Berg's Father and Firm Were On A Right-Wing 'Enemies' List

www.breakfornews.com/NickBergEnemiesList.htm


The family firm of beheaded American Nick Berg, was named by a conservative
website in a list of 'enemies' of the Iraq occupation. That could explain
his arrest by Iraqi police --a detention which fatally delayed his planned
return from Iraq and may have led directly to his death.

Nick Berg, 26 disappeared into incommunicado detention after his arrest by
Iraqi police in March, 2004. He vanished again after his release 13 days
later. His body was found last Saturday in Baghdad, and a video of his
beheading --supposedly by a radical Islamic group-- was posted on the
Internet on Tuesday.

The official story of his gruesome murder has many dubious aspects, not
least the real reason why Iraqi police detained the young man at a
checkpoint. New research by BreakForNews has uncovered a plausible
explanation.


The FreeRepublic.com web site and forum has a reputation for right-wing
views, fanatical Republicanism and relentless pro-war activism.

On 7th March, 2004, just three weeks before the first anniversary of the
invasion of Iraq, an 'enemies' list of anti-war groups and individuals was
posted on the Free Republic forum.

It began: "Here you are, FReepers. Here is the enemy."

The list had been copied from publicly available endorsements of a call to
action for an imminent anniversary antiwar protest on 20th March, 2004. The
protest was being organized under the banner of the A.N.S.W.E.R Coalition
(Act Now to Stop War & End Racism).

Among those listed as having endorsed the call to action was this entry:
"Michael S. Berg, Teacher, Prometheus Methods Tower Service, Inc."

That's Nick Berg's father, Michael who acts as business manager for his son
in their family radio communications firm, Prometheus Methods Tower Service.

Both father and son cared deeply about Iraq. But they were on opposite sides
of opinion on the occupation --though you would never know that from reading
the New York Times.

Michael was ardently antiwar, whereas his Bush-supporting son was in favor
of the war to the extent that he had already visited Iraq seeking to help
with rebuilding efforts.

Just seven days after "Michael Berg" and "Prometheus Methods Tower Service"
had come up on that Iraq war 'enemies' list, his son Nick Berg returned to
Iraq under the business name of Prometheus Methods Tower Service.

The scene was set for tragically mistaken suspicions --which were to end in
the horrifying death of an honorable and blameless American. A humanitarian
who had traveled several times to Third World countries --such as Ghana, to
teach villagers construction techniques.


The web traffic to the Free Republic forum --and it's forum membership--
include significant numbers of serving and former US military.

Many members take their online activism very seriously. Some delight in
causing mischief for those they think are identified as "enemies."

Within minutes of getting their hands on the antiwar names, one was boasting
of having contacted the military about active service personnel who were on
the list:

"I forwarded the list to the ISC (the command you listed), the district
officer... the district legal office and the investigative services office."

The response:

"The poor moron is not going to know what hit him. Is this being
mean-spirited? NO! Someone against our military does not belong in the
military!"

Another was already investigating a member of the Coast Guard on the list:

"I took a look at his yahoo and he has a site which is not real fond of the
war on drugs OR the war on terrorism.... That particular coastie needs some
serious trouble to come his way...."

" I spoke on the phone to a senior chief yesterday in Virginia.... [who]
could not believe what the guy was doing. He was both astounded and angry. I
think [he] is in for some big, big trouble."

If that list could end up on an Internet forum, then it could just as
readily end up with the FBI, and eventually in the hands of those in Iraq
who are keen to track or harass antiwar activists entering the country.

Alternatively, the enthusiasts on Free Republic have the contacts and the
clear determination to have ensured the list quickly got to the right
places.


At the time the list was posted, Nick Berg had just come back from an Iraq
trip lasting from late December to Feb. 1. He had reported no problems
whatsoever with Iraqi police during that visit.

Yet, within two weeks of the list being posted, Nick Berg --back in Iraq on
his final fatal trip-- was reportedly detained in Mosul at an Iraqi police
checkpoint. The official explanation is that authorities thought his
identification might have been forged and were checking his authenticity.

But a more likely reason is that by then authorities in Iraq had discovered
that a 'Berg' of Prometheus Methods Tower Service was in the country, and
issued a detention instruction to Iraqi police because they misidentified
Nick Berg as an antiwar activist entering Iraq to work for the 'enemy'.

That could explain why he was held incommunicado for 13 days, without
recourse to a lawyer; why US officialdom was singularly unheeding of his
mother's pleas; why the FBI visited his family to question them; why it took
a US court order secured by the family to pressure his release.

And why he was cruelly murdered soon after that release, like many others
around the world who suffer such a fate at the hands of state-condoned death
squads --sometimes just hours after their release from official detention.

That's the final sordid twist in this grisly story.

If the world was an uncomplicated place, then this tale would end with the
mistaken arrest of Nick Berg.

We could finish by noting that Nick's father is reportedly accusing the US
government of contributing to his son's death. Unable to find work in Iraq,
Nick Berg's last trip was set to be a short one. He planned to return to the
US on the 30th of March.

Michael Berg charges that his son's detention until 5th April, was a
violation of civil rights which fatally delayed his exit from Iraq and
instead left him dangerously stranded in the middle of the explosion of
violence which erupted in early April, 2004.

But there are much graver aspects to all this. Another chilling perspective
is best summarized by the wry cynicism of Michael Rivero at
WhatReallyHappened.com

In a commentary on the beheading of Nick Berg, Rivero writes:

"How wonderfully lucky for Bush and the NeoCons that such a great piece of
pro-war distract-from-the-torture-scandal event happens at this particular
moment."

Rivero's world-weary realism strikes a chord with his popular website's
visitors, but will undoubtedly shock unseasoned observers. However he is far
from alone in questioning the official line. Others have noted the too-white
hands and military at-ease stance of the hooded captors in the video.

The killing has certainly eased the international discomfiture of the US.


The problem with assumptions that al-Queda is responsible for Berg's
beheading, is that Musab al-Zarqawi is mentioned in a caption on the
videotape of the killing.

Al-Zarqawi came to our attention in January, 2004 when the US military
claimed to have intercepted a letter of his written to the al-Queda
leadership. But the content of the letter read like a US military propaganda
statement on the situation in Iraq.

In the letter al-Zarqawi wrote of Iraqis coming to welcome the US presence
in Iraq, and about how al-Queda was loosing ground in it's war against the
US.

In February, 2004 an article "The Zarqawi Gambit," by Greg Weiher on
Counterpunch was deeply skeptical of the letter:

"..if you were Karl Rove, you couldn't design a better scenario to validate
the administration's slant on the war than this. That's a good reason to
maintain a healthy skepticism. In fact, there are a number of good reasons
to take this story with a grain of salt (maybe a three- or four-pounder)."

The US has been keen to paint the opposition to the occupation as composed
of many foreign fighters tied to al-Queda. The letter was clearly fabricated
for propaganda purposes, with al-Zarqawi as it's new al-Queda star.

But if al-Zarqawi is merely a flimsy propaganda creation, then what
confidence can we have in the official line that al-Zarqawi and al-Queda
murdered Berg.

The only plausible alternative is a covert, black operation orchestrated as
part of the seedier arm of US foreign policy --which generally only come to
light when candid photographs, for example, reach the public domain.

But that's an explanation which many would reject on the grounds that no
force allied to the US --no matter how black its operations-- would have
members so callous as to even countenance the cold-blooded beheading of a US
citizen.

However, there is a mindset amplified by war passions and found among the
gung-ho brutes who beat Iraqis to death; found among the thuggish mercenary
death squads who roam to slay at will; and found among the cold-blooded
sociopaths who have planted bombs for political strategic reasons.

It's war. And war begets a wartime mindset.

Nick Berg's detention indicates that authorities regarded him an an antiwar
activist and possibly also as an 'enemy.'

That original post on Free Republic contains a telling indication of a
mindset, which in the heat of war could well kill an American it regards as
the "enemy."

A mindset which has now reacted to Michael Berg's loss of his son like this:

"I wonder what he thinks about his Muslim buddies now... "

A mindset displayed by the search keywords used on Free Republic to
categorize the list of antiwar supporters. The keywords are:

APPEASENIKS; DAMNCOMMIES; ENEMYWITHIN; LEFTISTS; PEACENIKS; RATS; SCUMBAGS;
TRAITORS; TREASONOUSSCUM; USEFULIDIOTS; WARONTERROR

### end story ###

In addition to the above, we have the following:

A translator on one of the TV shows today said that the accents were not
Jordanian as stated, and Al Quaeda is not mentioned in the tape
statement... an arabic word "al quaid" which means 'one who sits and does
nothing' is the correct translation.