The continuing controversy about the JFK assassination

HISTORY & CULTURE

The continuing controversy about John F. Kennedy’s assassination

By G. Arnold

On a sunny day forty-five years ago,  John F. Kennedy was assassinated as he rode in an open air limousine through the streets of Dallas, Texas. From that day until the horrific events of September 11, 2001, the president’s assassination stood unrivaled as the nation’s most widely shared and deeply felt national tragedy. If you were old enough to remember anything in 1963, you remember that. And you probably remember the exact circumstances in which you heard the shocking news.

The assassination was arguably the “crime of the century.” The alleged killer, a troubled man named Lee Harvey Oswald, was captured within hours of the shooting. But soon after, while he was in custody awaiting trial and as the police investigation went forward, Oswald was murdered.

Without a trial, there were many open questions. To address them, the federal government launched an official investigation under the auspices of the Warren Commission. In its final report, the Commission concluded that Oswald was the lone killer.

But not long after the Warren Commission issued its report, some people started questioning its judgment. Some people were especially skeptical of the Commission’s claim that Oswald had acted alone. They figured there must be more to the story, that there must have been a conspiracy to pull off such a shocking event.

Over the years, many official and unofficial investigations attempted to clear up the mystery. Many studies did not agree with the Warren Report. But conclusive evidence of a conspiracy — evidence about which all parties could agree — was not forthcoming. All these years later, despite Herculean efforts and massive investigations, people still disagree about whether Oswald acted alone or whether there was a conspiracy.

The possibility of a JFK conspiracy has prompted an avalanche of publications, films, and Internet sites. The multitude of theories presented includes a long list of potential conspirators, ranging from the mob, anti-Castro Cubans, pro-Castro Cubans, the Soviets, and officials in American government and industry. In the many theories that have been presented, the cast of possible conspirators sometimes appear in surprising combinations, with a wide range of possible motivations. Some of the theories seem much more plausible than others. Perhaps the most famous of all such theories appears in Oliver Stone’s 1991 movie JFK, which struck a cord with many viewers.

Public opinion polls show that a sizable number of  Americans  believe the Warren Commission’s findings were wrong and that there was probably a conspiracy involved. For those people seeking to refute such beliefs, it’s hard going. Skepticism about the original finding that Oswald was the lone killer runs high.

Last year, famed attorney Vincent Bugliosi entered the fray, issuing a massive tome with no less than 1,648 pages and so many citations that they are contained in an accompanying CD-ROM. The book, Reclaiming History (W.W. Norton, 2007) is a truly monumental work, in which Bugliosi tries to debunk as many of the conspiracy theories as possible.

Still, it is hard to disprove the theoretical possibility of a conspiracy. And it does not appear that he has persuaded many conspiracy theorists so far.

Whatever you think about the assassination — whether you think it was the work of one man or of a cabal — the shock of the president’s assassination and its murky circumstances still reverberate in our society. It’s an unsettled part of our national story that probably won’t go away anytime soon.

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G. Arnold is an editor of Bread and Circus and the author of Conspiracy Theory in Film, Television, and Politics (Praeger, 2008). You can read more about this topic in a recent article in the Providence Journal.

Farewell, Yugo. We’d miss you if we hadn’t thought you’d already gone

NEWS FROM ALL OVER

FAREWELL, YUGO
Production of iconic automobile terminated

Although it hasn’t yet been big news in the American media, the BBC and other sources are rightfully noting the passing of that strangely iconic automobile, the workaday Yugo. It was recently announced that the car will no longer be manufactured. This may come as news  to American car buyers, who can be forgiven for mistakenly thinking that this had happened a long time ago.

The Yugo mostly disappeared from the American automotive landscape in the early 1990s, only a few years after it was initially imported. During the few years it was sold in the U.S., however, it was very well known. It was certainly one of the least expensive cars on the market. That provided some appeal to American consumers in the mid-1980s when it first showed up in showrooms in the United States.

But shortly after its introduction, stories began to mount suggesting that the Yugo was a “cheap” car in more ways than one. It quickly gained an ignoble reputation. Indeed, it is hard to think of another automobile that has been the object of so many derisive jokes.  (Example heard on the BBC World Service — Question: “What do you call a Yugo on the top of a hill?” Answer: “A miracle.” And that is one of the kinder ones.)

Yet, despite its decidedly meager reputation in terms of quality, the Yugo persisted in the international marketplace for a very long time. Admittedly, American car buyers lost interest some time ago, but it continued to be sold elsewhere.

The Yugo began production during the Yugoslavia years, and it was one of that country’s best known exports. Later, after the that country broke apart with the fall of communism, it continued to be manufactured in Serbia. But that location proved problematic due to the troubled state of relations between Serbia and other nations — especially with NATO nations, with which Serbia engaged in major conflict. When that international situation cooled, it seems to have been too late for the Yugo. The company never seemed to regain whatever momentum it had achieved in prior years.

American automobile producers may have become accustomed to laughing at the Yugo during its heyday.  Yet, it’s ironic that the Yugo’s demise is coming at the same time that the so-called “Big 3″ American car makers — General Motors, Ford, and Chysler — are literally begging for $25 billion from Congress in order to stay afloat. The Big 3 may have manufactured superior products, but it turns out that they have not had much more business sense than the often ridiculed manufacturer of the lowly Yugo. For now, however, the American car industry has outlasted its tiny former rival.

But who knows. The Yugo may soon have plenty of unexpected company in the automotive hereafter.

–G.A.