November 22, 1963. If you were to ask most American’s what occurred that day, they would most likely tell you it was one of the most tragic events to happen to this country. Our then president, John F. Kennedy, was assassinated during a parade on a visit to Dallas, Texas. Supposedly Lee Harvey Oswald shot him with a rifle from a Book Depository window; missing the first, nailing JFK in the throat with the second, and getting a fatal headshot on the third, but this story does not add up to a lot of people. With John F. Kennedy being the first president to be assassinated, it raised a plethora of skeptical people and possibilities of what actually happened to JFK. Some conspiracies are that it was an act of multiple people, or even that the government or VP Lyndon B. Johnson killed him. The most plausible of these theories is that there were multiple shooters.
At forty-three years of age, JFK was the youngest president to ever be in office. Also known as one of the most handsome presidents we have ever had, JFK stood about 6’1, with exquisite blue-green eyes, and luscious chestnut colored hair ("John F. Kennedy with Ham."). Many women would agree, especially Marilyn Monroe. Most people would tell you that the two had an ongoing affair for the longest time. Philip Watson, a former Los Angeles county assessor who personally knew Monroe, said, “'There was no question in my mind that Marilyn and the President were together. They were having a good time. She'd had a lot to drink. It was obvious they were intimate and that they were staying there together for the night,'” (J. Randy Taraborrelli). Marilyn was only one of many for JFK, and his wife Jackie knew about his multiple rendezvous (rendezvous).
Even though he appeared perfect, JFK had a lot of hidden health problems. He was known for having to take medications for his chronic back problems, but after his death they discovered more health issues that he had. After putting together pieces about his illnesses, they found out that he also had a serious digestive problem and Addison’s disease, so he took multiple medicines like painkillers, anti-anxiety, stimulants, hormones and also sleeping pills ("In J.F.K. File, Hidden Illness, Pain and Pills - The New ..."). During the Cuban Missile Crisis, it was reported that, “Kennedy was taking antispasmodics to control colitis; antibiotics for a urinary tract infection; and increased amounts of hydrocortisone and testosterone, along with salt tablets, to control his adrenal insufficiency and boost his energy ("In J.F.K. File, Hidden Illness, Pain and Pills - The New ...").” According to Robert Dallek, JFK took about eight medications a day ("In J.F.K. File, Hidden Illness, Pain and Pills - The New ..." Due to all these medications, his wife Jackie observed that he was becoming depressed because of the drugs side effects (2). All of these health problems were not noticeable to anyone who did not personally know JFK. Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr, Kennedy’s aide and historian, mentioned that, “[I] had never been aware of the president's pain, except when he was unable to pick up his children, for example. I mean, he never uttered a word of self-pity or complaint,'' ("In J.F.K. File, Hidden Illness, Pain and Pills - The New ...”). Masking this from the public is one of JFK’s highlights.
The story now is that Lee Harvey Oswald assassinated him with a rifle on the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository, but contrary to popular beliefs that could possibly not be true (Vollbach, Michael, and Ronald Burda). For one, with the type of rifle he used, a Mannlicher-Carcano, every time shots are fired residue is released onto the shooters face (Vollbach, Michael, and Ronald Burda). When Oswald was arrested, they tested him for the residue, but the tests came out negative (Vollbach, Michael, and Ronald Burda). That alone could not prove that there were multiple shooters, but if you were to look at the autopsy and compare it to the location of the shooter, the results would be questionable. When compared, the Warren Commission said that the point of entry was the back of the neck, but the surgeon on duty said that the point of exit was the back of the neck (Vollbach, Michael, and Ronald Burda). Taking the surgeons autopsy as proof, there is no way that JFK could have been shot from the front by Oswald in the Book Depository because the car was passed the building at that point. Many bystanders say the shots sounded like, “boom… boom, boom,” showing that there was about a two count pause in between the first and second shot, but the second and third shot had less than a half count in between. Supposedly, with that type of gun, there is no way that those last two shots were fired from the same person because the gun does not shoot that fast, so unless there were more shooters, that would not be possible. Could it be a group men that JFK angered because of their wives?
Another we believed theory is that the government or LBJ set him up to be assassinated. A plethora of people were aware of LBJ not being very fond of JFK. Johnson has said controversial things like, “Those SOB’s will never embarrass me again. That’s not a threat. That’s a promise,” the night before JFK was assassinated, or even the constant name calling of, “Irish Mafia,” ("LBJ Killed JFK."). Observing pictures of the then president and vice-president, Lyndon serves an abundance of bone chilling, piercing looks ("LBJ Killed JFK."). LBJ was the one that did the route change having less police and less protection ("LBJ Killed JFK."). Could this ‘planned assassination’ be the reason of the sudden route change? Johnson’s mistress of that time, Madeleine Brown, was skeptical of the events, and she consistently asked if he had anything to do with Kennedy’s assassination ("LBJ Killed JFK."). Eventually he replied, “You know the people that I know… The oil people and CIA… They did it!” proving that he knew about this being planned ("LBJ Killed JFK."). Most people know that JFK’s novice actions for the Bay of Pigs disappointed numerous numbers of officials. Could LBJ and the government come together to murder JFK? Since he was extremely ill, they might have figured that it was not a big loss ("In J.F.K. File, Hidden Illness, Pain and Pills - The New ...").
JFK’s assassination will forever be known as one of the most memorable presidential moment. As long ago as it was, this is still questioned to this day. In my survey of twenty, half believed that the story the media told was not true. All that is actually known is that our thirty-fifth president was assassinated in Dallas, Texas on November 22, 1963. Did Lee Harvey Oswald really assassinate him or were there more shooters? Did the government and LBJ plan JFK’s demise? After observing information, the most reasonable conspiracy would be there being multiple shooters, but the whole truth will never be known.
Works Cited
"In J.F.K. File, Hidden Illness, Pain and Pills - The New ..." N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Nov. 2016.
"John F. Kennedy with Ham." The Presidential Ham. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Nov. 2016
"LBJ Killed JFK." AJKAT.Org. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Dec. 2016.
MailOnline, J. Randy Taraborrelli for. "Madness of Marilyn: The Affair with JFK and the Drug Crazed Paranoia That Put Her in a Padded Cell." Mail Online. Associated Newspapers, 2009. Web. 10 Nov. 2016.
Vollbach, Michael, and Ronald Burda. "Multiple Shots from Many Directions Killed JFK." Www.usnews.com. U.S. News, 18 Nov. 2013. Web.
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