Truthers, meet your new crazy ally abroad

"Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity."

Hanlon's razor is the motto I generally abide by when it comes to talk of massive government conspiracies. I don't deny that there have been and continue to be certain top secret operations orchestrated by elements of the U.S. government - some successful, many spectacular failures.

Quite frankly, though, the idea that our notoriously slow-moving, red-tape laden, bureaucratic nightmare of a government could plan out and implement the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 - all while conducting a massive cover-up to place blame on al Queda and its operatives - is downright laughable.

And yet that doesn't stop plenty of so-called Truthers from believing just that. "9/11 was an inside job" claim their signs and documentaries. I see them camped out at the Farmer's Market every week, and they show up at more than a few political rallies, people intent on ignoring the historic, scientific, and other evidence that solidly points to the towers collapsing because, y'know, a couple of passenger jets slammed into them. Not because of some remarkably well-orchestrated controlled demolition.

Anyway, I was amused - if not surprised - to read of a new Truther ally making his voice heard today. None other than angry elven racist and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made vociferous claims that 9/11 was a "U.S. government orchestrated attack" while speaking in front of the UN General Assembly today.

I'm not shocked that he believes this (or at least believes that saying so will give him cred with his extremist supporters). But I do hope that suddenly finding themselves in bed with one of the world's most visible crazy people will make at least a few Truthers sit up and say, "Shit. Maybe I got this wrong."

(When the guy whose favorite pastime is denying that the Holocaust happened sides with you, it's probably time to reassess your position)

Because as horrifying as it would be to believe the your government perpetrated such despicable mass murder - it might be yet more disturbing for some to realize that their government is so inept, so incompetent, and so self-absorbed that it failed to prevent one of the biggest terrorist attacks in the history of the world.