MIKE RUPPERT - LIVE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON
Standing Room Only as Activism Takes a New Direction
by
Ken Levine
© Copyright 2004, From The Wilderness Publications, www.copvcia.com. All Rights Reserved. May be reprinted, distributed or posted on an Internet web site for non-profit purposes only.
January 19, 2005 (FTW) -- On Saturday night, January 15th, at Kane Hall, on the campus of the University of Washington in Seattle, a standing room only crowd of almost 1000 witnessed a new and aggressive presentation by Michael C. Ruppert, as he began the healing process of moving forward from the 9-11 focus many had associated him with for years. In front of a wildly enthusiastic throng of supporters, listeners, activists, and those just needing to learn and listen, Ruppert explained to them that although the 9-11 cause is still alive it is no longer useful as a political tool by activists. The window on 9/11 has closed. Simple as that.
The event, sponsored by the Citizen's Truth Alliance and the 9/11 Visibility Project was widely endorsed throughout the Seattle area by groups including Seattle Thunder. Mike was introduced by 9/11 colleague and 9/11 Visibility leader Emmanuel Sferios who also serves as the webmaster for www.911truth.org.
Even though 9-11 and all that goes along with it, as well as his book Crossing the Rubicon are useful and important, he believes that no sanctions, indictments or criminal prosecution will ever be handed down. Rubicon, he says, remains a base map of the decades before and the years since 9/11. But now he says we must look at the herd of elephants charging at us, instead of the one elephant that just ran us over.
That analogy, combined with some terrific slides showcasing the herd of elephants and the single elephant, went a long way in explaining his very well thought out point this particular evening. A full seventy-five per cent of Ruppert's lecture was never-before-seen material.
A packed house
Mike told the crowd to be prepared for a tremendous devaluation of the dollar; that the housing boom is ending; that we should begin to look at putting our money, or whatever cash we have left, into precious metals; that we must rid ourselves of debt, get out of the stock market and begin to think about a more self-sufficient living style. We must reduce personal consumption. We should understand that OIL and natural gas are the governing issues that control what the present administration does and we should stop the pipedreams of launching criminal action against the Cheneys, Bushes, et al., because it just isn't going to happen. Not in this version of America.
Summation of Crossing the Rubicon
Many in the large audience were expecting the presentation that Ruppert has delivered since the release of his landmark Crossing the Rubicon: The Decline of the American Empire At The End of The Age of Oil; they were treated to a "greatest hits" introduction along with some very important and poignant "new releases."
Peak Oil has been "outed."
The crowd did cheer when Mike named Vice-President Dick Cheney a murderer. They listened intently as Mike explained what was going on in the world right now regarding Venezuela, Nigeria, Iran, China and the United States.
Paying close attention
When Ruppert's presentation was over, when the last of the crowd that stood in a long line had asked him questions and waited for his answers, and when Mike finally put his pen down after autographing more than 150 copies of his Crossing the Rubicon, it became obvious to me what the underlying question was for this evening.
Autographs
Which way do we go now?
Q & A