Hey, BTers. I know several of you live out here on the Left Coast, and I wanted to invite you to come here me speak on a panel with Oliver Stone and James Douglass, moderated by Daniel Ellsberg’s son Robert, about Douglass’ excellent book on JFK’s life and death, JFK and the Unspeakable: Why he died and why it matters.
Douglass’ book was first published by a small Catholic press, but it was so popular that Simon and Schuster decided to publish an updated version.
And no wonder. It’s written with heart, grace, skill, and attention to relevant, as opposed to irrelevant or distracting, detail. So much of the JFK literature focuses on minutiae, or repeats bad information that has poisoned the record for too long. Douglass managed to navigate the waters beautifully, and was kind enough to acknowledge the work of myself, Jim DiEugenio and others at the former Probe magazine, put out by Citizens for Truth about the Kennedy Assassination, as having provided the beacon for him to follow.
If you’re only going to read one book on the JFK case, this is the one. And if you don’t believe that, come hear us speak at the Saban Theater in Beverly Hills, November 8 (the 50th anniversary of Kennedy’s election), at 7:30 p.m.
Details and a link to get tickets can be found here: http://www.americanvoicesbeverlyhills.com/
If you do come, please come up and introduce yourself afterwards. I’ve met very few of you in person, and would like to meet many more!
Doesn’t Robert work for Orbis? I met him some years back at Maryknoll. Sounds like an interesting program.
He does. He was the editor of Douglass’ book at Orbis. I don’t know how the book was sold financially – I’m hoping Orbis got some profit. I know Douglass did. It’s so rare to make any money by telling the truth, but so heartening when it happens!
Btw – I met Robert’s father at my first political activity ever. My poetry teacher took the class to the Nevada test site one Easter to protest the ongoing testing there. It was fascinating.
Meeting his father- must have been some experience!
Best wishes, Lisa. This fellow Left Coaster will try to be there.
What an impressive panel — you, Stone and Douglass, each with your different but substantial roles in educating the public about a vital issue. And for a refreshing change it looks like the moderator/interviewer will be smart and well-versed in the topic. Doesn’t always happen in public discussions of the assassination or JFK.
The Douglass book I’ve recommended to friends and folks online numerous times since I read it in 2008. But some people — well, you can lead them to water, but you can’t force them to drink, and I wish I had a nickel for every time I’ve seen the old canards about Kennedy being “just another Cold Warrior” who “got us deeply involved in VN” and is “wildly overrated as a president” repeated ad nozz in the liberal blogosphere. Douglass ably rebuts these charges, but many folks seem to take Chomsky or the JFK-hating Hersh as gospel and are unwilling or unable to adjust their hardline attitudes.
You’re so right, Brodie. I’m dismayed by how people are persuaded by the likes of Sy Hersh, Chomsky and others who refuse to focus on what Kennedy was actually trying to do, especially in his last year, and the tremendous forces he stood up to. Few people on the planet have been so brave.
Be sure to come introduce yourself. I’m looking forward to meeting you! It’s very thrilling to be included in such company. I’ve known Douglass for years, and he used a lot of my research in his book, which is very gratifying. Stone blurbed our book, and my partner on that knows him well, but I’ve never met him up close in person. And I met Daniel Ellsberg, and have talked to Robert by email, but never in person. So it’s going to be exciting, to be sure!
on the case you should make it “Reclaiming History” by Vincent Bugliosi. All facts and no fantasy.
See Jim DiEugenio’s now eleven-part rebuttal to Reclaiming History at http://www.ctka.net.
That is, if you can handle the truth, Ed.