JFK - Playboy or Hero?

Today is the fortieth anniversary of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy's assassination. Many consider his death to be the beginning of the decline of this country. His legacy is felt by many to this day and it is wondered what further greatness would have come if he had lived.

The Kennedy's are considered America's royal family. This provides endless entertainment for me as they are such an undesirable group of characters. The family fortune was made from bootlegging. The family faces one scandal after another virtually every year of every decade. It also seems that if you are a Kennedy you are expected to die prematurely in some wondrous catastrophe.

The Kennedy "greatness" all started with Joseph Kennedy. He was a Harvard graduate who along with his organized crime partners made their fortunes through America's great thirst during Prohibition. He was also a great rapist and manipulator of the American Stock Exchange. He was so adept at this that the President of the US placed him in charge of the SEC. Who better to catch the white collar criminals than the greatest one himself?

What Papa Joe wanted the most was for one of his sons to be President. He had all of his hopes resting on the family golden boy, Joe Jr, his namesake. John was always in competition with his older brother. While JFK was sickly, Joe was always strong. Joe did everything better than John, all their lives. Joe became a fighter pilot while John entered the navy because the health requirements were lower. Joe was on his way to glory and eventually becoming president. Unfortunately, he was shot down over Europe and died.

John managed to find glory in the war. He was the captain of torpedo boat PT-109. It was cut in half by a Japanese boat and two of the members died. JFK swam a fantastic distance dragging one of his crewmen with his teeth. Heroic right? That part may be, but how exactly does a torpedo boat get cut in half by another boat? It is believed these guys were slacking off. Anyways, Kennedy's written account of this went on to be a bestseller. He even got married to an older woman but Papa Joe managed to make it disappear.

Later on, Papa Joe bought his son's presidency and Camelot was born. Here the world had the new style President and First Lady. All the women wanted him and wanted to dress like her. Kennedy obliged the masses by making wonderful speeches and sleeping with as many women as he could. There are tales of the orgies of sex and drugs that took place not just in the private homes, hotels, but also the sacred confines of the White House. What a role model.

There is a giant controversy over who is responsible for his death. Everyone from the Mafia, Cubans, CIA, FBI, Secret Service, to LBJ have been named as conspirators. That fateful day in Dallas has been likened to the death of a king. What kind of king is that? He is not the great figure that he is made out to be. He's just another one of those flawed power mongers who rose to power and lost it just as quickly.