4 ms·

I believe it was Oswald. After believing it was more than one for a long time, maybe two independent shooters, unaware of the other. I really studied a lot and

I believe it was Oswald. After believing it was more than one for a long time, maybe two independent shooters, unaware of the other. I really studied a lot and realized it could only have been Oswald. A most unfortunate fluke of history.

jMyles 9y ago
Thank you for your candor. I always have the same three questions about Oswald for people who subscribe to this theory: 1) What happened in his last three years of his life that took him from Maggie's Drawers to the skill required to execute such incredible precision shooting? Do you believe that he dedicated himself to intense rifle training during this time without anyone knowing? 2) Why didn't he fire as the motorcade approached on Houston? 3) We now know from video evidence that he was not in the window 5 seconds before the shooting took place. Why not? Why wasn't he watching his target during this time? Even if he wanted to hide the rifle for that moment? Bonus question: have you ever tried to hit a target at this range? A moving target? Without having your rifle in a ready position 5 seconds prior? It takes years and years of training to get this good. For my part, I'd certainly vote to acquit Oswald based on what we know today if I were consider this case as a juror. We have video evidence that he was not in the window 5 seconds prior, and witnesses to establish his whereabouts just 3 minutes later on the first floor (where he was calmly drinking a coke, not out of breath from having darted down six flights of stairs). But if it was him, this was an incredible, astonishing feat of marksmanship and escape.
- ctdonath 9y ago
  As a trained long range shooter, may I observe: such incredible precision shooting? this was an incredible, astonishing feat of marksmanship It's not incredible. With some decent practice, it's not hard. The limo was hardly moving laterally from that position, and not receding fast. Numerous experts have recreated the shot, and concluded the same. You can even try it yourself from Oswald's POV (if you can find a copy, and find old hardware to run it on) in this faithful simulation: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/JFK_Reloaded https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/JFK_Reloaded There's no reason to believe Oswald couldn't/didn't shoot JFK. A SS agent may have added to the confusion with a negligent discharge though.
  - jMyles 9y ago
    So, I am not a trained long range shooter, let me just put that out there. I've only fired maybe 200-300 rounds at distances longer than 70 yards. But it's not hard to dispute parts of your statement: > Numerous experts have recreated the shot, and concluded the same. Most of the experts enlisted to do this have not concluded the same. Some are now ardent believers in multiple-shooter theories. I am aware of no test in which shooters were challenged with a fact pattern in which they were out of sight of the target 5 seconds before, had to shoot through foliage at a moving target, and used a sufficiently similar weapon. What's the closest thing in your opinion? > You can even try it yourself from Oswald's POV (if you can find a copy, and find old hardware to run it on) in this faithful simulation: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/JFK_Reloaded https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/JFK_Reloaded I have played quite a bit with this simulation, and while it gives a pretty good sense of Dealy Plaza, I found three things notable about it: 1) Even after trying many, many times (probably a thousand), I was unable to recreate the Warren Commission scenario 2) The easiest way to kill anyone in the motorcade is to shoot while it's on Houston 3) The rifle is much, much different than a 6.5mm bolt action. It behaves more like an AR-15. It feels semi-automatic with very little recoil.
    - ctdonath 9y ago
      Most of the experts enlisted to do this have not concluded the same. Do you know these "experts" personally? I do know ones who have tried it and deemed it a not unreasonable shot. I have to suspect naysaying "experts" either have ulterior motives in advocating an "it's difficult" angle, or just aren't experts - more likely someone made a comment that got rephrased until it mutated into "experts say it couldn't be done alone..." FWIW: I've repeatedly hit man-sized targets up to 1000 yards with a bolt-action rifle under tight time constraints. I won't say it's "easy", but it certainly was doable with few days' solid practice. I am aware of no test in which shooters were challenged with .... What's the closest thing in your opinion? What you describe is normal deer hunting. Moving targets, narrow windows of opportunity, bolt-action rifles. A good percentage of 18,000,000 hunters make comparable shots annually. three things notable about it 1) That was the ultimate goal of releasing the "game": to see if anyone could reproduce that particular scenario precisely. Admittedly, nobody did - though most found that making the JFK-killing shot was not difficult. Then again, a proper study of the data collected would likely show that any given shot was never substantially repeated. If we consider the "agent accidentally fired a shot in a really bad direction" theory, it all does add up. 2) Easiest, yes - when you know exactly how the whole scenario can play out with all variations start to finish. While that would have been the ideal shot, firing when Oswald did (limo traveling away from window) is not substantially more difficult. 3) Mouse & keyboard don't recreate the feel of a bolt-action rifle. That aside, a trained shooter (like ex-Marine Oswald) can operate a bolt-action nearly as fast as a semi-auto, and comes to control & ignore recoil.
- tcskeptic 9y ago
  Can you point me to a video of number 3?
  - jMyles 9y ago
    Here's the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kA0t5zvaW70 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kA0t5zvaW70 The most relevant part is 35-40 seconds. Here's a citation explaining what's going on here: http://22november1963.org.uk/how-did-oswald-kill-kennedy#fn03_005 http://22november1963.org.uk/how-did-oswald-kill-kennedy#fn0... And here's the FBI document referenced above, with commentary on the video: https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=62272#relPageId=44 https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=62272#relPage...
    - tcskeptic 9y ago
      Thanks, though none of that looks very compelling to me.

jMyles 9y ago

Thank you for your candor. I always have the same three questions about Oswald for people who subscribe to this theory: 1) What happened in his last three years of his life that took him from Maggie's Drawers to the skill required to execute such incredible precision shooting? Do you believe that he dedicated himself to intense rifle training during this time without anyone knowing? 2) Why didn't he fire as the motorcade approached on Houston? 3) We now know from video evidence that he was not in the window 5 seconds before the shooting took place. Why not? Why wasn't he watching his target during this time? Even if he wanted to hide the rifle for that moment? Bonus question: have you ever tried to hit a target at this range? A moving target? Without having your rifle in a ready position 5 seconds prior? It takes years and years of training to get this good. For my part, I'd certainly vote to acquit Oswald based on what we know today if I were consider this case as a juror. We have video evidence that he was not in the window 5 seconds prior, and witnesses to establish his whereabouts just 3 minutes later on the first floor (where he was calmly drinking a coke, not out of breath from having darted down six flights of stairs). But if it was him, this was an incredible, astonishing feat of marksmanship and escape.

ctdonath 9y ago
As a trained long range shooter, may I observe: such incredible precision shooting? this was an incredible, astonishing feat of marksmanship It's not incredible. With some decent practice, it's not hard. The limo was hardly moving laterally from that position, and not receding fast. Numerous experts have recreated the shot, and concluded the same. You can even try it yourself from Oswald's POV (if you can find a copy, and find old hardware to run it on) in this faithful simulation: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/JFK_Reloaded https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/JFK_Reloaded There's no reason to believe Oswald couldn't/didn't shoot JFK. A SS agent may have added to the confusion with a negligent discharge though.
- jMyles 9y ago
  So, I am not a trained long range shooter, let me just put that out there. I've only fired maybe 200-300 rounds at distances longer than 70 yards. But it's not hard to dispute parts of your statement: > Numerous experts have recreated the shot, and concluded the same. Most of the experts enlisted to do this have not concluded the same. Some are now ardent believers in multiple-shooter theories. I am aware of no test in which shooters were challenged with a fact pattern in which they were out of sight of the target 5 seconds before, had to shoot through foliage at a moving target, and used a sufficiently similar weapon. What's the closest thing in your opinion? > You can even try it yourself from Oswald's POV (if you can find a copy, and find old hardware to run it on) in this faithful simulation: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/JFK_Reloaded https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/JFK_Reloaded I have played quite a bit with this simulation, and while it gives a pretty good sense of Dealy Plaza, I found three things notable about it: 1) Even after trying many, many times (probably a thousand), I was unable to recreate the Warren Commission scenario 2) The easiest way to kill anyone in the motorcade is to shoot while it's on Houston 3) The rifle is much, much different than a 6.5mm bolt action. It behaves more like an AR-15. It feels semi-automatic with very little recoil.
  - ctdonath 9y ago
    Most of the experts enlisted to do this have not concluded the same. Do you know these "experts" personally? I do know ones who have tried it and deemed it a not unreasonable shot. I have to suspect naysaying "experts" either have ulterior motives in advocating an "it's difficult" angle, or just aren't experts - more likely someone made a comment that got rephrased until it mutated into "experts say it couldn't be done alone..." FWIW: I've repeatedly hit man-sized targets up to 1000 yards with a bolt-action rifle under tight time constraints. I won't say it's "easy", but it certainly was doable with few days' solid practice. I am aware of no test in which shooters were challenged with .... What's the closest thing in your opinion? What you describe is normal deer hunting. Moving targets, narrow windows of opportunity, bolt-action rifles. A good percentage of 18,000,000 hunters make comparable shots annually. three things notable about it 1) That was the ultimate goal of releasing the "game": to see if anyone could reproduce that particular scenario precisely. Admittedly, nobody did - though most found that making the JFK-killing shot was not difficult. Then again, a proper study of the data collected would likely show that any given shot was never substantially repeated. If we consider the "agent accidentally fired a shot in a really bad direction" theory, it all does add up. 2) Easiest, yes - when you know exactly how the whole scenario can play out with all variations start to finish. While that would have been the ideal shot, firing when Oswald did (limo traveling away from window) is not substantially more difficult. 3) Mouse & keyboard don't recreate the feel of a bolt-action rifle. That aside, a trained shooter (like ex-Marine Oswald) can operate a bolt-action nearly as fast as a semi-auto, and comes to control & ignore recoil.
tcskeptic 9y ago
Can you point me to a video of number 3?
- jMyles 9y ago
  Here's the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kA0t5zvaW70 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kA0t5zvaW70 The most relevant part is 35-40 seconds. Here's a citation explaining what's going on here: http://22november1963.org.uk/how-did-oswald-kill-kennedy#fn03_005 http://22november1963.org.uk/how-did-oswald-kill-kennedy#fn0... And here's the FBI document referenced above, with commentary on the video: https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=62272#relPageId=44 https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=62272#relPage...
  - tcskeptic 9y ago
    Thanks, though none of that looks very compelling to me.