Heard that a new programme about the Kennedys's starts at the end of this week on B.B.C 2, Friday 17th June,9.30 ( won't be watching it though, an evening of dub and reggae awaits) it did remind me however of the following piece by one of my favourite writers Mr J.G Ballard.
Incidentally it's my blogs 2nd anniversary today, so thanks to all those who have kept coming back,and to those who've stayed with me from early days, cheers, time flies, never thought I'd still be here. Always grateful from any comments recieved , unless from trolls. If your new then croeso/welcome.Hope you've enjoyed some of my posts, not sure myself, but hey that's a post in itself probably.
The point of my blog is , well that's it really I'm not sure myself anymore.Another thing I thought Id' add , their are many irresponsible bloggers out their that undermine bloggers freedom, the internet police do not need no excuse to crush what little free speech remains, before I started this blog I had always been suspicious of the internet, suspicioos of lots of things, but hey that's my nature. Recent things have reminded me that in the future I will try not to post unverified news, but let us not forget that false stories are often reported to us as truth by the mainsteam media, who have their own agenda.
NEWSFLASH
Heard 10 minutes ago...... their are absolutely no Welsh bloggers on the internet, and humanity is lovely and everything we read is true.
Meanwhile in all seriousness, - another world is inevitable..... remove all borders, hedwch/peace.
Laters... xx
THE ASSASSINATION OF JOHN FITZGERALD KENNEDY CONSIDERED AS A DOWNHILL MOTOR RACE - J.G. Ballard
Author's note. The assassination of President Kennedy on November 22, 1963, raised many questions, not all of which were answered by the Report of the Warren Commision. It is suggested that a less conventional view of the events of that grim day may provide a more satisfactory explanation. Alfred Jarry's " The Crucifixion Considered as an Uphill Bicycle Race" gives us a useful lead.
Oswald was the starter.
From his window above the track he opened the race by firing the starting gun. It is believed that
the first shot was not properly heard by all the drivers. In the following confusion, Oswald
fired the gun two more times, but the race was already underway.
Kennedy got off to a bad start.
There was a governer in his car and its speed remained constant at about fifteen miles an hour. However, shortly afterwards, when the governer had been put out of action, the car accelerated rapidly, and continued at high speed along the remainder of the course.
The visiting eams. As befitting the inaugration of the first production car race through the streets of Dallas, noth the President and the Vice-President participated. The Vice-President, Johnson, took up his position behind Kennedy on the starting line. The concealed rivalry between the two men was of keen interest to the crowd. Most of them supported the home driver, Johnson.
The starting point was the Texas Book Depositary, where all bets were placed in the Presidential race, Kennedy was an unpopular contestant with the Dalla crowd, many of whom showed outright hostility. The deplorable incident familiar to us all in one example.The course ran downhill from the Book Depositary, below an overpass, then on to theParkland Hospital and from there to Love Air
Field.
It is one of the most hazardous courses in downhill motor racing, second only to the Sarajevo track discontinued in 1914.
Kennedy went downhill rapidly. After the damage to the governer the car shot forward at high speed. An alarmed track official attempted to mount the car, which continued on its way cornering on two wheels.
Turns. Kennedy was disqualified at the hospital, after taking a turn for the worse, Johnson now continued the race in the lead, which he maintained to the finish.
The flag. To satify the participation of the President in the race Old Glory was used in place of the usual checkered square. Photographs of Johnson recieving his prixe after winning the race reveal that he had decided to make the flag a memento of his victory.
Photographs of Johnson recieving his prize afterwinning the race in the lead, which hemaintained to the finish flag. To satisfy the participation of the President in the race Old Glory was used in place of the usual checkered square.Photographs of Johnson recieving his prize after winning the race reveal that he had decided to make the flag a memento of his victory.
Previously, Johnson had been forced to take a back seat, as his position on the starting line behind the President indicates. Indeed, his attempts to gain a quick lead on Kennedy during the false start wre forestalled by a track steward, who pushed Johnson to the floor of his car.
In view of the confusion at the start of the race,which resulted in Kennedy, clearly expected to be the winner on past form, being forced to drop out of the hospital turn, it has been suggested that the hostile local crowd, eager to see a win by the home driver Jonson, deliberately set out to stop him completing the race. Another theory maintains that the police guarding the track were in collussion with the starter, Oswald. After he finally managed to give the send-off Oswald immediately left the race, and was subsequently apprehended by the track officials.
Johnson had certainly not expected to win the race in this way. There were no pit stops.
Several puzzling aspects of the race remain. One is the presence of the President's wife in the car, an unusual practice for racing drivers. Kennedy, however, may have maintained that as he was in control of the ship of state he was therefore entitled to captain's priveleges.
The Warren Commission. The rake-off on the book of the race. In their report, prompted by widespread complaints of foul play and other irregularities, the syndicate lay full blame on the starter, Oswald.
Without doubt, Oswald badly misfired. But one question still remains unanswered: Who loaded the starting gun?
Reprinted from ' The Atrocity Exhibition'
Jonathan Cape, 1970.
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