14-06-2013, 12:57 AM
From what I read, the whole missile gap thing was based upon wrong information given to him by Symington.
Once in office, he realized this was wrong. And when Dulles tried to get him to go for a first strike, we know what happened.
I don't quite understand what the rest of your post means.
Because in every major situation I have examined, Kennedy was always up against it. That is, opposed to the Pentagon and CIA. You can see that just in the speed with which his policies were reversed by LBJ. Which I am at pains to demonstrate in my book. I mean, a really great example being Indonesia. And we know who wanted in there in the worst way.
Look, you can always pick some parts of some speech which appear kind of martial in tone. But as John Newman points out, what is important is what JFK was doing.
​And it is pretty obvious the MIC did not like it.
Once in office, he realized this was wrong. And when Dulles tried to get him to go for a first strike, we know what happened.
I don't quite understand what the rest of your post means.
Because in every major situation I have examined, Kennedy was always up against it. That is, opposed to the Pentagon and CIA. You can see that just in the speed with which his policies were reversed by LBJ. Which I am at pains to demonstrate in my book. I mean, a really great example being Indonesia. And we know who wanted in there in the worst way.
Look, you can always pick some parts of some speech which appear kind of martial in tone. But as John Newman points out, what is important is what JFK was doing.
​And it is pretty obvious the MIC did not like it.