I returned yesterday from 3 days at the conference held by the Cyril H.Wecht Institute for Forensic Science and Law at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh to mark the 60th anniversary of the unsolved murder of President Kennedy.
I got to hear in person and by Zoom many of the people I have mentioned in these essays, and more. It was heartening to hear them and sobering to realize how they have persisted in the face of denial and ridicule for so long.
On the plane back it came to me that the perjorative quality of the term “conspiracy theory “ began as the attack on their credibility. Appalling.
Let me try to right this smear. I submit that it IS crazy to deny that schoolchildren were murdered in their classroom by a lone gunman in Connecticut. I submit that it is NOT crazy to pause and wonder why the “lone gunman” accused of killing our president was assassinated the day following by ….. another “lone gunman” . That sure looked to me like a mob hit to silence someone who knew too much.
It seems like a rational, not crazy, pursuit to try to unravel that mystery. And it seems reasonable to ask all who might have clues to assist in unraveling.
The speakers at the conference are all dedicated to the proposition that if they pursue the evidence and analyze it in a disciplined way (forensically) they will reach and be able to communicate the truth.
They see evidence of a plot, of collusion of multiple parties, and of a coverup.
I’m with them.
To summarize the evidence re-presented at the conference
The evidence of the autopsy does not support the narrative of three shots from behind.
An open microphone on one of the motorcycles in the parade captured five shots at the scene.
The conclusion that Jack Ruby had no ties to organized crime is laughable and easily refuted.
The unwillingness of the Intelligence Community to facilitate the investigation supports all suspicion one wants to direct to them. It’s the murder of their commander in chief we’re talking about for god’s sake!!
Of course I oversimplify here but this is a situation where eagerness to make the case with all the details available can undermine itself.
The primary virtue of the lone gunman explanation is that it is simple. And on top of that he’s dead. All our doubts and the inconvenience of inquiries in our direction are easily consigned to the earth with him.
Consequently it has taken much courage and determination to persist in the search for the truth.
Here are some of the people who have rejected the simple explanation and taken a hard look at the facts, the evidence.
Cyril Wecht - Forensics
John Newman - Intelligence and Military Community
David Talbot - Political Science
Gary Aguilar - Forensics
Bill Simpich - Law
Douglas Horne - Forensics
Daniel Alcorn - Criminal Law
Lawrence Schnapf - Law
Josiah Thompson - Forensics
Donald Thomas - Acoustics
Jefferson Morley- Investigative Journalism
(Look these people up, read and follow their work)
This is an incomplete, subjective list of professionals who contributed to the conference and who have rejected the simple solution because they have seen the evidence to the contrary.
I salute them.
I also salute the faculty, administrators and president of Duquesne University, president Gormley, for their intelligent, capable and dedicated support of these efforts.
Next week : or soon, I feel confirmed that my dramatic approach to this story and my interpretation of Lee Oswald makes sense. Look for the opening scene of “The White Gloves, Legend “ coming soon. Here.
https://www.duq.edu/documents/academics/colleges-and-schools/science/wecht-jfk60-symposium-program-2023.pdf