Why did Oswald kill JFK?

[Steve M. Galbraith]

I believe we explain it quite easily by my post above. His infatuation with the "real Marxism" of Castro and his hope to finally achieve his destiny in Cuba were genuine. The failure of his trip to MC, the collapse of his marriage, and his dead-end job at the TSBD left him in near-desperation. Then Fate seemed to hand him a golden opportunity in the form of JFK's motorcade route. He went to Ruth Paine's on Thursday as a last-ditch effort at reconciliation with Marina. When she rebuffed him, this confirmed that Fate was indeed speaking and his destiny was confirmed. He carried out a near spur-of-the-moment assassination with an unlikely weapon that just happened to be highly successful. I see no reason to make things more complicated than this.

Okay, but that still doesn't add up to me (I'm going in circles here admittedly). If he was driven by his deep hatred of America, his support for Castro and his view that JFK was an enemy of "the revolution", then why wait until the last day to strike back? All of those reasons are deep, substantive, long-standing. The idea that all of them would disappear if Marina had simply agreed to find an apartment and move back together simply doesn't make sense to me. No pasaran, comrades! Unless Marina moves in with me? Some revolutionary he is. And contrast this planning, or lack of it, versus the planning in the Walker attempt. It doesn't add up to me but that may be just my problem.

Just one on MC: He told Marina after returning that he had given up on Castro, that his treatment by the Cuban bureaucrats was just like the Soviet system. Both systems, for him, failed to meet his vision of a true Marxist society and not worth defending. Now, he may have been lying; I think he was. I find it hard to believe that his long time support for Castro ended because some bureaucrats failed to give him his transit visa. That failure means the entire system, "the Revolution", was a lie?  No, there's something in MC that, I think, is involved in his act.

[Richard Smith]

Okay, but that still doesn't add up to me (I'm going in circles here admittedly). If he was driven by his deep hatred of America, his support for Castro and his view that JFK was an enemy of "the revolution", then why wait until the last day to strike back? All of those reasons are deep, substantive, long-standing. The idea that all of them would disappear if Marina had simply agreed to find an apartment and move back together simply doesn't make sense to me. No pasaran, comrades! Unless Marina moves in with me? Some revolutionary he is. And contrast this planning, or lack of it, versus the planning in the Walker attempt. It doesn't add up to me but that may be just my problem.

Just one on MC: He told Marina after returning that he had given up on Castro, that his treatment by the Cuban bureaucrats was just like the Soviet system. Both systems, for him, failed to meet his vision of a true Marxist society and not worth defending. Now, he may have been lying; I think he was. I find it hard to believe that his long time support for Castro ended because some bureaucrats failed to give him his transit visa. That failure means the entire system, "the Revolution", was a lie?  No, there's something in MC that, I think, is involved in his act.

Oswald had already crossed the Rubicon with the Walker attempt.  He was ready and willing to kill a public figure for political reasons.  Not many people fall into that bucket.  Fate simply dealt him JFK.  Oswald was a malcontent with a chip on his shoulder.  Willing to commit political murder with his rifle.  One day he finds out JFK, as the representative of the society that he detests, is going to drive right by his building.  That must have been like finding the golden ticket to him.  No bigger statement than to assassinate the president in broad daylight riding through a US city.

Oswald was actively trying to send Marina back to Russia while he made efforts to get to Cuba.  So I don't think his marital status played much of a role in his decision.  The lack of planning in the JFK situation was a function of the timeline.  Oswald doesn't find out until Tuesday that JFK is coming to town.  He has plenty of time to assess the steps to be taken.  My guess on Mexico City is that Oswald might have told the Cubans that he had or was willing to commit a violent act on behalf of the cause to impress them with his dedication.  Did he tell them about the Walker attempt?  Maybe but probably not.  He more likely implied something along those lines but without specifying.  If he kills the president and makes it back to the Cuban embassy, maybe he thinks he will be welcomed as a hero.  The Cubans think he is a nut or CIA plant when he comes to MC.  They take his story with a grain of salt.  After the JFK assassination, they still think that maybe Oswald was sent to them as a pretext for an invasion (i.e. they had foreknowledge that Oswald had or would commit some assassination).  As a result, they never mention it. Killing the president is not a rational act.  There is no neat and tidy explanation to answer every question.  It's doubtful even Oswald could explain it in a way that makes any sense.