JFK

[g_ludwick@VENUS.TWU.EDU]

I remember very well the day JFK was assassinated in Dallas.
I was a freshman in college in Denton, Texas, 30 miles north of
Dallas.  My habit at that time was to write to a family member
or friend after lunch (if you want someone to write to you, you
have to write to them!).  My roommate and I returned from lunch;
she went down the hall to visit, I stayed and began a letter to
my parents.  In the middle of writing the letter, the radio braodcast
the news of the shots and that JFK was being rushed to Parkland
hospital.  It seemed very unreal that such a thing could happen
in our country.  I stopped my sentences in the letter and wrote
what I had just heard.  I remember writing that I thought shooting
the president was REALLY STUPID even if one hated the man.  (My
sister , then 8 years old, laughed at my comments.  She could not
believe I would make a commentary in the midst of the letter.)
Of course, all who had their radios on called out the news to
everyone else.  The rest of the afternoon was spent discussing
events.  Our college closed classes until the following Monday
as best I recall.  The entire weekend/week was surreal.  I attended
church on Sunday with my roommate; when we returned we watched the
assassination of Lee Harvey Oswald!  My roommate spent most of the
three days crying almost hysterically because she had never known
anyone who died and she felt a personal loss.  While I felt the loss
it did not make me as emotional as she was.
     Until about 5 years ago I discounted all conspiracy theories
as idle wastes of time....something done by those with little else
to think about.  However after seeing the path the "single bullet"
would have had to take, I cannot believe the single bullet idea.
....I would really like to know the truth of the matter, but it
won't happen in my generation....I do remember being amazed at the
time that they could track Oswald to the theater etc. and catch
him in such a quick time period.
     As an aside, most ministers would not conduct the service for
Oswald because of the horror of the deed.  I now happen to attend
church with a retired minister who felt the family should have their
loved one buried with a proper service and he agreed to conduct the
funeral for Oswald.  He considers it a very private matter, but
perhaps I will ask him about the experience and what he now feels
about Oswald.
I hope you enjoy your studies on this fascinating part of American
history.  If you want to get involved in the peculiar aspects of the
case, a good book is Crossfire.   The movie JFK combined all the
various theories about what really happened and was pretty confusing.
This book is clear...doesn't come to conclusions, but shows how some
things just don't add up.