Benjamin Cole

Well, that is a curious memo. Hard to tell what is really going on, but does the arrest refer to someone in the TSBD, or the Dal-Tex building?

Note to all: I won't be the first to say, "It is pretty hard to prove a negative." I cannot prove LBJ had no involvement in the JFKA. But we have seen whole books written, detailing that the Mafia did it, or (much less convincingly) that Nazi elements did it, or even Israelis, and of course, many others. I think there is book somewhere connecting the Bush family to the JFKA (George Bush Sr. was very tight with the CIA, to put it mildly). LBJ is a figure in some books, and not in others. LBJ did set up the WC. But after the CIA told him WWIII is on the table. And on the other hand no one ever says, "and LBJ took a close interest in the WC's machinations." If LBJ had much interest in the WC, it has escaped me. No staffer has ever said, "We wanted to get into that area of investigation, but the White House put the kabosh on it." BTW, it seems LBJ had many of the negative character traits attributed to him. Interesting topic. I will say, JFKA plots that involve many pre-JFKA participants are inherently dubious.

RO-- I have responded to some of the points you have made. I agree that LBJ was part of the cover-up, in the way he chose the WC. But even before the WC was formed, the conclusion had been reached. But, we can't go about things backwards. LBJ, or anyone else, is not guilty until proven innocent. There is a dangerous trend in modern rank partisan politics, and the McCarty era, and during any witch-hunting or partisan season, to declare certain people guilty. But LBJ, or Allen Dulles, or LHO, or anyone else, must be considered innocent until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt. There is a fast slide to hell otherwise. LBJ held the swearing-in ceremony on AF1. Perhaps LBJ wanted to show the public he was not seizing power, but waiting for proper authorities to recognize and swear him in. Seizing the presidency summarily after an assassination does have an unsavory ring about it. I cannot see into LBJ's mind.

BTW, Roger Stone is in the "LBJ did it" crowd.

Thanks for your comment. I don't know how to further pursue this. Landis was a surprise, and my happening upon the FBI memo also. The truth is elusive, and witnesses dead, and some evidence faulty. And the JFK Records still under President Biden's snuff job. You have any suggestions of what to do next?

Yes, the FBI found copper traces on the bullet hole in JFK's jacket. If the tests were accurate, that indicates JFK was struck with a copper-jacketed bullet, of the type Landis said he found. We then reach a juncture: 1. You can assume the bullet passed through JFK. 2. The bullet did not, but must have popped out. That is because the bullet was not in JFK's body. There were x-rays and extensive searches done at Bethesda. The amateur autopsists at Bethesda did try to probe the wound, and found it very shallow. One Inch or two. However, it may be certain muscles closed up over the bullet path, and the autopsists were not skilled at manipulating the probe. As of now, I lean to argument that the bullet popped out, and was found by Landis.

RO-- You have written a thoughtful essay. Recently, I have been thinking about "beyond reasonable doubt" and "the preponderance of evidence." Did Landis find a slug in the limo? I now say there was a "preponderance of evidence" that he did (I hope lawyers will excuse me. I think that is a term from the civil court system). Was LBJ part of the JFKA plot, or at least clued in? You have provided a lot of motives. I could go further, and say, "unless LBJ becomes President, he becomes defrocked by the LIFE magazine expose and other investigations into his financial affairs." It was do or die, for LBJ. Let us not forget that people in LBJ's orbit were murdered before, such as Henry Marshall. That case sure appears to have LBJ's fingerprints on it. JFKA researcher Newman contends LBJ was getting real briefings on the Vietnam War, that JFK was not getting. LBJ was being prepped to take over. Still, what evidence have you provided that LBJ was in on the JFKA, or even had concrete advance knowledge? We have no texts, recorded phone calls, memos, etc. No credible, or even possibly credible person, has come forward and said, "Yeah, I worked with LBJ on the JFKA." No one remembers conversations with LBJ, in which the pending JFKA was discussed. In Larry Hancock's SWHT, there were Cuban exiles dropping hints about the pending JFKA, but none said "we are working with LBJ." Post-JFKA, the CIA scared LBJ with WWIII talk, due to the LHO-Kostikov connection. I think the CIA arranged for the meeting, that happened curiously on a Saturday, with the Russian embassy was closed. Then they could smear LHO, or freeze a real investigation. Nearly the entire US government wanted the "LHO was a leftie, loner, loser" narrative. On Nov. 23, the State Dept was issuing releases there was no foreign involvement in the JFKA. Yes, on Nov. 23. We have the same problem with Allen Dulles, in determining guilt. And any other high-ranking figure you care to mention. If I was on a jury, and I had to vote to send LBJ to the gas chamber for the murder of JFK, I could not. I have reasonable doubts he was involved.

RB-- I think that issue was fleshed out right here in EF-JFKA, but I can't remember when or under what title. Also, there is video from Jeff Morley, in which he talks to Robenalt and Larry Schnapf. That Landis says he found a slug that looks like CE 399 is not disputed. That is what Landis says. Whether you want to believe Landis...that is up to you.

LH- I defer to Jim Robenalt in this regard. Robenalt, by no means a lifer CT'er, says he finds Landis is credible, and that post-JFKA, Landis just put the matter out of his mind, and indeedsoon Landis left the SS. There is no denying Landis obscured the truth to the HSCA about the JFKA, if his latest version is the truth. Well, Landis would not be the first person to screw something up, and then try to hide it. Esepcially if what he screwed up became part of the official record. IMHO: I find the Landis story fits with the shallow JFK back wound, and with what two nurses saw, and now with the FBI 11/22 memo. The Landis story also fits with earwitness testimony the first shot was of different pitch and volume from the succeeding audible shots, and possibly with the "dented" cartridge retrieved from the sniper's nest. The dent being a sign of re-use and hand-loading, and under-charging. As I always say, getting to beyond reasonable doubt is pretty difficult in the JFKA. I believe beyond reasonable doubt that a lone gunman, armed with a single-shot bolt action rifle, could not shoot JFK ,and then JBC, and then JFK again, the last two shots "almost on top of each other." Is the latest Landis version true? I would give it a bare "preponderance of evidence" truth.

NB-- Thanks for the clarification. I defer to you or Vince P. My memory is Hill also hinted to something to that effect (a slug found in the limo) but then has wavered.

LH-- I asked about this (pointy-head vs. dome-shaped), and Jeff Morley and Jim Robenalt say that Landis recalls the limo-slug looking like CE 399--a dome-shaped-head slug. Of course, this conflicts with Tomlinson, and O.P. Wright of Parkland, who remember a pointy-head slug being found in the hallway in Parkland. My best guess is that the slug Tomlinson found is not connected to the JFKA (as Tink Thompson originally suspected). And in fact, the pointy-head slug was found several floors away from the operating room. My deduction is, at some point, the Secret Service or FBI---since the pointy-head slug did not fit the official narrative---simply disposed of that slug. The Landis slug, which was a WCC 6.5 slug (Mannlicher Carcano slug), then became CE 399. So the correct slug was introduced as evidence. The problem? The CE399 slug did not pass through Connally's body, and likely only made a shallow back wound in JFK, and then popped out. That is how Landis found it. (An undercharged round). As pointed out by many, chain-of-evidence and evidence-tampering problems are present in the JFKA. My deduction is one or two Secret Service agents knew or saw Landis with CE399, and knew what happened, but kept quiet, although they off-the-record told the FBI what happened (hence the 11/22 memo). Also, the SS agents kept quiet as it looked like the Secret Service was deliberately planting evidence, to have put CE399 on the President's operating table, when in fact it was just Landis being Landis. Well, that's my story and I am sticking with it. For today.

Add on to anybody: Was there not also a Secret Service agent in the vicinity when Tomlinson found the slug in Parkland? I think Vince P has written about this.

True. But take sentences and information in context. And some of the above statements are true. It was unconfirmed LBJ had a heart attack, and there were arrests made after the JFKA, of various men on the street or even in the Dal-Tex building. I am not denying that inaccurate information is in some FBI memos, even pre-JFKA. I am saying we have a same day (11/22) FBI memo, before an official narrative was settled upon, that refers to a Secret Service agent finding a "bullet" (not fragments) in the Presidential limo, in the immediate aftermath of the JFKA. Then we have the Landis book, and earlier statements by Clint Hill. Also, the nurse at Parkland, and then the mysterious appearance of CE399, which exactly matches all of these statements--a whole slug, not a fragment. The shallow back wound on JFK. If I had to bet, I would bet on the Landis version, rather than the magic bullet theory.

I don't know. https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=62266#relPageId=143&search=Rifle The above should take you to the memo itself. There is this on the memo: "FBI 62-109060 JFK HQ File, Section 16" I hope this helps....

DVP-- I am happy to talk about the fragments. I accept two or more fragments were found in the limo, and likely not planted. The fragments in question appear to be copper-jacketed. But...has that any bearing on the Paul Landis' finding of a whole copper-jacketed slug in the limo, or the same-day 11/22 memo from the FBI stating that a Secret Service agent found a "bullet' in the limo? The fragments might be considered additional evidence someone was firing at JFK using copper-jacketed bullets, of exactly the type Paul Landis said he found that day. The fragments are so small, it seems likely they would be referred to as "fragments" and not a "bullet." The word "bullet" singular, btw. I would not call two small fragments a "bullet." Of course, an 11/22 FBI memo stating that a Secret Service agent found a "bullet' in the limo does not present evidence beyond reasonable doubt, buttressing the Landis report. The 11/22 FBI memo appears to be what the FBI earnestly believed at the time, but before there was any pressure to make evidence fit a an official narrative. I would say the FBI memo adds to the preponderance of evidence a whole slug was found in the limo, which eventually became CE 399.

PS- Yes, there was scuttlebutt early on. And demonstrably false information is found in official memos early on. On the other hand, this is an earnest same-day FBI memo, before an official story line was settled upon. Someone may have observed Landis 11/22, and then told an FBI'er off the record. Maybe Landis in fact told another agent about his miscue, but now is protecting that SS agent's identity as that agent was also, somewhat, derelict in duties. I concede this memo does not present evidence beyond reasonable doubt. But...after the Landis statement, the 11/22 FBI memo sure is interesting. Getting into the "preponderance of evidence" zone.

GD- Sure, it may be. My view on the JFKA is since little is entirely beyond reasonable doubt (and even that is a matter of individual preference), one must look for the "preponderance of evidence." This 11/22 FBI memo does not say "fragments," it says "the bullet." Landis claims he found a whole bullet slug. Clint Hill told a neighbor a complete "bullet" was found in the limo. CE 399 is an entire, nearly pristine WCC 6.5 slug. Such a slug is extremely unlikely, if it had truly ripped out five inches of Gov. Connally's rib and then smashed his wrist. No, I cannot prove Landis found a whole slug, CE 399 in the limo. One might entertain reasonable doubts that he did. If I had to bet, it would be that a Secret Service agent indeed found a whole slug in the limo on 11/22. Police brotherhoods are very strong. No one ever "finks" on a fellow officer, rightly or wrongly. If a Secret Service agent made a mistake in the handling of CE 399, no one is going to squeal on him.

TK-- You are making reasonable statements regarding the JFKA. A subsonic round fired ~600-700 fps would likely penetrate a couple inches or maybe less. The CIA "assassination manual" even advised the use of subsonic rounds in assassinations to obscure location of shooter. https://nsarchive2.gwu.edu/NSAEBB/NSAEBB4/docs/doc02.pdf https://glow420.files.wordpress.com/2014/02/cia-assasin-manual.pdf (more legible) My own guess is the subsonic round (likely found by Landis) was perhaps a simple matter of an improperly hand-loaded bullet---the dented cartridge found in the sniper's nest. Remember, LHO (or other party) had only four rounds. There is a temptation to think of the JFKA as perped by a large institution with exotic and abundant resources. But it may have been a rogue group within the Miami station of the CIA, even just two Cuban exiles-CIA assets. Three CIA assets, one unwittingly, perped the JFKA. Even that is a story the CIA had to snuff out, and that President Biden is snuffing out today.

The memo is on Mary Ferrell; I assume it is real. Go here and scroll down one page: https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=62266#relPageId=143&search=Rifle As you probably know, Clint Hill has hinted around about a slug being found in the limo. Now Landis says it out loud. The bullet was noted in an official FBI memo Nov. 22. It sure looks like a Secret Service agent did in fact find a slug in the limo on Nov. 22.

Really? A Secret Service agent had searched the Presidential limo and "found the bullet which allegedly killed the President."?

You are correct, there is earnest witness error in many cases, including the JFKA. And CT'ers and LN'ers play it to the hilt, conflating error with plots or wild conspiracy theories. But...I will say this: By Nov. 24, the official emphasis was on confirming LHO as the leftie, loner, loser. I find it hard to believe that on April 10 1963 two Dallas Police Department detectives, and also two patrolmen, authored and signed two separate reports they had found a "steel-jacketed" slug, in General Walker's home, after an assassination attempt. This was the highest-profile assassination attempt in Dallas history up until that time, of a nationally prominent figure, and the detectives knew their work would be reviewed by superiors and media, and the assassination target. General Walker, whatever his politics, had been in combat, decades in the military, and was very familiar with ammo and firearms. He reviewed DPD records thoroughly, as he wanted the would-be assassin found. He had also handled the slug on April 10. No one ever said the Walker bullet was copper-jacketed. No one. Not the Dallas Police lab, not the officers, not Walker. Then, the Walker bullet is sent to the FBI, whereupon it becomes a copper-jacketed bullet, post-JFKA. So...witness error or official evidence tampering?

"It's one reason politics sucks and poisons everything, always." --RB Amen, RB. I have washed my hands of both rancid political parties, and the rank polarization practiced by legacy media, and by a lot of alt-media too. OK, you are a libertarian, and I am not. Does that mean we cannot hold civil discussions without bashing each other? I look forward to your views, and I respect them. Trump supporters, Biden supporters, libertarians, Marxists, socialists...all fine with me. You are what you are. I prefer, however, that you have become so jaded and disillusioned you have lost faith in party and ideology...but that is just me.

"Dr. Ernst Titovets, M.D., Ph.D., born in 1939, since 2005 has been head of the Scientific Research Group, at the National Research and Clinical Center for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Minsk in Belarus. He has authored or co-authored more than 190 scientific papers and 17 patents. ." Maybe it is an Anglicized name. The Titovets guy is some sort of genius. He found LHO highly entertaining and intelligent---as did DeMohrenschildt and several others. This is a great mystery about LHO, but adds to the view he was an intel asset. He was certainly smart enough.

That will be quite a tale if six voters in Colorado can keep Trump off of ballots nationally in the pending election. Does that set up Mike Johnson as a possible candidate (if Trump is kept off of ballots nationwide)? The GOP field---DeSantis, Haley and Ramaswamy (two Indian-Americans, btw)---is not overwhelming. But then, Biden looks like a thin sack of potatoes. RFK2 has a shot, given the anemic gruel being offered by the two major parties?

A guy named Ernst Titovets, a Russian, wrote a book about his discussions and times with LHO in Russia. Apparently they spent a lot of time together discussing literature and ideology. Titovets even has recordings of LHO. Might be worth a look.