Pat Speer's dissection of JFK: Inside the Target Car

[Pat Speer]

Here is my discussion of Inside the Target Car. It includes a number of images, demonstrating my points.

http://www.patspeer.com/chapter16c%3Aconfi...ddisappointment

[Ron Ecker]

Pat,

You state, "They rule out the south knoll because the bullet would have to have been fired through the front windshield of the limousine."

It was convincingly argued here a few years ago (or perhaps on Lancer), by Al Carrier as I recall, that the fatal shot could have been fired over the windshield and under the crossbar. It would be a very good shot, sort of threading the needle, but I would assume that good shooting was a qualification of those participating.

[Pat Speer]

Pat,

You state, "They rule out the south knoll because the bullet would have to have been fired through the front windshield of the limousine."

It was convincingly argued here a few years ago (or perhaps on Lancer), by Al Carrier as I recall, that the fatal shot could have been fired over the windshield and under the crossbar. It would be a very good shot, sort of threading the needle, but I would assume that good shooting was a qualification of those participating.

They showed footage from each angle to back up what they said. I don't recall if it was clear, however, if the footage was shot from the absolute top of the slope, or just towards the top of the slope. It was interesting, however, that from this angle the bullet passed through the windshield quite close to where there was a defect in the windshield. Of course, that defect was supposedly caused from the other direction.

They failed to discuss this in an intelligent fashion, of course. It was "Look, this trajectory would pass through the windshield! Next!"

[Ron Ecker]

They showed footage from each angle to back up what they said. I don't recall if it was clear, however, if the footage was shot from the absolute top of the slope, or just towards the top of the slope. It was interesting, however, that from this angle the bullet passed through the windshield quite close to where there was a defect in the windshield. Of course, that defect was supposedly caused from the other direction.

As I recall, the shot Carrier was talking about was not from the slope but from the overpass, where the banister on the south end slants east. The shooter could lie down and shoot through the banister, without being seen by the people at the north end because of the slant. This shot would go over the windshield. And I think this position would be preferable, from a concealment standpoint, to being on the slope. I'm not surprised, however, that the program would ignore this most advantageous shooting position.

Edited November 20, 2008 by Ron Ecker

[Guest James H. Fetzer]

Reflections on "JFK: Inside the Target Car"

(1) It assumes the film is authentic. In that case, the simulations

ought to include the "back and to the left" motion seen in the film.

Instead, they cut off the showing of the film at frame 313, so it is

never seen by the audience.

(2) None of the witnesses in Dealey Plaza reported seeing the "back

and to the left" motion, which is another proof that the film is not

authentic. Mack mentions that it is not part of the reconstruction in

passing, as though it were insignificant.

(3) The simulation does include brains and gore bulging out toward the

front, which is also seen in frames after 313. But Roderick Ryan, an

expert in special effects, told Noel Twyman that they had been painted

in and are not authentic, an observation that has been confirmed by

David W. Mantik's study of the medical evidence.

(4) No witness, including Jackie, reported brains and gore bulging out

toward the front. More than forty, including Jackie, reported a

massive defect to the back of his head, where his brains had been blow

out to the left rear.

(5) The blood spray was also shown as it appears in frame 313, but

Roderick Ryan also observed that, it too, had been painted in, an

observation that has been confirmed by John Costella's study of the

film and the dissipation of the spray.

(6) The first frontal shot location to the far south side of the TUP

was not a suitable location for a shot, in the judgment of the

designated shooter. But no one I know has ever suggested that

location was one of the actual firing locations.

(7) The second location in the vicinity of the south side above-ground

sewer was thought to be a suitable location for a shot, but he said he

would have to shoot through the windshield. So they moved to the

north side without taking a shot.

(8) But, as Mack must know, the shot to JFK's throat appears to have

been fired through the windshield from this very location. See, for

example, the study by Doug Weldon in MURDER IN DEALEY PLAZA.

(9) The third location in the vicinity of the north side above-ground

sewer is currently inaccessible, so they moved forward. The shooter

said it was a good site for a shot, but Mack overruled him, claiming

witnesses would have heard it but didn't. So no shot was taken from

here, either.

(10) The shooter said that Mack should not take for granted that a

shot did not come from this location, since there had to have been

many distractions. The study by David W. Mantik in MURDER

substantiates this as the most probable location. For the second

time, no shot was fired from a probable shooting location.

(11) They moved to the picket fence and fired a shot from there, which

Mack said would have killed Jackie. The shooter said that showed

there was no shot from the picket fence, but Mack added, "unless he

missed", which is also what I and others also take to have been the

case.

(12) Then they tried from the "assassin's lair" on the 6th floor

and--guess what?--everything worked out, thereby "confirming" the

official account. And they corroborated it with an analysis of the

blood spray as consistent with a shot from that location. Except, of

course, the brains and gore bulging out toward the front and the blood

spray in the film were special effects.

This is an excellent example of the method of "selection and

elimination"--selecting the evidence that agrees with a predetermined

conclusion and eliminating the rest. It was just too risky to even

try shots from the north and south sewer openings, which the shooter

thought were "doable", but Mack could not take the chance of lending

any weight to the best supported analysis of the shot sequence. So he

finessed them.

Jim

[Pat Speer]

I just thought I'd let those who missed the program or who still feel like discussing it that I have continued to add to chapter 16c, and have added several more slides to this chapter.