Whats "New" at McAdams Land

[Peter McGuire]

These points have a "new" notation on them. I just bet that gets the attention of readers of the website! As many of you know, this website has one of the highest rankings when searching for the Kennedy Assassination. Since many people do read this nonsense first, their first impressions are made by it.

Here are those "new" developments:

"Zombie assassins? The notion that "Manchurian candidate" assassins might be "programmed" to commit murder has been a recurring one. Most often invoked in the murder of Robert Kennedy, it has also surfaced in the JFK assassination. British author Mel Ayton explores this issue in his essay "Bogus Manchurian Candidate Theories."

A recent book by Abraham Bolden tells a most interesting story about the first black Secret Service agent who supposedly knew about conspiratorial goings-on in Chicago, and who was (he claims) framed, convicted and sent to jail on charges of corruption. The media have been rather credulous about his account, but in fact he was almost certainly guilty as charged. Indeed, when the House Select Committee examined his claims in the late 1970s, they found them to lack credibility. While the mainstream media is suitably skeptical when the conspiracy card is played, they suspend that skepticism when the race card is played.

Garrisonites are a rather peculiar and paranoid cult among conspiracy believers, and Joan Mellen's book A Farewell to Justice is the latest to defend District Attorney Jim Garrison, whose ill-conceived campaign to convict Clay Shaw of the JFK assassination was the subject of the movie "JFK." Yet, like the movie, Mellen has fallen into the trap of believing the most incredible sources and adopting the most outlandish theories in an attempt to vindicate the DA, as Patricia Lambert shows in this review of the book. In another essay, Dave Reitzes discusses Garrison's central, critical witness, a fellow named Perry Raymond Russo. Mellen accepts his testimony, which Reitzes shows was vastly unreliable. Finally, Lambert shows how Mellen blew off the testimony of a key reliable witness, one Dr. Frank Silva, when it conflicted with the Garrison version of events.

When a reputable historian publishes a JFK assassination book with a reputable academic press, it should be judicious in its use of sources and prudent in its judgments. But, alas, David Kaiser's book The Road to Dallas turns out to be just another conspiracy book, not too different from scores of others. Read a review by webmaster John McAdams on the e-zine Washington Decoded.

Ed Hoffman is a witness who claims to have seen an actual Grassy Knoll shooter -- as well as an accomplice who dismantled and concealed the rifle. Is Hoffman telling the truth? Researcher Duke Lane does an intensive analysis both of witness testimony and the terrain of the area in "Freeway Man."

Nothing about the assassination is more important than the issue of when the shots in Dealey Plaza were fired. Pick your timing, and it may be consistent with or entirely debunk a single shooter in the Texas School Book Depository. A new essay by Kenneth R. Scearce supports a new theory about the timing that puts the first shot far earlier than anybody has heretofore theorized. Of course, this theory has generated controversy, so you might want to check out a reply from computer animation specialist Dale Myers."

http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/home.htm

Edited April 16, 2009 by Peter McGuire

[David G. Healy]

These points have a "new" notation on them. I just bet that gets the attention of readers of the website! As many of you know, this website has one of the highest rankings when searching for the Kennedy Assassination. Since many people do read this nonsense first, their first impressions are made by it.

Here are those "new" developments:

"Zombie assassins? The notion that "Manchurian candidate" assassins might be "programmed" to commit murder has been a recurring one. Most often invoked in the murder of Robert Kennedy, it has also surfaced in the JFK assassination. British author Mel Ayton explores this issue in his essay "Bogus Manchurian Candidate Theories."

A recent book by Abraham Bolden tells a most interesting story about the first black Secret Service agent who supposedly knew about conspiratorial goings-on in Chicago, and who was (he claims) framed, convicted and sent to jail on charges of corruption. The media have been rather credulous about his account, but in fact he was almost certainly guilty as charged. Indeed, when the House Select Committee examined his claims in the late 1970s, they found them to lack credibility. While the mainstream media is suitably skeptical when the conspiracy card is played, they suspend that skepticism when the race card is played.

Garrisonites are a rather peculiar and paranoid cult among conspiracy believers, and Joan Mellen's book A Farewell to Justice is the latest to defend District Attorney Jim Garrison, whose ill-conceived campaign to convict Clay Shaw of the JFK assassination was the subject of the movie "JFK." Yet, like the movie, Mellen has fallen into the trap of believing the most incredible sources and adopting the most outlandish theories in an attempt to vindicate the DA, as Patricia Lambert shows in this review of the book. In another essay, Dave Reitzes discusses Garrison's central, critical witness, a fellow named Perry Raymond Russo. Mellen accepts his testimony, which Reitzes shows was vastly unreliable. Finally, Lambert shows how Mellen blew off the testimony of a key reliable witness, one Dr. Frank Silva, when it conflicted with the Garrison version of events.

When a reputable historian publishes a JFK assassination book with a reputable academic press, it should be judicious in its use of sources and prudent in its judgments. But, alas, David Kaiser's book The Road to Dallas turns out to be just another conspiracy book, not too different from scores of others. Read a review by webmaster John McAdams on the e-zine Washington Decoded.

Ed Hoffman is a witness who claims to have seen an actual Grassy Knoll shooter -- as well as an accomplice who dismantled and concealed the rifle. Is Hoffman telling the truth? Researcher Duke Lane does an intensive analysis both of witness testimony and the terrain of the area in "Freeway Man."

Nothing about the assassination is more important than the issue of when the shots in Dealey Plaza were fired. Pick your timing, and it may be consistent with or entirely debunk a single shooter in the Texas School Book Depository. A new essay by Kenneth R. Scearce supports a new theory about the timing that puts the first shot far earlier than anybody has heretofore theorized. Of course, this theory has generated controversy, so you might want to check out a reply from computer animation specialist Dale Myers."

http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/home.htm

simply put: if it comes from McAdams site, it's nonsense (including Myers and his foolish cartoons that he passes off as animation)

[Guest Stephen Turner]

Hello Peter, nice to see Mel's still up and running.

[Peter McGuire]

Hello Peter, nice to see Mel's still up and running.

He sure is. And like I pointed out with "new" developements yet! Here is a comment at Amazon about McAdams sidekick, Posner which sums up what they do very well:

"Posner's work is not only tendentious garbage -- it is dangerous as well. All of Posners deceptive shaping of the evidence depends entirely on the reader not knowing a damn thing about the case. He is a good writer -- what with all the help of those knowing, anti-conspiracy mongers over at Random House. And there is genius in the book -- a genius worthy of a combination of Sammy Glick and Joseph Goebbels. Read carefully, all of Posner's sources are revealed to be official ones -- current or former members of governments, agencies, police forces, courts. And all sources that he attacks are citizens -- and there are thousands of non-governmental souces in this case who provide a mountain of evidence for conspiracy. Posner trashes every one he can get his tricky hands on. So pro-conspiracy witnesses are not just mistaken, they are insane, drunkards, abusers, liars, publicity hounds (unlike himself, of course), grudge holders, folks with hidden agendas (again, unlike all those intelligence agents he believes in so devoutly). Let the reader beware: this is State Propaganda at its most clever and diabolical, and the purpose of the book is to convince the reader that only losers believe in conspiracies, those who have not succeeded in this greatest of all possible societies. Sour grapes, in other words. Gerald Posner -- the soul of the Nineties"