What gets declassified?
JFK assassination documents offer surprising lessons about government secrecy — and Obama’s presidency
Russ Baker - May 31 2012
Next year will be a half-century since the death of JFK. And the Obama Administration thinks we need to keep secret the records on the matter … a little longer yet.
Believe it or not, more than 50,000 pages of JFK assassination–related documents are being withheld in full. And an untold number of documents have been partially withheld or released with everything interesting blacked out. But why?
Since the government and the big media keep telling us there was no conspiracy and that it was all Lee Harvey Oswald acting on his own, why continue to keep the wraps on?
We don’t have an answer, but in understanding this and any number of other mysteries, we can begin looking for patterns in the way the administration handles information policy.
Tags: JFK Assassination
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June 23rd, 2012 at 3:49 am
Greetings, Mr. Baker:
I’ve just discovered this incredible, intelligent site. The expression WOW is not too strong, given the infinite number of other not-so-smart sites. I’m a freelance writer, mostly known for my work with THE HORROR SHOW magazine from 1984-1989, and 2 books: FLOWERS ON THE MOON (1991), and THE UNTOLD (2004). This, by way of a simple introduction. Too, in the mid-80s, I published three articles in Beth Robbins’ THE GATE, along with anomalies-investigator Stan Gordon and others. I’m 54 years old, and have had a long-standing fascination with so-called paranormal phenomena and conspiracy theory. I’m currently finishing a nonfiction book, DARK MATTER: PERSPECTIVES ON MYSTERIOUS PHENOMENA.
Your piece here, in my opinion, is spot-on. As you know, there are so many theories regarding JFK, that one wonders why the USG remains–putting it mildly–ambiguous. The old Lone Gunman line is moldy beyond words, i.e, “Oswald simply was a very skilled sniper.” Maybe yes, maybe no. It doesn’t matter what I say about the matter. What does matter is the fact of continued USG blurriness. Most of the “players,” as in the Roswell incident, are dead. Yet Bullshit City remains quite populous. Why? Who is keeping these events under their collective vest? I know what you think/suspect, and I don’t disagree.
For what it’s worth, I see the JFK hit as–forgive me, please–an absolute rupture in U.S. history–who doesn’t? The first, so to speak, 9/11. I’m just old enough to remember hearing what my neighbors in Solon, Ohio were saying: “Goddamn Commies! We’ll END them!” And: “We ought to drop the bomb on Russia!” These comments came from working-class people, and scared the living hell out of me. Both my parents wept, something I’d never seen and, even at that age, I sensed a profoundly disturbing loss of safety–the same I felt as an adult during 9/11.
While I have not digested everything written about JFK, I’d like to think I’ve come close. Again, as you know, JFK pissed off a lot of powerful players. The whole Cuba deal, obviously, and other things.
Today, just try and file a Freedom-of-Information request on anything. Good luck. Someone needed JFK gone, and they got that. Days before his end, he requested (I’m not certain he “demanded”) information on the UFO phenomenon. Much has been made of this, and if he had even to make such a request he must therefore have been out of the loop (plausible deniability?).
Whatever actually happened, I doubt it had anything to do with UFOs, and I think many conspiracy theorists put way too much weight on this aspect. Check out Jacques Vallee’s discovery of the Pentacle Memorandum, which pretty much nails that the USG was interested in faking UFO events to test public (and military, law enforcement, etc.) reaction to a staged “invasion.” Point: the USG knew most (not all) UFOs were products of earthly technology. JFK’s request must have alarmed them, but only to a degree. We do not know if he was briefed on this as psychological warfare, or whatever term might have been employed.
In closing, whatever happened to JFK was–as you know–very probably controlled by more than one individual. The actual facts exist–somewhere. Or not. The very fact they remain hidden says more than any conspiracy theory can hope to uncover.
Thanks for your fascinating insights.
June 23rd, 2012 at 5:14 pm
My personal beliefe is when JFK publicly said I will get rid of the Myriad of Secret Societies working behind the scenes of the US govt etc as there is NO Good and Honest reason to be doing things of a day to day nature in secret.
As you understand the Secret societies and the Elite financiers (Rothschilds et al) would Never allow anyone to pee on their parade.
This is just my humble opinion but it does make perfect sense. Look also at Abe Lincoln when he said to the Elite bankers that he did not want their expensive loans as he had already sorted a financial way for the US to become great without them (ELITE) running the federal reserves etc.
June 24th, 2012 at 1:08 am
@ Paul Yak
JFK did not speak out against “Secret Societies”. The recording to which you refer is a disingenuous editing of a longer speech by Kennedy, asking the press to help against Communism.
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=928_1217456062
The speech in full:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LfQbQiAY1YA
June 24th, 2012 at 6:56 pm
In context then, I think he would have been more correct if he termed it “closed societies.” After all he was Catholic, and everyone knows the enmity of the Church toward “secret societies”, Masonry in particular. It’s also peculiar that he had received the heads of the Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite at the White House that very month. I have a photo of the occassion in a large tabletop Masonic book called “Valley of the Craftsmen.”