enforced Arabic as the official medium of communication throughout North Africa and the Middle East. Only Turkey and Persia resisted this policy of Arabisation with any success. Over 3200 churches were destroyed or converted into mosques during the first century of Islamic Jihad alone. The Muslim argument that Jihad was only waged in self-defense is therefore unconvincing. What were Arabians defending in Spain? The Christian Blacks in Southern Sudan and the Nuba Mountains describe their conflict as a war of de-colonialisation from the Arab North. Jihad And Slavery After the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century the practice of slavery declined throughout Europe. But the spread of Islam in the 7th century led to a great revival of the institution of slavery, especially in Africa. Great merchant camel caravans travelled beyond the Sahara to the vast Savannah, which the Arabs called the Sudan (or "the land of the Black People"). These caravans brought back long lines of Black slaves for the Arab households and palaces on the Mediterranean. Male household servants were routinely castrated. Most babies born to Black slaves in the harems were drowned or killed at birth – to maintain Arab numerical superiority. One Arab writer in the 9th century, justified this flourishing trade: "the kings of the Blacks sell their own people without justification or in consequence of war." (History of Slavery, Susanne Everett, 1996). The horrors of the Islamic slave trade were well documented by explorers like David Livingstone, Samuel Baker, and the British Anti-Slavery Commissioner in East Africa, Sir John Kirk. These men set thousands of slaves free. The Arab slave market in Zanzibar sold an average of 200 to 300 slaves every day, even as late as the 1870’s. At one time, seven out of every eight Black people in Sudan were slaves. The British Governor, General Charles Gordon, crushed the slave trade in Sudan, losing his life and being beheaded in the process. In recent years slavery has resurfaced in Sudan under the National Islamic Front government. "Their deeds are evil deeds, and acts of violence are in their hands. Their feet rush into sin; they are swift to shed innocent blood … ruin and destruction mark their ways." Isaiah 59: 6 –7 The Sudan Connection After the bombing attacks on the United States Embassies in Nairobi and Dar-es-Salaam on 7 August 1998 (which left over 260 dead and 5000 injured) the US bombed targets in Sudan and Afghanistan, claiming that those governments supported Bin Laden’s terrorist network. The US State Department’s April 2001"Overview of State-sponsored Terrorism" report states that "Sudan continued to be used as a safe haven by members of various groups, including associates of Osama Bin Laden’s Al-Qa’ida organisation, … Egyptian Islamic Jihad, the Palestine Islamic Jihad and Hamas." "It was in Sudan that Bin Laden built the framework for his Al-Qa’ida terrorist group, which has branches around the world and thousands of young warriors willing to die in their Jihad against the United States and its allies. The Sudanese regime really gave birth to Osama Bin Laden, the terrorist." (National Post, Canada, 14/9/01). "Most drinks contain gum arabic … Much of it is produced in Sudan by the Gum Arabic Company, in which Bin Laden … has owned a large slice … he has already earned tens of millions of pounds from the soft-drinks industry – providing years of finance for his Islamic terrorists. ‘It is possible that every time someone buys an American soft drink, they are helping to fill Osama Bin Laden’s coffers …’ " (The Sunday Telegraph, London, 16/4/01). Despite being forced by American pressure in 1996 to move his main base of operations from Sudan (whose government remains sympathetic to him) to Afghanistan, "Bin Laden continues to control millions of dollars in businesses in Sudan. This includes construction companies, farming, banking and oil exploitation. Analysts say that he helped finance the oil pipeline from Khartoum…" (National Post, Canada, 14/9/01). The terrorist inclinations of the National Islamic Front government of Sudan, which hosted Bin Laden, is attested to by the savage way in which they continue to wage war against the Christian Blacks of Southern Sudan. "In addition to the air attacks … male villagers were killed in mass executions; women and children were nailed to trees with iron spikes … soldiers slit the throats of children and killed male prisoners who had been interrogated by hammering nails into their foreheads. In Panyejie, last July, people had been crushed by tanks and strafed by helicopter gunships." ("Sudan – The Human Price of Oil" by Amnesty International, May 2000). Governments That Support Terrorism If the US government is really serious about targeting not only the terrorists that struck New York and Washington D.C., but all those who sponsor and support terrorism, then that would have to include the National Islamic Front government of Sudan. And as Freedom Quest pointed out: Talisman Energy, China National Petroleum Corp., Petronas of Malaysia, Lundin Oil of Sweden and OMV of Austria, by investing in Sudan are not only fueling the Jihad against the Christian Black South, but they are "partners with a regime that supports world terrorism." (Sudaninfo, 17/9/01) Many of the governments which rushed to condemn the terrorist attacks on the US were being less than consistent. Many of those leaders condemning the "barbaric", "insane", "slaughter of innocent civilians" themselves came to power through terrorist bomb blasts, and random acts of violence against civilians. Fidel Castro, for example, not only came to power through terrorism – but he stays in power by state terrorism. Castro has had 17 000 Cubans executed and 100 000 imprisoned – for political reasons alone. Not surprisingly, over 2 million Cubans have fled from his "workers paradise." (The Black Book of Communism, 1999) One politician, who at least was honest, was the African National Congress (ANC) Premier of the Eastern Cape. Makhenkesi Stofile questioned the term "terrorist" to describe the hijackers and suicide bombers. Stofile referred to them as "guerillas" saying: "Even us (ANC members) when we fought in the struggle, we were called terrorists." Stofile said that he was not personally shocked by the attacks. The ANC officially distanced themselves from the Premier’s views (Business Day, 14/9/01). This brings up an important point. Many of the governments with which the US maintains friendly relations not only came to power through terrorism, but maintain close relations with terrorist regimes hostile to the United States. The ANC government of South Africa has close ties with Fidel Castro (Cuba), Muammar Gaddafi (Libya), Yassar Arafat (Palestine) and General Al Bashir (Sudan). All of these men have been welcomed and hosted as state guests of honour in South Africa. If the US President seriously wants to deal with all the sponsors of terrorism, he would also have to look at the United Nations (UN), the World Council of Churches (WCC) the Foreign Office and the US State Department. It is a fact of history that, despite the US Department of Defense listing the African National Congress (ANC) as a terrorist organisation, even as late as 1988, the US State Department worked hard to bring the ANC to power in South Africa. And the UN and World Council of Churches provided funds to support Marxist terrorist groups in Southern Africa. ZANU, ZAPU, Frelimo, SWAPO, ANC and PAC were all beneficiaries of US taxpayer funds, entrusted to the UN; and a portion of US church-goers’ offerings went to the National Council of Churches. And then on to the WCC who in turn gave to Marxist terrorists, who murdered missionaries, burned down churches, shot down civilian airliners, placed car bombs in public streets, land mines on farm roads and burned hundreds of people alive in the streets. The state-sponsored terrorism of President Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe is, in large measure, the fruit of UN, WCC, Commonwealth, British Foreign Office and US State Department policies in the 1970’s. However, having succeeded in forcing Mugabe and his terrorist ZANU upon the people of Rhodesia in 1980, the UN, WCC, Foreign Office and US State Department have seemed loathe to acknowledge the disaster they helped set in motion. Now, 21 years later, Mugabe continues to incite his followers with vicious racist tirades against all Whites and Jews, and to steal and loot farms and businesses, terrorise Supreme Court justices, bomb opposition newspaper offices, imprison critics and murder farmers and opposition members. (Cry Zimbabwe, Peter Stiff, 2000) Jihad Against Christians Fresh violence erupted in Africa’s most populous nation, Nigeria, on 11 September, as Muslim youths came onto the streets of Jos, shouting "Allah Akbar" and celebrating the news of the successful terror attacks against America. Soon, hundreds were dead in vicious street fighting between the Muslims and Christians. Many hundreds of churches have been destroyed and thousands of Christians killed by Muslim militants in Northern Nigeria. (The Citizen, 13/9/01) In the Philippines and Indonesia, Christians continue to be beheaded and churches destroyed by Muslim terrorists. In Sudan, churches, hospitals, schools and mission stations have been subjected to repeated aerial bombardments by the National Islamic Front government of Sudan. A Christian Response So what should be our response to the recent terror attacks and the ongoing Jihad against so many Christians worldwide? Firstly, we need to recognise that this terrorism and anti-Christian persecution is originating from the least evangelised area of the world – the Middle East. The birthplace of the Church is now the most needy mission field on earth. If we truly want to uproot the support bases of such terrorism and implode the regimes that persecute Christians, we need to get really serious about the Great Commission of our Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 28:18 - 20). This will mean recognising that we are already in a spiritual world war. And the only reason why the devil is so often winning is because the Church is so seldom fighting! We must not just retreat into our barracks to sing our battle songs – we must attack strongholds. We must not only talk about our spiritual weapons – we must use them. We must not only praise our Commanding Officer – we must obey Him. And the best form of defence is attack. Now civil government has a ministry of justice. Under God they have a Biblical duty to protect their citizens, by bearing "the sword" and being "an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer." (Romans 13:4) That is their job. Our duty in the Christian Church is to be a ministry of grace. We are to be "a house of prayer for all nations" (Mark 11:17); preaching "repentance and forgiveness of sins … to all nations" (Luke 24:47); making disciples of all nations and teaching obedience to all things that the Lord has commanded. (Matthew 28: 19-20). We have a unique opportunity at this time of crisis to effectively proclaim the Gospel of Christ to Muslims all over the world. Instead of reacting with anger or malice, let us seek God’s grace to reach out to our Muslim neighbours in Christian love. This is the time when we can openly and politely discuss the differences between the Gospel and example of Christ and the teachings and actions of Muhammad. We can share our personal testimony and challenge Muslims to consider the claims of Christ. We can obtain and give Christian literature or Bibles to Muslims in our neighbourhood and we should invest in Christian radio programmes specifically designed to reach Muslims. Then we should wholeheartedly support missionary work in Muslim countries. If Bin Laden can invest in translating the Quran into African languages and finance massive print runs of Islamic literature – then how much more should we as Christians invest in Bible translations and Christian literature! By God’s grace, Frontline Fellowship has already distributed over 200 000 Bibles and Christian books (much in Arabic) throughout Southern Sudan and the Nuba Mountains. We must do much more in future. You must also receive more specialised training in evangelism and particularly Muslim Evangelism. Frontline Fellowship has designed a Muslim Evangelism Workshop – with manual and audiotapes to help you be more effective in reaching Muslims for Christ. We also recommend Evangelism Explosion and SIM’s Life Challenge training programmes. "The desert tribes will bow down to Him and His enemies will lick the dust ... all kings will bow down to Him and all nations will serve Him." Psalm 72: 9-11 In addition, we must rediscover the imprecatory Psalms, the prayers for justice in the Bible. Many of the Psalms deal with the grief and trauma caused by treachery and violence. They channel our anguish and frustration in a positive way by appealing to God in prayer. Seeking justice from God is not only constructive and therapeutic, but of immense spiritual power. (See: War Psalms of the Prince of Peace by James Adams or Praying for Justice from FF). "God will crush the heads of His enemies ... of those who go on in their sins." Psalm 68:21 In the month after the terror attacks, my family and our staff prayed through the Psalms at meal times. The Psalms are the prayer book of the Bible – I recommend that you pray through at least one Psalm each day. Make the Psalms the daily prayer of your heart. It will revive your prayer life. Terrorist attacks like those on 11 September 2001 should remind us that even the best security systems can fail to prevent such disasters. We need to rediscover God as our ultimate protection. Governments should recognise their need for supernatural aid in defending its people and defeating terrorism. The elected representatives should incorporate respect and obedience to Almighty God into the constitution and public policy of the nation. "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord." Psalm 33:12 A good place to begin would be to gather everyone for reading a chapter of Proverbs and praying a Psalm each day (either at the beginning of the day or at lunch time)in schools, army bases, businesses and government departments. Preparing For Eternity We do not know when, or under what circumstances, our lives will come to an end. We do, however, know that when we die we will stand before Almighty God – our Creator and Eternal Judge – and we will have to give an account of our lives to Him. If you had died in those terror attacks of 11 September – where would you be now? And what would you be regretting? "... it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the Judgement ." Hebrews 9: 27 We need to work out our priorities in the light of eternity. We need to invest our time, talents and treasure into those things which are going to last for eternity: the people of God, the Word of God and the Kingdom of God. These are what are ultimately important. You must be ready at all times for that which may happen at any time. Are you ready? "Only one life, it will soon be past. Only what’s done for Christ will last." Dr. Peter Hammond ![]() As an African, I will always be grateful for the role Ronald Reagan played in saving lives in Angola. In the 1980’s, I made multiple missionary trips into war-torn Angola. As an African, I will always be grateful for the role Ronald Reagan played in saving lives in Angola. In the 1980’s, I made multiple missionary trips into war-torn Angola. At the time, there were over 50 000 Cuban troops in the country. The Communists had attacked and destroyed many churches. MiG-23’s and MI-23 Hind helicopter gun ships were terrorising villagers in Angola. I documented numerous of these atrocities, including the strafing of villages, schools and churches. As an African, I will always be grateful for the role Ronald Reagan played in saving lives in Angola. In the 1980’s, I made multiple missionary trips into war-torn Angola. As an African, I will always be grateful for the role Ronald Reagan played in saving lives in Angola. In the 1980’s, I made multiple missionary trips into war-torn Angola. At the time, there were over 50 000 Cuban troops in the country. The Communists had attacked and destroyed many churches. MiG-23’s and MI-23 Hind helicopter gun ships were terrorising villagers in Angola. I documented numerous of these atrocities, including the strafing of villages, schools and churches. In 1986 I remember hearing Ronald Reagan’s speech – carried on the BBC Africa service – by short wave radio: “We are going to send stinger missiles to the Unita Freedom Fighters in Angola!” Those who were listening to the SW radio with me looked at one another in stunned amazement. After a long silence as we wondered if our ears had actually heard what we thought we heard, one of us said: “That would be nice!”. We scarcely dared believe that it would happen. But it did. Not long afterwards the stinger missiles began to arrive in Unita controlled Free Angola. Soviet aircraft were shot down. The bombing and strafing of villagers, schools and churches came to an end. Without any doubt, Ronald Reagan’s policies saved many tens of thousands of lives in Angola. In my photo albums I have numerous pictures of Soviet aircraft shot down in Angola: MI-24 Hind helicopters, MI-8 Hip helicopters, and a MiG-23. They are a reminder of an American President who cared about the people of Angola who were suffering under communist occupation. Dr. Peter Hammond Frontline Fellowship P O Box 74 Newlands 7725 Cape Town South Africa Tel.: +27 21 689–4480 Fax: +27 21 685–5884 E-Mail: admin@frontline.org.za ![]() The popularity of Che Guevara’s image on t-shirts is quite bizarre. According to the company that sells Che Guevara products: “Che’s image has a rock ‘n roll edge to it that we are looking for.” Advocates claim that Che is chic for the sophisticated” and “It’s an icon of what’s cool.” However, wearing a t-shirt with an image of Che Guevara with his beret and Communist star, makesabout as much sense as wearing an image of Khmer Rouge mass murder Pol Pot of Cambodia, or of Joseph Stalin, or the Guinness Book of Records mass murderer of all time: Mao Tse Tung. For all the attempts (such as Robert Redford’s “Motorcycle Diaries” propaganda piece) to transform Fidel Castro’s hitman, Che Guevara, into a romantic cult hero the fact is that Che Guevara was a mass murderer. In the “Cuban Revolution” Che Guevara ran the slave labour camps and organised the mass executions. He was Fidel Castro’s supreme prosecutor and most efficient executioner. Under Che, the walls of the old fort in Havana resounded nightly with the fusillades of the firing squads. In just three years (1959-1962) over 4,000 executions, most by firing squad, were documented to have taken place under Catro's executioner Che Guevara. All these executions took place without due process of law or fair trial. Che admitted ordering "several thousand executions." Perhaps those who want to wear Che’s image on the front of their t-shirts should have this quote from Che Guevara printed on the back: “"Crazy with fury I will stain my rifle red while slaughtering any enemy that falls in my hands! My nostrils dilate while savoring the acrid odor of gunpowder and blood. With the deaths of my enemies I prepare my being for the sacred fight and join the triumphant proletariat with a bestial howl! Hatred as an element of struggle; unbending hatred for the enemy, which pushes a human being beyond his natural limitations, making him into an effective, violent, selective and cold blooded killing machine. This is what our soldiers must become…” – Che Guevara Karl Marx declared: “The first battlefield is the rewriting of history.” It would appear that everyone who is participating in the romantising and glamourising of this Marxist mass murderer, Che Guevara, are not only advertising their ignorance of history, but are helping to reorganize reality and promote the undeserved hero worship of a Communist killer. While Che Guevara could be 'brave' when he was murdering disarmed civilians, including a 14 year old child, in the La Cabana Fortes, he was was cowardly when captured by the Bolivian Army. Che grovelled and begged for his life before the Bolivians did to him what he had done to so many others. Commies are not cool. I for one am not interested in decorating myself with the image of a dirty, unwashed Communist tyrant and anti-Christian persecutor of the church. Peter Hammond Frontline Fellowship PO Box 74 Newlands, 7725 Cape Town, South Africa |