I am old enough to have experienced the pain of that awful day. For those of you who know only what you read in the newspapers and hear on TV–I say “count yourself lucky”. It was a day of watching a nation in disbelief. Some wept openly in public places. Others seemed in a daze. It wasn’t a political question of JFK as a Democrat or Republican. It was a story of a young family in its prime being shattered by a lone wolf’s hatred…or was it? We’re providing three theories that history may or may not verify. You may check them out. All three possibilities are realistic but none were ever proven. For your history lesson–these are presented on the chance that you might not want to believe that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. First, the business theory. JFK had clamped down hard on the steel industry in early 1962. He apparently believed that steel was the literal backbone of all US manufacturing. Along with his brother, Attorney General Robert Kennedy, JFK vowed to focus on keeping steel prices down over the stringent objections of some very influential CEO’s and steel company Boards of Directors. This all came at a time when foreign steel (Japan, etc.) was already invading our business world. So, as the theory goes, the steel industry arranged the Dallas disaster for profit motives. The second theory is related to military and our defense readiness. The previous October (1962) JFK had called the Russian bluff when the Soviets tried to install long range missiles in Cuba. It became apparent that President Kennedy would view such efforts as an act of war–and his immediate and effective response was to intercept and blockade the Russian ships that were carrying the missiles. They never reached Cuba. Is it a coincidence that 13 months later, Lee Harvey Oswald who had been traced to Russian ties (his wife was Russian) and could be placed in Russia recently pulled the trigger? The third theory–and one you will NEVER read about in any newspaper or hear on TV is the political theory. A well-known Texas businessman named Billie Sol Estes was being investigated for fraud. He apparently owned several huge holding tanks that supposedly contained millions of gallons of linseed oil. Using the supposed value of that product he tried to borrow from local banks. The tanks were rigged so that any sampling technique would release enough linseed oil to convince people that the tanks were full. THEY WERE NOT. In fact they were 99.99% empty. Billie Sol Estes was a fraud. Attorney General Robert Kennedy sent multiple teams of US Marshals and even a judge to look into the situation. None of them ever reached Dallas. No one knows what happened and they were not part of the Warren Commission Report. You see, Billie Sol Estes was the primary contributor to the campaigns of Lyndon Johnson–JFK’s Vice President. The theory was that LBJ (Johnson) was more involved with the Estes scandal than just taking political donations. And when Robert Kennedy stepped up his inquiry the then-VP (Johnson) was put between the proverbial rock and a hard place. Was LBJ involved in the Kennedy plot? Before you answer think about the reaction of Robert Kennedy who knew about the Johnson-Estes connection. When Robert Kennedy began campaigning 5 years later (1968) he pledged to follow up on the JFK murder. Johnson was president and possibly re-visiting his Estes exposure from 1962. And in 1968–while campaigning in California–Robert Kennedy was gunned down. Were the Kennedy brothers assassinations related politically? In conclusion, these are just three theories. The Warren Commission concluded that Oswald acted alone. Their final report failed to satisfy many people because there were several unexplained events surrounding the ability of Oswald’s capabilities and resources. But by that time Johnson was president and we were knee-deep in the Vietnam conflict. Check out the information we’ve offered. There is no proof that any of these theories actually lead to or caused the JFK tragedy. The truth is hidden in the folds of history and maybe that’s the way it should be. After all, what would we gain today if any conclusion other than the “acted alone” verdict could be proven? As you reflect on the 60th anniversary of the death just think of a young family torn apart by a madman and imagine how easy it is today in a nation where the number of guns owned in America outnumber the population of America. Scary–isn’t it?
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