Jim Garrison on gov't: 40 years ago, he saw

This was a remarkable man, and his words should not be lost. Forty years after he spoke them they are more relevant than ever.

Earling Carothers "Jim" Garrison was District Attorney for New Orleans, and placed local businessman Clay Bertrand on trial for conspiracy in the assassination of John F. Kennedy. He was the focus of Oliver Stone's film, JFK. This comes from a Playboy interview in 1967, and retains the copyright of both Playboy and Garrison's estate. The full interview is found here.

PLAYBOY: Many of the professional critics of the Warren Commission appear to be prompted by political motives: Those on the left are anxious to prove Kennedy was murdered by a internal conspiracy within the establishment; and those on the right are eager to prove the assassination was an act of "the international Communist conspiracy." Where would you place yourself on the political spectrum--right, left or center?

JIM GARRISON: That's a question I've asked myself frequently, especially since this investigation started and I found myself in an incongruous and disillusioning battle with agencies of my own Government. I can't just sit down and add up my political beliefs like a mathematical sum, but I think, in balance, I'd turn up somewhere around the middle. Over the years, I guess I've developed a somewhat conservative attitude--in the traditional libertarian sense of conservatism, as opposed to the thumbscrew-and-rack conservatism of the paramilitary right--particularly in regard to the importance of the individual as opposed to the State and the individual's own responsibilities to humanity . . .

Mod Edit: Reduced External Quote.

[edit on 24/7/2007 by Mirthful Me]

Just a little note, for accuracy. It was Clay Shaw placed on trial (many speculated that Shaw used the alias Bertrand however it has never been proven...not to say that I don't personally believe that he was.)

JG was a man ahead of his time in regards to the Kennedy cover-up. However, I feel that the whole movement of the time was hurt as much as it was helped by his investigation. I personally feel that Garrison let his ego and self publicity get in the way of the investigation. But, that's just my opinion.

Jasn