Customer Reviews

Farewell America: The Plot to Kill JFK

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I first read Farewell America in 1996, when I was loaned a copy of the book from a business colleague. I was unable to purchase a copy of the book at that time, i was told it was not for sale. This was true at the time.

The book as i read it 7 years ago was intriquing, and the fact i was unable to find the book or buy the book legally lead me to believe more in conspiracy about the JFK assassination, and to read as many books as possible about JFK and the state of the nation during and after that time.

The fact that this book was researched and written so close to the time that the assassination and 'coverup' happened is the most compelling reason for reading Farewell America. After reading it again now that it is available, I still rank this book as the best source of information on this subject. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to step back with an open mind and look at the facts that were known in the first five years after Kennedy's death. There are excellent books which follow in later years, but the closer to the source, the less the distortion.

This is a wonderful book (a birthday gift last week). It confirms what I suspected for a long time: that a large collection of special interests (oil, corporate, mafia) conspired to kill JFK. This has been argued before all from second hand writers, but "Farewell America" confirmed this in the 1960s right after Kennedy's death. That surprised me. The book was written
by French intelligence officers under a pen name (Hepburn is not a real person). A fresh look with lots of detail and support. The story makes more sense, and is more plausible than any I have seen.

The introduction or Forword is by William Turner, who was an FBI guy with ties to Jim Garrison. Turner helped locate an overseas opy of the Zapruder film. This was important because no one had seen it before in public. Only a few pictures were published in the mainstream media. When people saw it, it seemed evident that Kennedy's headshot was from the front (Grassy Knoll area). Farewell America" discusses this and even has a map on the location of the shooters. This is important because this was written a long time before the public realized the truth of these statements. Turner also had access to Kennedy people and has written about similar things in FBI circles before. All in all a fascinating book I cannot endorse enough. It did not change my mind, but it confirmed my beliefs with a lot of logical evidence.

This brings back memories, like forty-year snapshots. The author begins Chapter 2 by citing the morality of Calvin and Wesley as to amassing as much wealth as they can, and an 18th century traveler as to the worship of self-interest (also true of other peoples?). There is also the tradition of frugality and plain living, which made a virtue out of a necessity. The author betrays a naive and ascetic outlook in claiming the Roosevelts entered politics for "unselfish reasons" (p.22). Government power leads to riches, in all times and places (Kevin Phillips "Wealth and Democracy"). The author says John F. Kennedy opposed the Titans of Wealth (p.23). But every President represents some parts of the ruling classes, and act for its interests. It is also true that JFK represented change, and a threat to parts of the ruling classes and their "order of things" (p.28). JFK's father was one of the twenty richest men in America, but JFK attracted a huge majority from the minorities (p.31). JFK's politics were to be friendly with everyone. His wealth and power created fear among many Americans. One change was the flaunting of wealth and style, a change from Truman and Eisenhower (p.42). Critics sniped at Jacqueline's spending, the lifestyle of the rich and famous.

Chapter 4 notes the changes of the Kennedy administration, more striking in retrospect. The author talks of the "aristocratic and plutocratic conception" of the Kennedy family, and their resentment by many of the well-to-do (jealousy or envy?). Chapter 6 tells of the gangland murders in the Boston area (p.89), and the contacts between "millionaire pillars of the community". [Are they still protected by politicians? Does this explain the Massachusetts laws against Second Amendment rights?] Pages 112-113 list JFK's novel Cabinet appointees; some could have served in Eisenhower's Administration. Page 132 tells of the Defense Dept. control of the American economy. The taxes of the many support the corporations owned by the few. These 'make work' projects prevented another after-war economic depression (p.151). Peace would bring a terrific blow to the oil industry (p.153). The "Alliance For Progress" led to more military coups, and forced capital to flow to the U.S. (p.158). Big Business feared the Kennedy administration (p.174). Chapter 10 explains how Big Oil controls governments (p.189). [You'll never read this in newspapers and magazines!]

Chapter 13 is the heart of this 1968 book - it says the assassination was driven by politics and arranged by a "Committee". It depended on powerful men in the Government who would no interfere (p.288). Chapter 16, and others, are an antidote to the fiction of the Warren Report. Chapter 20 ends the book. The deaths of JFK and RFK were not accidents. [What about JFK Jr.?] The 1960s saw many changes in America (p.375). [One index of the 1960s is that people were economically better off than the decades before or after.] But this chapter's ending became outdated. Thirty-five years later some youthful protesters are now part of the Establishment. Some things have changed, but it still remains the same. The prediction about China is now amusing (p.380). Ten years later the Select Congressional Committee re-opened the investigation; they concluded that there were two shooters (refer to pages 356-7), and effectively demolished the shoddy cover-up of the Warren Commission. More books were written because this was no longer a "controversial topic" that was censored by the Establishment. We've also seen other scandals: Watergate, Contra-gate, Iran-gate. The smiling mask on the Establishment wears thin.

I, too, couldn't obtain a copy of this book within the United States for years... Finally, I was able to download [for several hours] a copy off the Internet a few years ago.
Perhaps it's "dated", but that's what makes it all the more valuable a document historically.

And indeed it is, as Bobby and Jackie secretly cooperated with the writing of "Farewell America"...

No WONDER you couldn't get it here for 40 years! It must have SOME validity!

This book was CENSORED for many years. That alone is reason to read it. Basically it tries to say that big OIL did him in.

Perhaps. But he had other powerful enemies as well.

>> Hint: give Final Judgment a read. On page 587 in the newest- 5th edition is an explaination of revenge for all the world to read.

I found this to be an excellent and fascinating primer on the various forces at work against Kennedy. Groups powerful and concerned enough to plan and carry-out the assassination. The story of the book itself, with links to Russian & French intelligence is equally important, as it provides another view of "how things (may) really work".

I only give 4-stars because it reads a little dry at times, and cannot offer any "final answer" that specifically names-names. For anyone interested in JFK, I highly recommend.

I heard Bill Turner, who wrote the Introduction, speak at the COPA conference in Dallas a few weeks ago on JFK. I bought this book there and finished it in three days. It is an amazing story, and I think the most credible I have seen on the entire subject--partly because it was written in the 1960s by people who seemed to know what they were talking about. The author on the book is named James Hepburn, but he was a fictitious person. The real authors turned out to be French Intelligence officers working for De Gaulle, with Kennedy people helping (including Daniel Patrick Moyahan, the future senator from New York). Turner's introduction is long and sets up the whole scenario about the book's history, etc. That alone was worth the price.

According to Turner, Farewell America was originally printed in France under a different title and did well in Europe, but according to Turner, copies were seized in Canada and the book was largely banned or suppressed from American readers. The entire story is amazing, discussing the ties between corporate and banking interests, American intelligence, and international oil companies and Mafia chieftains all against President Kennedy and many of his policies. According to this book, he was killed by a combination of these organizations so that they could bring an end to the economic and social changes JFK stood for. I think the book called it "the committee." The book has a lot of detail that is fascinating, with great footnotes, and some stuff that does not seem tied into all this, and not that interesting.

Overall, I recommend this book strongly to anyone interested in JFK. I had heard about this book for a long time and could never find a copy. It is a credible look at what probably happened to Kennedy. Turner is also the author of Rearview Mirror, his account of life in the FBI. That is a good book too, and I recommend that as well. (He is also a good speaker, so if you get a chance to hear him, don't miss it).

Bill Turner has a pretty interesting collection of work. No matter which side he's on, he always seems interested in the real truth-even if it's the opposite of what it was 20 years ago and 20 years before that and so on. History will tell he is trying to let people know who is really running things. The most powerful people, not necessarily the people with the high IQ's. But what's worse are the killers who think they're acting intelligently out of the most brutal types of professions in the world. What's worse is a Business Army getting paid--a lot--to intelligently force wills on people in the name of freedom. It's ironic how all the politicians are, in hindsight, copying the only President that ever made them mad enough to kill in recent times. No, Kennedy wasn't like any of them. And the same for Robert. They've been etched in history as forcibly being thrown out of the false concept of Politician ilk which inspires running, or hiding, from the press. Or badgering the press. Or being repulsed by any issue which requires courage, or an opportunity to change something big to enhance everyone at least a little instead of all for the little level at the top. They've been sealed by truth with the act of being slain to promote honest justice for the betterment of the whole world and not just the good old US Big Business. Read your bibles. Good book Bill, I'm glad to know someone's fighting for my right to the truth.

After reading it, just relax, make up your mind, and figure out who, in the TOP american business planned the crime, and how many former US american presidentes may have been involved DIRECTLY in the cover-up (one,two, three, four...BINGO!!!).

I don't know if there's any evidence of that, but I remember hearing it when I finally obtained a (still-then-illicit) copy back in the early seventies, and the author does seem to have some closeness to the Kennedy family. "It's a plot," RFK is quoted as saying. "Of course," was the response he received from Dallas Secret Service head Forrest Sorrels.

Suprisingly perceptive, given the time of its authorship. For a long time discredited by other researchers for reasons that aren't entirely clear (perhaps its lack of emphasis on the CIA as the chief culprit), the identification of various interests who came together to execute the assassination seems in retrospect to be quite accurate. Accusations against Dallas "rightwingers", powerful financial interests, political opponents, along with "professionals who had not lost their amateur status," seem to be consistent with later evidence regarding the involvement of Murchison, LBJ and others. Certainly not overly detailed, and of course those looking for new information will be disappointed. And, some punches appear to be pulled, although the implication is clear. (One example of this is the mention of the driver Bill Greer who, it is said, "bears a heavy responsibility"). But definitely a milestone in the field, and very nicely written. Highly recommended.