Hiya Holly:
As a history buff I hope you saw or taped The Kennedys on PBS's American Experience last night.
Serendipitiously, I read the NYT's lead editorial yesterday in which they condemned phonied history by nations such as Japan, the Soviets, France and South Africa, noting that the lies its historians spin with government imprimatur reveal more about those nations than does the bogus history.
In that light then, USers must be getting better, because more and more truth about the Kennedy's is appearing.
While the documentary was flush with the usual Kennedy idolatry (and adultery), it was more balanced with reality.
A few mental notes:
- The Kennedys were shown as ruthless in their pursuit of power and their politics just the means to that end.
- Each iteration of Kennedy brother - Joe, Jack, Bobby, Ted - is inferior to his older sibling.
- Jack's recklessness in his private life was replicated in public policy, leading us closer to nuclear war than any President.
- Jack was far more popular in death than he ever was in life.
- Bobby was a consummate political opportunist, whose politics changed with political advantage. Men of principle, like Gene McCarthy, were trampled in the process.
- Jackie may have never married for love, but she raised her children right. One suspects that JFK2 is superior to his father as a consequence.
- On the lighter side, I almost fell out of may chair when they showed a film clip of old Rose introducing Teddy in 1962, noting that she had given him every advantage religiously, and that from the time he was a child she had been sure that Teddy was going to be a priest or a bishop!!!
There's lots more, (even Judith Exner was there). Tonight they're doing LBJ. Let's hope they put some Robert Caro in there.
The rest of the prez's will fill out February.
Regards |
