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At Madison Public Library Thursday, a former University of
Wisconsin lecturer said America's future is in jeopardy without 9/11 Truth, an
organization that believes the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks were part of a conspiracy
by the U.S. government.

Kevin Barrett, who gained nationwide attention for his
controversial views about Sept. 11 when he was teaching an introductory Islam
class at UW last fall, explained how searching for answers behind the Sept. 11
attacks, "a pseudo-religious act of human sacrifice," affect Americans'
cultural, spiritual and physical survival.

"We are on the brink of a chemical war; you should care
because your life depends on it," Barrett, the founder of Alliance for 9/11
Truth, said.

He also said Americans' survival was threatened by anthrax
threats and said official sources have confirmed anthrax threats came from Fort
Detrick, Md.

"Bush didn't want an investigation after 9/11, and we can
see why the administration didn't want to talk about why is anthrax coming from
within the U.S.," Barrett said.

According to Barrett, not providing answers and a "lie of
this magnitude" kills the human spirit.

"Their spiritual life has diminished since 9/11 because
there is more fear in the air and people are afraid to really live and open up
to the world, they go around looking like zombies," Barrett said.

Barrett said he believes it is "absolutely reasonable" to
believe the World Trade Center buildings were destroyed by controlled
demolition and now there are CIA experts including Ray McGovern and Bill
Christensen and colonels and generals coming forward.

"This monstrous lie will be far more pernicious, spiritually
and every other way, than the actual murders," Barrett said. "The lie is
infinitely more harmful."

Barrett said America's current leaders are completely out of
control.

"The war in Iraq has taken over a million lives so far,"
Barrett said. "There have been executive orders where Bush can declare a state
of emergency without getting approval from Congress. We are on the way to
becoming a dictatorship."

In terms of the future, Barrett said 9/11 Truth has the
potential to change public opinion and finding out what happened "might unite
us."

UW College Democrats Chair Oliver Kiefer said while Barrett is
free to express his speech, it is not an opinion he agrees with. Kiefer said he
believes in a more "mainstream" view that the Bush administration has failed
the country.

"The Bush administration didn't adopt recommendations of the
9/11 Commission, nor take safety precautions, and have left us vulnerable,"
Kiefer said. "For example, nothing was done with our ports until Democrats took
over in Congress, and that's just inexcusable."

Madison resident Lou Stolzenberg said she doesn't accept new
information quickly. However, once she looked at information from scientists
and engineers about the World Trade Center's collapse, she agreed with the conspiracy
theory.

"[These are] qualified, educated and reputable people — who
don't just accept any information, but have high standards for verifying
information," Soltzenberg said. "I believed the theory."