Nexus: The CIA and Political Assassination by Larry Hancock

[David Boylan]

Thanks for the kind words Zach and I have to admit that Amazon caught us by surprise on this one - previously the kindle version

had not gone up prior to print availability and the print version is still a few weeks out. Hence the lack of an announcement

(which should be soon) and an update to my website (a bit later). As you can imagine its a hectic time to get a book

out with the Dallas conference only a few weeks out.

- regards to all, Larry

It is really unusual to release the Kindle version before the print version. Its usually the opposite.

Jim, it surprised Debra as well as she had no notice of it - which is why the Nexus area on my book web site and document links

were not ready (its there now though and document links should be going up shortly). In fact it happened before any announcement

because that was to be tied to the in print date.

Beats us, although certainly Amazon is really pushing Kindle.

In any event both Kindle and print are available now and there will be print copies at the Lancer conference (have

not seen one myself actually, but its in the mail Deb says).

-- Larry

Larry,

Can I get you to autograph my Kindle? :-)

[Larry Hancock]

Thanks for the kind words Zach and I have to admit that Amazon caught us by surprise on this one - previously the kindle version

had not gone up prior to print availability and the print version is still a few weeks out. Hence the lack of an announcement

(which should be soon) and an update to my website (a bit later). As you can imagine its a hectic time to get a book

out with the Dallas conference only a few weeks out.

- regards to all, Larry

It is really unusual to release the Kindle version before the print version. Its usually the opposite.

Jim, it surprised Debra as well as she had no notice of it - which is why the Nexus area on my book web site and document links

were not ready (its there now though and document links should be going up shortly). In fact it happened before any announcement

because that was to be tied to the in print date.

Beats us, although certainly Amazon is really pushing Kindle.

In any event both Kindle and print are available now and there will be print copies at the Lancer conference (have

not seen one myself actually, but its in the mail Deb says).

-- Larry

Larry,

Can I get you to autograph my Kindle? :-)

You bet David - uh, just as soon as I find my digital pen...grin... Larry

[Greg Kooyman]

Thanks for the kind words Zach and I have to admit that Amazon caught us by surprise on this one - previously the kindle version

had not gone up prior to print availability and the print version is still a few weeks out. Hence the lack of an announcement

(which should be soon) and an update to my website (a bit later). As you can imagine its a hectic time to get a book

out with the Dallas conference only a few weeks out.

- regards to all, Larry

It is really unusual to release the Kindle version before the print version. Its usually the opposite.

Jim, it surprised Debra as well as she had no notice of it - which is why the Nexus area on my book web site and document links

were not ready (its there now though and document links should be going up shortly). In fact it happened before any announcement

because that was to be tied to the in print date.

Beats us, although certainly Amazon is really pushing Kindle.

In any event both Kindle and print are available now and there will be print copies at the Lancer conference (have

not seen one myself actually, but its in the mail Deb says).

-- Larry

Hi Larry,

I just want to say I have both editions of your book SWHT, and have read your many posts, and essays on this forum as well as Lancer's. I congratulate you on your latest literary effort "Nexus" and have my copy ordered from Amazon. As I anticipate your book in the mail, I would like to pose a question to you. I have read up on Edwin P. Wilson and believe that his close dealings with Ted Shackley, Tom Clines, and Rafael "Chi Chi" Quintero put him in a very close circle of folks I believe had knowledge of, or were participants in the JFK assassination. I have posted it here and have been told that trying to reach out to Edwin Wilson would be a futile effort. Given that Edwin Wilson is in the twilight of his life, and the fact that the CIA literally turned him into the "Man in the Iron Mask" doesn't it seem likely that he has a few motives for which to set the record straight on issues such as the JFK assassination? I just think if someone who has interviewed Ed Wilson in the past could come forward and contact him now before he dies, I think he could shed some serious light on the assassination. I believe Ed could corroborate many facts about the players we suspect, and possibly even give us a few we don't know about. I know he trusted Joeseph Trento, and have thought about contacting Mr. Trento myself to make this appeal, but I defer to your opinion on the matter. Do you see any merit in chasing down this lead?

Best regards,

Greg Kooyman

Hi Larry,

I don't know if you've had the chance to read my question, but I am interested in your feedback.. Any thoughts?

-Greg

[Larry Hancock]

Thanks for the kind words Zach and I have to admit that Amazon caught us by surprise on this one - previously the kindle version

had not gone up prior to print availability and the print version is still a few weeks out. Hence the lack of an announcement

(which should be soon) and an update to my website (a bit later). As you can imagine its a hectic time to get a book

out with the Dallas conference only a few weeks out.

- regards to all, Larry

It is really unusual to release the Kindle version before the print version. Its usually the opposite.

Jim, it surprised Debra as well as she had no notice of it - which is why the Nexus area on my book web site and document links

were not ready (its there now though and document links should be going up shortly). In fact it happened before any announcement

because that was to be tied to the in print date.

Beats us, although certainly Amazon is really pushing Kindle.

In any event both Kindle and print are available now and there will be print copies at the Lancer conference (have

not seen one myself actually, but its in the mail Deb says).

-- Larry

Hi Larry,

I just want to say I have both editions of your book SWHT, and have read your many posts, and essays on this forum as well as Lancer's. I congratulate you on your latest literary effort "Nexus" and have my copy ordered from Amazon. As I anticipate your book in the mail, I would like to pose a question to you. I have read up on Edwin P. Wilson and believe that his close dealings with Ted Shackley, Tom Clines, and Rafael "Chi Chi" Quintero put him in a very close circle of folks I believe had knowledge of, or were participants in the JFK assassination. I have posted it here and have been told that trying to reach out to Edwin Wilson would be a futile effort. Given that Edwin Wilson is in the twilight of his life, and the fact that the CIA literally turned him into the "Man in the Iron Mask" doesn't it seem likely that he has a few motives for which to set the record straight on issues such as the JFK assassination? I just think if someone who has interviewed Ed Wilson in the past could come forward and contact him now before he dies, I think he could shed some serious light on the assassination. I believe Ed could corroborate many facts about the players we suspect, and possibly even give us a few we don't know about. I know he trusted Joeseph Trento, and have thought about contacting Mr. Trento myself to make this appeal, but I defer to your opinion on the matter. Do you see any merit in chasing down this lead?

Best regards,

Greg Kooyman

Hi Larry,

I don't know if you've had the chance to read my question, but I am interested in your feedback.. Any thoughts?

-Greg

Hi Greg, sorry, I had posted a reply earlier this afternoon and thought it was in this thread - but now I don't see

it either...anyway, let me try again:

Greg and Bill, my thought on Wilson is that given his position in 1963 (with setting up and running front companies) I do not believe

he would have had any direct knowledge of the JFK plot. My view is that sort of knowledge would have been circulating only within

some very select groups of paramilitary assets in touch with or having been trained by JMWAVE operations. On the other hand I'd be

willing to bet that he heard the same sort of gossip that Wheaton heard when associating with Quintero and Jenkins. If you hung

with the right crowd it appears that they were not bashful talking about it - just another cover ops war story.

If someone talks with Wilson it might be a good angle, just ask about gossip he heard afterwords, anything could be useful. Beyond

that its pretty clear that Wilson played the same game that several like him did, leverage your old true agency connections to make

your own money, implying its Agency sanctioned. And on the backside, pass on some intelligence to your old CIA associates so they

look the other way if they hear what you are doing. A really nasty side effect of deniability. Doubt he would talk about that angle

but if so would help us understand a lot about how that sort of game was played.

-- Larry

[Larry Hancock]

Thanks for the kind words Zach and I have to admit that Amazon caught us by surprise on this one - previously the kindle version

had not gone up prior to print availability and the print version is still a few weeks out. Hence the lack of an announcement

(which should be soon) and an update to my website (a bit later). As you can imagine its a hectic time to get a book

out with the Dallas conference only a few weeks out.

- regards to all, Larry

It is really unusual to release the Kindle version before the print version. Its usually the opposite.

Jim, it surprised Debra as well as she had no notice of it - which is why the Nexus area on my book web site and document links

were not ready (its there now though and document links should be going up shortly). In fact it happened before any announcement

because that was to be tied to the in print date.

Beats us, although certainly Amazon is really pushing Kindle.

In any event both Kindle and print are available now and there will be print copies at the Lancer conference (have

not seen one myself actually, but its in the mail Deb says).

-- Larry

Hi Larry,

I just want to say I have both editions of your book SWHT, and have read your many posts, and essays on this forum as well as Lancer's. I congratulate you on your latest literary effort "Nexus" and have my copy ordered from Amazon. As I anticipate your book in the mail, I would like to pose a question to you. I have read up on Edwin P. Wilson and believe that his close dealings with Ted Shackley, Tom Clines, and Rafael "Chi Chi" Quintero put him in a very close circle of folks I believe had knowledge of, or were participants in the JFK assassination. I have posted it here and have been told that trying to reach out to Edwin Wilson would be a futile effort. Given that Edwin Wilson is in the twilight of his life, and the fact that the CIA literally turned him into the "Man in the Iron Mask" doesn't it seem likely that he has a few motives for which to set the record straight on issues such as the JFK assassination? I just think if someone who has interviewed Ed Wilson in the past could come forward and contact him now before he dies, I think he could shed some serious light on the assassination. I believe Ed could corroborate many facts about the players we suspect, and possibly even give us a few we don't know about. I know he trusted Joeseph Trento, and have thought about contacting Mr. Trento myself to make this appeal, but I defer to your opinion on the matter. Do you see any merit in chasing down this lead?

Best regards,

Greg Kooyman

Greg, I posted earlier this afternoon and again just now but it does not appear to be showing up - I'll try again below, if it does

not show please email me at larryjoe@westok.net so I can reply direct.. thanks:

Greg and Bill, my thought on Wilson is that given his position in 1963 (with setting up and running front companies) I do not believe

he would have had any direct knowledge of the JFK plot. My view is that sort of knowledge would have been circulating only within

some very select groups of paramilitary assets in touch with or having been trained by JMWAVE operations. On the other hand I'd be

willing to bet that he heard the same sort of gossip that Wheaton heard when associating with Quintero and Jenkins. If you hung

with the right crowd it appears that they were not bashful talking about it - just another cover ops war story.

If someone talks with Wilson it might be a good angle, just ask about gossip he heard afterwords, anything could be useful. Beyond

that its pretty clear that Wilson played the same game that several like him did, leverage your old true agency connections to make

your own money, implying its Agency sanctioned. And on the backside, pass on some intelligence to your old CIA associates so they

look the other way if they hear what you are doing. A really nasty side effect of deniability. Doubt he would talk about that angle

but if so would help us understand a lot about how that sort of game was played.

-- Larry

[Greg Kooyman]

Thanks for the kind words Zach and I have to admit that Amazon caught us by surprise on this one - previously the kindle version

had not gone up prior to print availability and the print version is still a few weeks out. Hence the lack of an announcement

(which should be soon) and an update to my website (a bit later). As you can imagine its a hectic time to get a book

out with the Dallas conference only a few weeks out.

- regards to all, Larry

It is really unusual to release the Kindle version before the print version. Its usually the opposite.

Jim, it surprised Debra as well as she had no notice of it - which is why the Nexus area on my book web site and document links

were not ready (its there now though and document links should be going up shortly). In fact it happened before any announcement

because that was to be tied to the in print date.

Beats us, although certainly Amazon is really pushing Kindle.

In any event both Kindle and print are available now and there will be print copies at the Lancer conference (have

not seen one myself actually, but its in the mail Deb says).

-- Larry

Hi Larry,

I just want to say I have both editions of your book SWHT, and have read your many posts, and essays on this forum as well as Lancer's. I congratulate you on your latest literary effort "Nexus" and have my copy ordered from Amazon. As I anticipate your book in the mail, I would like to pose a question to you. I have read up on Edwin P. Wilson and believe that his close dealings with Ted Shackley, Tom Clines, and Rafael "Chi Chi" Quintero put him in a very close circle of folks I believe had knowledge of, or were participants in the JFK assassination. I have posted it here and have been told that trying to reach out to Edwin Wilson would be a futile effort. Given that Edwin Wilson is in the twilight of his life, and the fact that the CIA literally turned him into the "Man in the Iron Mask" doesn't it seem likely that he has a few motives for which to set the record straight on issues such as the JFK assassination? I just think if someone who has interviewed Ed Wilson in the past could come forward and contact him now before he dies, I think he could shed some serious light on the assassination. I believe Ed could corroborate many facts about the players we suspect, and possibly even give us a few we don't know about. I know he trusted Joeseph Trento, and have thought about contacting Mr. Trento myself to make this appeal, but I defer to your opinion on the matter. Do you see any merit in chasing down this lead?

Best regards,

Greg Kooyman

Greg, I posted earlier this afternoon and again just now but it does not appear to be showing up - I'll try again below, if it does

not show please email me at larryjoe@westok.net so I can reply direct.. thanks:

Greg and Bill, my thought on Wilson is that given his position in 1963 (with setting up and running front companies) I do not believe

he would have had any direct knowledge of the JFK plot. My view is that sort of knowledge would have been circulating only within

some very select groups of paramilitary assets in touch with or having been trained by JMWAVE operations. On the other hand I'd be

willing to bet that he heard the same sort of gossip that Wheaton heard when associating with Quintero and Jenkins. If you hung

with the right crowd it appears that they were not bashful talking about it - just another cover ops war story.

If someone talks with Wilson it might be a good angle, just ask about gossip he heard afterwords, anything could be useful. Beyond

that its pretty clear that Wilson played the same game that several like him did, leverage your old true agency connections to make

your own money, implying its Agency sanctioned. And on the backside, pass on some intelligence to your old CIA associates so they

look the other way if they hear what you are doing. A really nasty side effect of deniability. Doubt he would talk about that angle

but if so would help us understand a lot about how that sort of game was played.

-- Larry

Larry,

I agree with you completely, it was that association that Wilson had with Quintero and Tom Clines that I was referring to. When Wilson was asked to provide a hit man for an assassination job,( murdering a Libyan Dissident living in Egypt) I believe Clines referred him to Quintero, who in turn asked the Villaverde brothers to do the contract killing. It was this association with assassination,& the fact that in the early 1960's Carl Jenkins was Rafael's case officer from the Bay of Pigs thru the AMWORLD affair, that I believe Quintero either knew, or participated in the assassination hit squad originally designed for Castro that was turned on President Kennedy. IF Quintero ever spoke to Wilson about assassination, hit men, etc, I think he may have brought up the Kennedy assassination as bonafides for his recommending the Villaverde brothers. ( just my hunch.)

At any rate, I will follow up with Bill Kelly and see if we can put together a comprehensive format for contacting Ed Wilson and see what he may or may not be willing to talk about. My hope is to find someone he may feel comfortable in talking with, so we don't scare him off.

Thanks Larry for your insight on this..

-Greg

[Cliff Varnell]

From the Spartacus bio of Richard V. Secord:

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/JFKsecordR.htm

In August 1966, Secord transferred to Udorn Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand. Later that year Ted Shackley was placed in charge of CIA secret war in Laos. He appointed Thomas G. Clines as his deputy. He also took Carl E. Jenkins, David Sanchez Morales, Rafael Quintero, Felix I. Rodriguez and Edwin Wilson with him to Laos. Shackley worked closely with Richard Secord, who directed tactical bombing raids against the Pathet Lao.

According to Joel Bainerman it was at this point that Shackley and his "Secret Team" became involved in the drug trade. They did this via General Vang Pao, the leader of the anti-communist forces in Laos. Vang Pao was a major figure in the opium trade in Laos. To help him Shackley used his CIA officials and assets to sabotage the competitors. Eventually Vang Pao had a monopoly over the heroin trade in Laos. In 1967 Shackley and Clines helped Vang Pao to obtain financial backing to form his own airline, Zieng Khouang Air Transport Company, to transport opium and heroin between Long Tieng and Vientiane.

According to Alfred W. McCoy (The Politics of Heroin: CIA Complicity in the Global Drug Trade) in 1968 Ted Shackley and Thomas G. Clines arranged a meeting in Saigon between Santo Trafficante and Vang Pao to establish a heroin-smuggling operation from Southeast Asia to the United States.

I'm sure SE Asian dope is the last thing Wilson & Co. would ever talk about. Ever.

Edited November 9, 2011 by Cliff Varnell

[Cliff Varnell]

According to Joel Bainerman it was at this point that Shackley and his "Secret Team" became involved in the drug trade.

I suspect their involvement in the drug trade commenced much earlier than the '66-'67 time frame.

From Possible Discovery of an Automobile Used In the JFK Conspiracy by Richard Bartholomew (emphasis added).

http://spot.acorn.net/jfkplace/09/fp.back_issues/17th_Issue/rambler1.html#N_119_

After reading a pre-galley copy of JFK and Vietnam, Daniel Ellsberg called (author John) Newman one night very excitedly. Ellsberg had worked with Lansdale and knew him extremely well. He said, "This is the first time I've ever thought that (Gen. Edward) Lansdale might have been involved in the assassination." Ellsberg based this on Lansdale being removed from Vietnam planning and moved to Operation Mongoose.81

By February 1963 Lansdale had no position in Cuban policy and was focusing on Latin America. He was traveling to countries like Bolivia and elsewhere. The U.S. had a lot of personnel in South America under Kennedy. And a lot of them ended up going to Vietnam. According to Newman there is a blind spot as to exactly what they were doing and how many people the U.S. had in Latin America.82

"I can tell you," Newman said, "that in the collateral research that I did, names that I came across, I found a correlation between -- I don't say this is definitive but I got a lot of hits -- the same names of the guys that were running around in Latin America, particularly in Cuban policy, end up in the Far East Division. Very strange coincidence. There were three -- it wasn't just one -- there were several. A neat nexus between the Southeast Asian guys and Cuban guys."

Edited November 9, 2011 by Cliff Varnell

[Larry Hancock]

According to Joel Bainerman it was at this point that Shackley and his "Secret Team" became involved in the drug trade.

I suspect their involvement in the drug trade commenced much earlier than the '66-'67 time frame.

........ Absolutely Cliff, it started at the end of WWII with the OSS guys serving in the SE Asia detachment.

Once it was determined to support the Nationalist Chinese and in particular their army group that

retreated into the Golden Triangle, the Agency had to put a lot of supply lines including front

companies in place to supply them....and with tons of weapons and supplies going in via truck, air

and boat...well naturally life being what it is, the drugs are going to start coming out and a lot

of private business opportunities are going to open up...

-- no such thing as a one way supply line into a drug production area, Larry

From Possible Discovery of an Automobile Used In the JFK Conspiracy by Richard Bartholomew (emphasis added).

http://spot.acorn.net/jfkplace/09/fp.back_issues/17th_Issue/rambler1.html#N_119_

After reading a pre-galley copy of JFK and Vietnam, Daniel Ellsberg called (author John) Newman one night very excitedly. Ellsberg had worked with Lansdale and knew him extremely well. He said, "This is the first time I've ever thought that (Gen. Edward) Lansdale might have been involved in the assassination." Ellsberg based this on Lansdale being removed from Vietnam planning and moved to Operation Mongoose.81

By February 1963 Lansdale had no position in Cuban policy and was focusing on Latin America. He was traveling to countries like Bolivia and elsewhere. The U.S. had a lot of personnel in South America under Kennedy. And a lot of them ended up going to Vietnam. According to Newman there is a blind spot as to exactly what they were doing and how many people the U.S. had in Latin America.82

"I can tell you," Newman said, "that in the collateral research that I did, names that I came across, I found a correlation between -- I don't say this is definitive but I got a lot of hits -- the same names of the guys that were running around in Latin America, particularly in Cuban policy, end up in the Far East Division. Very strange coincidence. There were three -- it wasn't just one -- there were several. A neat nexus between the Southeast Asian guys and Cuban guys."

[Larry Hancock]

For those of you who happen to be reading NEXUS or may in the

future, Debra Conway has taken the time to enhance my book web

site and add some links (provided by Zach Robertson and

Bill Simpich, thanks guys) to certain articles and interviews relating

to the individuals discussed in NEXUS.

It would be good background reading for context...the Harvey memo to Helms

on the Kennedy administration's post 1962 position in regard to the

ongoing effort against Castro is particularly interesting. We will

come up with better scans for a couple of the items when time

permits.

You will find the links at:

http://www.larry-hancock.com/nexus_studies.html

-- Larry

[Steve Duffy]

Finished your kindle book, Larry, having been told of it's in work progress by Zach Robertson.

Glad to see it out and am doing my best to spread the word in a small way....

Also good to see the web enhancement....I took lot's of notes while reading..as it's the structure of the assassination that I've come to believe is closest to what happened.

There are so many excellent researchers out there....glad they helped contribute so much to make it a success. Excited by Simpich's up-coming work, too. More Studies like this...the more we narrow down the events of Dallas and it's players...

Best to you, Steve.

[Larry Hancock]

Hi Steve, thanks very much for taking the time to post on Nexus and if you have questions or want

to chat about it don't hesitate to contact me.

One of the great things about the evolution of SWHT into three editions and now Nexus is that I've

been able to use them to include information from a number of great primary researchers who need

a forum for what they have been digging up. There is so much in the released documents, in the oral

histories and contacts of the last decade and the spin off from the ARRB that just was not making

it into print. Pieces by themselves often mean little but once you have a framework to integrate

them it becomes a totally different story - our much expanded understanding of Mexico City station,

the JMWAVE/AMOT operation in MC and Angleton's involvement in Cuban affairs is a primary example.

It's a long and strange road but I think we have jointly come a long ways down it from the mysteries

faced by the first and second generation researches. I just wish we could have supplied HSCA investigators

like Fonzi and Hardway the sort of information we have now....or Garrison for that matter.

-- Larry

Finished your kindle book, Larry, having been told of it's in work progress by Zach Robertson.

Glad to see it out and am doing my best to spread the word in a small way....

Also good to see the web enhancement....I took lot's of notes while reading..as it's the structure of the assassination that I've come to believe is closest to what happened.

There are so many excellent researchers out there....glad they helped contribute so much to make it a success. Excited by Simpich's up-coming work, too. More Studies like this...the more we narrow down the events of Dallas and it's players...

Best to you, Steve.

[Nathaniel Heidenheimer]

"After reading a pre-galley copy of JFK and Vietnam, Daniel Ellsberg called (author John) Newman one night very excitedly. Ellsberg had worked with Lansdale and knew him extremely well. He said, "This is the first time I've ever thought that (Gen. Edward) Lansdale might have been involved in the assassination." Ellsberg based this on Lansdale being removed from Vietnam planning and moved to Operation Mongoose.81

By February 1963 Lansdale had no position in Cuban policy and was focusing on Latin America. He was traveling to countries like Bolivia and elsewhere. The U.S. had a lot of personnel in South America under Kennedy. And a lot of them ended up going to Vietnam. According to Newman there is a blind spot as to exactly what they were doing and how many people the U.S. had in Latin America.82

"I can tell you," Newman said, "that in the collateral research that I did, names that I came across, I found a correlation between -- I don't say this is definitive but I got a lot of hits -- the same names of the guys that were running around in Latin America, particularly in Cuban policy, end up in the Far East Division. Very strange coincidence. There were three -- it wasn't just one -- there were several. A neat nexus between the Southeast Asian guys and Cuban guys."

----------

The fact that Lansdale "had no position" on Cuba policy in 1963 should, perhaps, be taken with salt. The positions were becoming more and more ambiguous each day, as the CIA and white house were on various pages at different times. Reassignments could be corrected in Mexico City?

" A neat nexus between the Southeast Asian guys and Cuban guys."

One person who would seem to meet this criteria is Desmond Fitzgerald. Given his other activities during 1963 I have found it interesting that he made the SE Asia Cuba Switch around the same time as Lansdale. Is he among the group being alluded to here, or did you mean more overtly triggery citizenry?

[Larry Hancock]

"After reading a pre-galley copy of JFK and Vietnam, Daniel Ellsberg called (author John) Newman one night very excitedly. Ellsberg had worked with Lansdale and knew him extremely well. He said, "This is the first time I've ever thought that (Gen. Edward) Lansdale might have been involved in the assassination." Ellsberg based this on Lansdale being removed from Vietnam planning and moved to Operation Mongoose.81

By February 1963 Lansdale had no position in Cuban policy and was focusing on Latin America. He was traveling to countries like Bolivia and elsewhere. The U.S. had a lot of personnel in South America under Kennedy. And a lot of them ended up going to Vietnam. According to Newman there is a blind spot as to exactly what they were doing and how many people the U.S. had in Latin America.82

"I can tell you," Newman said, "that in the collateral research that I did, names that I came across, I found a correlation between -- I don't say this is definitive but I got a lot of hits -- the same names of the guys that were running around in Latin America, particularly in Cuban policy, end up in the Far East Division. Very strange coincidence. There were three -- it wasn't just one -- there were several. A neat nexus between the Southeast Asian guys and Cuban guys."

----------

The fact that Lansdale "had no position" on Cuba policy in 1963 should, perhaps, be taken with salt. The positions were becoming more and more ambiguous each day, as the CIA and white house were on various pages at different times. Reassignments could be corrected in Mexico City?

" A neat nexus between the Southeast Asian guys and Cuban guys."

One person who would seem to meet this criteria is Desmond Fitzgerald. Given his other activities during 1963 I have found it interesting that he made the SE Asia Cuba Switch around the same time as Lansdale. Is he among the group being alluded to here, or did you mean more overtly triggery citizenry?

One of the things that makes it complicated is that there were a couple of generations of SE Asia guys. There were the folks like Fitzgerald

and Lansdale that had been all around SE Asia before being inserted into the Cuba project. Included in that group, and actually of more interest to me are folks like Hecksher. Then there is the second generation who went to SE Asia after the Cuba project and ended up operationally back in

Latin America afterwords - like Morales. And there were the Cuban exiles who went directly to Latin America to challenge Castro and the

ones who went there first via SE Asia. On top of all that, there is the fact that a number of the Agency logistics fronts and the financial

networks that supported them, were first set up in SE Asia and then expanded into the Caribbean to support Latin American activities - Paul

Helliwell (sp) is a major name that comes up there.

If you want to talk paramilitary operations guys, Morales, Sforza and their trusted exile assets certainly show up in Latin America.

But its also clear that many of their activities were enabled there at a much higher level by folks like Phillips and Hecksher.

And of course, just to make matters worse, it appears that a lot of the later nasty Latin American stuff began to move outside the

CIA itself and into some of the Army counter insurgency contacts - which of course corresponds to the fact that Morales moved

into a major counter insurgency role as a consultant to Joint Chiefs staff.

I'm not trying to be coy in naming names and there is certainly a larger story that extends beyond 1963, maybe we will get a handle

on it at some point but for right now Nexus and 1963 is as far as can get my own head around it. Well that and the chapter 20 in

SWHT - because I do feel that Underhill had come across the existence of this particular network/clique sometime in 1963.

-- Larry

[Michael Hogan]

Jim, I've taken the liberty of reproducing your post here. The lack of discussion was even more disappointing considering Larry Hancock is one of the authors

that always sticks around to answer questions and expand on his research. In fact, the last post here was over three months ago and made by Larry.

Maybe your post will prompt some more discussion. That would be nice. I'd like to read what John Simkin has to say about NEXUS.

I am really surprised there was not more discussion of Larry's new book, Nexus. I guess some people here--Lifton, Morrow, Caddy--think its more important to debate what's her name's "great book" ( ) than to find out who killed Kennedy and why. Having done a lot of work with that business racket, and having exposed paid liars like Slatzer, Hersh, Exner, Leary and Heymann, I disagree.

I think there is a lot of good and pertinent stuff in Larry's book Let me just name some of it:

1. How Larry Houston negotiated with Justice to get CIA above the law.

2. Undeniable evidence that CIA was complicit in the contemplated Death Squads after the Arbenz coup. Which means that Hunt and Phillips likely knew about them. Barnes had to know. BTW, this is even better than Bitter Fruit since its in the CIA's own papers which Larry examined. This is crucial since I think its the forerunner to Operation 40 with BOP. I wish Larry would have been more explicit about that.

3. Nice analysis of Bay of Pigs. Just when you think you knew what there was to know, Hancock comes up with some new stuff. BIssell deliberately kept Esterline and Hawkins out of the high level pre op reviews. He then lied to them about the air cover. Another key point, since this leads to Kennedy's firing of top level of CIA. Which in turn led to Dulles and Hunt getting out a cover story about Kennedy canceling the D Day sorties--which is a damned lie. But it was used to inflame the Cubans against JFK.

4. Nice case for some Cubans knowing about the Attwood-Lechuga back channel. Again, important because after the Missile Crisis pledge and now this, more Cuban desperation by the likes of DeTorres and Morales and Bringuier and Artime etc.

5. Nice work on Bill Harvey and Roselli, and Harvey vs RFK. Builds on Talbot's stuff.

6. Was Hargraves involved in supplying the false Secret service credentials in Dealey Plaza?

http://www.ctka.net/reviews/nexus_review.html

Another good thing about it, it is concise. As Waldron and others have shown bigger is not better. Sometimes, as Larry shows here, less is more.

I am at work on doing an expanded and revised version of Destiny Betrayed, actually a new book. I found myself using much of the above as source notes.

Edit: Jim, I just finished reading your review for CTKA. Very well written.

I remember how pleased I was when you began posting at the EF. I'm glad you've hung around.

Edited February 19, 2012 by Michael Hogan