Entry for 4/30/2008 at 5:04:23 AM

Wednesday, April 30, 2008 3:04 PM

The United States has always enjoyed its isolation from the continents of Europe and Asia, with an ocean between America and the chaos of war. However, Cuba was a mere 100 miles off the coast of Florida, and too close for comfort. Soviet leader Khrushchev had aligned himself with Cuban Communist leader Castro, planting nuclear weapons in his country aimed at the U.S. This worried Kennedy, who sought a diplomatic solution, encouraging Cuba to sever ties with the Soviet Union. Additionally, Kennedy wanted to extinguish Communist practices in Cuba, which had led to oppressive and inhumane conditions for the people. Many believe that his ideas regarding Cuba and Communism led to his assassination three years later.
On November 22, 1963, shots were fired, shattering the nation’s hope. Tragedy struck when John F. Kennedy was assassinated before 250, 000 witnesses on his way to the Dallas airport by way of motorcade. As he drove past Dealey Plaza, waving to the crowd, a man named Lee Harvey Oswald shot him in the head and neck, injuries which resulted in his death 35 minutes later. Immediately after the death of Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson was flown to Washington, where he took the oath to become the 36th president. Once again, as it had influenced the election, the presence of the media and television played an important role in communicating to the American people. However, to this day, no one is sure exactly why JFK was assassinated.
There are many theories as to the motives behind Kennedy’s death. One prominent idea is that Oswald was part of a pro-Communist group against Kennedy’s strategies regarding Cuba, especially because of where he had lived. Oswald was a U.S. marine for a few years, but at age 19, he emigrated to Russia, living there for several years before returning to the U.S., eventually residing in Dallas, Texas. On the other hand, some believe that Kennedy’s non-violent actions in the Cuban Missile Crisis angered anti-Castro groups, and they wished to have him killed. Another idea suggests that since JFK wanted to stop aiding South Vietnam and cease U.S. involvement with the Vietnam War, people in favor of Vietnamese involvement were behind his assassination. Other conspiracy theories include a CIA plot, and even Mafia involvement, but Kennedy’s stance in all of these guesses only illustrates that he was a peacekeeper, not only for the U.S., but for the entire world.

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