John F. Kennedy

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

As you know Saturday marks the 40th anniversary of one of the saddest events in US history. JFK was before my time, I was born in '67, but I've had an interest in this event and JFK ever since I was in grade school. Certainly the few moments in Dealy Plaza that transpired Nov. 22, 1963 have been the most thoroughly examined, exhausted and debated seconds in human history.



I thought I would start a thread for you to share thoughts and comments about JFK, his presidency and assasination. Hopefully this won't turn into a political debate



Vaughn

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Very true Dl5, when something like that happens a lot of "sins" are suddenly forgotten

 

[HEMI®Dart]

Here is the JFK's presidential car on eBay:



http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=6304&item=2444489173



It isn't the car he was shot it though.



There have been some great shows on TV about JFK. I was watching a good one on History Channel.



I was 4 months old when JFK was shot. I think for people that were alive when it happened, it must have been similar to how we felt on Sept 11th?



After watching a documentry on JFK I feel sorry for the man.

 

[nascar]

I think it was mob hit. It's hard for me to believe one guy with a bolt-action rifle shot that many times that quickly

I was almost 3 months old on 11/22/63 HEMI Dart. At that time we were either eating, sleeping, crying, or pooping.

 

[QRTRHRS]

Originally posted by Dl5treez

Hindsight is 20/20--if somebody assasinated *Dubya* today, in 40 years all of his supposed "screw-ups" would be forgotten.



I remember learning about how great JFK was--then I here about the Bay of Pigs, his now-confirmed affair with Marilyn Monroe--heck, he had a little of Clinton *and* Bush in him. Experts, please tell me again why he was so great??



Not flaming, just stating facts...

The Bay of Pigs was dumped on JFK, having been started during his predecessors tenue. New in office, he trusted the advisors and gave the go ahead. He did not make that mistake again. Not just during the Cuban crisis but during most of his time in office, he was head to head with the Russians, averting nuclear war. His affairs were reckless, especially for those times but just like Clinton's time, who bailed because of it? One mistake that IMHO he made was to use Vietnam to try to stop the global expansion efforts of the communists. But then had he not been assinated, that war would have been different for better or worse too. There is a lot more, good and bad but I am not versed in it enough to say more.

 

[bighammer]

PBS's American Experience the other night was about the Kenedy family. Very well done with a whole lot of info to fill in the blank spaces in my mind.



If I'm not mistaken, the car he was riding in when he was shot is here in Michigan at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn. AWESOME place if any of you get the chance to go there. Greenfield Village (sort of the outdoor part of the collection) has whole buildings, trains, roundhouse, etc.

 

[illflem]

JOHN F. KENNEDY'S ASSASSINATION

'LBJ did it'

A former lawyer of Lyndon B. Johnson says in a book his boss was behind the conspiracy



In a recently published book, Blood, Money & Power: How LBJ Killed JFK, Mr McClellan points the accusing finger at his former boss and a LBJ intimate, Texan attorney Edward Clark, as the man who personally orchestrated the assassination.



The motive: To save LBJ from political ruin and possible imprisonment due to past financial misdeeds. US attorney-general and JFK's younger brother, Mr Robert Kennedy, was then investigating LBJ and applying heat on him and his associates. But the ultimate trigger point was JFK's decision to drop LBJ as his running mate in his campaign for a second term as president.



'There was only one thing between LBJ and the presidency, that was JFK.



Hours after JFK was assassinated, LBJ was sworn in as president.



Tragically, the position he coveted so much eventually led to his being a broken man. The frustrations and pressures of office became so intolerable that he declined to seek re-election in 1968. He died in 1973.



Mr Clark, now dead, controlled LBJ's financial, legal and political fortunes for three decades. Mr McClellan was a member of Mr Clark's law firm and was privy to specific conversations and shared confidences.



Mr McClellan's political pedigree lends credence to his claims. His son, Scott, is President George W. Bush's new press secretary. Another son, Mark, is the Drug and Food Administration czar, while first wife Carole Keeton Strayhorn is comptroller of Texas and former three-term mayor of Austin, with an eye on the governorship of the state.



In his book, Mr McClellan uses voluminous court records, letters, photographs, fingerprints, personal memos and other documents to buttress his claim that LBJ engineered JFK's assassination.



According to him, other than Oswald, a second gunmen - Mac Wallace - was hired by Mr Clark. It was Wallace's marksmanship which was responsible for the fatal shot through JFK's head. He escaped in the ensuing confusion.



Whatever it is, one thing is certain: The book will not be the last word on JFK conspiracy theories.



http://search.barnesandnoble.com/bo...0&isbn=0963784625&bfinfo=Blood_Money_&_power=

 

[klenger]

I found the movie "JFK" with Kevin Costner to be very enlightning. If only half of the stuff presented in the movie were true, LHO did not kill him.

 

[smartineau]

As I recall on some history show about JFK, that congress or whoever sealed the investigation into the assasination for a period of 100 years. Is that true?



I so why?



steve

 

[Champane Flight]

Not

He did not do much as President, well the blockade on Cuba. Thats about it. He was a fine speaker though and could rally people to a cause. There were all kinds of conspiracy theorys, the mob, Castro, LBJ, and others. The truth I do not think will ever be known.

 

[tntway]

Oswald's USMC shooting instructor years ago stated that he couldn't hit the broad side of a barn at three paces. watch the video..... JFK'S head snaps BACKWARDS... . the back of his head was blown off. anyone who knows jack about ballistics will tell you the head shot came from the front. i won't even go into the magic bullet theory... ... its an INSULT to MY intelligence.



as for the sealing of the documents. yes. prolly so that ALL participants will be croaked for a good long time. can you imagine the uproar in the rest of the world if it ever came out that the American infidels whacked out their own leader?



that being said..... the Committee to Interfere Anywhere will probably be looking for me now

 

[tntway]

PS.....

and all this horse hooey bout "Camelot"..... America is a demorcracy... NOT a monarchy. therefore John Jr. could NEVER be "America's Prince"

 

[DMcClellan]

One thing that I'll always admire about JFK is his statement "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country". And I think he was sincere about that. I think Democrats should remember that.

 

[daveshoe]

I was old enough to be aware of politics , and in the rural culture of the time Kennedy seemed so different with his funny accent and all that I have to admit that most people around me did not show a great deal of compassion toward his family, but were more concerned what the Russians were going to try with him out of there -- sort of a ''how will this affect me'' attitude.

The press loved the guy and the coverage of the funeral with the endless dirge of that drum cadence changed that perception somewhat. The other thing I remember the most was seeing the mist when the kill shot hit home--we saw it many times. I wonder if there will ever be an American leader whose health problems and affairs will ever be covered up like that again. FDR and JFK probably will be the last.

Does anyone out there remember the comedy records of the time that had the guy who could imitate the Kennedy family? They were pulled from the shelves immediately and probably would be a collectors item today.

Not trying to be political with any of this -- just giving honest impressions.

 

[John]

It was a dark day in history

I was a little boy in grade school when JFK was assassinated. Since that time, I have always been fascinated with new evidence that could shed some light on what exactly happened.



The History Channel has a multitude of great shows relating to JFK, his life, his presidency, his assassination, the conspiracy theories, and all the peripheral information supporting the LBJ conspiracy theory... and I've watched it all in the last several days. I've even watched one of the longer shows twice.



IMO, there was never any way Lee Harvey Oswald could have acted alone. After going over the Warren Commision accountings, dispelling the "official" version of the assassination in a LFI defense class I took, I knew that there was at least one more gunman... on the grassy knoll... possibly two. Why? Because one to two shots was/were fired because the trajectory through the windshield and into JFK's head supports this, bystanders on the grassy knoll simultaneously looking around in the same direction after the gun report(s), and because of an excellent escape route revealed afterwards that could allow an expedient escape without being seen!



The LBJ/J. Edgar Hoover/and other co-conspirators conspiracy theory that was detailed on The History Channel was extremely well done. EVERY detail was backed up by proof and logic. In my mind, that is exactly what happened and why. To me, this went well beyond a typical conspiracy theory. As Mel Gibson said in the movie "Conspiracy Theory", "A good conspiracy can't be proven. " The LBJ conspiracy theory is proven in The History Channel show, going well beyond resonable doubt in proving this "theory. "



If interested, look at the JFK segment on The History Channel pertaining to the LBJ conspiracy theory as well as another, shorter segment on Lee Harvey Oswald. This particular segment was brought to light by his mistress who, after almost 40 years finally came forward to tell her story and why. And why now. She is an extremely smart person and was linked to the government indirectly at first.



Pertaining to something mentioned in a previous post...



the JFK assassination data will not be made public until 2028 (according to the JFK History Channel show).

 

[HEMI®Dart]

Not sure how to phrase this but I think JFK was the "Best" Kennedy to have been in public office hands down. And maybe his son is right up there with him.



I don't really care for Ted Kennedy ( Chappaquiddick) or the other Kennedy's in public service now.



Ya know what I mean.

 

[RichB59]

JFK

I find it difficult to express how I feel about this. I am of Irish Scotch decent and always loved JFK. The problem is I never believe a damn thing the Feds have to say. I believe the right wing had a hand in this he was someting they feared. We will never know and it really doesn't matter you can't change history. I'm kind of a middle of the roader myself and hope this kind of violence never visits us again. Goodness and charisma is not inherited (Ted Kennedy!!!!!)A-Hole

RichB

 

[mopars1]

daveshoe, I remember the record you are talking about. I think his name was Vaughn Meador or something like that. Very funny at the time. I haven't heard one played in many years.