Stories & Myths: The JFK Assassination, Vietnam, and Watergate

Learn how the assassination of John F. Kennedy led to nearly 20 years of tumult in the United States, including Vietnam and Watergate on this week's Stories & Myths with Dr. Craig von Buseck.
Watch this week's Stories & Myths here.
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Transcript
Good evening. Good afternoon.
Good morning. Wherever you are
tuning in from around the
world. We are so glad to have
you join us here tonight for
Stories and Myths yet another
episode of Stories and Myths.
I'm here with the uh Seafair
and Captain John C. Farrell.
So, John you decided to go with
the nautical theme this week.
Yes. I am that I'm my heart is
with those people who are being
affected with the by the
hurricane. Um oh, that's what
it was exactly. Yeah. It's kind
of your way. authenticity comes
through in a beautiful way. I
want you to know II. I'm glad
you appreciate that and have
noticed that um no. well,
you're always stressing the sea
so I was like, I don't I don't
want to just be boring and put
AC so I spelled it out for you.
I'm kind of like a pirate that
way. I'm stressing the sea
Alright, now, moving on. Yeah.
You know that voice you just
did. Yeah. Let's not revisit
that. You don't like my pirate
voice?
No. Well, it it will come out
when appropriate but for now,
we'll we'll it needs some work.
It needs some work. My pirate
voice needs some work maybe It
sounds like you just woke up
after like a long slumber and
you're you have like a fun on
my ship. The red pearl Yes.
Yeah. So, did you ever get that
fixed? That has the black
pearl? I have the red pearl.
Did you ever get that piece
that I was trying to help you
fix? that piece of on top of
your um of your car? Oh yes, I
fixed it that afternoon. Quite.
it took me all of 25 seconds I
think to finish and it took me
about 10 minutes to do just a
little bit. I have the I have
the pirate hands long of
gathering the jewels. It was a
really, really hot and that's
my. Oh, okay. That must be
it.
Yeah. Alright. What do what do
we have on top for the this
evening's episode of Stories
and Myths? Well, we are going
to talk about JFK and what he
meant to American history and
all the um his assassination
and um his involvement with the
Vietnam War as well as we're
going to
be talking a little bit about
Watergate and um some things
that have happened since then.
So, that's why on this program,
we've talked about the
nineteenth century and last
week, we talked about the
eighteenth century. So, I
thought it would be good for us
to come in to the twentieth
century Uh we're just a little
behind the times. We don't
know. It's it's a show about
history so uh. Right, right.
You never know where we're
going to talk about it. Yeah.
we're not talking about
yesterday.
Now this is uh before before I
were born. so Yes. So what What
is our first question? So, the
first question is um it's about
JFK. You say that he ran for
president If he ran for
president today, he would be
considered a conservative and
that is how much of the country
has shifted to the left. I was
wondering if you could explain
that statement a a little
Kennedy was a cold warrior. Uh
he believed in a strong defense
of the United States. uh
Kennedy. He cut taxes. Um he
believed in um in a strong
space program and he was a very
strong um he's very strong on
free enterprise. So, across the
board, uh Kennedy had positions
that are now considered
conservative that right back
then uh you know he was
considered a centrist or even a
liberal to a certain degree and
by certain members of the
country but today, Uh his
positions are the positions of
more conservative politicians
which shows how the country has
moved politically uh far to the
left Since that time. I believe
that part of the reason is uh
to his assassination which
started a series of uh things
in the country that uh broke
down the trust of the American
people in their own government.
and uh We are now really far
down that road to the point
there is distrust on both the
um both sides of the political
spectrum and it's a major major
problem but Ronald Reagan who
was a Democrat, he was a huge
fan Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
Ronald Reagan was a Democrat
for most of his life. Oh, and
what he said in the nineteen
early 1960s. I don't remember
exactly what year that he made
the switch but when people ask
him, why did you switch from
the Democratic Party to
Democratic Party to the
Republican Party? He said, I
didn't leave the Democratic
Party. The Democratic Party
left me and um so today and
even during his presidency,
people called Reagan a far
right conservative uh but
Reagan's policies were not very
different from John F.
Kennedy's policies and they
were only 20 years different
That's what is hard to even
grasp. Uh looking back in
history because it seems like
Kennedy was so far before
Reagan but it was only 20 years
and if you count his
assassination, uh it was only
uh 17 years between uh
Kennedy's assassination and and
uh Reagan's um election uh 2017
and a half but still you know
um you know
it's pretty pretty remarkable.
Uh I take that back. No Exactly
seventeen because Kennedy was
killed in November of 73 or 63
and Reagan was elected in
November, November, 8 eighty.
So, 17 years Exactly. Uh we're
talking a little bit more about
about JFK assassination. So,
what are your thoughts on that?
Was it what was it a conspiracy
theory or um was there a lone
gunman? Well, let me ask you,
what do you think because most
people have an opinion
II. honestly, don't know what
to think II. think kind of like
what we're discussing today
III, think that there was
someone who was definitely
assisted um in the shooting. I
don't know if there was
necessarily more than one
gunman. Um I did read a
fictional retelling of it by
Don Delillo called Libra which
actually um so my my thoughts
on are kind of blurred with the
fictional retelling that Don
Delillo um wrote. It's
great, great novel. Um I read
it in grad school and um so
I've I don't I'm trying to
remember which which of the
facts are that and which of
them is part of the the Libra
book but um II think if there
if there was and I think
there's at least more than one
person involved whether there's
more than one gunman. I'd, I
don't know. Okay. So, my
opinion correct me, what's
that? I said, so, correct me.
Oh, no, no, no. I mean, no one
knows for sure. Right, Right.
Based on, I I've been to the
plaza. I've been to the uh
museum I've seen the snipers
nest there uh in the book
depository, I've stood on the X
uh which Uh pretty much they're
pretty sure that that was the
spot where Kennedy was killed.
I have studied and read about
the Kennedy assassination since
I was in college uh which was a
few years ago now and uh I am
convinced that it was a
conspiracy. I'm convinced that
there were at least two gunmen
and uh there are reasons for
that and I want to I want to
give some of those reasons and
and not just say well this is
my idea. So, First of all, um
there was uh it's pretty clear
that there was a gunman from
the back and most likely it was
Lee Harvey Oswald uh because
the first bullet went through
Kennedy's back and came out his
throat and um it hits uh
Governor Connolly in front of
him and uh they uh I'm sorry
the the the first bullet went
through his throat. The second
one went through his back and
hit Governor Connolly and
and that was considered what
they call the magic bullet but
then the headshot II cannot
believe that the headshot was
from the back and the reason is
that I have heard from almost
and you can can watch this on
YouTube. I've heard from almost
every medical doctor that was
in the emergency room at
Parkland and every single one
of them said the same thing.
They said that it was a fist
sized hole in the back of the
and then down the side of the
head, there was like a valley.
and there's a problem with that
in that the autopsy photos
don't match that and so you
have who's telling the truth Is
it the uh all the medical
doctors who all agreed and have
no reason to lie or is it the
government providing
photographs who possibly have
all kinds of reasons to lie and
There are a lot of things that
don't make sense. Don't add up
and look like conspiracy for
example, no one knows where the
brain of John F Kennedy is. Uh
no one knows. So, why was the
brain removed? Why were we not
able to examine the brain Um
the other major thing and there
are many different uh other
parts to this but without going
on too long, other major thing
that most people uh should
question is why did Jack Ruby
murder Oswald? Because there
was no way that uh Oswald would
be able to testify or give
evidence or led the government
investigators to any kind of
conspiracy. Um uh Ruby was
clearly connected to the Mafia
Uh he was a good old boy that
uh used to kind of uh take care
of the police in his uh very Um
uh there was a lot of
debauchery. Let's say that went
on in Jack Ruby's club uh with
uh dancers and prostitution and
drugs and alcohol and it was a
very seedy place. Why was Jack
Ruby allowed into that basement
of the police station II Don't
buy that. They just didn't have
as tight security back then. I
don't buy that. This was the
the so called murderer of the
president of the United States
and they let this bar owner who
owned a KanCan club just to
walk in to me. I just don't buy
that. It's just too convenient
for this man connected with the
Mafia to shoot and kill uh
Oswald on National TV Live to
shut him up. The other big
question that I have is When
you look the quote unquote
magic bullet which supposedly
some investigator found on one
of the gurney. It is almost
pristine and yet it went
through both Kennedy and
Connolly it hit Connolly Ribs
came out hit went through his
wrist bone and then went down
into his leg. Now, they have
reproduced that again and again
and again and never once have
they been to come up with a
bullet. that wasn't smashed to
hell, right? With all kinds of
bullet fragments all over the
place, right? Um so II think uh
you know, I think that it was a
conspiracy. I do believe that
there were people very high up
in the government who were