New nuclear terror drill sparks conspiracy scare

WASHINGTON – A U.S. military drill designed to enhance homeland security in the event of a nuclear terrorist attack has some officials and media outlets funded by billionaire George Soros warning it may be a "false flag" operation leading to the detonation of a real nuclear device to set the stage for martial law.

The exercise, part of the "Noble Resolve" program of the U.S. Joint Forces Command, is set for tomorrow through Friday in Portland, Ore. Like other previous drills, it involves coordination with local officials in a model nuclear attack.

Scenic skyline of Portland, Ore.

The series of "Noble Resolve" experiments began April 23 in Suffolk, Va. They represent a follow-up to similar series of drills called Urban Resolve that took place in 2006.

The efforts bring together JFCOM, Northern Command, the Homeland Security Department and state and local officials to model responses to nuclear terrorist attacks.

During the experiments, which are largely based on computer modeling, the "bomb" explodes inside the simulation. "Noble Resolve," according to planners, strives to create processes for interactions among local, state, national and international officials.

Last April, a similar "Noble Resolve" exercise took place in Virginia.

George Soros

However, despite the precedent, some officials and the IndyMedia organization supported by Soros are raising red flags – even claiming that in a similar exercise, President Bush ordered the destruction of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, and blamed it on radical Islamic terrorists.

Writing in NewOrleans.IndyMedia.org, Capt. Eric H. May, the military correspondent for the agency, asked the following question about the Portland drill: "But what if they decide to use a real bomb rather than simulate it?"

"A false flag attack is one in which you attack your own people, then blame it on a group of people you want to attack," wrote May. "It's a radical stratagem for instantly creating hatred, and it's common, historically speaking, all the way from ancient to modern times."

May gave the following examples:

The Roman emperor Nero burned Rome, then blamed it on emerging Christianity.
The German fuhrer Hitler burned the Reichstag, then blamed it on communist Jewry.
The American president Bush demolished the World Trade Center, then blamed it on radical Islam.

The jitters in Portland, according to May, caused Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., to grill the Bush administration about National Security Presidential Directive 51, first reported in WND, which authorizes the executive branch to assume extraordinary powers in the event of a national emergency.

"Maybe the people who think there's a conspiracy out there are right," DeFazio told the Portland Oregonian.

DeFazio, a member of the House Homeland Security Committee, said he was denied an opportunity to examine classified documents related to Directive 51.

"At this stage of the Bush regime and its terror-driven global war, there's no shame in conspiracy theory, since it's the only theory that offers consistent, coherent answers to our growing secret government and its terror policies," wrote May.

Meanwhile, Portland's version of IndyMedia, raises even more concerns about the impending exercises.

"There has been a growing concern over the mock or simulation events (nuclear attack and martial law) proposed to take place in Portland, Oregon, by Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and other governmental agencies now called Operation Noble Resolve," reports the agency in an article titled "Don't Nuke Portland." "This mock event has been feared by some in the past to set up martial law in Portland during the months of August and September, but newer information has raised concern of graver fears."

The article goes on to speculate that an actual nuclear attack by the U.S. government might take place during the drill. It goes on to assert that the 9/11 attacks were a false flag operation and urges those who have been hired or volunteered to be a part of the exercise to refuse to participate.

"Why participate in a simulation that supposes an external attack on the USA when there seems to be more internal threat by enemies of democracy within?" poses the article.

Teresa Heinz Kerry

Besides grants from Soros, IndyMedia.org has also received support from Teresa Heinz Kerry's Tides Foundation. The Ford Foundation has also offered support. Ralph Nader's Public Citizen organization also assists IndyMedia.org.

When star football player Pat Tillman was killed in Afghanistan, the The Portland, Ore., chapter of Indymedia.org posted the news of Tillman's death accompanied by this headline: "Dumb Jock Killed in Afghanistan."

According to its website, "Indymedia is a collective of independent media organizations and hundreds of journalists offering grass-roots, non-corporate coverage. Indymedia is a democratic media outlet for the creation of radical, accurate and passionate tellings of truth."

It maintains websites in 50 major American markets, five chapters in Africa, 13 in Canada, 39 in Europe, 15 in Latin America, eight in Asia, and nine in Oceania.

In light of the scare stories, the Portland Oregonian editorialized in favor of the drill and many local officials are participating in the exercise because they believe it is necessary to prepare for a worst-case scenario.

One nuclear terror expert said earlier this year the chances of a detonation in the U.S. in the next decade are 50 percent.

Also, about the same time, Vice President Dick Cheney said the threat of nuclear terrorism is very real.

"The fact is that the threat to the United States now of a 9/11 occurring with a group of terrorists armed not with airline tickets and box cutters, but with a nuclear weapon in the middle of one of our own cities is the greatest threat we face," he said. "It's a very real threat. It's something that we have to worry about and defeat every single day."

Meanwhile, the most extensive study of the effects of such an attack concluded the U.S. was woefully under-prepared to respond, particularly if the event took place in a major population center.

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