As November slowly approaches this year, the anniversary of one of America’s darkest moments will be upon us once again as we remember the tragic death of the late John F. Kennedy.  His murder continues to stay with us and to this day it is technically an unsolved murder in that his alleged assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, was never convicted in a court of law.  He had been accused of murdering both President Kennedy and Dallas Police Officer J.D. Tippit, and convicted in the court of public opinion through misstatements and so-called evidence that wouldn’t hold up in a court of law.  And as author Gary Fannin points out, for over 50 years, lies, deception and deceit continue to be propagated making the truth of the matter seemingly harder and harder to unravel.

This book is not a smoking gun about the assassination.  Fannin examines the major parts of the story, holding them up to the light so to speak, to be examined thoroughly and in the process sheds light on the many contradictions and shortcomings on the official story.  He does point clearly that he does not believe in any way, that Lee Harvey Oswald murdered anyone on November 22, 1963 or even fired a rifle that day.   Oswald was murdered in cold blood by Jack Ruby before he had a chance to tell his side of the story taking any information he could have offered with him to the grave.   Nevertheless, the U.S. Government stands by the conclusion the Warren Report that Oswald as indeed the long gunman.  But upon closer examination as Fannin shows us, the case against him has serious flaws and there were many suspicious events that took place that were beyond Oswald’s control.

Acting as sort of a public defender of Oswald, Fannin methodically tackles each piece of alleged “evidence” against Oswald and refutes each one by one.  And in the process, Fannin brings to our attention, the many fingerprints on the crime of U.S. Intelligence agencies and he even gives a highly plausible scenario of how the shooting might have been carried out.  Fannin points out that he will probably become and an enemy of the government for the book but published it regardless as he believes the American public is owed more than what we’ve been told all of these years.  The next release date for the remaining records held on the assassination are scheduled to be released in October, 2017.  In those records are thousands of pages of documents on many individuals long suspected by researchers as being complicit in Kennedy’s death.

Anyone who’s read books on this subject will know that they tend to be quite large and the information contained in them can be staggering.  The crime itself  is so complex that just one part of it is enough to fill up a shelf on a bookcase.  Fannin did an excellent job of keeping the book straight to the point and it never loses pace.  The information is exactly the right amount to get the reader to ask questions and do their own research. But at no point, does the book feel as if it’s information overload.  For those just starting to dive into the Kennedy assassination, this is a good place to start. And even for those, who are advanced researchers have read dozens of books on the crime, it’s a welcome addition the ever-growing collection of incredible books on this heinous crime.

ISBN-10: 0692532242
ISBN-13: 978-0692532249

Recently, I re-watched President Kennedy’s peace speech at American University on June 10, 1963.  The speech is considered to be one of Kennedy’s shining moments.  In the speech, he called for a new vision of peace in the face of the escalating conflict in Vietnam and continuing aggression with the Soviet Union and its Cuban ally, Fidel Castro.  Researchers into Kennedy’s administration and his murder have often said that this is the speech that served as the final straw for those surrounding him wishing to have him removed from office.  Tragically, several months later, after this speech, that’s exactly what happened as he was murdered in broad daylight on the streets of Dallas,  Texas.  Two days later, his alleged assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald was also murdered raising more questions that have yet to be answered to this very day.

Today, the murder of a sitting U.S. President seems inconceivable.  The Secret Service, FBI and local law enforcement agencies are expected to do their part to ensure the President has a safe visit to every destination domestic and abroad.  But what happens when the President goes from being seen as the commander-in-chief to an enemy of the state?  When John F. Kennedy assumed the oval office, he inherited several simmering crisis ready to explode a moment’s notice.  Warned by his predecessor about the military industrial complex, Kennedy found himself in the middle of a circle of fanatical cold war veterans hell-bent on the defeat of the Soviet Union and communism at any cost.   Many years after his death we are now able to look back with this incredible book by James W. Douglass, and reexamine the uphill struggle Kennedy faced as he struggled to contain the push of his own generals for military involvement in Cuba, a preemptive strike against the Soviet Union using nuclear weapons and a full-out ground war in Laos and Vietnam. And what we see is treason of the highest order and a crime that truly is unspeakable.

The official story of the U.S. government is that Lee Harvey Oswald, a disgruntled former Marine decided to squeeze off three shots in six seconds as the motorcade made its way through Dealey Plaza with speeds as low as 10 m.p.h.  But to this day, no investigator or investigative committee has been able to figure out one highly important part of the crime-motive.  No motive has ever been disclosed for Lee Harvey Oswald allegedly shooting John F. Kennedy.   But if we do look at motive, there were plenty of others who did have motive and as we make our way through Douglass’ masterpiece, we see that the number of those who bore a grudge against Kennedy was nothing short of staggering.  From the start of his presidency until his final day in Dallas, the resistance and deceptive behavior of subordinates in his cabinet, the military and intelligence communities was beyond belief.  But just who were these people and what exactly was occurring?

Douglass’s exhaustive research efforts shed light on why was opposed to the young leader and why.   Kennedy had averted a nuclear war, begun to seek peace with Cuba,  taken on the steel industry, placed constraints on the  CIA and was wholeheartedly attempting to make a complete withdrawal from Vietnam.   Further, he was pushing forward a platform on civil rights and economic reform and in the process bucking the system in place for decades.  And the result was a hornet’s nest destined to strike.

Following Kennedy’s murder, the investigation into his murder took on a life of its own.  The warning signs had been there in advance, most famously in the story of Rose Cheramie who attempted to warn authorities of the upcoming assassination.  And there’s strong evidence that a man named “Lee” had warned the authorities as well of the events in Dallas but the failed attempt in Chicago several week earlier.   Fake Secret Service agents, two different arrest at the Texas Theater and a night club owner with mafia and CIA ties provides us with a cast of characters complicit in the death of a president. The murder is a web of deceit that becomes more complex as we dive further into the events of that day. But authors such as James Douglass have done a service and made the murder and investigation easier to understand by revealing the cloak of mystery that has shielded Kennedy’s murder for over 50 years.

ISBN-10: 1439193886
ISBN-13: 978-1439193884

On November 22, 1963, Charles Crenshaw was a resident surgeon working at Parkland Hospital when President John F. Kennedy arrived mortally wounded following an ambush in Dealey Plaza.  Crenshaw, along with many other physicians that day, relied upon all of their medical training in an effort to save the President’s life.  Following Kennedy’s death, rumors, misstatements and mystery began to surround the events that took place inside Trauma Room 1 that day and two days later in Trauma Room 2, when Lee Harvey Oswald arrived after being fatally wounded by Dallas nightclub owner Jack Ruby in the basement of the Dallas County jail.

For many years after the events of that horrific weekend in November, 1963, a majority of the doctors remained silent about what they saw that day and their role in the treatment administered to the dying President.  Crenshaw, in direct rejection of an order given by then head surgeon Charles Baxter, decided to write his account of his role that day and published the first version of this book then titled ‘JFK: Conspiracy of Silence’ which has been revised and renamed to the current title.  Dr. Crenshaw’s memoir takes us back in time into Trauma Room 1 and the arrival of the Presidential motorcade.  The recollections are gritty and unrelenting and through his words we are able to visualize the massive wounds sustained by John F. Kennedy and Gov. John Connally and the desperate attempts of the hospital staff to save JFK and the successful effort that saved the life of Gov. Connally.    He also recalls the often overlooked extensive treatment given to the alleged assassin Lee Harvey Oswald, two days later on Nov. 24.

This book, which became a #1 bestseller upon its release, is an invaluable piece of literature about one of the darkest days in American history where the government and direction of this nation changed course.   The doctors at Parkland Hospital faced insurmountable tasks that weekend in their attempts to save the lives of three men forever joined in history through murder, deception and complicity.  The book also forces us to ask many what if questions, some of which, if they had been answered, would have changed the investigation into the death of the President and his alleged assassin.  For any JFK assassination researcher or just anyone curious about what exactly happened inside Parkland Hospital, this book is a must read.

ASIN: B017MYRDFQ

 

On November 22, 1963, several crimes occurred in the city of Dallas.  The murders of JFK, J.D. Tippitt and Lee Harvey Oswald gripped the nation and dominated news headlines here in America and abroad.  The investigation that followed was intended to be an open and shut case, but when we look back in hindsight, we are able to see that it was anything but.  One of the most disturbing aspects of the crime, is the illegal removal of Kennedy’s body from Parkland Hospital.  Far from standard procedure, the removal violated Texas State Law and raised endless suspicious about the actions of the Secret Service and Lyndon Baines Johnson.  The Warren Commission and its report created more questions and provided fewer answers.   To this day, chilling and horrific details about the handling of Kennedy’s body continue to come to light showing a dark and sinister plot in effect.

Vincent Palamara has composed the ultimate compendium, based on testimony of those involved, as to what occurred regarding the shots in Dealey Plaza, the arrival of the motorcade at Parkland Hospital, the treatment of the President up until his death, the removal of the body, the trip to Bethesda and the controversial autopsy that followed.  Presented in a reference format, the key portions of testimony are provided in an outstanding reference format.  And as we follow Palamara’s chronology, we are able to visualize the horror and anguish that gripped the halls of Parkland Hospital.  The Zapruder film showed the public the devastating head wound suffered by Kennedy and the aftermath that followed in the motorcade.  But it is through the testimony of  doctors that we can began to truly understand the violent and gory death that Kennedy suffered.  And even more disturbing is the secretive and deceptive transport of Kennedy’s body to Bethesda Naval Hospital, a later change from the intended Walter Reed Hospital.   The true gift of this book is not that Palamara is writing his own opinions, but that the details we learn come directly from those who were there.  And through their words, that the true horror of that day comes to us refusing to leave.

ISBN-10: 1634240278
ISBN-13: 978-1634240277

Sixty years have passed since the assassination of President John F. Kennedy (1917-1963) in Dallas, Texas on November 22, 1963. Public opinion in regard to the Warren Commission’s report has continued to shift, with a majority of Americans disapproving of its conclusions. Over time, the National Archives has released more documents relating to Kennedy’s murder, but there are still important materials that remain classified. When taken at face value, the Commission’s report seems to provide an open and shut case; three bullets fired by a lone deranged gunman from his sniper’s position on the sixth floor at the former Texas School Book Depository building. But upon closer examination, it becomes clear that there are unanswered questions and troubling aspects of the official investigation which have never been explained.

The biggest issue with the Warren Commission’s report is the lack of a usable index. This inadequacy combined with contradictions and other unnerving aspects, convinced the late Sylvia Meagher (1921-1989), that action was needed. As she read the report and its supporting volumes, she could not ignore the growing belief inside of her that the official story was not true. This book is her dissection of the Commission’s report, paying close focus on the case against Oswald and the story put forth by the Dallas Police Department. To be clear, there is no smoking gun and Meagher does suggest who might have pulled the trigger. She does, however, stick to the evidence which results in hair-raising questions about what really happened that day.

Officially, the U.S. Government has maintained that Lee Harvey Oswald (1939-1963)  fired three shots from a bolt-action Mannlicher Carcano rifle in six seconds, fatally wounding Kennedy and seriously wounding Texas Governor John Connally (1917-1993). Incredibly, it is claimed that one bullet struck both, inflicting multiple non-fatal wounds. This “single bullet” theory has been the foundation of the Commission’s conclusion that Oswald was the lone gunman. But the question remains, if no one saw Oswald pull the trigger or on the sixth floor at the time of the assassination, then who did? Skeptics of Meagher will say that Oswald purchased the rifle, brought it to work, assembled it before killing Kennedy and decided to leave the evidence behind as he “escaped” from the building and boarded a bus then taxi to arrive home in the Oak Cliff section of Dallas. A selling point of his guilt has been that he “fled” from Dealey Plaza and had previously attempted to assassinate ultra right-wing General Edwin Walker (1909-1993). But is that really true? Meagher points out remarkably interesting evidence that does not support that thesis. Further, Oswald’s widow Marina admitted to initially lying to investigators out of her “distrust” of them. Oswald  may have been telling the truth when he said he was a patsy.

The murder of Dallas Police Officer J.D. Tippit (1924-1963) has been used to convince the public that Oswald was cold-blooded murderer who not only killed an officer in the line of duty but also eliminated the head of the U.S. Government. However, like everything else, Tippit’s story is far from open and shut. The author discusses his situation and points out things that raise more questions.  The analysis is thorough and I strongly recommend Joseph McBride’s ‘Into the Nightmare: My Search for the Killers of President John F. Kennedy and Officer J.D. Tippit‘ which provides even more crucial information about Tippit’s life. To date, there is no evidence that proves Tippit was part of a conspiracy to murder Kennedy. However, his movements in the forty-five-minute window prior to his death are highly unusual and have never been fully explained. In fact, his communications with the police dispatcher only add to the mystery.

A major topic of debate has been whether Oswald was on an intelligence mission at the time of the Kennedy’s death. His mother Marguerite Oswald (1907-1981) claimed several years before the assassination that her son was working for U.S. intelligence. At times she has been written off as a crackpot, but when Oswald’s movement’s to and from the Soviet Union are explored, one cannot ignore that his ability to escape the U.S. criminal justice system is nothing short of mind blowing. Meagher revisits his move to the Soviet Union,  attempt to “defect” and provide military secrets to the Russians, and return to the United States with a Soviet wife, and without any criminal prosecution during the infamous Cold War. The story is surreal but was written off by the Commission as ordinary.

Following Kennedy and Tippit’s murders, Oswald was apprehended at the Texas Theater. While he sat in the Dallas County jail, many strange things and people were moving behind the scenes unbeknownst to him. One of these people was Jack Ruby (1911-1967) whose murder of Oswald on November 25, 1963 on live television, sent shockwaves across the globe. Ruby insisted that he was emotional and snapped when murdering Oswald. But his actions that weekend around Dallas and the jail are highly questionable, and Meagher makes sure to take a deep dive into the two days when the world was on edge. One thing that stood out is Ruby’s appearances near the homicide office on the third floor of the jail complex. Further, his access to the basement of the jail preceding Oswald’s murder has always been a murky tale. While it is known that Ruby had scores of officers as friends, none were ever charged with letting him into the jail. But was he “let in” or “allowed in”? The testimony excerpts from Dallas policemen only add to the confusion.

On a final note, Meagher mentions the investigation by former New Orleans District Attorney James “Jim” Garrison (1921-1992). His case, which was both groundbreaking and problematic, is a topic for a whole other discussion. However, Meagher does point out something in regard to the Warren Commission report’s role in Garrison’s case which I had not noticed previously. And as I read her words, I had to scratch my head in disbelief. On January 14, 1989, Meagher died at the age of 67 at St. Vincent’s Hospital in New York City from complications of the flu.  Had she lived, I believe she would have been thrilled to see Oliver Stone’s ‘JFK’, the film which renewed public interest, resulted in the JFK Assassination Records  Collection Act of 1992 and supported Garrison’s belief that rogue elements of the intelligence community played a role in Kennedy’s death. Stone’s film is solid, but Garrison and his investigation were far more complicated. The case against Clay L. Shaw (1913-1974) was weak but Garrison did succeed in opening the door for more analysis of the crime. The investigation into the events in Dealey Plaza is far from over and the search for truth as to who killed John F. Kennedy continues. And this tool can help guide the way.

ASIN‏ :‎ B00E25IM6S