Russ Baker's book "Family of Secrets" takes the reader on a tantalizing journey into the Bush family. Baker's unabashed goal was to answer the question "How did Bush happen?"
As Baker began his intensive research into George W Bush, he found that in order to understand George Jr., one must first look at George Sr. This led him to inquire about the Bush clan in general, raising the blinds on this most secretive of families.
The book is comprised of 23 chapters. Of these, Baker spends the first 16 discussing George H W Bush (called Poppy by those close to him). The remaining 7 chapters are about George W Bush and those in his specific orbit.
Russ Baker makes a strong circumstantial case that George H W Bush was involved in intelligence work long before his 1974 CIA stint appointment. The actual evidence that would verify this is unavailable to the public in general as the CIA does not like inquiries.
Those who surround Poppy Bush seemed to be tinged by covert, intelligence operations. A few examples are: his father Prescott Bush, Neil Mallon and George DeMohrenschildt. The intelligence apparatus that evolved from WWII (the OSS) would become known as the CIA. And many in Bush's orbit were somehow connected to the OSS, the CIA or to covert missions in WWII.
Building upon this, Baker argues that the world of covert operations, including propaganda and psyops, is able and willing to suppress information and diseminate disinformation. The gatekeepers of knowledge tend to have ties to the CIA--including the Watergate journalist Bob Woodward.
The world of covert operations goes hand in hand with the oil industry and the world of international finance. The oil industry has acted as a kind of vanguard for US covert operations. This includes Poppy's oil rigs in the Caribbean that would be the training grounds for Cuban exiles before the Bay of Pigs. To fund covert operations, an intelligence agency needs funding. This is where international financial institutions play a role. The motivation: when a covert operation topples a regime, the financial institute gets first crack at exploiting the resources of the country.
Baker discusses the forces that brought Poppy Bush into the Nixon White House. Prescott Bush, he suggests, was the one who arranged for Nixon to first run for the open Republican Congressional seat in California in 1946. And George and Prescott are visible in the shadows during Nixon's rise to power--Prescott as a US Senator from Connecticut and George as a covert operative in several strategic regions around the world.
During his two terms as VP under Eisenhower, Nixon was in charge of several covert operations. And those in George Bush's close knit circle left their fingerprints all over these operations.
When Nixon became president, the name George H W Bush was considered for the VP slot. Nixon went with his own choice instead. Then Nixon wanted Helms at the CIA to give him all the materials regarding the covert actions Nixon had taken during the 50's. Helms balked. The result: Watergate.
The Watergate scandal, which undid the Nixon presidency, was perpetrated by CIA agents. All the major books on Watergate to come out in the past two decades confirm that Nixon was set up. And Baker concurs. But Baker goes on to implicate Bush as being complicit in this. Bush, along with Kissinger and Haig, was one of the few to survive the scandal. And with Nixon gone, the US got a new president: Gerald Ford.
The Ford adminstration saw the commission of what was to be called the "Halloween Massacre"--the elimination of several staffers and cabinet members who were loyal to Nixon. And Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld oversaw and coordinated this "massacre".
How do you explain many strange events in American history without resorting to covert/intelligence operations? Bush's fingerprints can be found on the Iran/Contra scandal: a covert operation if ever there was one. Bush support for 3rd world dictators (Noriega, Hussein, Marcos) can easily be explained if you look for the web of intelligence.
And riding on his dad's coattails is young George W Bush. Where Poppy went wrong, George W seemed to correct: managing the media to spin all inquiries; politicizing every government agency; handing out juicy contracts to cronies.
Baker's book is filled with innuendos and suggestions. This is its greatest failing. The circumstantial evidence in many cases is compeling. However, in some cases it is lacking. The true value of Baker's research will be seen in the years to come. Future researchers can use his book and fill in the gaps where he was only able to provide circumstantial evidence.
Baker's narrative is fun but difficult to read. His prose is strong but this is not a book to be taken lightly. It weighs in at over 500 pages but reads like a book twice that length. If you are interested in American history, the Bush clan or the power of covert/intelligence operations, Baker's "Family of Secrets" receives my firm recommendation.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Book Review: Reasonable Doubt by Henry Hurt
Henry Hurt's "Reasonable Doubt" is an overview of the JFK assassination. Hurt was a researcher for the book "Legend: the Secret World of Lee Harvey Oswald" by Edward Epstein. Hurt's research involved little more than contacting US Marines who knew Oswald. After providing research for Epstein, Hurt set aside the JFK case.
In 1981, his odysessy started anew. A man named Robert Easterling contacted him. Easterling was prepared to confess his role in the assassination of President Kennedy. Hurt, in an effort to prepare himself for this unusual interview, Hurt versed himself in the JFK assassination lore.
Hurt's overview of the case is amazing. His prose is easy to follow. His conclusions are logical. The biggest flaw in his research is, unfortunately, the inclusion of the Robert Easterling testimony.
The first chapter reads like a newspaper report. It's nine pages of who, what, where and when. After finishing this, the reader knows the basics of the official story.
Hurt then turns a critical eye to the Warren Commission's findings. There is no index from which to review the Warren Commission's hearings and exhibits. The report is hardly the corrollary of 26 supporting volumes. Congressional committees concluded that the FBI and CIA were derelict in submitting evidence to the Warren Commission. The FBI had destroyed or altered testimony or evidence. Credible leads that pointed away from the Warren Commission's main thesis were ignored.
After concluding the Warren Commission had not settled the issue, Hurt then looks at the autopsy and the Magic Bullet. The doctors in Dallas do not agree with the doctors at Bethesda. The Magic Bullet is pristine whereas test bullets fired into cadavers show significant deformation.
The author spends the next two chapters looking at the Texas School Book Depository and Dealy Plaza in general. Could Oswald have moved that quickly from the 6th floor to the 2nd floor? Were there two men on the 6th floor when the shooting began? And were there shots fired from the grassy knoll? Hurt looks at many witnesses who either were not called to the Warren Commission to testify or whose testimony was not used to draw the conclusions that the Warren Commission drew.
The shooting of Dallas police officer JD Tippit has been called the "Rosetta Stone" of the JFK assassination. Hurt entitled chapter 7, "Tippit's Murder: Rosetta Stone or Red Herring?". He proceeds to cover ground that the Warren Commission covered and some ground that the Warren Commission ignored.
The Warren Commission concluded that Jack Ruby had no ties to organized crime. The House Select Committee on Assassinations concluded that Ruby did have ties to organized crime. Hurt examines this discrepency in chapter 8, "Jack Ruby: Pimp for all Seasons".
Oswald learned the Russian language while he was a US Marine. He was discharged from the USMC and then defected to the Soviet Union. When he came back to the US, he was an open Marxist and an outspoken supporter of Castro--in cities with strong conservative or strong intelligence ties (New Orleans and Dallas). Was Oswald affiliated with some branch of US intelligence? Hurt examines this in chapter 9, "Fingerprints of Intelligence".
The only case ever brought to court regarding the assassination of President Kennedy was the case brought forward by New Orleans Parish DA Jim Garrison. Oswald spent the summer of '63 in New Orleans. There are tantalizing connections between Oswald and elements of US intelligence including ex-Cuban patriots, Guy Bannister and David Ferrie. The author spends a considerable amount of time looking at Oswald's ties to New Orleans in chapter 10, "New Orleans, USA".
The last two chapters are a summation of the conspiracy information up to 1985, the year this book was published. The information is good. Hurt gives you the names of the researchers who put forward certain aspects of the case and how he feels about them. It is hard to disagree with Hurt--he calls them like he sees them. If a conspiracy theory is bizarre, he says so. This section of the book is particular good for the beginner. The beginner can get a brief review of the other researchers and their works here. This section can be used as a stepping stone to other areas of research the beginner may find interesting.
Alas, Henry Hurt's book, "Reasonable Doubt" has one glaring flaw. This flaw is chapter 12, "The Confession of Robert Easterling". Hurt dedicates almost 50 pages to the laugable premise that Robert Easterling was involved in a conspiracy to JFK. Easterling claims he was at a bar having a drink when an acquaintance of his named Manuel Rivera came up to him. He had not seen Rivera in some time so the men had a drink while making small talk. Then Manuel asked Easterling to be a part of a plot to Kennedy. This highly unlikely event is followed up with numerous other claims which not only are unsubstantiated but are completely based in fantasy.
Here's one example. Easterling claims that to make their escape, the real assassins repelled from the 6th floor of the Texas School Book Depository to the ground via grappeling hooks and rope. Obviously, no person witnessed such a dramatic escape despite the fact Dealy Plaza was filled with throngs of people.
I'm not sure what to make of Easterling's confession other to conclude it's not accurate. Was Hurt duped? Was Easterling a plant? I don't know. But the fact that Henry Hurt dedicated so much time and energy to Easterling is why I have to give this book a mere 3 stars.
In 1981, his odysessy started anew. A man named Robert Easterling contacted him. Easterling was prepared to confess his role in the assassination of President Kennedy. Hurt, in an effort to prepare himself for this unusual interview, Hurt versed himself in the JFK assassination lore.
Hurt's overview of the case is amazing. His prose is easy to follow. His conclusions are logical. The biggest flaw in his research is, unfortunately, the inclusion of the Robert Easterling testimony.
The first chapter reads like a newspaper report. It's nine pages of who, what, where and when. After finishing this, the reader knows the basics of the official story.
Hurt then turns a critical eye to the Warren Commission's findings. There is no index from which to review the Warren Commission's hearings and exhibits. The report is hardly the corrollary of 26 supporting volumes. Congressional committees concluded that the FBI and CIA were derelict in submitting evidence to the Warren Commission. The FBI had destroyed or altered testimony or evidence. Credible leads that pointed away from the Warren Commission's main thesis were ignored.
After concluding the Warren Commission had not settled the issue, Hurt then looks at the autopsy and the Magic Bullet. The doctors in Dallas do not agree with the doctors at Bethesda. The Magic Bullet is pristine whereas test bullets fired into cadavers show significant deformation.
The author spends the next two chapters looking at the Texas School Book Depository and Dealy Plaza in general. Could Oswald have moved that quickly from the 6th floor to the 2nd floor? Were there two men on the 6th floor when the shooting began? And were there shots fired from the grassy knoll? Hurt looks at many witnesses who either were not called to the Warren Commission to testify or whose testimony was not used to draw the conclusions that the Warren Commission drew.
The shooting of Dallas police officer JD Tippit has been called the "Rosetta Stone" of the JFK assassination. Hurt entitled chapter 7, "Tippit's Murder: Rosetta Stone or Red Herring?". He proceeds to cover ground that the Warren Commission covered and some ground that the Warren Commission ignored.
The Warren Commission concluded that Jack Ruby had no ties to organized crime. The House Select Committee on Assassinations concluded that Ruby did have ties to organized crime. Hurt examines this discrepency in chapter 8, "Jack Ruby: Pimp for all Seasons".
Oswald learned the Russian language while he was a US Marine. He was discharged from the USMC and then defected to the Soviet Union. When he came back to the US, he was an open Marxist and an outspoken supporter of Castro--in cities with strong conservative or strong intelligence ties (New Orleans and Dallas). Was Oswald affiliated with some branch of US intelligence? Hurt examines this in chapter 9, "Fingerprints of Intelligence".
The only case ever brought to court regarding the assassination of President Kennedy was the case brought forward by New Orleans Parish DA Jim Garrison. Oswald spent the summer of '63 in New Orleans. There are tantalizing connections between Oswald and elements of US intelligence including ex-Cuban patriots, Guy Bannister and David Ferrie. The author spends a considerable amount of time looking at Oswald's ties to New Orleans in chapter 10, "New Orleans, USA".
The last two chapters are a summation of the conspiracy information up to 1985, the year this book was published. The information is good. Hurt gives you the names of the researchers who put forward certain aspects of the case and how he feels about them. It is hard to disagree with Hurt--he calls them like he sees them. If a conspiracy theory is bizarre, he says so. This section of the book is particular good for the beginner. The beginner can get a brief review of the other researchers and their works here. This section can be used as a stepping stone to other areas of research the beginner may find interesting.
Alas, Henry Hurt's book, "Reasonable Doubt" has one glaring flaw. This flaw is chapter 12, "The Confession of Robert Easterling". Hurt dedicates almost 50 pages to the laugable premise that Robert Easterling was involved in a conspiracy to JFK. Easterling claims he was at a bar having a drink when an acquaintance of his named Manuel Rivera came up to him. He had not seen Rivera in some time so the men had a drink while making small talk. Then Manuel asked Easterling to be a part of a plot to Kennedy. This highly unlikely event is followed up with numerous other claims which not only are unsubstantiated but are completely based in fantasy.
Here's one example. Easterling claims that to make their escape, the real assassins repelled from the 6th floor of the Texas School Book Depository to the ground via grappeling hooks and rope. Obviously, no person witnessed such a dramatic escape despite the fact Dealy Plaza was filled with throngs of people.
I'm not sure what to make of Easterling's confession other to conclude it's not accurate. Was Hurt duped? Was Easterling a plant? I don't know. But the fact that Henry Hurt dedicated so much time and energy to Easterling is why I have to give this book a mere 3 stars.
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