It’s not about conspiracy – it is about transparency. In a midnight Friday night announcement the White House has delivered the bad news that President Biden will be maintaining secrecy indefinitely on some JFK assassination related records....
This promise has broken once again with this midnight announcement. Public trust in government is at an all-time low. Releasing these records would be a small but significant step toward regaining that trust.
Doesn't Donald Trump know the answer to what national security secrets could possibly be at risk? He was President when that deadline came up, October 2017. Criticize Biden all you want, but he's only continuing what Trump did. What national security secrets, at stake after 60 years, would unite these 2 Presidents?
Here's an NPR article from October 2021, "White House delays the release of secret JFK assassination records, citing COVID-19":
In 2017, former President Donald Trump pledged to release all the remaining documents on the Kennedy assassination. But in 2018, he reversed course and delayed the release, citing national security concerns.
And there's this, in Politico, a couple months later:
Even as he blocked the release of the full library four years ago, Trump said on Twitter at the time that he planned to release “ALL JFK files” someday, possibly if he was elected to a second term. There has been no similar assurance from Biden.
ADDED: Elect RFK Jr. President and he can fulfill his moral right and look for himself. I'm not saying that's a good enough reason to choose a President, and I'm not endorsing him (or anyone). I'm only saying it's one reason. And I note that it looks as though there will be little reason to choose any of the other candidates.
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77 comments:
Curious that Trump did not release the information. Of course, he was plagued by threats of impeachment if he divulged “national security” information, much of which is stuff the IC doesn’t want the public to know because it’ll embarrass them.
Could this be part of what the raid on his home was about?
There are certain things that don’t support partisan arguments. The budget deficit, most obviously—both parties, across many administrations got us to where we are with public debt. The security state is another—both parties, across many administrations, have been secrecy maximalists.
Seems clear to me.
Issue a warrant and raid the archives, arrest those refusing to turn over all the Kennedy papers.
Get Jack Smith on the case.
It must necessarily be national secret that president was removed by assassination planned by own government!!??
If RFKJ weren't running for POTUS he would still have every right to vocalize this. However, as a candidate against the president who locked this down again, he has extra leverage. It's family history as well as of national interest. Go, Bobby!
In a time of conspiracy theories run rampant, this absolutely stinks. My 89 yr old father thinks and has thought for my *entire lifetime* that the CIA killed a president. Why reinforce every dark assumption of multiple generations unless there is truth to it?
Trump in this instance was a coward.
The truth is out there. And almost certainly not set forth in the files that remain unreleased.
It would hurt national security for people to find out that JFK stole the 1960 election
Well, I guess I’ll have to assume that the cia did kill him then.
Ok, wild speculation, probably the result of listening to too many Jason Bourne-style thrillers, but the only 'national security' interest I can see at this point is that Oswald's defections were fake and the CIA or some other TLA was actually running him as an agent. Still, it is more or less just saving the still surviving bureaucrats from the embarrassment that he either played them or went rogue on them.
In the same vein, my other thought was that the Kennedy White House/Secret Service was aware of threats coming from Cuba or other Communist affiliates but decided to blame the JFK assassination on 'right wing hate' anyway.
Lastly, analysis of the Zapruder film or any other inquiry into what happened on the 'grassy knoll' or the possibility of a second gunman was deliberately avoided rather than found to be unfruitful.
Whatever it is, it surely must make the US government look very bad.
Many speculate about the CIA's involvement with Oswald and or Jack Ruby, ranging from them being fooled by a double agent or for precipitating/prompting the assassination of Kennedy. One does wonder how Oswald, as a troubled American citizen, could visit the USSR and marry a Russian woman at the height of the Cold War. How could this happen without CIA knowledge and permission or direction? Considering his life history, these days Oswald would likely have been a school shooter instead.
The catch-all excuse for keeping classified information secret is that its release "poses risks to methods and sources." With 1960s spycraft methods known and published there's not much to be learned about those old methods these days, unless the CIA or others used methods that were deeply wrong. The sources (people) are now dead, so it's just memories and reputations at risk. This means Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, and their friends and allies. This means everyone who defended the swamp/establishment at John McCain's funeral.
They are hiding further confirmation that we are living in a shithole, thoroughly corrupt, banana republic. Happy 4th of July.
"It’s not about conspiracy."
No, conspiracy covers it. The members of the cabal who continue to undermine the constitutional structure today were/are in a league with that same cabal who successfully murdered Kennedy, continuing their march to one-world (with war being one of the best means to that end). Johnson loved their plan as it allowed him to become the top guy (something he'd never, ever have been able to achieve on his own).
Of course Establishment leaders don't want their plans exposed. Ergo, no transparency to the records of the tragic 1963 event.
I suspect it has more to do that it would show agency incompetence more than any conspiracy. While few, if any, of the individuals involved in the original investigation are alive, it would reflect poorly on the current agency management, which haven't acquitted themselves well in the intervening years.
What are they worried about? Sources and methods. Ruth Paine is still alive.
Put me as well in the camp of, "Oswald was a CIA asset who was crazy, and they don't want to admit it because it might raise questions about others."
My thinking is that the parts that have been kept confidential are embarrassing to the government. They show that the investigators screwed up somehow.
The guy’s a bit bonkers but he makes some good points
Just speculating, of course, but what if the files revealed the identities of pro-USA spies inside of Cuba, whose families are still in Cuba? It might explain why Trump was on board with not releasing.
Hiding the information motivates me to see the information. What are "they" hiding??
If the CIA killed Kennedy, why didn't Robert A. Caro figure it out (in "Passage to Power")?
"If the CIA killed Kennedy"
I'm firmly in the Oswald-killed-Kennedy camp. But there are lots of other things short of CIA-killed-Kennedy that could have been very damaging to the government. Example: the CIA could have prevented Oswald from killing Kennedy.
I bet it was Fauci.
I would also like to get to the bottom of the CIA's role in infiltrating the Liddy/Watergate operations. There's quite a bit of evidence pointing towards a conspiracy against Nixon.
The problem with most conspiracy theories is that the object of the conspiracy, whether an assassination or a scandal, has only a tangential connection with political or economic advantages for the conspirators. Who can predict the long term consequences of an assassination?
I watched on live TV as Jack Ruby walked up to Lee Harvey Oswald and shot him in the gut. Although I was only 10 years old, I knew something was amiss.
I suspect that Ruby was paid by US authorities to get rid of Oswald before he could talk.
What secrets were and still are being protected? Who nows?
Journalist Mark Groubert has some pretty interesting and entertaining discussions on YouTube with Eric Hunley on this subject, going over the circumstances and the documented history. When I saw the picture of Representative Albert Thomas (D) giving that gleeful, conspiratorial, wink at LBJ as he was being sworn in on AF1, that was jarring. LBJ is looking straight at him to his R, looking over Lady Bird's head, and Jackie is standing next to him, looking downward in shock, as they get ready to administer the oath. Groubert lays out a pretty convincing rationale of the CIA and LBJ setting it up, and one that is supported by the incidental evidence at the time. Makes you wonder if it was just Vietnam guilt that drove him to drink himself under, at the ranch.
All I know is that when Sirhan Sirhan shot JFK in Dallas a little bit of America died.
I am Laslo.
JFK and the Unspeakable by James Douglass is an eye opener. Highly recommended by RFK Jr. I bought it and couldn't put it down. Good read.
The redacted material is probably not as exciting as memos from "the Cigarette Smoking Man" about setting up Oswald as a patsy. It probably sources and methods information about how intelligence agencies tracked Oswald in Russia and Mexico, some of which may still be in use.
"Josephbleau said...
Well, I guess I’ll have to assume that the cia did kill him then."
Or at least he was the first FBI "Known Wolf"
If/when the results are in, and we see that the russians/cubans killed JFK..
How will THAT effect national security? Back in '63, it would have gone nuclear. Now?
Laslo Spatula said...
All I know is that when Sirhan Sirhan shot JFK in Dallas a little bit of America died.
when does the girl with a ponytail, on a treadmill turn 35? We NEED her to be President!!
I KNOW, a bunch of you neigh sayers will get on your high horses, and say:
She's Incompetent!!!!
She's inexperienced!!
She's a fictional character!!
Well, gilbar says: SO? How does Any of that make her less fit for the job than the bozo we have?
We NEED more swish swish swish!!!
But remember boys and girls (and all the rest) Biden runs the "most transparent administration" in history.
Blogger Ann Althouse said...
If the CIA killed Kennedy, why didn't Robert A. Caro figure it out (in "Passage to Power")?
Was your curiosity piqued by the part about the "Life" magazine story and the timing? The editorial meeting on the day of the assassination ? That issue was cancelled.
Why not release the information, "when after all, it was you and me"?
Enigma said...
Whatever it is, it surely must make the US government look very bad.
Maybe it just makes the Left / Democrats look bad.
In any event, yes there's not the slightest legitimate reason to keep it secret. I dont' care who is exposed, how much their reputation is hurt, let the truth out
Enigma writes, "How could this happen without CIA knowledge and permission or direction?"
Enigma seems to be using harboring some misconceptions about international travel in the late 1950s and the legal obligations of Americans wishing to travel outside the United States.
Lee Harvey Oswald defected to the Soviet Union in 1959, the golden age of international travel in many respects. During the Second World War the United States built and commissioned 534 Victory ship transports, the successor class to the more famous Liberty ship. The Victories were considerably improved over their predecessors. They were faster, more durable, and had superior cargo-handling equipment. Being faster (17 knots versus 11 knots), the Victories were difficult prey for enemy submarines and only three were lost in combat. Consequently when these transports were decommissioned over 500 were made available for lease or sale to commercial shipping lines. The Victories were built with all accommodations and amenities for a complement of 99 officers and men, with about 60 of that number being USN Armed Guardsmen, leaving a considerable berthing vacancy available for peacetime passengers. Boiling these facts down means that an American with wanderlust but indifferent to speed or destination port could travel to Europe or Asia for less than a Greyhound bus ticket on per mile basis.
Having booked passage aboard one of these veteran merchant ships, it took 19 days for Oswald to travel from New Orleans to Southampton via Le Harve. From Southampton, he flew tourist class on the then heavily subsidized BEA flight to Helsinki, by far the most costly stage of his journey, but still cheap with gold-backed U.S. dollars. Assuming he had either a valid United States passport, a valid Defense Department military ID, or valid merchant seaman's papers, there was no legal requirement for Oswald to present himself to any Federal authority. From New Orleans to the front door of the Soviet embassy in Helsinki Oswald's only contact with legal authority were French, British, and Finnish customs and immigration. In fact, Oswald used his Marine Corps ID papers that were still unexpired to validate his booking and pass through foreign customs. The British granted Oswald a student visa based on his claim that he was making his way to a school in Switzerland, but that didn't prevent him from choosing an interim destination, namely Finland.
Except for three preserved museum ships, the Victories are all gone now and with them the age of adventure on the cheap.
There's a troubling avoidance of Occam's Razor in this conversation. Some scraggly and uncouth beards of illogic may result.
My guess is that Lee Harvey Oswald was, at one time, an under-cover agent of the CIA/FBI. I doubt that the CIA/FBI ordered him to kill Kennedy, but having it known that he was employed by them would have looked extremely bad for all involved, and even though practically all of those involved at the time of the assassination are now dead, their families and descendnts still live, perhaps with their own sinecures in the government, and many of those who covered it up along the way are still alive and capable of being embarrassed.
Yes, Trump failed mightily on this one. It seems like to me, though, that Kennedy himself or his cousin could file a lawsuit demanding the act of Congress be enforced to the letter of the law unless the act itself gave the executive the power to use the argument that Biden and Trump both used to not obey it.
When you consider what national security implications could possibly exist at this time, the results are truly concerning. Off the top of my head:
1. A foreign government was involved
2. Our own government was involved
3. It was part of a coup attempt (i.e. rogue element)
4. It was faked somehow
When a government acts this way, it's no longer conspiracy to list out the only reasons for such actions. It's the government's fault that the only remaining reasons sound like conspiracy.
"Curious that Trump did not release the information. Of course, he was plagued by threats of impeachment if he divulged 'national security' information, much of which is stuff the IC doesn’t want the public to know because it’ll embarrass them."
As active President, Trump could have disclosed any national secrets he wanted to. He just didn't care, probably didn't even look into it. His standard tactic is to claim accomplishments he didn't achieve, (or to overstate the achievement) or to claim knowledge he likely doesn't have or hasn't even tried to attain. He just shoots shit in the accurate expectation the members of his cult will accept it and lick their lips for more!
Caroline Kennedy, not RFK Jr., holds the “moral right” to see the JFK Assassination files. She may have seen them. We don’t know. Presumably her security clearance is fairly high. She is a former U.S. Ambassador to Japan and the current U.S. Ambassador to Australia.
As far as what secrets the U.S. government is trying to protect, I would hazard to guess they have to do with the intelligence gathered in Mexico City, Russia, and Cuba. There might very well be compelling reasons for some details to remain secret. For example, a source who was 20 to 30 years old at the time would now be 80 to 90, and might have family or colleagues in Russia or Cuba who could be retaliated against.
Currently (still) reading David Halberstam's 1979 "The Powers that Be" doorstopper about the media. Excellent book and thanks to whoever recommended it here.
Yesterday I was reading some discussion about WaPo political cartoonist Herblock and how he treated Nixon. So I went to look for some Herblock cartoons. It had been a long time since I'd seen any.
One I ran across was this one from 1976 https://thenib.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/19780416.jpg
It is a couple FBI guys holding a satchel labeled "FBI Illegal Operations" and one saying to the other "We broke the law? We are the law!" (Emphasis in original)
That's for those who think the FBI's political lawlessness is something new.
The cartoon ran 47 years ago.
John Henry
Currently (still) reading David Halberstam's 1979 "The Powers that Be" doorstopper about the media. Excellent book and thanks to whoever recommended it here.
Yesterday I was reading some discussion about WaPo political cartoonist Herblock and how he treated Nixon. So I went to look for some Herblock cartoons. It had been a long time since I'd seen any.
One I ran across was this one from 1976 https://thenib.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/19780416.jpg
It is a couple FBI guys holding a satchel labeled "FBI Illegal Operations" and one saying to the other "We broke the law? We are the law!" (Emphasis in original)
That's for those who think the FBI's political lawlessness is something new.
The cartoon ran 47 years ago.
John Henry
Some years ago, I read "Libra," by Don DeLillo.
I can't tell fact from fiction anymore.
Everything I read from the MSM the past decade is like a sequel to DeLillo's book--somewhat plausible fiction based on fact.
I don't see that rectifying itself any time soon.
Quaestor,
I went on a 7 month cruise on a Victory Ship in 1969 as well as several shorter cruises from 5 days to a month or so. Me and a couple hundred close friends.
USS Great Sitkin (AE-17)
Nowhere near as nice as the newer cruise ships.
John Henry
Robert Cook said:
“As active President, Trump could have disclosed any national secrets he wanted to. He just didn't care, probably didn't even look into it.”
When Democrats know that Democrats won’t do the right thing they look to Republicans to help them out. You have a Democrat President who you (if you didn’t vote for Trump) helped elect. Put pressure on President Biden to release these documents. Until Democrats start changing their party and their party officials, the Democrat party will remain the mess that it is. Here’s your chance. You have a Democrat President supported by a largely Democrat bureaucracy who has the power to make this right. Stop blaming Republicans and start pressuring your Democrat representatives. Start voting for Democrats who support transparency. Supporting RFKJR would be a fine start.
"Who can predict the long term consequences of an assassination?"
Kennedy was determined that Israel would never build an atomic bomb.
Johnson was all for it.
You could say that Trump got up from bed today and this would be sufficient for certain people to launch into a diatribe about all of the things that Trump does, and shouldn't do, as well as all of the things he doesn't do, and should have, except that he's Trump which explains everything, and therefore, he's at fault.. But, please don't call them delusional.
Quaestor said...
"There's a troubling avoidance of Occam's Razor in this conversation. Some scraggly and uncouth beards of illogic may result."
I agree. Oswald like David Hinkley was a loser. So much a loser that not even the USSR wanted him. And like Hinkley he wanted to be famous for .......something. Well. He could shoot. The Marine Corps taught him that.
Dead man's switch?
“Let me tell you: You take on the intelligence community — they have six ways from Sunday at getting back at you,”
Maybe Brian Williams knows.
A lot of interesting perspectives here. I lean towards CIA involvement with the Communists, but their need to protect surviving agents makes sense too. Or offers an excuse, too.
And there's always the abiding desire to blame "rednecks," when Communist fingerprints were all over both Kennedy assassinations.
There's another possibility. Within the records, there may be damning things about Kennedy himself. His proclivities for perversion and drugging were monumental. Similar issues arose around the release of RFK and MLK's papers. It would have been a disgrace to release some of the MLK papers when his long-suffering wife was alive.
Less shameless Democrats, and many others, don't want to see their heroes tarnished. RFK Jr. is pretty shameless, both personally and how much he is making of being a legacy admission.
I like Robert Caro, but many of the pages he writes are written to avoid writing other pages.
Oswald shot him in the forehead, then quickly ran to the book depository and shot him in the back of the head.
RE: EVA MARIE:
I've voted Green Party for presidential elections since 1996, as I think the Democrats are almost as bad as the Republicans, (but the Republicans are definitely worse). The Dems, a few members excepted, govern as corporate-friendly Republicans-Lite. I don't expect any third-party candidate to win the Presidency, but I refuse to endorse with my vote the fraud on their voters the Dems have been carrying out.
Aggie: "You could say that Trump got up from bed today and this would be sufficient for certain people to launch into a diatribe about all of the things that Trump does, and shouldn't do, as well as all of the things he doesn't do, and should have, except that he's Trump which explains everything, and therefore, he's at fault.. But, please don't call them delusional."
There are a few AMDG's milling about.
“There might very well be compelling reasons for some details to remain secret. “
With all the money there seems to be in selling secrets I don’t think they are hiding this from Putin or Xi, I think they
are hiding it from us. I can’t believe something stays secret to other state intelligence groups for 60 years. But to counter this, Putin has not released the info either, it could be blackmail, or it could implicate a Putin friend.
In summary, it would not be hidden in opposition to the law unless it was damaging to someone related to the current administration. Therefore it is interesting and I want to know what it is.
Rusty writes, "I agree."
My own completely risible notion of Oswald's motivation arose from a desire to flip off both the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. You see, both superpowers had failed to appreciate Oswald's genius, and consequently, both were unworthy of him. But, Cuba, glorious revolutionary Cuba, would welcome and exalt him if he could eliminate a hated American enemy. He missed General Walker by less than a minute of arc, but a shot at Kennedy would do better anyway. It would be easy to slip back to Mexico and thence to Havana before the idiot Yanks connected him to the rifle he so cleverly hid. If only that asswipe Tippit hadn't spoiled everything.
John Henry writes "Me and a couple hundred close friends.
Evidently, USS Great Sitkin had been reconfigured for substantially greater berthing space below decks. Or were you and your friends packed like sardines into existing staterooms with fold-up "standing room" racks?
Robert Cook said:
“I've voted Green Party for presidential elections since 1996” In that case you helped the candidate you liked the least. Thanks in advance for voting Green in 2024.
Pretty sure the answer is the killers came in a UFO.
I've voted Green Party for presidential elections since 1996
Hey, Cook. How did you like what the hail storm did to that Nebraska solar farm?
I assume you do not fly on airplanes or own a car. Civilization can do very well without you and your friends. No need for all that horse poop.
"except that he's Trump which explains everything, and therefore, he's at fault."
Reminds me of me and my dog (a wonderful, wonderful dog).
No matter what I mess up (dropping a plate, forgetting to pick up cat food, losing my keys, or whatever), I always blame the dog. I do it primarily just to be silly with the dog (she loves the attention), but also to remind myself how people have a tendency to blame others for failings of their own making.
I suppose I project the blame on Trump just as the Progs do, but Trump isn't going to let me rub his ears when I do it, so, I'll just stick with what's been working.
"except that he's Trump which explains everything, and therefore, he's at fault."
Reminds me of me and my dog (a wonderful, wonderful dog).
No matter what I mess up (dropping a plate, forgetting to pick up cat food, losing my keys, or whatever), I always blame the dog. I do it primarily just to be silly with the dog (she loves the attention), but also to remind myself how people have a tendency to blame others for failings of their own making.
I suppose I could project the blame on Trump just as the Progs do, but Trump isn't going to let me rub his ears when I do it, so I'll just stick with what's been working.
There's a great book out about the murder of J.D. Tippett. ("With Malice: Lee Harvey Oswald and the Murder of Officer J.D. Tippit"). The guy ties the story together with the original eyewitness accounts who saw Oswald from the time he left the depository to the moment of his arrest in the movie theatre.
Check it out. It becomes clear that he was an idiot sharpshooter who had a straight-line shot on the motorcade that the idiot driver helped by slowing down after hearing the first shot. He expected the Secret Service to shoot him down and he'd be a glorious martyr to the revolution.
Instead, he lives. Nobody's racing to the sixth floor. Nobody sees him. He walks down the six flights, walks out, hops on a bus. Randomly rides around. Runs into a record store to make a call. Keeps on walking.
He has no clue what to do next, and clearly no plan to get out of Dallas.
Then he runs into Tippit, who (according to the book) was out of his area (the author speculates he was seeing his mistress). He's suspicious, so he calls Oswald over, and Oswald shoots the guy.
He runs away (with people seeing him; this is Dallas in the early '60s, remember) and is captured in a movie theatre after running in without paying.
So, yeah, tell me he's part of a sophisticated conspiracy. The only way he would have left Dallas (assuming he was) would be if someone was going to pick him up, and this wasn't a man who was acting like he was waiting for a ride to the airport.
There's a troubling avoidance of Occam's Razor in this conversation. Some scraggly and uncouth beards of illogic may result.
Heh. Who doesn't love a well-crafted extended metaphor?
"Who doesn't love a well-crafted extended metaphor?"
Me. The moment you move beyond the initial point of comparison, you have left off good vivid writing and moved into Allegoristan. Bleah, bleah, a thousand times bleah.
Queastor,
In the 60s the navy might have had 100 victory ships in commission as troop carriers (apa) store ships (aka) refrigerator ships (a?a) and more.
Sitkin had 5 holds 3 fore and 2 aft. All living, messing cooking offices and so on took place in the center island.
Staterooms fo officers, goat locker for chief's.
100 or so of the rest E1-E6 lived in a berthing area about 60x30."racks" with lockers under the mattress 3 high, perhaps 2" separation end to end. Double rows so perhaps 4"between. Aisles between perhaps 24" wide.
So yes, very cosy. It was a great education in getting along with a very diverse group of pe people under often stressful conditions.
John Henry
I the late 60s there were still a number of ships that had "hammocks" for the crew. Called hammocks they were actually sheets of canvas laced to a pipe frame. With a foam mattress they were quite comfy. In rough weather I was told one could loosen the lacing for a bit of sag to keep from getting pitched out.
John Henry
Lets begin at the beginning. Whatever is being hidden from view is (1) something that both Trump and Biden want to hide (2) something that no one in 60 years wants to revel, (3) something if reveled would cause "BlowbacK" from the Establishment.
Does anyone think that if the Mafia, LBJ, or the FBI/CIA was involved in killing Kennedy Trump would've kept it secret, or that it wouldnt' have leaked in 60 years? I mean, Trump is a blabbermouth, and doesn't care about the Establishment's feelings.
That leaves: (1) it would hurt a foreign country that we are friends with or (2) information that would outrage the American people against a group or country that the Power elite likes or wants to become/remain friendly with.
In my mind that leads to two countries: Israel and Cuba. Make up your own list.
Called hammocks they were actually sheets of canvas laced to a pipe frame. With a foam mattress they were quite comfy.<
We had them on my racing sailboat. The pipe frames were attached to a rig that allowed you to adjust to the boat heel. Yes they were comfy. We sailed to Hawaii with them.
gilbar said...
"It would hurt national security for people to find out that JFK stole the 1960 election."
I thought that was common knowledge?
Jeffrey Epstein vs. Lee Harvey Oswald.
It seems that both these guys were........assets!
Neither talked before dying!
Althouse:
"I'm only saying it's one reason. "
Althouse showing once again that she spends too much time near the wi-fi.
Maynard said...
"I suspect that Ruby was paid by US authorities to get rid of Oswald before he could talk. "
Good suspicion. It makes perfectly good sense to me that if "US authorities" wanted to "get rid of Oswald before he could talk" they'd hire the nutcase owner of a cheap local strip club to do the job.
Bill Peschel said...
"Instead, he lives. Nobody's racing to the sixth floor. Nobody sees him. He walks down the six flights, walks out, hops on a bus. Randomly rides around. Runs into a record store to make a call. Keeps on walking."
Sounds exactly like a CIA plan to me.
It seems to be in the nature of governments to keep things secret. There is a legend that Britain still has classified documents dealing with the Spanish Armada. Last time I checked, British intelligence documents predating World War One were still classified. In an online discussion of this phenomenon, a British commentator gave an explanation along these lines: It isn't so much that what they did back then would be dangerous, but if you realized that they were secretly doing very stupid things back then, then you might start wondering what stupid things they were doing now. If you prefer a somewhat happier explanation, in one of Tom Clancy's novels a character explains it more like this. Decades ago, we recruited Agent Apple. He has since retired or died, but he recruited Agent Banana, who is still active. And even if he is also out of the picture, he may have recruited Agent Cherry. Once they know Apple's identity, they trace his contacts, which may lead to Banana and Cherry. So, there's that.
The claims of a conspiracy about the JFK assassination seem to boil down to a few noticeable points, which have multiple interpretations.
1. In the immediate aftermath of the assassination, various people made decisions which, in hindsight, may not have been well-advised. Which could mean that they were engaged in a coverup, or it could mean that after traumatic events, people don't always think things through carefully.
2. The Warren Commission was not ideally set up, and could have handled some things better. Which could could be because they were trying to hide the truth, or it could mean that major government projects sometimes screw up.
3. The FBI and CIA (possibly other agencies too) were not completely forthcoming about their contacts with Oswald and Ruby. Which could mean that they were part of a conspiracy, or it could be some combination of bureaucratic ineptitude and simple CYA.
4. Oswald, and after him Ruby, got extremely lucky, from their point of view. No point in denying that. Was this because they were agents of a conspiracy? I think of it this way. Winning the lottery is so unlikely that mathematicians have referred to lotteries as "the governments' tax on stupidity." But every week, somebody does win, and a few people have on more than once.
The man has a point, but at this point all the relevant information will have been buried next to the Ark of the Covenant.
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