Corrupt, influential leaders and political movements use various methods to manipulate citizens according to their preferences. History is rife with devious tyrants and regimes that were unrestrained in using propaganda to shape perception. When those in control feel their grasp is impaired, they desperately attempt to retain authority by limiting the boundaries of thoughts and words.
This behavior is often a precursor to their demise.
The vilification of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is a classic occurrence of this degenerative process. It reveals the unethical motivation and insidious methods of powerful forces plying a sinister scheme. Understanding their domination of Washington's infrastructure provides insight into the causes and outcomes, including the decline of American moral authority.
When RFK Jr. first declared his candidacy, the response from much of the political world and the vast majority of the press reflected and reinforced substantial negative public sentiment. The abuse had already been seeded in the mainstream media because of Kennedy’s previous challenges to authority.
Resentment was enormous compared to any reasonable response and analysis of a presidential contender. The name-calling and derision were not based on objective critical thinking. This absurd hostility grew as Kennedy’s popularity increased.
The news media was unwilling to report on his concepts and agenda, and immense energy was spent finding flaws in his personality.
The well-funded apparatus of the Democratic Party joined the attacks, and a team of researchers sought out those who had known Kennedy at any time during the last fifty years, probing for stories that would further degrade his image. Using a range of ploys, an aggressive team of attorneys fought to keep RFK Jr. off state ballots.
News coverage of Kennedy contained a plethora of hit pieces that repeated the unsubstantiated, dismissive terms “conspiracy theorist” and “anti-vaxer.” Their use was an attempt at distraction, hoping he would be humiliated, glossed over, and ignored.
Kennedy defended himself against these stereotypes, pointing out their weak foundations and lack of specific information. He repeatedly asked critics to review the facts and listen carefully to his ideas, often saying, “Tell me where I’m wrong.”
None of the arrogant pundits took up this challenge. Though interviews with him appeared on social media, major news organizations preferred to repeat negative commentary rather than give him a platform to respond.
Ignoring the hostile barrage, RFK Jr. continued to present his vision and delineated the issues he felt strongly about. Condemnation continued with minimal analysis of his outlook.
This was not simply a rejection of his qualifications as a candidate; the chorus of diatribes was designed to deny the public from hearing what he had to say.
The Real RFK Jr.
The cloud of unsubstantiated newspeak and disinformation about Kennedy contradicts reality.
RFK Jr. is one of history's most experienced and successful environmental attorneys. He is responsible for unprecedented toxic waste clean-up in America’s rivers and streams. For his efforts in restoring New York’s Hudson River, Time Magazine designated him a “Hero of the Planet.”
His statements and positions on scientific issues are based on research, data, and grounded logic. Kennedy has been the lead attorney on numerous cases fighting industrial pollution. He was co-counsel on a legal team that successfully sued Monsanto; the trial revealed that the company knew its widely-used product, Round-Up, contained a deadly carcinogen.
Kennedy’s unflinching courage is reflected by his willingness to reproach the largest corporations and the government agencies that protect them.
Mainstream news ignores or disparages his efforts to scrutinize medical care for the youngest Americans, while networks receive millions in sponsorship from Big Pharma. His noble work defending children from overmedication has made him a target of the pharmaceutical and medical industries. RFK Jr. is at the front of the battle, demanding corrupt regulatory agencies stop supporting and defending a declining healthcare system.
Extreme differences of opinion are understandable in heated campaigns. Yet the acrimonious tirades against Kennedy are not easily explained by simple financial greed or dirty presidential politics. The intensity of angry denunciations reveals that Kennedy represents an existential threat to the political establishment and its allies in the business world, the Pentagon, and the intelligence community.
The drive to obscure Kennedy’s perspective betrays a deep-seated apprehension about his ability to influence the country’s priorities.
Inciting His Detractors
Angry critics repeat the fallacy that Kennedy’s family name is the only reason for his popularity. For added measure, many claim he is abusing the legacy of Robert F. Kennedy and John F. Kennedy to gain favor with voters.
These failed attempts to denounce Kennedy are overt contrivances; it is no transgression to find inspiration and direction from one’s predecessors.
Those who have heard RFK Jr. speak about his elders immediately recognize that they have profoundly influenced his views and character. Insisting Kennedy is a deviant for daring to invoke his forefathers reveals a tactic to obscure the obvious: he has bravely revived principles eclipsed by his father's and uncle's deaths.
Damage inflicted by those assassinations of the 1960s has metastasized, allowing destructive repercussions to escalate. Since then, a powerful cabal has ensured that the United States operates as a corporate dynasty supporting the wealthy and powerful rather than upholding a nation that encourages peace and prosperity.
Trillions of dollars are spent on military ventures while millions of people struggle to find adequate food and shelter. Most families in the US operate on month-to-month finances, and the privilege of buying a home is now reserved for the wealthy. An unprecedented number of chronic health issues increase as government fails to intervene and pharmaceutical industry profits soar.
When viewing this degradation over the last fifty years, it is the assassinations that turned the tide. No matter who was responsible for the murders, this destructive era began with the empowerment of a ruthless clique who took advantage of those crimes and contaminated the political world with compromised ethics.
Americans who lived through the tragic events and their aftermath helplessly witnessed a Faustian bargain. Successive generations also bear this burden, having inherited a collective understanding and guilt of that immense loss.
A warrior cult had usurped the noble imperatives of the United States.
Washington has pretended to support fairness, freedom, and democracy, claiming to embrace President John F. Kennedy's vision for the country. His death allowed a reign of pretenders to subvert the agenda to end war and wage peace. Before being violently struck down, his brother, Robert Kennedy, was preparing to renew similar intentions.
In the wake of the assassinations, the US went on to support dictators and tyrants throughout the world, fund ongoing conflicts, push poisonous corporate agriculture and dangerous chemicals, and use military and intelligence agencies — as enforcers to secure the interests of the American corporate empire.
Efforts have been made to reverse this demise, though facing the reality of horrific wounds that shocked the country has been challenging. It is easier, more convenient, and less disturbing for most to believe the conventional wisdom that the only problems for the United States emanate from those who doubt the dominant narrative.
Forces continuing to benefit from the cataclysmic cultural trauma that changed the course of the United States depend on the public’s inability to understand the fallout from the assassinations. The overriding animosity towards RFK Jr. emerges from these leading establishment members who view Kennedy and his intentions as a significant threat to their supremacy. They desperately need to deny his viability as a leader — and demonstrate their complicity in this effort — by silencing him.
Despite this censorship, whoever listens to RFK Jr. with an open mind recognizes that he embodies our grief and redemption. Kennedy has catalyzed personal tragedy and pain into an optimistic and authentic vision for the future. He has lifted a dark veil and reawakened the American dream.
An Unexpected, Dynamic Turn
Those who thought they had complete control of a growing authoritarian infrastructure were outraged as Kennedy attempted to pull back the curtain on their deceit. Much to their chagrin, he has renewed hope across generations. People recognize Kennedy is challenging a government that has allowed health and economic degradation — and shuns honest leadership.
This momentum increased as RFK, Jr. made a dynamic move. Because of the relentless personal attacks and multiple legal actions against his campaign, Kennedy suspended his independent candidacy and endorsed Donald Trump. This dramatically widens his visibility nationally and will significantly influence the presidential election.
Trump’s willingness to allow RFK Jr. to present his views in alliance with the Republican campaign is a credit to him. Kennedy’s adaptation of their motto — make America healthy again — adds an undeniably relevant concept that can’t be ignored.
As a co-chair of the Trump transition team, RFK Jr. can shape the President’s cabinet, initiate a new era of healthcare reform, and press his case for general demilitarization and peaceful resolutions of world conflicts.
The political brigade that had assumed successful suppression of Kennedy has become furious with this ascent. Former Democrat Tulsi Gabbard's concurrent endorsement of Trump has added to their wrath. Gabbard and Kennedy both have constructive and reasonable ideas; it will be difficult to distract from their words with personal disparagement.
The hidden, elite faction that has manipulated US policies since the 1960s will only increase reckless efforts to prevent anyone from preempting its authority. The news media will attempt to continue supporting this subterfuge — mindlessly pretending dignity and righteousness guide America — as the US pushes a destructive world order.
Understanding the impetus and methodology of deep, perversive forces is crucial in rectifying the damage done. The power of the embedded contingent within the government that has corrupted Washington will diminish as their subversion is revealed. As the truth of their depravity is exposed, their dominance will end.
Only after fully understanding and healing from the traumatic events that have undermined our society for decades will an honorable, representative government in the United States become possible.
If you read Report From Planet Earth for free, please consider upgrading to a paid subscription or making a one-time contribution to support our ongoing work.
Thank you for this excellent and important essay. The effort to cancel and denigrate RFK, Jr. exposes lessons that apply to far more than one man. A couple of months ago, I wrote a piece where I simply observed that Mr. Kennedy has produced important and brave work in numerous fields of endeavor (health, science, the environment, defending civil liberties and fighting censorship, pointing out the capture of the giant oligarch companies, etc). He's been a best-selling author of supremely important books, a litigator, started an important non-profit and even a journalism organization that covers taboo topics.
His campaign to "make America healthy again" is inspired and this message seems to be resonating with many more people. RFK, Jr's alliance with President Trump has to scare the daylights out of the world's real rulers - which means everyone who genuinely cares about our nation's future should support this formidable team.
https://billricejr.substack.com/p/the-pros-and-cons-of-bobby-kennedy
Thanks for this essay, D. Marks. I'm with you, as I wrote in this: https://marypoindextermclaughlin.substack.com/p/why-rfk-jr-makes-me-cry
An excerpt that dovetails with your comment:
"Celia Farber says: "Cynical Smart Set wants you to worship them because they see how dark everybody who seems like a good guy really is. And they peddle the Trust Nobody grift, their collections of dots.”
I’m just not interested in joining the Cynical Smart Set. (Not that they’d have me.) I don’t function well from a place of complete cynicism, and I don’t think society as a whole does, either. Cynicism has its place — it’s a good idea to question motives and narratives, especially of those in power — but if it’s not tempered with hope, life is bleak and pretty much not worth living, IMHO.
By the way, when I use the term hope, I’m using it in the way Vaclav Havel defined it: “an orientation of the spirit.” I think of it as an attitude of pure possibility, a state of positive curiosity, an opening to ALL potentialities. For more about the essential nature of hope defeating tyranny, read my earlier essay, Redefining Hope and Acceptance.
That’s the kind of hope that Bobby’s father and uncle were able to inspire in the hearts of Americans from all walks of life."
People can call me brainless and naive, that's fine. Everything we ALL believe is supposition. We're all guessing at what's going on, even though we may present it as fact.
And one last thing... it may be that our entire government system is as inherently corrupt and unsalvageable as some say it is. If it needs to crumble, it will. Having hope, as Havel defined it, won't prevent that from happening; it just maintains the field of ALL possibilities, including, perhaps, that the goodness of a few can prevail.