9/11 Commission: Round 5 on Nov. 19 in Jersey University

posted by ewing2001 on Wednesday November 12, @01:51AM

Update: Protest planned at Drew (11/17)

DailyRecord -11/12/03

Sept. 11 panel coming to Drew

The national 9/11 commission headed by former governor Thomas Kean will hold a public hearing Nov. 19 at Drew University in Madison on the public and private emergency responses during the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11 in New York City and Washington.

The panel, officially dubbed The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, will hear about skyscraper safety from victims' family members in addition to reports of public and private efforts to learn from the terrorist attacks two years ago.

Nearly 3,000 people died in the attacks, including at least 65 Morris County natives. This will be the commission's fifth public hearing and the first one in New Jersey.

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Two Morris County residents who lost relatives in the attacks said Wednesday they were especially interested in the commission's efforts to obtain White House documents on pre-9/11 terrorist activities.

The commission has been negotiating with the White House for classified intelligence briefings President Bush received in the weeks before the terrorist attacks. Several weeks ago, Kean said the commission could subpoena the White House documents if they don't receive them in a timely manner.

Barry Zelman of Dover, the brother of Kenneth Zelman, a Succasunna software consultant who died in Tower One of the World Trade Center, said he is planning to attend the commission's hearing to support its efforts to get the White House, the Defense Department and Federal Aviation Administration to release information.

Zelman said he hopes the commission will also give a status report on the success of its subpoena for FAA documents. He also wants to know if the commission has gotten more cooperation from the White House and other federal agencies. Zelman said he feels the White House has been dragging its feet to cooperate with the commission, meanwhile the Bush administration used the attacks on 9-11 as a springboard for the war in Iraq .

"It's like a slap in the face of 9/11 families to be dragging this out," Zelman said.

"Someone should be held responsible -- we're looking for responsibility and the truth. If someone didn't do their job, we deserve to know."

The negotiations with the White House have disgusted Budd Lake resident Elizabeth Kemmerer, whose mother, Hilda Marcin, died when hijacked United Airlines Flight 93 crashed in Shanksville, Pa.

"I give ex-governor Kean a world of credit for what he's trying to do," Kemmerer said. "I hope they give Kean's independent commission what they need to get the job done."

Kemmerer, who does not plan to attend the hearing, said the government has been hiding under the shroud of national security for two years. The documents should be released to the commission so it can pinpoint security lapses and loopholes and make recommendations for improvements in national security, to prevent another terrorist attack.

"I don't want to see my neighbors or anyone else put in the situation we were in."

Transportation and Agenda

Submitted by Bill Doyle -Father of Joseph (WTC 1, 101st fl.Cantor)

DRIVING TO DREW UNIVERSITY

Drew University is approximately one hour from the Jersey shore, 45 minutes to 1 hour from New York City, 2 to 2.5 hours from Philadelphia, PA, and 3.5 to 4 hours from Washington, DC.

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From Northwestern New Jersey and Northeastern Pennsylvania via Interstate 80. Take I-80 to exit 43 - I-287 South (to Morristown). *Proceed to exit 35 - Madison Avenue/Route 124. At the top of the exit ramp, turn left. Proceed three miles on Route 124 East to Madison. Drew is on Route 124 (Madison Avenue) on your right. Enter campus through the Bowne Memorial Gateway.

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From Northern New Jersey and Upstate New York (Tappan Zee Bridge). At Suffern, take I-287 South (to Morristown). Proceed as above.*

From Upper Manhattan (George Washington Bridge). Take I-80 West from the bridge to I-287 South (to Morristown). Proceed as above.* ----------------------------------------------------------

From Western New Jersey and Pennsylvania via Interstate 78. Take I-78 East to I- 287 North. Proceed to exit 35 - South Street/ Route 124. At the end of the exit ramp, turn left. **Proceed 100 yards and take the first right, following signs to Route 124. At the stop sign, turn right (Route 124 East). Proceed three miles to Madison. Drew is located on Route 124 (Madison Avenue) on your right. Enter campus through the Bowne Memorial Gateway.

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From Southern New Jersey via N.J. Turnpike. Take the N.J. Turnpike to exit 10 and follow I-287 North to exit 35 - South Street/Route 124. At the end of the exit ramp, turn left. Proceed as above.**

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From Southern New Jersey via Garden State Parkway. Take the Garden State Parkway North to exit 127 and follow I-287 North to exit 35 - South Street/ Route 124. At the end of the exit ramp, turn left. Proceed as above.**

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From the Lincoln and Holland Tunnels. LINCOLN TUNNEL: Follow the signs to the N.J. Turnpike South. Take exit 14 (Newark Airport). After the toll plaza take I-78 West to Route 24 West. ***Stay in the far right lane to exit 7A - Chatham/Route 124 West. Follow Route 124 West through Chatham (Main Street) into Madison (Madison Avenue). Drew is located on Route 124 (Madison Avenue), on your left, just past the center of Madison. Enter campus through the Bowne Memorial Gateway.

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HOLLAND TUNNEL: Follow the N.J. Turnpike signs. After the toll plaza take I-78 West to Route 24 West.***Stay in the far right lane to exit 7A - Chatham/Route 124 West. Follow Route 124 West through Chatham (Main Street) into Madison (Madison Avenue). Drew is located on Route 124 (Madison Avenue), on your left, just past the center of Madison. Enter campus through the Bowne Memorial Gateway.

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From the Verrazano Bridge. Follow I-278 through Staten Island to the Goethal's Bridge. As soon as you cross the Goethal's Bridge, follow the signs for the N.J. Turnpike North. Take the Turnpike to exit 14 (Newark Airport). After the toll plaza, take I-78 West to Route 24 West.***Stay in the far right lane to exit 7A - Chatham/Route 124 West. Follow Route 124 West through Chatham (Main Street) into Madison (Madison Avenue). Drew is located on Route 124 (Madison Avenue), on your left, just past the center of Madison. Enter campus through the Bowne Memorial Gateway.

*** By Plane. Newark International Airport is the closest terminal to the Drew campus. A taxi from the airport should cost about $50. If you are driving by car from the airport, follow signs to I-78 West to Route 24 West. Stay in the far right lane to exit 7A - Chatham/Route 124 West. Follow Route 124 West through Chatham (Main Street) into Madison (Madison Avenue).

Drew is located on Route 124 (Madison Avenue), on your left, just past the center of Madison Enter campus at the traffic light on Lancaster Road.

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION TO DREW UNIVERSITY By Train from New York City. From Penn Station (at 34th Street and 7th Avenue) take a New Jersey Transit train on the Morris-Essex line. On a train headed to Dover, get off at the Madison stop.

As a courtesy there will be a van circling continuously from the train station in Madison (in the parking lot on the town hall side of the station) to the University from 9am to 11am and 5pm to 6:30pm

By Bus. In Manhattan, from the Port Authority Terminal (at 8th Avenue and 42nd Street), take a Lakeland Bus to Madison. Tell the driver you want to get off at Drew University's main gate. To obtain schedule information, call 973/366-0600 or visit the website: www.lakelandbus.com.

WHERE ------Baldwin Gymnasium . Drew University . Madison, NJ
When -----November 19, 2003

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The topic of the hearing will be "Emergency Preparedness" Hearing Agenda:

10:00 AM Hearing CommencesOpening Statement by Chairman Kean Welcome and Highlights of New Jersey's Public/Private Sector Partnerships Governor James E. McGreeveyÂ

10:30 AM The Challenge of Private Sector Preparedness from an Insurance Industry PerspectiveJohn Degnan, Vice Chairman, The Chubb CorporationÂ

11:00 AM Skyscraper Safety Issues from 9-11 Family MembersMonica Gabrielle, Co-Chair, Skyscraper Safety CampaignSally Regenhard, Founder and Co-Chair, Skyscraper Safety CampaignÂ

11:45 AM Public/Private Initiatives Since 9-11Dennis J. Reimer, Director, Oklahoma National Memorial Institute for Preventionof Terrorism (MIPT)Michael F. Byrne, Director, Office of National Capital Region Coordination,Department of Homeland SecurityRichard A. Andrews, Senior Director, National Center for Crisis and Continuity Coordination

1:00 PM Break

1:45 PM Multimedia Presentations of Initiatives across the United StatesKings County, WA (Public/Private Sector Disaster Preparedness Plan)International Association Assembly Managers (Preparedness Training in the U.S.)

2:00 PM Private Sector Experience on 9-11 William Y. Yun, President, Fiduciary Trust Company International

2:30 PM PANEL: Standards for Emergency Management and Business ContinuityGlenn Corbett, Professor of Fire Safety, John Jay College of Criminal Justice,Member, NIST Investigation, and Bergen County Fire CaptainRandall Yim, Director, National Preparedness Team, General Accounting Office

3:30 PM PANEL: Future Strategies for Private Sector PreparednessWilliam G. Raisch, Director, Greater New York Safety CouncilPeter R. Orszag, Joseph A. Pechman Senior Fellow in Economic Studies,The Brookings InstitutionJames Haviaris, Vice President for Operations and Management, RockefellerGroup Development CorporationThomas Susman, Partner, Ropes & Gray and Chief Author of BusinessRoundtable Report on Terrorism: Real Threats. Real Costs. Joint Solutions.

5:00 PM Hearing concludes.

9/11 Visibility Protest planned at Drew

Spread the word!!!

Protest 9-11 Commission's Cover Up!

On Wednesday 11/19, the 9-11 Commission will hold a public hearing at Drew University in Madison NJ starting at 10 a.m. This meeting comes a few days after the Republican commission chair, Tom Kean, agreed to a deal with the White House to prevent commission Democrats from having full access to the crucial CIA briefing of Bush on August 6, 2001. According to reports of that briefing, Bush was warned Al Qaeda might hijack planes in the US. Kean's deal with Bush has outraged the 9-11 families. Show your support by bringing signs to a rally outside the Baldwin Gymnasium demanding an immediate end to the 9-11 cover up!

For details about the hearing: http://www.9-11commission.gov/hearings/hearing5.htm

For directions to Drew University: http://www.drew.edu/about/directions.html

To demand the truth about 9-11:
http://www.911citizenswatch.org/

Going By Train

Shuttle Service. The Commission is providing free shuttle service between the Madison Train Station and Drew University during the hours of 9:00-11:00 a.m. and 5:00-6:30 p.m. Those wishing to ride the shuttle should exit the train station at the parking lot exit across from the Town Hall. The shuttle will continuously loop between the train station and Baldwin Gymnasium during the hours indicated.

Parking. Free visitor parking will available on the Drew University campus for the duration of the hearing. As you approach the University, security officers will direct you through the Lancaster Gateway to the appropriate parking areas. Vans will transport visitors from the parking lot to Baldwin Gymnasium.

Lunch. Lunch is available for purchase at The Commons, which is immediately adjacent to the Baldwin Gymnasium. The Commons is open to the public. Lunch is served from 11:00 a.m.-1:30 p.m. and costs approximately $4.50.

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