How well-connected to 9/11 was Bin Laden? (bomb, Hitler, invaded, origin)

[belmont22]

Did he actually mastermind the attacks or did he just give them some money and encouragement? I've always thought the connection between him and 9/11 didn't seem completely solid. After all even up to the day he died, he was technically wanted for the Embassy bombings, not for September 11. And I believe Atta is known to be the "mastermind".

Is saying Bin Laden did 9/11 a bit like saying Al Gore invented the Internet?

[Snowball7]

He denied any involvement pretty emphatically.
My research indicates he had no role.

[Unsettomati]

Originally Posted by belmont22

Did he actually mastermind the attacks or did he just give them some money and encouragement? I've always thought the connection between him and 9/11 didn't seem completely solid. After all even up to the day he died, he was technically wanted for the Embassy bombings, not for September 11. And I believe Atta is known to be the "mastermind".

Is saying Bin Laden did 9/11 a bit like saying Al Gore invented the Internet?

Not really. It's more like saying Hitler invaded Poland. He didn't, of course - but he was still the driving force behind the invasion and the primary cause of it happening, no?

The idea for what became the 09/11 attacks originated with Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. Bin Laden was the classic leader, charging Mohammed with operational command of the plot and active in determining participants in the plot, target selection, selecting the time frame for the attack, providing financial resources, and so forth.

That's what leaders do - they make critical decisions and determine which details to leave to subordinates. Subordinates do the same, on down the line, to the muscle with the boxcutters in the case of 09/11. Unfortunately, Osama bin Laden had charisma, formidable organizational and leadership talents, and a lot of money. Put that together with a rather substantial grudge against the United States and rather grandiose (not to mention mistaken) ideas of how to get the U.S. out of the Middle East, and something bad was bound to happen. And it did.

It's all here, in excruciating detail:
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/GPO-911...-911REPORT.pdf

[Alec Bachlow]

Bin Laden was just some rich adventurer prick who was not that bright....He had nothing to do with 9 11 - Some working out of Saudi Arabia had everything to do with the attack. It was financed by some Saudis....I watched a tape of Bin Laden watching the towers go down- He was giggling like a little girl - This was not some mastermind...just a rich bored kid that never grew up and was simply looking for more fun. Americans KNOW who did the deed...and our oil merchants are not about to go after their Saudi counterparts....money and power is more important that human beings being slaughtered.

[Skydive Outlaw]

Saying that Bin Laden is responsible for the attacks on 9/11 would be like saying that the Seattle fans at the Seahawks / SanFran49ers game on Sunday actually scored a touchdown.

Bin Laden was just Islam's 12th Man. He got a lot of attention, considered himself part of the entire operation and liked taking credit for 9/11.