What's the truth behind the 'Secrety Society' speech by JFK?

[Paranormal Inquirer]

I'm referring to these:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhZk8ronces

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CaaUC8Mtjw4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZYfeYhQ9eU


A lot of people claim this is the reason he was killed. While I do doubt that, I was wondering what exactly he was referring to in that speech. Was it the Communists? Was this speech messed with by taking parts of different speeches he made out of context and together as one big conspiracy theory driven one? The fact that there are different versions makes me skeptical.

[Horatius]

http://www.jfklibrary.org/Historical+Resources/Archives/Reference+Desk/Speeches/JFK/003POF03NewspaperPublishers04271961.htm

[NWO Sentryman]

Mods, Please Lock this thread. This subject has been taken to Mike Tyson as a Punching Bag for his boxing tournaments and used as his stress relief tools. Then it was thrown out to be eaten by flies and thrown onto a fire where it burned to dust and was then reconstituted as a Solid Block, later to be melted down into liquid and ultimately powdered and thrown across the four corners of the world.

tl/dr? The subject's been done to death.

[Paranormal Inquirer]

Mods, Please Lock this thread. This subject has been taken to Mike Tyson as a Punching Bag for his boxing tournaments and used as his stress relief tools. Then it was thrown out to be eaten by flies and thrown onto a fire where it burned to dust and was then reconstituted as a Solid Block, later to be melted down into liquid and ultimately powdered and thrown across the four corners of the world.

tl/dr? The subject's been done to death.

Do you mind linking to a thread? My searching skills apparently fail me.

[Childlike Empress]

Here (http://forums.randi.org/showthread.php?t=161781) is one. It's pretty obvious that he is talking about teh evil communists, isn't it? But i have rarely seen a "CT" video in the last years that didn't have the cropped quotes in it, so please don't mind Sentryman. It is still relevant.

[LightinDarkness]

Its one of those speeches that CTers love to use because if you break it up right it makes it look like JFK was preaching against secret societies - so this works well for anti-masons, people who buy the Illuminati delusion, etc. However, when you look at it in its entirety its clear exactly what it was talking about:

(Pasted from the linked above thread, since its already been covered):
"Quite simply, he was making a speech to the president of the newspaper association regarding the bay of pigs invasion, which the preparations for were reported a few days earlier. Castro read this in the paper and was ready for it.

JFK was basically saying although your duty is to inform the public, please be more sensitive to issues regarding national security."

He had to be a little vague because berating the newspaper community while your giving a speech to them doesn't go over well, but his intentions were clear and it had NOTHING to do with what CTers think it does when they take it out of context. While the CT moonbats LOVE to quote this portion of the speech:


The very word "secrecy" is repugnant in a free and open society; and we are as a people inherently and historically opposed to secret societies, to secret oaths and to secret proceedings. We decided long ago that the dangers of excessive and unwarranted concealment of pertinent facts far outweighed the dangers which are cited to justify it. Even today, there is little value in opposing the threat of a closed society by imitating its arbitrary restrictions. Even today, there is little value in insuring the survival of our nation if our traditions do not survive with it. And there is very grave danger that an announced need for increased security will be seized upon by those anxious to expand its meaning to the very limits of official censorship and concealment. That I do not intend to permit to the extent that it is in my control. And no official of my Administration, whether his rank is high or low, civilian or military, should interpret my words here tonight as an excuse to censor the news, to stifle dissent, to cover up our mistakes or to withhold from the press and the public the facts they deserve to know.


They often forget the very next part, which reveals the context and shows this has nothing to do with what the CTers claim:


But I do ask every publisher, every editor, and every newsman in the nation to reexamine his own standards, and to recognize the nature of our country's peril. In time of war, the government and the press have customarily joined in an effort based largely on self-discipline, to prevent unauthorized disclosures to the enemy. In time of "clear and present danger," the courts have held that even the privileged rights of the First Amendment must yield to the public's need for national security.

Today no war has been declared--and however fierce the struggle may be, it may never be declared in the traditional fashion. Our way of life is under attack. Those who make themselves our enemy are advancing around the globe. The survival of our friends is in danger. And yet no war has been declared, no borders have been crossed by marching troops, no missiles have been fired.

If the press is awaiting a declaration of war before it imposes the self-discipline of combat conditions, then I can only say that no war ever posed a greater threat to our security. If you are awaiting a finding of "clear and present danger," then I can only say that the danger has never been more clear and its presence has never been more imminent.

[maccy]

Horatius has already posted a link to the full text and audio of the speech:

http://www.jfklibrary.org/Historical+Resources/Archives/Reference+Desk/Speeches/JFK/003POF03NewspaperPublishers04271961.htm

All you need to do is read that and it's obvious how deceptive the partial selections on YouTube are.

In addition, here's a Time Magazine report from the time:

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,872353,00.html

As others have said, the conspiracy is Communism and he's basically asking the press to reign in their own freedom in order to aid the fight against Communism - to behave as if the war is still on.

As for the edited versions - another example of willful distortions and misrepresentations from people who are claiming to want to get to the truth of the matter.