Thomas, I'm sure Steve will get back to you with his concerns when ready. Meanwhile, here's a couple of mine; Russo claims Lopez and Oswald had links "to the same branch of the FPCC" that's blatantly incorrect, Lopez had no known link to the New Orleans branch and Oswald had no known link to the Tampa branch, so how do they both have links to the same branch? Also, in the same paragraph, Russo claims Oswald's first contact with pro-Castro Cubans was in Los Angeles, Russo nor anyone else has enough information on Oswald's movements to make that claim. Seems to me Russo at best, can be criticized for exaggerating, at worst for writing outright lies.
Denis: As you stated, Oswald formed his own New Orleans branch/delegation/chapter of the FPCC (it had one member: himself). He had no contacts with the Tampa chapter. He did correspond with Lee when Lee was head at that time of the national FPCC. Lee had been the former head of the Tampa chapter but from what I've read he had left it in 1962. Lee told him not to form a NO chapter since the conditions weren't good. Oswald ignored him.
Russo presents no evidence that Lopez had contacts with the Tampa branch of the FPCC or with Lee. He cites Lopez visiting Tampa but that is all. And his Oswald connection to the Tampa branch/chapter is with Lee. That's a connection with Lee not the chapter.
So, as you point out: where's the connection between Lopez and Oswald through the Tampa chapter? There isn't any.
And to the Cuban matter: Oswald's fellow Marine Nelson Delgado suggested something along these lines. He said he and Oswald were admirers of Castro and wanted to go to Cuban to help the revolution. But once Castro attained power and started imposing his dictatorship that he soured on Castro. However, according to Delgado Oswald continued to support Castro.
Here's his account of Oswald meeting Cuban embassy people:
Mr. DELGADO - ....[H]e kept on asking me about how about--how he could go about helping the Castro government. I didn't know what to tell him, so I told him the best thing that I know was to get in touch with a Cuban Embassy, you know. But at that time that I told him this we were on friendly terms with Cuba, you know, so this wasn't no subversive or malintent, you know. I didn't know what to answer him. I told him go see them.
After a while he told me he was in contact with them.
Mr. LIEBELER - With the Cuban Embassy?
Mr. DELGADO - Right. And I took it to be just a---one of his, you know, lies, you know, saying he was in contact with them, until one time I had the opportunity to go into his room, I was looking for--I was going out for the weekend, I needed a tie, he lent me the tie, and I seen this envelope in his footlocker, wall-locker, and it was addressed to him, and they had an official seal on it, and as far as I could recollect that was mail from Los Angeles, and he was telling me there was a Cuban Consul. And just after he started receiving these letters--you see, he would never go out, he'd stay near the post all the time. He always had money. That's why.
V.T. Lee's testimony is here:
http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/russ/testimony/lee_v1.htmDelgado's is here:
