Jim Root

Thomas I am on the U of Texas Campus and have a limited amount of access time to use the computer. Will be home next week and attempt to post a link unless somone beats me to it. Jim Root

Two new tidbits of information that I have heard, seen or read in the past 72 hours while visiting the 6th Floor Museum. 1. The bullet recovered from Walker's home was called "steel" jacketed in the Walker incident police report. The bullets used in the Kennedy assassination were Copper. 2. The angle from which the bullet seems to have entered Walker's home does not appear to have been a straight shot: Window, past Walker, into wall directly accross from window. Instead you have window, Walker, then into a wall that is adjacent to the exterior wall where the window was. This means the angle from which the shot was taken was much more difficult that what I had previously thought. I had the opportunity to see some news reel movies of the site taken the night of and the next day as the Walker incident happened (April 10 and 11, 1963). And yes Walker did show his wounds to the camaras the day after the incident occured. Jim Root

Jim , The papers at UT are the Julia Knecht collection (Walker's gal Friday) they contain the stuff she retained of Walker's and her own material. The collection was split in two, and half is at UT and the other at The Sixth Floor. Gary Mack told me 2 years ago that the stuff he has is not processed yet. The stuff at UT is off limit's to "researchers" per Walker's nephew's restrictions. They treated me rather curtley when I asked WHY? William I have just recently obtained a copy of the inventory of the Walker Papers in storage at UT (three page inventory, works stored in two boxes). I also have obtained a copy of the Knecht collection inventory as well (well over 100 pages). The invetories both show over 95% of the infromation is post 1961. Am currently reviewing both for additional insights. Jim Root

Myra The person who provided the most compelling evidence against Oswald for the Walker shooting was Marina Oswald. To date she has never backed away from her testimony concerning this event. Check the commission docs for a copy of the letter that Oswald wrote to Marina telling her what to do in the event that he was captured as well as the pictures that Oswald is reputed to have taken before the assassination attempt. The photos showed some road construction work that was being done in the days preceding April 10, 1963. The photos were in the possession of Marina Oswald and seem to verify that Oswald was scoping the operation prior to committing the act. Jim Root

Thank you for adding the pictures Bernice. I am stumped because we find that in all of the pictures that I have seen I cannot identify the "big press cards pinned on their coats, great big red ones." I do understand that the "press cards" were common and that several are at the 6th Floor Museum. More importantly though is the fact that within one and a half hours of arriving at "Temple Shearith Israel" Ruby is at the DPD with two men that he seems to identify as members of the Israeli Press. Is this significant? I believe so. Read again: When Ruby was asked, "Did you go to the Dallas police station at any time on Friday November 22, 1963, before you went to the synagogue? I asked him about this question later when he responded "No," and I noticed a physiological change. He advised that there was some man by the name of John Rutledge, and he made an association with proceedings at the trial which I have reason to believe this gentleman, John Rutledge, differed with what Ruby stated as to when he went to the synagogue. Due to the nature of this change, however, it is possible that it was caused by a body motion that I failed to detect during the actual response," Ruby attempted to explain why the "the cardio pen dropped all the way down and hit what we call the limit screws" but Herndon gave Arlen Specter an even better reason to not pursue this avenue further. Was it "caused by a body motion that I (Herndon) failed to detect" or did Ruby fear questions about the synagogue and what (or whom) Rutledge saw Ruby with? If so these two associates of Ruby's may be key to why Ruby silenced Oswald. During Ruby's confinement he repeatedly spoke about the Jewish people and the trials and tribulations that they had endured. I know it is popular to believe that it is Ruby's connections to the criminal underworld that best explains his actions. An open mind to the possibility of a Ruby religious epiphany may shed light on a different motive and upon others who may have been behind his actions. Jim Root "

I brought back my Jack Ruby at the DPD thread (a couple of years old) because I feel it folds in well with this additional information. I tried to add it to this thread but was not successful. Was there a coverup of Ruby's failure on his lie detector test? It seems that there may have been an attempt to coverup a significant change in composure, pulse rate, etc. that was blamed on a movement in his seat that had not been noted at the time by the examiner. Was Ruby afraid that his apperance at the DPD on the night of the assassination with two members of the Israeli Press would be questioned? In Ruby's timeline for that night there is not an accounting for him having met up with these two men. Who they were, where they came from and who they worked for may important questions to ask and attempt to solve. The speculation could drive one wild! Jim Root

Brought back to connect with the Dallas City Manager Thread

Mark and Thomas I served four terms as a city councilman in a council - manager municipality of what currently is a city of 140,000 people. While the city manager does in fact run the day to day operations of the city (with council oversight) the job of the council is, in fact, to set policy. If, in the opinion of a majority of the council, the council feels that the manager is not implementing the policy of the council, the manager, who is an “at will” employee, can be removed with a majority vote at any time. This power of the council is designed to curb the potential for abuse by a city manager. I have observed that the system can get screwed up a couple of different ways. First: If a councilperson attempts to micro manage the system on an individual basis (ie attempting to direct the manager or a department head to provide, perhaps, a “special favor” for someone or to approve a contract with a “special someone’s” company or to hire a “special friend” or to get a “special project approved) versus the council, as a whole, making decisions in a public meeting. Second: If the manager attempts to set policy rather than the council or (as the person who hires department heads) attempts to micro manage each department (by demanding that “special” favors be provided to “special” interests) rather than allowing each “player” to participate in the symphony that a well run city must perform. With this in mind it would seem that Manager Crull would in fact defer to Chief Curry in the situation that would have confronted the Dallas City Manager at the time of the Kennedy assassination. Yet Crull would still be the one person that would be ultimatly responsible for the way any situation was handled. Conversely, in a matter as important as the assassination of a President, you can bet that the "department head" (Chief Curry) would be conferring with and keeping the manager fully informed of what was transpiring. Once again in my opinion Crull would defer to Curry. To do otherwise would be overruling the expert in an area where Crull was not the expert whom he had hired to handle such situations. In today’s litigious society any city manager that did not operate in this manner and had a prisoner that was in the custody of his city who would die in the manner that Oswald was executed could have personal liability attached for not following the advice of the “department head” in the matter. Believe it or not I have personally seen to many cities get in a great deal of trouble for not following “expert” advice or accepted policies in areas as simple as where traffic signals should be placed, in what order that they should be placed (as opposed to another area) and why they were in fact placed at that location and at that time versus another location. The job of city manager is a tough assignment and finding a good or great city manager is one of the most important things a council does. From the information provided I would not read too much into the actions of the city manager in this case. The fact that Crull went to his houseboat could indicate nothing more than he in fact had complete faith in Chief Curry’s ability to handle the situation. Just some random thoughts. Jim Root

William "Robert Surrey w/m/35 ... was at the scene upon our arrival." DPD report of the Walker incident. Hope this helps, Jim Root

Bernice Thanks for adding in the contempory Newspaper articles that were published in relationship to the Walker incident. Most of the information you posted could be ascertained from the Police Report although it only identifies the bullet as steel jacketed from a high powered rifle. The report does not mention a 30.06 anywhere but does say, "the bullet of unknown caliber, steel jacket,...." The information from April 8 and 9 are in the report with some variation (no Cuban or dark complected man is mentioned, etc,). It is also pointed out that a church service had occured that night and many cars were departing at about the same time as the shooting but one in particular was specifically mentioned as having "sped away" shortly afer the shot was fired. (one might ask if it would be a normal response to speed away from the sound of a gun shot, but I digress). Some of the additional information comes from Warren Commission interviews, in particular the one conducted with Edwin Walker (with no commissioners present I might add). Marina Oswald did not come forward with any information about the Walker incident until after the story was reported in the German publication Deutsche National Zeitung on November 29, 1963. While Walker denied that he had provided the information to the newspaper he did admit that he gave two interviews to the newspaper of the morning of November 23, 1963, the first at exactly 7:00 am when he was called and questioned by a reporter. I still ask how did this reporter obtain Walker's telephone number for his hotel room in Shreveport, LA within hours of the assassination of JFK and then produce a story, based upon that interview that was only later confirmed by Marina Oswald (and never denied since) that became a center piece of the Warren Commissions findings? And why was Walker, 31 years later, still telling the same story? Jim Root

Charlie I don't ask you to believe anything. I have only reported the information that I have gathered over the years. You may do with it as you please. But then again why should anybody believe anything? In other words why bother doing any research whatsoever when whatever we might dig up is going to be disregarded or accepted if and only if it fits into our own personal preconceptions of what occured? That to me would be a total and complete waste of my time. For myself I have attempted to disprove my own beliefs for years only to continuously find additional information that supports what I began with, which was, in October of 1959 there was a posibility that Lee Harvey Oswald and General Edwin Walker may have met and that Edwin Anderson Walker is a most interesting character within the story that surrounds the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Jim Root Jim Root

I brought this topic back because I recently uncovered an article written in 1967 that provides additional information about this topic: "Yet on November 29, 1963 the Deutsche National Zeitung of Munich reportedly ran a story translated as follows: “THE STRANGE CASE OF OSWALD. The murderer of Kennedy made an attempt on U.S. General Walker’s life early in the summer when General Walker was sitting in his study. The bullet missed Walker’s head only by inches. Oswald was seized, but the following investigation—as it was reported to us—was stopped by U.S. General Attorney [sic], Robert Kennedy.” I was not aware that this charge was made in the actual article because I have never seen a complete translation of the article. If anone has access to one please post it if possible. If the statement is true it would explain the reason why Bobby Kennedy may have been so willing to go along with the Warren Commission Report. It might be of interest to accompany the information provided in the 1967 Medford Evans article "Coup d’Etat" published in the AMERICAN OPINION, September 1967 issue, pp. 73–100 with the final interview done with Edwin Walker, "The Man Oswald Missed" - In his last interview, Gen. Edwin Walker defended his place in history by Robert Wilonsky" published in November of 1994. "Walker believed the Warren Commission Report was "85 percent right" and that Oswald alone killed JFK. But he also maintained that not only did the Kennedys know that Oswald shot at him, but that the Dallas Police Department had arrested Oswald the night of the shooting and that Attorney General Bobby Kennedy had ordered Oswald's release from custody. How Oswald could be part of a communist plot to kill a right-wing radical and JFK - and be protected by the president's brother - Walker couldn't quite explain." Two articles written 31 years apart both with information obtained after interviewing Edwin Anderson Walker. Is there evidence to support the fact that at the time of the assassination attempt on General Walker (April 10, 1963) Walker did in fact believe that Oswald was the person who had attempted to murder him? Did he come to that conclusion in short order? Was Walker told to pursue this idea? According to James Hosty the FBI began trailing Oswald in the months preceeding the assassination of JFK when confidential informant T-2 provided information that LHO had been handing out pro-Castro material on the streets of Dallas. Hosty dismissed this possibility but followed the directives of his superiors and began to monitor the movements of Oswald. In a legal case involving Gerald Hemming, Hemming was able to identify a confidential informat "T-2" as either a telephone tape on the phone of Edwin Walker or as Edwin Walker himself. This would suggest that Edwin Walker may well have had reason to believe that Lee Harvey Oswald had attempted to murder him and was also able to identify Oswald at least 5 months before the assassination of John F. Kennedy. How and why he may have done this are both good questions? That Walker provided this information to the Deutsch National und Soldaten-Seitung seems to be a substantiated fact. That Walker was still expressing this saying the exact same thing in the final weeks of his life is proven with the above quote. How would Walker have even known who Oswald was when confidential informant T-2 initiated a trail on Oswald is an interesting question. The fact that Walker and McCloy exchanged letters at this same time is also an interesting coincidence. If Walker met Oswald in October of 1959 while Oswald was traveling to the Soviet Union, well we have another interesting picture that begins to emerge, Jim Root

Charlie In reply to your statement: "I do not acknowledge that "ON THE NIGHT OF the Walker Shooting Attempt" that it was reported that Walker was wounded...[/b I have a copy of the police report that was taken on the night of the Walker incident as well as the follow up report that was written at a later date. From the orginal incident report I quote: "Compl. (Walker) was hit in the right arm between elbow and wrist by either 2 slivers from the bullet, or wood, or pieces of glass." If you choose not to believe two eye witnesses (Officers D. P. Tucker and B. G. Norvell) who were on the scene within 10 minutes of the incident of April 10, 1963 and wrote their report seven months before the assassination of JFK, then so be it. But if you are in fact unwilling to accept this eye-witnesses report then I must ask the question, "Do you also suggest that we should be unwilling to accept other eye witness accouts fromt the events that surround the assassination of JFK?" Or perhaps you might suggest that we only select certain eye - witness accounts that meet our particular needs. Which is it? Once again the source document that I have a copy of was written seven months before the assassination of JFK. You also stated, "...nor that it was proven that the Dealey Plaza MC bullets MATCH those of the Walker attempt." You may accept whatever level of proof you may need for whatever question you may wish to seek proof for. But from the Dallas Police Department's official (not the Warren Commission) "Supplemental Offense Report" of April 7, 1964 I quote" "Please show this case cleared on the exceptional arrest of the below named party (Lee Harvey Oswald). His gun that was used in the murder of the President was also the gun used at this offence." I have quoted from a source document that it took me several years to obtain. I have never seen it posted anywhere on the internet but have often seen it referenced. Once again I do not wish to argue with you but I do wish to imput information that I have gathered over many many years. You may do with it as you please, disreguard it if you wish but the fact remains that I have drawn my information from the original copies of the police report written seven months before the assassination of JFK and the official Dallas Police Supplemental Offense Report the"cleared" the case. Jim Root

Charlie I am here to take responsibility for the comment about Walker's hair. In my post, which was in reply to your question I wrote this paragraph: "in the quiet of the night" a church service was ending in the immediate area, "with unlimited time to fire" as people were leaving the service, "have missed," according to the initial report the bullet glanced off a cross panel of a window pane and narrowly missed Walker's head (I believe actually passing through Walker's hair). In my opinion this would have been a major "trick shot" to be made in an attempt to create some sort of publicity buzz. From my understanding the Dallas PD was on the scene within 10 minutes of the shooting and examined both the window pane and wall where the bullet lodged. The recovered bullet, which would be compared to the bullets used in the assassination of JFK, would be collected by the FBI from the Dallas Police on the Friday after the assassination of JFK; one day after the story of the attempted assassination ran in the German publication." My point is that Thomas Purvis DID NOT make that comment. But you, Charlie, said: "Any reasonable person who reads this entire thread knows that I (Charlie Black) did not "make up" your (Thomas Purvis') comment regarding Walkers hair, and several other of your allegations. You are becoming trapped, as you have dug so many holes around what I think to be your ridiclous position, that you cannot dig out of the current hole, without stumbling into another." Since Thomas Purvis did not make that comment (one that I, Jim Root, prefaced with "I believe") are we to suggest, using your words, that you are not, "Any reasonable person" who has "reads this entire thread?" I do believe that you owe Mr. Purvis an apology and may want to rethink the manner in which you direct your comments towards members of this forum who are attempting to engage in a dialogue that will enhance our knowledge of the events surrounding the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The reality of the events surrounding the attempted assassination of Edwin Walker show that Walker in fact received two wounds that were caused by wood slivers from the window frame that was hit by the bullet that entered Walker's home. The investigating officers (D. P. Tucker and B. G. Norvell) discovered a "small chipped edge of the top portion of the rear fence. This small chipped portion indicated that something had been laid on this board very recently..." "The bullet hit the window frame near the center locking device." "It is the investigative officers opinion that the shot was fired from just below the top edge of the fence." In April of 1964 the Dallas Police Department determined that the same gun used to murder John F. Kennedy was used in the assassination attempt on Edwin Walker. On the same date the Dallas Police Department determined that the gun belonged to Lee Harvey Oswald and they determined that it was Lee Harvey Oswald that had fired the gun. The case was closed and considered solved. Purhaps you will not accept the Dallas Police Department of being capable of investigating this crime and perhaps you will not be willing to accept their findings but the Dallas Police Department was on the scene within minutes and wrote their reports seven months before the assassination of JFK. Then, it was not until some six months after the assassination of JFK that they closed their investigation of the Walker incident by officially naming Lee Harvey Oswald as the shooter. Hope this helps to clear the air. Jim Root

Charlie As I understand it you believe that Oswald was not a shooter on November 22nd. I do not wish to attempt to convince anyone to change their strongly held position but will be happy to defend the research that I have done that has lead me to piece together what I believe is a plausible scenario of what happened leading up to and upon November 22. Let me attempt to deal with your questions; You ask, "You stated in reference to Walker's interview, that this was proof "... Oswald was willing to take a human life". Do you believe that an attempt on Walker's life, if it were "truly such an attempt and not a publicity stunt", was actually carried out by Oswald? The information that ties Oswald to the Walker shooting and uses that attempted assassination as "proof ... Oswald was willing to take a human life comes from the Warren Commission Report (within the first 30 pages). When I first read the Warren Commission report (over a decade ago) I was unaware of the assassination attempt on General Walker's life. Reading that information has been a life changing event. For years I have researched the life of General Walker and believe that this research has led me to understand how and why the assassination of JFK was carried out as well as how and why the conspirators were able to cover-up pertinent facts about Lee Harvey Oswald and his connections to US Intelligence. You continue with, "In the same reference, do you feel that a "marksman" with the ability to make the shots in Dealey Plaza, would have...in the quiet of the night, with unlimited time to fire at a seated target, in a well lit room, have missed?” You ask a very interesting question here. On the one hand it seems that people who suggest that Oswald was not capable of making the shots attributed to him in Dealey Plaza want to prove this point by saying that Oswald missed when he shot at Walker "in the quiet of the night, with unlimited time to fire at a seated target, in a well lit room" or conversely that if Oswald was such a good shot in Dealey Plaza why did he miss Walker. According to the Warren Commission Report Oswald was not a very good shot, if you want to look at it that way. According to the commissioners Oswald fired four shots, two missed, one was a non fatal hit and one shot was fatal. That is a kill ratio of 1 for 4, which, while deadly could not be considered expert by any means. "in the quiet of the night" a church service was ending in the immediate area, "with unlimited time to fire" as people were leaving the service, "have missed," according to the initial report the bullet glanced off a cross panel of a window pane and narrowly missed Walker's head (I believe actually passing through Walker's hair). In my opinion this would have been a major "trick shot" to be made in an attempt to create some sort of publicity buzz. From my understanding the Dallas PD was on the scene within 10 minutes of the shooting and examined both the window pane and wall where the bullet lodged. The recovered bullet, which would be compared to the bullets used in the assassination of JFK, would be collected by the FBI from the Dallas Police on the Friday after the assassination of JFK; one day after the story of the attempted assassination ran in the German publication. "Are you stating that from a sniper / shooters point of view, that the so called "lair" was the perfect position to attempt an assassination?" What I am stating is that the "lair" was available to Oswald. Was it not available? "This position was cramped, it forced the shooter against the wall, it provided a very limited time frame, a very difficult shooting angle and declination" Was it possible to accomplish the task from that position? Did that position allow a shooter the ability to "set it up," without being seen in the hours leading up to the passage of the motorcade? Was Oswald "in the area" of the "lair" at the time of the assassination? All question that can be answered yes, yet people want to discard this possibility because it was a poorly selected position. "And provided poor escape potential." Yet Oswald was the only TSBD employee that left (or escaped) after the assassination. Even if Oswald were not the person who set up the "lair" then it is obvious that who ever did set it up, whoever planted the rifle and the empty cartridges did escape as well. So while we may say that it "provided poor escape potential" whoever did set it up did in fact escape. It seems that we can categorically say that the "lair" in fact provided excellent escape potential! "What was pe®fect about this position ?" According to the Warren Commission Report it is the position from which the assassination of JFK occurred. If you were a person attempting to assassinate the President and you accomplished your goal the position you had chosen could be considered "perfect' don't you think? Of course if you do not believe that that was the position used to fire from you would wish to argue from the contrary which leads to my question, why would the conspirators provide an imperfect "lair" while attempting to frame Oswald for the crime? Does it not seem more plausible that they (the conspirators) would have not overlooked this detail in THEIR planning? Or did the conspirators select a "lair" that was capable of accomplishing the goal and that could be plausibly tied to Oswald? If the later is true your previous questions should, perhaps, be reevaluated within the framework of the context in which it was asked. In other words were the conspirators who set up the "lair" as stupid as you suggest Oswald is portrayed by the Warren Commission to have been? "Oswald could have had a firing position at ANY spot in Dealey Plaza, would not be absent from work, and also have had a much better pre-planned area to store/hide his weapon, and had a much better chance to escape." Ditto. Charlie I appreciate the questions and do not want to sound condescending. I believe that WE are engaged in serious business as we discuss the assassination of JFK. I welcome the opportunity to have my interpretation of the events surrounding the assassination questioned and requestioned. That is the beauty of this forum, it provides those of us who do not accept the official conclusions of the events of that fateful day an avenue to examine various alternative theories. In my case I have become convinced that there was in fact a conspiracy to assassinate JFK. I have also come to the conclusion that the "escape route" for those conspirators has been to convince the American public that Lee Harvey Oswald did not commit the crime. For me the assassination attempt on the life of Major General Edwin Anderson Walker has led me to a group of conspirators that first began coming together within US Military Intelligence as early as 1927 (General Maxwell Taylor, John J. McCloy and Edwin Walker). Their careers crises cross for the next 35 years, they have a motive (Limited Test Ban Treaty of 1963) and they all communicate before the assassination (June of 1963). These conspirators have the means to accomplish the task (including influencing the selection of the motorcade route) they have the access to the intelligence communities (Oswald's movements began being monitored by the FBI following the assassination attempt on the life of Walker and those movements were reported to the CIA including where Oswald worked) and they have the ability to cover up the details of the assassination (Warren Commissioner John J. McCloy) and they may have used Oswald previously (to sabotage the Paris Summit of 1960). I could be wrong but I have only found information that continually supports the position that I have arrived at. Jim Root

John The November departure of Walker from Hawaii is of interest because it coincides with the Magic intercepts that suggested Japan would attack somewhere in the Pacific within weeks. The "Big Show" was going to be Europe, that had already been decided and many in the War Plans Division were going into files looking for those soldiers that could be depended upon for specific reasons and missions. Maxwell Taylor had been choosen to be one of (I believe it was) seven personal aides to General Marshall. In this capacity Taylor had a great deal of "pull" to place men into positions of importance. It was not the first time that Walker had and was to be moved from an assignment (this time Hawaii) out of sequence for a normal rotation. In fact throughout the career of Walker these out of sequence movements seem to be the norm. The other interesting part is where he moves to, usually very interesting locations and at very interesting times (for example his move to command of the 24th Infantry Division in October of 1959 when the normal command rotation was (drawing from memory once again) a January move. These movements also seem to coincide with major events when compared with the hindsight of History. In Hawaii Walker was stationed adjacent to Fort Shafter, the Hawaiian Magic intercept station and is (I like to use the word) "wisked" out of harms way days before the attack on Pearl Harbor. Walker spends time moving into several assignments of interest (and which I believe) display a certain consistancy with a man deeply involved in counter intelligence (very different than "regular" intelligence assignments). In fact his assignment in Hawaii "adjacent" to the listening post at Fort Shafter positioned Walker to spy on the spys collecting the intercepts. This thought is not out of the relm of possibility (I believe) if you look at the timming of his assignment to Fort Mommoth (which coincides with the first training classes for officers who would be overseeing the collection of Japanese Intercepts for William Friedman's team of cryptologist that included John Hurt. While there are settleties to Walker's movemnts that lead up to his assignment to the First Special Services Force I will pass over that for now. If you focus on his posting with the FSSF you will find that it coincides with two events, the uncovering of some German spies within the Force and the assignment of the Force to the Kiska operation. Kiska was the location of what was identified as the most sophisticated radar installation that the Japanese had. The island was isolated (by the attack on Attu) and blockaded before Walker's 3rd Battalion of the FSSF would lead the assault to secure the beaches on Kiska befor the rest of the troops were landed. I have some photos of FSSF men using the radar antenea as a clothes line for their laundry, suggesting of course that they were encamped (guarding ) this site. John J. McCloy accompanied the US troops to Kiska. Compared to the raid on Dieppe (to capture a German radar unit) the mission on Kiska was nearly flawless but extremely important to the war effort. Walker was the man choosen to lead this mission of extreme importance to military intelligence, WHY? Why Walker would return to Hawaii? I have speculated on that as well. If you dig into your history you will find that it coincides with the first group of twelve "Green Berets" (before they were Green Berets) being incerted (in civilian clothes) into Vietnam. That group had a stopover in Hawaii before that incertion. Walker would comment, in one of his final interviews, that the US Military Command wanted him to run the operation in Vietnam. Walker, if you believe the way history portrays him, was already out of the military before any buildup in Vietnam began. But the original incertion of a very small group of highly trained individuals (that had began their training while on a base that Walker was stationed at) could suggest that Walker was once again positioned to orchestrate another "Greek type" campaign, this time in Vietnam (remembering that Walker had run the Greek Desk at the Pentagon during the Greek Civil War). But, I believe, Oswald's return to the United States eliminated that possibility for those that had to provide plausible deniablity to the potental that Oswald could identify Walker (a US Military General) as the man who had helped Oswald to enter the Soviet Union and provide information that would lead to the downing of Francis Gary Powers and his U-2 spy plane (which privented the signing of the Limited Test Ban Treaty at the Paris Summit, something that John J. McCloy wanted stoped). What a tangled web we weave........And then McCloy would pen a letter to Walker, five months before the assassination of John F. Kennedy (and two months after Lee Harvey Oswald had alledgedly shot at Walker), in which McCloy would write about a man named Sylvanius Thayer. Coincidentely, in the life of Sylvanius Thayer the date November 22nd is significant. That date would play a major role in Thayer's life and in the creation of a professional military in America. Jim Root

Yes Charlie simplicity. Using your Columbus sailing West thought "sailing West was bound to take him to "A" destination...even if he "discovered" his starting point." If the conspirators knew where Oswald worked (which was known because Agent James Hosty had reported it and Hosty's information about Oswald was making it to the Office of Richard Helms, (Morley)), and if the conspirators had a reason to believe that Oswald had shot at Walker (please read my Serendipity post) and those same conspirators started monitoring Oswald's movements after that event (read the testemony of James Hosty) then the conspirators would have known that Oswald had a rifle, that Oswald was willing to kill and that Oswald had a reason (Oswald's speech at Spring Hill College where he displayed his discust for the failure of the Paris Summit (once again something that McCloy had wanted and the shoot down of the U-2 accomplished)). These same men (Taylor) had the ability to adjust the motorcade route to provide a snipers nest that was, as Thomas Purvis said, "far and above what most who would even attend Sniper Schooling would" be able to select. These same men would have the ability to control the "official" investigation of the crime (McCloy). These same men would be able to plant the evidence necessary to prove that Oswald was willing to take human life (Walker's "interview" with a German Newspaper that ran the story about Oswald attempt on Walker's life) Simplicity. Put a man with a gun, who was willing to use it and had a reason to use it, in the perfect position to use it on a target that the conspirators wanted eliminated. The true assassins (the conspirator) created a situation where they did not even need to be at the scene and had perfect alibis (McCloy had a breakfast meeting with Eisenhower, Taylor was at the Pentagon meeting with NATO generals and Walker was on a plane to Shreveport, LA from where he would plant the story of Oswald shooting at him the previous April). These same conspirators would have known that Oswald would attempt to call a man named John Hurt (a man who was known to McCloy, Taylor and Walker) and that knowledge of this man would motivate and bring into line the whole US Intelligence community (and perhaps the Soviets as well) to eliminate Oswald and participate in the coverup of who Oswald really was. The Perfect Crime and the Perfect Escape for the true assassins! And over 40 years later we want to make it so much more complicated than it may have actually been. Jim Root

Thomas You stated: "Selection of the shooting position was far and above what most who would even attend Sniper Schooling would receive. It incorporated all of those items which are of advantage to the shooter, to include alternative lanes for shooting as well as alternative shooting positions." I could not agree more. But I also have to state that Oswald's arrival in and selection of Helsinki, Finland as his avenue for entry into the Soviet Union exactly one day after the American Embassy in Helsinki dispatched a message that provided all the information necessary for Oswald to receive a Soviet Visa within 24 hours is, I believe, not a coincidence as well. If we are talking conspiracy, which I know that I am, and if we are suggesting that someone like General Maxwell Taylor may have been involved, which I know I consider that as a possibility, then the movement of the motorcade past where Oswald was working is not the actions of Oswald setting up the snipers nest as much as it is the conspirators putting the target in front of the shooter (a big difference I believe). If we are talking conspiracy then that would suggest that Oswald did not act alone. We therefore should and must not discount certain posibilities because we believe that HIS (Oswald's) training and HIS abilities preclude him from making certain selections (both Helsinki and the 6th floor window being two cases in point). I will repeat my assertion if "someone" had a hand in determining the exact motorcade route that it is possible that that "someone" could be considered as a potential conspirator. Since Maxwell Taylor appointed Kennedy's military attache (who could have played a role in the logistics of Kennedy's trip) and since Taylor repeatedly used General Edwin Walker as his "go too" guy (who, the Warren Commission says Lee Harvey Oswald also attempted to assassinate) and since Taylor was also posititoned to know about Oswald's movements to Helsinki in 1959 and since Taylor was closely associated with John J. McCloy throughout both of their careers and since Taylor was in a "beef" with Kennedy over the Limited Test Ban Treaty (as was McCloy)we can, I believe, suggest that Taylor may have had a hand in creating the perfect "kill zone" for the President to travel through (which Taylor's military expertise would make him capable of doing). Now it is Oswald the tool not Oswald the planner just as Oswald was, I believe, the tool that was sent to Russia to sabatoge the Paris Summit of June 1960 (something that McCloy also did not want to see happen). Jim Root

From a topic I started "Motorcade Route" Route of Death Speculating about how the motorcade route was selected has intrigued me for years. It seems obvious to me that the route chosen would have been a major decision for any potential conspirators to have considered while finalizing their plans to carry out an assassination of the President in Dallas. It is my belief that but for this single decision (the actual motorcade route) the events of November 22, 1963 would not have happened (at least would not have happened in the manner and sequence that they did in fact occur). Could the results of the route planning have pre-determined the outcome? If so a conspiracy would exist only if the conspirators would have the pre-determined outcome in their minds while the planning was taking shape. First: Was information available to potential conspirators that could have influenced the route planning? With the work of Jefferson Morley and John Newman we have learned that at least one note sent by FBI agent James Hosty about the doings of Lee Harvey Oswald in the months preceding the assassination was forwarded to the office of Richard Helms within days after being sent. Although Hosty’s November 4th note, which provided the crucial information about where Oswald was working (TSBD) was never given a Warren Commission Exhibit number we can logically assume that this Hosty note made it to the same office as his previous note (one which Morley and Newman were able to track). The planning for the motorcade was not completed until days after the Hosty note was sent and possibly not until the information about where Oswald was working was in the hands of Richard Helms, the CIA and perhaps others who would have access to this information for whatever potential reasons that we may speculate upon. Second: Looking at a map of the motorcade approach (Commission Exhibit No. 2113) I noticed several interesting facts: 1. The turn from Houston to Elm is approx. 135 degrees rather than the normal 90 degree left hand turn. 2. If one wished to enter the Stemmons Freeway from Commerce St. (from either direction) one would be routed to Elm via Lamar not Houston (four blocks before Houston). 3. Lamar offers access to the Stemmons Freeway via Continental Ave. without the security risk of the Triple Underpass. 4. According to Commission Exhibit No. 2113 access to Elm could have been gained by a right turn then left onto Elm via anyone of these roads: Lamar, Austin, Market or Record. 5. The Houston to Elm route provides a view of both the approach (along Houston) of the motorcade and (after the 135 degree turn) the departure of the motorcade from a person (or sniper) on the upper floors of the TSBD Building 6. The (approx.) 135 degree turn onto Elm requires the motorcade to slow considerably to accomplish this turn. 7. Once the turn onto Elm is accomplished there is no escape route for the Presidential Limousine until after it has passed below the Triple Underpass and entered the Stemmons Freeway. 8. Any shot fired while the motorcade was approaching Elm from Houston would have allowed two possible escape routes for the Presidential Limousine(continuing down Houston or turning right onto Elm (instead of left) making this shot a less favorable shot decision for a person in the TSBD Building. 9. The only building on the complete motorcade route that has a view of both the approach of the motorcade and then views its departure is the TSBD. 10. “If” conspirators existed who wanted to give Lee Harvey Oswald the most favorable opportunity possible to assassinate the President they could not have selected a better motorcade route. 11. Information was available to any potential conspirators (via the Hosty note) of where Oswald was working. 11. As I have demonstrated there were alternative routes, which from a security approach, were safer to access the Stemmons Freeway, from Main St. (via Lamar would not have subjected the President to the threat that the Triple Underpass provided) and there were alternative ways to access Elm (rather than negotiating a 135 degree turn in front of the TSBD) rather than from Houston (Record, Market, Austin or Lamar). Third: It is my belief that the conspirators could not have provided Lee Harvey Oswald with a better opportunity to assassinate the President. Fourth: They (the conspirators) would have to have (a plausible reason to provide the Warren Commissioners) reason to believe that Oswald would take “the shot.” Italics added Jim Root

John I do have a much more extensive outline of Walker's military career with exact dates of his military movements between 1927 and 1950. After 1950 it is a little more sketchy with some interesting ommissions that I have been able to fill in while researching other areas of his life. Filling in the detail has provided a panaramic view of this multi-demntional character that should more than spark the interest of any serious Kennedy assassination buff. I continue to ask the question, "Why has Edwin Anderson Walker's life been so neglected when his backround offers so much insight into the inner workings of the military command structure during the Cold War.?" Jim Root

John Let me begin by saying I do not have all my notes with me at this time but I will attempt to reply to some of your last post: To begin with the General Walker Hotel was named after General Walton Harris Walker who was died in a auto accident on Dec. 23, 1950 while fighting in Korea. "1957-1959 Commanding General, Arkansas Military District (Little Rock) - During which time he was ordered, against his will, in fact he resigned but the resignation was rejected, to integrate Little Rock school." The information I have suggests that the "against his will" is an urban legend that seems to have been perpetuated after the death of JFK. I have several Time Magizine articles from that period that expose Maxwell Taylor as the man who called (by phone) his "old" comrade and trusted friend Edwin Walker to command the forces sent to Little Rock. If Walker attempted to resign he must have very quickly changed his mind because he had troops on the ground within hours of the call from Taylor. I might also point out that the Arkansas Military District also encompassed the army ballistic missile program in Huntville, Alabama (a plum command that covered the development of the Army's Space program that would soon be taken over by the newly created NASA). "1961 resign.ed [because of right-wing opinions]" - He was re-assingned to a principal Military role in the Pacific, to Hawaii. He then resigned because he saw it as an ongoing muzzling of the military, which in fact was him countermanding an Order from the President that foreign Policy was first and foremost the civilian authority's resposnsibility, iow the Commander in Chief elected by the people, not individual Army Generals. The timming of Walker's trouble with the military coincides exactly with Lee Harvey Oswald's first attempts to return to the United States from the Soviet Union (just as Yuri Nosenko made contact with the CIA within days of Oswald departing the Soviet Union....coincidences????). Prior to this time Walker had a brilliant military career and can be tied to some of the most successful covert and overt military operations and trainning of the period. "After his (final) resignation he became for many the mythical 'white knight on a horse' that would lead the white race to supremacy." I will continue to suggest that Walker's movement into the "right wing" organizations within America may have been done upon orders. This would have been for two reason, one overt and one covert. First (overt) to infiltrate the "right wing" movement in America which was, at the time considered dangerous to the security of the United States and (2 the covert reason) may have been because LHO was returning to the United States. Please read my "Serendipity" post in the JFK Online Seminars portion of this Forum to see why this would be necessary to protect against an Oswald that may have been able to identify Walker as the man who helped Oswald to enter the Soviet Union in October of 1959. "[Did this coincide with Walkers time at "Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth"?/b] Walker attended the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth in 1946. It is interesting to note that this "class" at the college was considered to be for the best and the brightest. It was formed at a time when the military was demobilizing after WWII and the military leadership was getting rid of "dead wood." To be selected for the Command College at this time displays the esteem that Walker had obtained within the minds of the military leadership. In 1948 Walker would attend the Air War College, another feather in his military cap. Between the Command College and the Air War College, Walker would be running the Greek Desk at the Pentagon, orchestrating the first successful covert war of the new Cold War era that erupted after WWII. Walker would train Rangers for Korea, be involved in the greatest artillery barrage of the Korean War, organize the POW exchange , train Korean troops, be the front man during the Straits of Taiwan Crisis and be involved in the creation of the Army's Special Forces units (Green Berets). John I have spent a great deal of time studing General Walker. He has all the indicators of Military Intelligence and Counter-Intelligence written all over his career but somehow the only information that is easily attainable about him is his "right wing" activities, WHY? Was there a purpose in the exchange of letters between McCloy and Walker in June of 1963 or is this just a coincidence? Is it a coincidence that not one Warren Commissioner wanted to question the man who, according to the Warren Report, survived an attack by Lee Harvey Oswald (today it would be considered absurd that those tasked with the investigation of a murder would not bother to question a surviving victim themselves nor would they investigate there past to find possible motives for that attack)? Why was Jack Ruby so affraid of General Edwin Anderson Walker? Is it a coincidence that during WWII Col. Walker did at least two specific missions that John J. McCloy took a personal interest in? Why did General Maxwell Taylor appoint Walker to command two of the four crisis he faces as Chief of Staff of the Army? I have many additional questions that have led to some interesting discoveries. Jim: "1945 Commander, Task Force A, Oslo (Norway)" Jim, do you know if it's possible to know which of the 474th Walker took with him to Norway were? Is it also possible to know the names, and where from, the Germans who passed through? The 474th was primarily made up of the American survivors of the First Special Services Force and the 99th Battalion Seperate. Survivors of some Ranger units were combined as well although many of them went to airborne units also. I have had some lists in the past (from when I was contacting former members of the Force, but have misplaced them.The FSSF still has an association and can identify unit members. The 99th is very interesting. It two was formed for the invasion of Norway (as was the FSSF) and was made up of mostly Norwegian speaking Americans. Over 100 members of the 99th became OSS and future CIA agents including William Colby. I have been to Camp Ripley, Minnesota, where they have a museum for the 99th, and researched various aspects of this unit. Be happy to answer other questions Jim Root

James I exchanged emails with Fred Pryor and asked if he was familiar with Calvin Hoover and his work. He denied ever having met him but was aware of his work and did admit that there were areas of similarity in their research. When I attempted to move the discussion to his captivity and exchange during the Abel - Powers incident he didn't reply. I sometimes believe that silence speaks very loudly. Jim Root

Brought back for Charles Drago

James Ever run accross any information about Calvin Bryce Hoover? Jim Root

From a previous post but of interest to the idea of a military takeover, the position of Commander and Chief and "civilian control." Some of you may recall that I have posted two letters, one from General Walker to the Association of Graduates of West Point and the other from John J. McCloy to Edwin Walker. By coincidnce these two men shared written communications some five months before the assassination of JFK. The spark for these two letters was the fact that John J. McCloy was presented the Sylvanus Thayer Award by the Association of Graduates on May 25, 1963. Sylvanus Thayer was the Superintendent of West Point from 1818 - 1833. When assigned to the Superintendency the students mutinied when Thayer replaced the previous superintendent. This mutiny led to the placing of West Point under strict military disipline and the cadets from this point forward were considered soldiers subject to military law and discipline. This mutiny occurred on Nov. 22, 1818 exactly 145 years before the assassination of John F. Kennedy. In some ways this mutiny led to the assendency of a professional military elite within the United States. It was this event that began Sylvanus Thayer's march to becomming the "Father of West Point." Thayer would later resign as the superintendent of West Point in a dispute with the President of the United States in 1833. At that time Andrew Jackson was fearful of the rise of a military class within the United States and was constantly overrulling Thayer's positions that delt with the corp of cadets at West point. Thayer was adament that the professional soldier served at the will of Civilian Authority in American but Thayer was also quick to point out that the President, although the Commander and Chief, was only a temporary custodian of the powers he controlled. Walker alluded to this same position in his letter dealing with McCloy. I have always found it interesting that John J. McCloy and Edwin Walker exchanged letters five months before the assassination of JFK. I now find it interesting that the subject of their letters center around Sylvanus Thayer whose own history with "Civilian Authority" would seem to suggest that he believed that the power of the President is only temporary. The fact that Thayer's assendency in West Point leadership lore began with a mutiny on November 22 is perhaps only a coincidence but one that I find interesting when dealing with events that surround McCloy, Walker and Maxwell Taylor. Another in this series of coincidences then occured on June 5, 1963, the same day that Edwin Walker penned his letter dealing with McCloy to the Association of Graduates. Maxwell Taylor would talk about the ascendency of the professional military man and Sylvanus Thayer at the graduation commencement at West Point. Taylor spoke about the "emancipation" and "independence of the American Soldier" making the statements "If recognized and respected abroad, at home the achievements of the American Soldier are often ignored...We must perhaps progress further before there will be wholehearted acceptance at home of the continuing need for a large and respected military profession in the United States...you are about to become an American Soldier, one of the band who, having emancipated themselves from foreign authority, now set the dominant tone in matters of national defense, stategy, tactics, and advanced weaponry...He (the American Soldier) must have a just appreciation of our national objectives and of the role of military power in attaining them...He must understand the proper relation of the military in support of civil policy, and comport himself in accord with the code which has always guided the American Soldier in the past - loyal support of the Commander-in-Chief and the civil authority which he represents...the voice of the American Soldier is entitled to a serious hearing in our national councils...But when civil autority makes the decision, it then becomes his own decision - therafter to support loyally and to execute fathfully in the tradition of the American Soldier." Knowing that at the time of this speech Taylor was in a serious dispute with Kennedy over the Limited Test Ban Treaty I find the speech to be enlightening. Taylor, the linguist, uses the word "COMPORT" when speaking of "loyal support of the Commander-in-Chief and the civil authority which he represents." These two groups, the Commander in Chief (Kennedy) and the Civil Authority (others in government including John J. McCloy) were not alligned on this important issue dealing with the proliferation of nuclear weapons, there development and the testing of these weapons. Yet Taylor speaks of comporting himself or bringing these two distinct groups together or into alignment. On the issue of Limited versus Comprehensive Test Ban Treaties the two would only be brought into allignment after the assassination of JFK when once again John J. McCloy would find himself in a leadership role in this effort. At the end of his speech Taylor points out that "when civil autority makes the decision, it then becomes his own decision - therafter to support loyally and to execute fathfully in the tradition of the American Soldier." I believe that it may be of importance to understand that at that exact time in history, while Taylor was in a dispute with his Commander and Chief, that he (Taylor) would choose the words that suggest that the American Soldier must follow the directives of "civil authority" and to "execute faithfully in the tradition of the American Soldier" rather than the using the wording "Commander in Chief." Just five days after Taylor's speech was spoken at West Point, Kennedy would announce his new position on nuclear talks with the Soviets. This to the dismay of both Maxwell Taylor and John J. McCloy! Jim Root