02.08.2013 Views

[Sample B: Approval/Signature Sheet] - George Mason University

[Sample B: Approval/Signature Sheet] - George Mason University

[Sample B: Approval/Signature Sheet] - George Mason University

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.

CHAPTER 6: THE DOUBLE OSWALD, AND<br />

THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE OSWALD<br />

Among the more exotic conspiracy theories about the Kennedy assassination are<br />

those that involve a double Oswald, or an Oswald brainwashed to carry out the murder of<br />

President Kennedy by unseen, nefarious forces. The double Oswald theory is based on<br />

Warren Commission testimony and other evidence that contradicts the official version of<br />

Oswald’s life – for example, the double Oswald visited a car salesman and drove at a fast<br />

speed when the “real” Oswald could not drive. Some of the ideas about the double<br />

Oswald have entered the mainstream of American culture, including in Mark Lane’s<br />

bestselling critique of the Warren Commission, Rush to Judgment. Some theories are<br />

more outlandish, including British researcher Michael Eddowes’ suggestion that the<br />

“real” Oswald was replaced in the Soviet Union by a KGB assassin who carried out the<br />

mission to kill Kennedy. The idea of a brainwashed Oswald resembles the Cold War<br />

novel and movie thriller, the Manchurian Candidate, about a U.S. soldier captured during<br />

the Korean War and programmed to carry out a political assassination in the United<br />

States. There is some basis in history, however, for this theory, since the CIA carried out<br />

mind control experiments to beat the Red Bloc in the race to create the perfect double<br />

agent. All the theories about the double Oswald and the Manchurian candidate Oswald<br />

reflect the tensions, mysteries, and espionage double-dealings during the Cold War.<br />

213

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!