JFK's grandson on the file release

http://time.com/5003919/jfk-assassination-files-conspiracy-distraction/

To summarize:

Jack Schlossberg wrote:

• about the devastating effect the assassination had on his family
  
• about how decades of conspiracy theories have shifted focus from more pressing issues
  
• that the release was good for transparency but shows "nothing particularly revealing or trans-formative"
  

He is right. It is long past time to dump conspiracy theories.

He is right. Such a tragedy MUST have had a devastating effect on the Kennedy clan.

He is right. It is good for transparency, and though some gaps in knowledge may be filled, there are and will be no smoking guns.

It is what he hasn't thought of, or deliberately omits that tells us how else this case can be viewed. His family was not the only one personally affected that weekend. So was the family of Lee Harvey Oswald, and while that weekend sealed JFK's legend in a mostly positive fashion, it likewise sealed that of his accused assassin in a negative way; deserving of course, if he was guilty. But even Hoover admitted the murder of the accused was a denial of his civil rights, and also denied him his right to face his accusers in a court of law. The irony is that JFK would have supported Oswald's rights - I believe even after Oswald's death. Certainly, no one else did that weekend or any time thereafter.

The most important point is however that it is not conspiracy theories that cast doubt on Oswald's guilt. It is the evidence - and that includes what was used and what wasn't. For him to be innocent, it must mean that every piece of evidence has more than one possible pathway, has issues surrounding its scientific value, has issues surrounding chain of possession, was planted, or is flat out exculpatory. I am certain that each piece of evidence sits in one or more of those categories. There are also the witnesses, some provably suborned, some just mistaken, some trying to tell the truth but tied in verbal knots by cops, fbi and/or lawyers for the WC.

Underpinning all of this is the historical truth of the legacy of Henry Wade and the Dallas Police. Planting, suborning, junk science and more were all stocks in trade.

Henry Wade had a conviction rate in the mid to high 90s. The above is why.

Less known is that Will Fritz had a similar success rate at 98%. But of course, if you think about it, it makes perfect sense that he would. I recently read that Fritz defied all attempts to promote him. He had good reason to stay where he was. He was running his own game with no one looking over his shoulder, and he may not be able to rig the game from a higher position because it would mean relying on whoever took your place to continue operating the same way - and do it as well as you did. The same story on Fritz also revealed how the current murder clearance rate in Dallas is only around 50%.

Those relative clearance rates between Fritz and today are nothing short of astounding given the advances in science, technology and methodology. If you subtracted the current success rate from that of Fritz's, you may get some idea of what percentage of cases were built from smoke and mirrors. It is a staggering 48%.

I would urge the Kennedy family to continue eschewing conspiracy theories, but by the same token, consider the issues of justice and history and the lessons that may be learned from both going forward.

The evidence, when looked at uncritically, convicts Oswald. No doubt about it. But some of us have scraped that surface and found it wanting - not to mention just plain sickening - at how blatant the frame was from a group of people now known for just such perversions of justice.

We can't put an end to the conspiracy theories, no matter what, because they are a matter of faith, not fact. But we can still rescue history and justice for their own sake. The government case is no less than the same smoke and mirrors as deployed by theorists. Choose a third way. Choose what the evidence actually tells us.

This case is burdened with many conspiracy theories. The good the bad and the ugly. Reading the press today regarding this current release of files, they invariably always subtext it with the stigma of conspiracy theory. It's as if they've conceded nothing new about this case other than adding more to the pot of these so called conspiracy theories. This is what I feared might happen. The reason I feared it was because it takes away from the real issue of Oswald's innocence, as Greg also mentions. This case really has nothing to do with who killed JFK and anybody who has spent time on it in earnest has realised this or at least ought to have had. Oswald is the only accused and the debate should be centered around his guilt or innocence and nothing more but sadly that's not the case. Most would rather still speculate on other matters even when they claim Oswald was not involved or only partly involved (not sure why people still cling to that notion or why they bother) as a way of continuing the speculation that has damaged this case quite detrimentally. Its been a long time and this case is getting older by the day. Oswald needs to be exonerated ASAP and Prayer Man can do it. Let's hope he does it in time before it's far too late and no one gives a shit.
As for the Kennedys, I think its safe to presume they've moved on. I don't think they are needed to advance this case in favour of Oswald's innocence. What's needed is a clearer scan. So simple yet so impossible to deliver. All these recent releases of records and files mean absolutely nothing.