Wednesday, 15 August 2012 23:13

A Manifesto for the Fiftieth

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An early call to civic action in preparation for the 2013 50th anniversary of the JFK assassination.


50thUnfortunately, we have become complacent. I do not mean to insult anyone, but it certainly appears that many who believe President John F. Kennedy was assassinated as a result of a conspiracy are currently engaged in bystander apathy. This condition is the classic example that occurs when everyone hears or sees someone being brutally assaulted, and nobody calls the police because everyone thought someone else would most certainly do so. We read books, and we post reviews of books on Amazon, and we comment on posted reviews. To what end?

Is this it, folks? Is this as good as it's going to get? Because I have to tell you, I have a sinking feeling in my gut that the 50th anniversary of the assassination will then come and go without much ado. Save for former Washington Post reporter Jefferson Morley, who has a FOIA case pending with regards to CIA files related to George Johannides, who else is actively pursuing any leads at this moment? Maybe Bill Kelly? And that is a shame because, in reality, we are the majority.

In the one-sided 2003 ABC documentary, Beyond Conspiracy, ABC's own poll revealed that 75% of Americans believe JFK was killed as a result of some form of conspiracy. But the truth of the matter is that the contingent within that 75%, who actively read books, articles and are otherwise well informed, in my estimation, is less than a fourth of that percentage. So what if Mr. Morley wins his case? His subject matter, although important, will only reveal another piece of the puzzle. Frustratingly, I'd say we've achieved nothing more than putting together all the border pieces with a giant hole in the middle.

The 50th anniversary is 17 months away at the time of this writing. If anything, ANYTHING is to change in the status quo, we must become proactive. In order to do this, we must first face an honest assessment of where we stand. Some Hard Truths Disenfranchisement. We have assumed the attitude of “something will turn up eventually,” or “someone still has yet to come forward.” We are playing wait-and-see, and that's killing our cause. Even the respected authors have become tired toiling over scraps of information to piece together books for our consumption. I have read too many articles and books in which even authors proverbially shrug their shoulders and state, “and we may never know.” If we do nothing, that will forever be the case.

  • We're Getting Older. The advocates we rely on – Lane, Douglass, DiEugenio, Pease, Brown, Mantik, Marrs, Newman - will not be with us forever. Can anyone name a prominent researcher under the age of 35? ...That's scary. And it's what J. Lee Rankin envisioned when he ordered specific Warren Commission documents to be classified for 75 years. Warning: anyone who wants the truth to come out, and was alive when John Kennedy was assassinated, the 50th anniversary will almost surely be your last shot to make something happen.
  • We're Divided. And we will always be divided unless everything is declassified. In the mean time, the keepers of the secrets are laughing at us because, in essence, we're doing their work for them. Each of us are entitled to their opinion, but there is a difference between educated opinions and popular fantasy. I watched something on YouTube about JFK being offed by a sock puppet held by Jackie. I can hear the laughter echoing from the basement at Langley.
  • We're Inactive. Reading books about the assassination is not “doing something.” You're informed; good for you, you're not a sheep. Knowledge is power most assuredly. But empowerment is useless without action. The ARRB was not formed because a bunch of congressmen got together one day over lunch and said, “You know, maybe it's time we should take another look at that JFK thing.” No, it was because they were under pressure from the public as a result of Oliver Stone's film, JFK. Now it's easy to say, “Well, I'm not famous like Oliver Stone.” That's a cop out. Most people do not realize that the HSCA was formed in large part as a result of the letter-writing campaign led by Mark Lane's non-profit organization in the mid 1970's. Millions of Americans wrote letters to their representatives and senators to demand an inquiry into the Kennedy assassination.
  • We're Without A Prominent Spokesperson. As a child, I watched Jesse “The Body” Ventura perform as a pro wrestler for the WWF and I thought it was great that an “outsider” and former U.S. Navy Seal became Governor of Minnesota because this is America, where everyone has a chance to make a difference. But Governor Ventura is not the man we truly need him to be. Yes, it's great that there is a man with a microphone shouting “conspiracy” repeatedly. But with only him as our spokesperson while wearing a t-shirt, leather jacket and unkempt hair, is not putting our best foot forward. Probably the only thing that we may agree on with propaganda specialist David Phillips is the concept of “reality perceived is reality believed.” And I can imagine what many Americans see when they only look at Governor Ventura speaking about the JFK case. Also, I do not mean to discount the other conspiracies he offers, but it does muddy the waters in which we stand. Like it or not, Jesse Ventura is the most visible proponent of a conspiracy in the assassination of JFK. And we need more than that.
  • We're Still Being Stonewalled. Most, if not all, of the conspirators are dead today. The CIA, FBI, or Office of Naval Intelligence now only seek to protect their institutions from the ghosts of their pasts. This is unnecessary and unacceptable. We are citizens of the United States of America, and we should determine what is relevant and what is not.

action

A Call To Action

The easiest metaphor I can offer you for our current situation is that of the burly, high school bully who pushes around the weak kid then gloats in his face, “What're ya gonna do about it?” The sad truth is, nine times out of ten, that kid takes it and walks away with the bully smiling at him...But that still leaves one time. Our one last time my well be the 50th anniversary of the assassination. The media will most likely conduct their token coverage, but we must be able to seize the momentum. To do this, we must work together and unify under certain parameters. Whether you believe the CIA, LBJ or Mafia was behind the conspiracy, and you have a desire to do something more, begin by reviewing an excellent proposal by Joseph Green. Green has written a ten point program on issues everyone in the assassination research community can agree upon and support.

We need leadership and organization. We have some great websites which keep the information alive and available on the internet: CTKA, JFK Lancer, Mary Ferrell, and AARC to name a few. This is our foundation, and as a foundation, it gives us something on which to build. Right now, I propose that a non-profit organization be formed to represent the collective research communities: the Organization of Assassination Researchers (OAR). It should be open to researchers in all fields, MLK, RFK, Malcom X, and the different camps within the JFK community. It's Chairman/President can be from any field, but must be willing to separate him/herself from their own research agenda for the good of all researchers together. Certainly individual websites should maintain their own identities, but they should also uniformly carry forward any messages from OAR. OAR should also seek out prominent citizens, business people, public figures, and politicians who are willing to take up the cause of speaking intelligently about assassinations per the 10-point program mentioned previously. Anyone from Jon Stewart to Alec Baldwin, to Wolf Blitzer to Donald Trump, to your U.S. Representative or Senator. Right now, we need people with voices bigger than our own to assist in spreading our message.

We need to rebuild our base. The choirs are preaching to each other, and it's doing us no good. Talk to your friends; break the ice by saying you just read an article about the upcoming 50th anniversary of the assassination. Ask them what they heard about the assassination and what they think. I keep a .jpg of CE 399 on my smart phone. When I explain that the official story that one bullet created seven wounds, broke a rib bone and wrist bone, I show them the picture and ask, “Does that bullet look like it did all that damage?” And when they say, “no,” you ask them if they willl accept a book (many used books are cheap at Amazon.com). Most importantly our children, grandchildren, nephews & nieces, and cousins are growing up. We need to take away the cell phones on which they are texting, turn off Jersey Shore, and start by saying “I just want less than an hour of your time to talk about something that is really important to me, and that should be really important to you.” Talk about how they are going to have to make their own choices as adults, including choosing what to believe their government or news media tells them.

Use the 10-point program as a foundation for this discussion and don't try to bombard them with all you already know. Let them come to their own conclusions. Whatever you discuss, make sure they understand WHY something that happened 50 years ago affects their lives today, and in turn the future of their children. Whether you are talking to a young adult or one of your oldest friends, end the conversation by giving them a book or DVD of your choosing. Ask them to do you a favor and just give the book a chance; but don't force them. That is the tactic of those who covered up the crime and we are better people than that.

We need to be using social media better. Facebook has somewhere in the neighborhood of over 700 million users. With our own network of friends, we need to start anew a campaign of awareness. Post a link to an assassination related article at JFK Lancer or CTKA. Post one of your favorite You Tube videos that explain how the magic bullet is just that. “Like” assassination related posts so that people in your network will see those posts as well.

We need an event in Dallas. Apparently, the Sixth-Floor Museum has secured exclusive rights in Dealey Plaza for the whole week of November 22, 2013. That doesn't mean that we can't attend whatever event they are planning. However, if they are reserving the plaza and will NOT have an event on the November 22, they would do well to reconsider. Those of us planning to attend could do some unofficial event, flashmob or march but that is yet to be determined.

A letter-writing campaign is a must. With all of our friends and family, 18 years or older, we should demand a new congressional investigation into the Kennedy assassination, and order a thorough review and declassification of remaining JFK related documents. The investigation cannot be another commission or review board like the Assassination Records Review Board, which only facilatated the release of documents and did no investigation. it must have the power to subpoena, and those testifying be subject to the laws of perjury.

There are four people that you want to write to: your U.S. Congressional Representative, your two U.S. Senators, and the President. This is not as tedious as the initial letter-writing campaign which created the HSCA. With computers you can copy & paste and simply change addresses on the same letter. But feel free to include your own feelings on the matter. Pick some, if not all, of the issues within the 10-point program. Also explain how the ARRB was stonewalled by several government agencies. You may want to mention this article about how the Office of Naval Intelligence persecuted one of their own who merely did her assigned job in attempting to assist the ARRB. You may even want to write a letter to members of Senate Armed Services Committee or Senate Select Committee on Intelligence in addition to your four standard letters. AND THIS SHOULD BE A UNIFIED EFFORT. For the maximum impact we need to mail hardcopy letters, not emails. Emails cannot pile up in an office; they cannot occupy space. Nothing will have a greater effect than bags of mail arriving at a politician’s office. Also, we should wait to mail all letters within the same week so the arrival of tens of thousands of letters will be a media event. But we have plenty of time to do this, and we should most likely wait until after the Presidential election. We should not inform the media for the time being. We want things to be quiet...and then a violent ROAR! We don't need to make any press releases announcing a new endeavor, and we don't want to make an issue out of a politician or public figure who is not interested in joining our cause. Do not send playful emails to cia.gov stating, “We're not going to take it anymore, and we're coming for you.” Our collective actions will speak louder than our individual words ever could.

We have time to make this happen and we need to make the best of our time because this opportunity will not come around for another 26 years. Your investment in your country for the next 17 months can yield a better future for your children and your children's children. This is the essence of a grassroots campaign. It starts with you looking in the mirror and saying "I'm going to make an effort." If you've been fighting this fight and toiling in research for the past 49 years and feeling tired, your brothers and sisters ask that you fight just another 17 months. Because the sobering truth is this...if we don't press for the truth now, it most likely will be buried forever.

It starts right here: http://www.facebook.com/jfkAssassination50th

Last modified on Saturday, 22 October 2016 23:06

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