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Disconnecting the Dots: How 9/11 Was Allowed to Happen
Questioning actions taken by American intelligence agencies prior to 9/11, this investigation charges that intelligence officials repeatedly and deliberately withheld information from the FBI, thereby allowing hijackers to attack the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Pinpointing individuals associated with Alec Station, the CIA’s Osama bin Laden unit, as primarily responsible for many of the intelligence failures, this account analyzes the circumstances in which critical intelligence information was kept from FBI investigators in the wider context of the CIA’s operations against al-Qaeda, concluding that the information was intentionally omitted in order to allow an al-Qaeda attack to go forward against the United States. The book also looks at the findings of the four main 9/11 investigations, claiming they omitted key facts and were blind to the purposefulness of the wrongdoing they investigated. Additionally, it asserts that Alec Station’s chief was involved in key post-9/11 events and further intelligence failures, including the failure to capture Osama bin Laden at Tora Bora and the CIA's rendition and torture program.
480 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
December 5, 2017
Excellent synopsis of the intelligence shenanigans that went on in the run up to 9/11. Really highlights that of the two agencies (FBI and CIA), it was employees within the CIA that did the real shielding of al-Qaeda operatives within the US. Sheds a bright light on the false notion that "intelligence failures" caused the alleged hijackers to operate within US borders. The notion of a rivalry between FBI and CIA rings hollow, although not because there weren't problems between communication between the two. More that CIA agents deliberately refused to hand off important information to FBI officials seeking it.
May 10, 2022
Felt a little repetitive and tedious at points but I respect the amount of research that went into it cause no way in hell I'm ever reading the 9/11 commission's report
June 30, 2023
Fenton has done a great service to anyone interested in documenting the malfeasance of intelligence officials in the lead-up to 9/11. His collation of available and highly germane information that has been ignored/memory-holed by more mainstream outlets is exhaustive and extremely illuminating.
In addition, he sticks to documented facts (e.g., the CIA's willful withholding of intelligence on the whereabouts and planning sessions of Al-Qaeda from the FBI, its obstruction of justice post-9/11, etc.), and almost never veers into the dangerous realm of speculation. If he has a hypothesis on motive, he proffers it to the reader with supporting evidence and stays away from the temptation of examining the mechanics of the day itself.
HOWEVER, that same exhaustiveness is the foundation of its own demise. The prose isn't particularly captivating, and the deluge of data (some of it quite repetitive) creates a meandering narrative that inhibits the reader from effectively "connecting the dots" to keep dates and evidence in order. Granted, that flaw is to be expected in attempting to illuminate the road to 9/11 from the perspectives of multiple intelligence agencies and radical fundamentalists.
I think DtD best serves the role as a supplement and index to wider examinations of September 11th; namely, The Looming Tower by Lawrence Wright and The Road to 9/11 by Peter Dale Scott's. Despite the former's obvious limitations as a more popular and widely-published book, Wright allows the reader to understand the machinations of various players across the 9/11 plot in a mesmerizing narrative. As usual, PDS's work elucidates the larger ideological context in which 9/11 occurred for a better idea of the entire picture.
Ultimately, this book is very much in the trees and takes few moments to glance at the forest. But those trees are crooked, and warrant close inspection if you have the time.
In addition, he sticks to documented facts (e.g., the CIA's willful withholding of intelligence on the whereabouts and planning sessions of Al-Qaeda from the FBI, its obstruction of justice post-9/11, etc.), and almost never veers into the dangerous realm of speculation. If he has a hypothesis on motive, he proffers it to the reader with supporting evidence and stays away from the temptation of examining the mechanics of the day itself.
HOWEVER, that same exhaustiveness is the foundation of its own demise. The prose isn't particularly captivating, and the deluge of data (some of it quite repetitive) creates a meandering narrative that inhibits the reader from effectively "connecting the dots" to keep dates and evidence in order. Granted, that flaw is to be expected in attempting to illuminate the road to 9/11 from the perspectives of multiple intelligence agencies and radical fundamentalists.
I think DtD best serves the role as a supplement and index to wider examinations of September 11th; namely, The Looming Tower by Lawrence Wright and The Road to 9/11 by Peter Dale Scott's. Despite the former's obvious limitations as a more popular and widely-published book, Wright allows the reader to understand the machinations of various players across the 9/11 plot in a mesmerizing narrative. As usual, PDS's work elucidates the larger ideological context in which 9/11 occurred for a better idea of the entire picture.
Ultimately, this book is very much in the trees and takes few moments to glance at the forest. But those trees are crooked, and warrant close inspection if you have the time.
January 1, 2025
Extremely well documented. Mostly refers to official sources such as the various Inspector General reports etc.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews