Fred Litwin
Dec 22, 20217 min
"What the hell happened to Oliver Stone? When I was growing up in the 1980s, he was one of the most respected directors in Hollywood, producing hits such as “Platoon,” “Wall Street” and “Born on the Fourth of July.” But in more recent decades, he has become a dollar-store Leni Riefenstahl, churning out sickening tributes to Fidel Castro, Hugo Chávez and Vladimir Putin.
His shift toward demagoguery and dishonesty seems to have begun in 1991 with “JFK,” quite possibly the most deceitful film ever produced by a major Hollywood studio. It posited a vast conspiracy to kill President John F. Kennedy by everyone from the Joint Chiefs of Staff to the CIA to Lyndon B. Johnson. The only person who was innocent of the crime, the movie seemed to suggest, was the actual assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald."
Boot takes exception with the premise of JFK Revisited: Through the Looking Glass, that JFK was going to bring peace to the world:
"Stone’s theory is that Kennedy was a peacenik who was going to end the Cold War and put the military-industrial complex out of business. He never tells viewers that, on the day before his death, Kennedy gave a speech in Fort Worth boasting that he had increased the defense budget “by over 20 percent.” The military-industrial complex was prospering quite nicely, thank you, in the early 1960s. By contrast, defense spending fell in the early 1990s, after the end of the Cold War, by 23 percent. It’s a wonder that the military-industrial complex allowed Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton to live."
[Note: JFK gave that Fort Worth speech on November 22, 1963]
Here is an excerpt from that speech:
"In the past 3 years we have increased the defense budget of the United States by over 20 percent; increased the program of acquisition for Polaris submarines from 24 to 41; increased our Minuteman missile purchase program by more than 75 percent; doubled the number of strategic bombers and missiles on alert; doubled the number of nuclear weapons available in the strategic alert forces; increased the tactical nuclear forces deployed in Western Europe by over 60 percent; added five combat ready divisions to the Army of the United States, and five tactical fighter wings to the Air Force of the United States; increased our strategic airlift capability by 75 percent; and increased our special counter-insurgency forces which are engaged now in South Viet-Nam by 600 percent. I hope those who want a stronger America and place it on some signs will also place those figures next to it.
This is not an easy effort. This requires sacrifice by the people of the United States. But this is a very dangerous and uncertain world. As I said earlier, on three occasions in the last three years the United States has had a direct confrontation. No one can say when it will come again. No one expects that our life will be easy, certainly not in this decade, and perhaps not in this century. But we should realize what a burden and responsibility the people of the United States have borne for so many years.
Here, a country which lived in isolation, divided and protected by the Atlantic and the Pacific, uninterested in the struggles of the world around it, here in the short space of 18 years after the Second World War, we put ourselves, by our own will and by necessity, into defense of alliances with countries all around the globe. Without the United States, South Viet-Nam would collapse overnight. Without the United States, the SEATO alliance would collapse overnight. Without the United States the CENTO alliance would collapse overnight. Without the United States there would be no NATO. And gradually Europe would drift into neutralism and indifference. Without the efforts of the United States in the Alliance for Progress, the Communist advance onto the mainland of South America would long ago have taken place."
JFK did not live to deliver these paragraphs from his Dallas speech:
"Nor can Europe or any other continent rely on nuclear forces alone, whether they are strategic or tactical. We have radically improved the readiness of our conventional forces – increased by 45 percent the number of combat ready Army divisions, increased by 100 percent the procurement of modern Army weapons and equipment, increased by 100 percent our ship construction, conversion, and modernization program, increased by 100 percent our procurement of tactical aircraft, increased by 30 percent the number of tactical air squadrons, and increased the strength of the Marines. As last month's "Operation Big Lift" – which originated here in Texas – showed so clearly, this Nation is prepared as never before to move substantial numbers of men in surprisingly little time to advanced positions anywhere in the world. We have increased by 175 percent the procurement of airlift aircraft, and we have already achieved a 75 percent increase in our existing strategic airlift capability. Finally, moving beyond the traditional roles of our military forces, we have achieved an increase of nearly 600 percent in our special forces – those forces that are prepared to work with our allies and friends against the guerrillas, saboteurs, insurgents and assassins who threaten freedom in a less direct but equally dangerous manner.
But American military might should not and need not stand alone against the ambitions of international communism. Our security and strength, in the last analysis, directly depend on the security and strength of others, and that is why our military and economic assistance plays such a key role in enabling those who live on the periphery of the Communist world to maintain their independence of choice. Our assistance to these nations can be painful, risky and costly, as is true in Southeast Asia today. But we dare not weary of the task. For our assistance makes possible the stationing of 3-5 million allied troops along the Communist frontier at one-tenth the cost of maintaining a comparable number of American soldiers. A successful Communist breakthrough in these areas, necessitating direct United States intervention, would cost us several times as much as our entire foreign aid program, and might cost us heavily in American lives as well."
Of course, I am not making the argument that JFK would have sent in half a million ground troops to Vietnam. We just don't know what JFK would have done when confronted with a deteriorating situation in southeast Asia.
Previous Relevant Blog Posts on JFK Revisited
"JFK Revisited" Misleads on Valery Giscard D'Estaing
Did Gerald Ford really disclose to French President Valery Giscard D'Estaing that the JFK assassination was a conspiracy? Perhaps not.
"JFK Revisited" Star Believes in a Massive COVID Conspiracy
Robert Kennedy, Jr. believes in a massive conspiracy regarding Covid and the intelligence agencies.
"JFK Revisited" Misleads on Kennedy's Back Wound
While Gerald Ford edited some language in the Warren Report, he did not change the location of the back wound. Autopsy photographs show exactly the location of the back wound.
"JFK Revisited" alleges Oswald was "placed"
Oliver Stone's so-called documentary alleges that Oswald was "moved" to Dallas and "placed" in the Texas School Book Depository. This is totally ridiculous.
"JFK Revisited" Misleads on JFK's Throat Wound
The preponderance of the evidence indicates JFK"s throat wound was one of exit.
"JFK Revisited" Misleads on the Supposed Chicago Plot
There is no evidence that there was actually a plot against JFK in Chicago.
Was James Gochenaur a Credible Witness in "JFK Revisited"?
Gochenaur's writings don't back up his allegations in JFK Revisited.
"JFK Revisited" Misleads on Guy Banister
Oliver Stone's so-called documentary claims that Guy Banister gave Oswald a room at 544 Camp Street. The evidence does not support the allegation.
"JFK Revisited" Misleads on JFK's Brain, Again...
Dr. Robert Kirschner's consultation with the ARRB explains a mystery in the documentary.
"JFK Revisited" Misleads on the Weight of JFK's Brain
JFK Revisited makes a big deal about the weight of JFK's brain and ignores a non-conspiratorial explanation.
JFK Revisited Distorts John Stringer's Testimony
Oliver Stone's so-called documentary makes it sound like the autopsy photographer said that he did not take the photos of JFK's brain that are in the current inventory,
Oliver Stone took to Twitter last weekend to bemoan the fact that the mainstream press is ignoring his so-called documentary, JFK Revisited: Through the Looking Glass.
Oliver Stone with "JFK Revisited" Crucifies Clay Shaw Once Again
There is something really obscene about Oliver Stone once again going after Clay Shaw.
JFK Revisited Doesn't Tell the Whole Truth about John Connally
You won't learn everything you need to know about Connally's position on the shots from Oliver Stone's so-called documentary.
JFK Revisited Uses Marina Porter to Mislead Viewers
Oliver Stone tries to make it seem like Marina Porter has denied taking the backyard photographs of Lee Harvey Oswald.
JFK Revisited: Were the Oswald Backyard Photographs Faked?
Oliver Stone once again raises the issue of the legitimacy of the backyard photographs of Lee Harvey Oswald.
JFK Revisited: Was Clay Shaw the elusive Clay Bertrand?
This post debunks every witness that ever claimed Shaw was Bertrand.
Oliver Stone's Poverty of Imagination
He cannot imagine any sort of non-conspiratorial explanations for any of the suspicious pieces of evidence in his film.
Was Clay Shaw a "Contract Agent" for the CIA?
No, Clay Shaw was not a "contract agent."
Steve Roe Blog Posts on JFK Revisited
JFK Revisited: Again, Caught Creating False Mysteries
"Stone/DiEugenio hatch another Bogus Mystery with Sinister Strap/Sling Mounts on Oswald's Rifle"
JFK Revisited: Tripping on the Stairs
Oliver Stone claims that Oswald could not have been in the sniper's nest on the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository. Steve Roe exposes Stone's mistakes.
Oliver Stone doubles-down on the Looney Frontal Shot to the President
In an interview on RT [Russia Today], Oliver Stone says that the throat wound might have been made by a flechette.
Oliver Stone - Deceptive Filmmaker?
Steve Roe presents some examples of Oliver Stone's 'creative' abilities.
A Look at the "JFK Revisited: Through The Looking Glass" Film by Oliver Stone
Oliver Stone distorts the testimony about Oswald's palmprint on the Mannlicher-Carcano rifle.