Flag-waving patriots and Bush policy critics alike have an opportunity to gather with kindred spirits to commemorate the sixth anniversary of 9/11.
The City of Grover Beach is hosting its sixth annual 9/11 Memorial Event, replete with patriotic music, American-themed artwork, and appearances by local officials, while HopeDance is screening Zeitgeist The Movie, a documentary that sets out to prove, among other things, that the American government orchestrated the attacks on 9/11 so that those in power could strip U.S. citizens of civil liberties and launch two illegal wars.
For those who fall into the first camp, the Grover Beach Memorial Event is a one-hour ceremony that begins with local singer Katie Boeck singing the "Star Spangled Banner" and The Pacific Horizon Chorus, a local women's barbershop group, singing a number of patriotic songs. Be prepared for a moment of silence, speeches, and an open forum for anyone to share how he or she has been affected by 9/11.
This year, the event will be accompanied by an all-day art show displaying work by local artists including paintings, sculpture, watercolor, and scrapbooks that focuses on 9/11, American spirit, or patriotism.
"I wanted to show how a momentous event [like 9/11] can affect people in different ways, but at the same time affect them similarly," said Nora O'Donnell, recreation coordinator for Grover Beach. "Everyone feels sadness, grief but they work through it in different ways."
Fervent flag-waving will likely be absent at the screening of Zeitgeist The Movie, a documentary that purports to tell the truth about Christianity, the Federal Reserve bankers, and 9/11. It's unclear who's behind the two-hour film, which was released online June 26, sans credits.
The first part of the film is a denunciation of Christianity, but part two focuses on debunking "the 9/11 myth" through examples intended to prove that the U.S. government knew about the impending attacks, but didn't want to prevent them. There are also clips of physics experts discrediting "the pancake theory," which holds that World Trade Towers 1, 2, and 7 collapsed in a pancake fashion due to structural failure brought on by the fires. The same experts say that only controlled demolition could have brought the towers down in such a fashion, but these arguments have been circulating for quite some time, and aren't investigated in depth here. The thesis is more that Americans have been kept in a constant state of fear since 9/11 so the government could carry out its agenda, which has included diminishing civil liberties and invading Afghanistan and Iraq.
The final third of the film is an indictment of the Federal Reserve bankers.
The 9/11 Memorial Event in Ramona Garden Park, 993 Ramona Ave., Grover Beach, is set for Sept. 11, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. The art show runs 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Admission is free. Info: 473-4580.
Zeitgeist The Movie shows Sept. 10 at the SLO Library, on the corner of Palm and Osos in San Luis Obispo, at 7 p.m. A $5 donation is requested. Info: 544-9663.
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