The committee believes, on the basis of the evidence available to it, that President John F. Kennedy was probably assassinated as a result of a conspiracy. The committee is unable to identify the other gunman or the extent of the conspiracy." —Final Report, House Select Committee of Assassinations (HSCA), 1979 Was Oswald the lone shooter? Did the government cover things up? Will we ever know the whole story? Even fifty years later, there are still many questions and conspiracies involved with JFK’s assassination.
The life of Lee Harvey Oswald is very important in understanding why he shot the President. He was born in 1939 to Robert Oswald, Sr., and Marguerite Claverie Oswald. Lee had somewhat of a rough childhood. He lived with his mother, brothers and father in New Orleans. During most of his early years, Lee was watched by his aunt and neighbors. They reported that he always seemed to have behavioral problems. Many described him as temperamental and withdrawn. It is even documented that Lee struck his mother during an argument and threatened her with a pocket knife. Dr. Renatus Hartogs, described Oswald as immersed in a "vivid fantasy life, turning around the topics of omnipotence and power, through which he tries to compensate for his present shortcomings and frustrations" (Lee Harvey Oswald). There seemed to be a common theme in the observations of Oswald. This behavior continued to follow him as he grew up.
Despite struggling in most subjects, Oswald was an avid reader. By fifteen he claimed to be a Marxist and read a great deal of socialistic literature. In a few years, however, he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps. He was mainly trained in radar operation and was granted security clearance up to confidential material. Oswald also scored high enough in the shooting test to be considered a sharpshooter (“Report”). He was doing well in the military, but yet again, he ran into some problems with the law. Oswald was court-martialed after accidentally...