The following piece on Syria has been provided by Bill Beeman is an athropologist and linguist at the University of Minnesota , who is recognized and respected as a leader among American specialists on the Middle East.

Bill’s recent book on Iran is titled: The "Great Satan" vs. the "Mad Mullahs": How the United States and Iran Demonize Each Other.- wisass.org

Syrian “Nuclear Facility”: Credible?

Regarding the bombing of the Syrian nuclear facility, I have received correspondence from a colleague with a U.S. security clearance who wishes not to post these observations under this colleague's own name. Nevertheless, these observations are not privileged, but invite readers to inspect the evidence that has been presented to the press and public and consider the following:

1. Satellite photos of the alleged reactor building show no air defenses around the building; no AA gun emplacements (of the type seen in Natanz in Iran), and no AA missile batteries/radar.

2. The photos do not even show any military checkpoints on roads leading to the building.

3. The photos curiously show no power lines coming into the building and no electrical substations near the building.

4. Here is a photo of the North Korean facility (not the circle, the whole area).

There is a great deal of "infrastructure" missing from the Syrian photos -- basically everything is missing, except for one lone building. There are no facilities to store fuel, no place for reactor crew to live in,

5. Quite a few of the photos presented by the CIA are computer enhanced to say it politely (or doctored):

Example 1:

The lower part of the building (the attachment) and the "windows" pointing south are much sharper than the rest of the photo, suggesting that they are doctored.

Example 2:

The sky is heavily overcast. Is this normal for Syria?

Examples 3 and 4:

Photo 1 and Photo 2

In comparing these photos a rectangular building has turned almost square in the second photo.

6. At the time of the attack, there were reports of Israeli fuel tanks being dropped in Turkish territory and in Syria.

This *may* be evidence of the Israeli jets being faced with an unexpected challenge from Syria either on their way to the target, or on the way back. The aircraft jettisoned the tanks to gain altitude, become lighter, and get out of there FAST.