New JFK assassination book

I actually just got to go there earlier this summer (museum and plaza), and I agree, it doesn't look to be a terribly difficult shot for anyone with skill. From the fence behind the grassy knoll, though, my recollection is that you're limited by some trees. Honestly, if he was going to do it, he picked a good spot. My only question was why he didn't shoot as Kennedy approached him, as opposed to waiting for the turn and shooting him going away. Seemed a better shot that way. Who knows - with the stress of what he was doing, maybe his conscience got the best of him for a moment, or maybe he just wasn't in position and ready yet.

Regardless, I still think he's the lone gunman.

 

Which obviously wasn't his goal, since he killed a cop afterward while trying to escape.

 

This is just me spitballing my own thoughts since no one ever heard Oswald's thoughts ... but I think if he shoots while Kennedy is coming toward him he draws a lot more attention to his position. Everyone standing along Houston Ave. back to Main Street is looking straight toward him. All the Secret Service agents walking with the car are looking straight toward him. But if he lets the limo turn onto Elm, now he's behind everything and most everyone's eyes. Even the people standing on Houston are now looking West following the motorcade. It's just easier to ambush from behind.

I think if he shoots as the motorcade is coming toward him he knows that he never gets out of the building.

And, just another thought, but does he even had a completely clear shot at Kennedy with Connelly sitting directly in front of Kennedy?

 

O_T, your last comment - about the clear shot, is what I wondered too. There's people in front of him. Plus the windshield. I've never been there, so I don't have any sense of the angles, but I wondered if the shot from the back was the easier shot because of what was in front of him. (Based on my memory of the video it seems like the back would have been a larger target to aim at, but I haven't seen that video in a few years, and don't really have any desire to watch it again....)

 

I agree with Tony.

 

I asked this earlier in the thread and nobody replied: How in the world would the back of JFK's head be basically blown away if the head shot was taken from behind?

I'm not very familiar with firearms/wounds caused by said firearms, but aren't entry wounds typically much smaller than exit wounds?

 

Typically, yes, the entry is much smaller than the exit.

Oswald's shots would not be difficult, as has been noted by Old Tony and others, for a dedicated marksman with a proper rest, calm sense of purpose and effective rifle. I always have believed he acted alone. Waiting until the limo is going away and attention is following it also makes great sense for the shooter.

 

Whatever happened to that Internet game about 10 years ago that offered $1,000,000 to anyone who could completely replicate Oswald's shot pattern?

You had to take three shots in 5.6 seconds, and the object of the game was to reach 100% of the checkpoints exactly as Oswald did (injure Kennedy with a neckshot, injure (but not kill) Connally, Kennedy headshot with the third shot.)

The makers of the game claimed they had consistently pulled it off and it proved the Warren Commission right. Really fascinating concept. My brother and I would play it all night and watch the replays from every angle.

 

Problem is, that scenario doesn't prove the Warren Commission right. One bullet would have to hit the sidewalk near James Tague.
This is the FBI's version of what happened, and if I remember correctly they stood by this even after Arlen Specter's single bullet theory was adopted in the Warren Report.

 

Of course, part of the trouble is that Oswald didn't pull a John Wilkes Booth and proclaim his support for a world revolution at his press appearances.

He's being cagey if you watch the clips on Youtube but cagey in a way that can support all sorts of theories.

 

Please, go and read Gerald Posner's "Case Closed," which pretty much slammed the door shut on any conspiracy theories.