06-10-2013, 12:34 PM
Alex Cox Wrote:Joe MacBride in his book Into the Nighmare quotes a comedian of the day, I think it was Mort Sahl, remarking that President Kennedy was "shot like a dog on the streets of Dallas and all of a sudden he had no friends at all." It is amazing that not one member of the Kennedy clan, other than Jackie, who wore that bloodstained dress, stuck up for the murdered president. What did they hope to gain by silence? And how did they end up, as a result?
A very good point. I'm still reading through Richard Mahoney's SONS AND BROTHERS which lays out a lot of the blackmail dynamics that developed between the Kennedys, Hoover and mafia figures like Johnny Rosselli (the Amazon reviews of Mahoney's book are instructive but I think criticisms of it being a simplistic 'mafia did it' tome are off base, as the associations revealed between mafia figures and cold warriors like Bill Harvey seem pertinent and nuanced, and the book works best when the events depicted are viewed as a facet of a larger operation that obviously involved the CIA). I mention all that simply as I'm wondering what percentage of the reasons for silence on the issue of JFK's murder were due to RFK 'biding his time' (as in Talbot's BROTHERS), how much was from the fear of having a distorted narrative regarding Kennedy admin/anti-Castro Cuban/mafia hit team relationships come to light, and how much was from the simple shock and fear that powerful and unknown forces would strike hard if their personal suspicions regarding the assassination were made public. Off the top of my head I don't know the answer to any of those questions.
I agree with Alex's comment on his blog about the dismay/discomfort/disgust he felt watching Tink Thompson chuckle and smirk through the Morris film, busting a gut at the assassination and those loopy researchers that have been working to unravel the mystery. I like the other Morris films that I've seen but his Umbrella Man short is offensive and obnoxious on numerous levels. The photo of the Latino and the Umbrella Man calmly sitting together after the assassination is deeply suspicious, and how Thompson can find the nerve to piss himself laughing at the suggestion of foul play here is beyond me.
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_6kYzhJGqq2M/TI...la+Man.jpg
I just ordered The President and the Provocateur (UK edition from Book Depository) and look forward to reading it and posting a few comments and questions afterwards if Alex is still up for discussing it a bit.