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The Grassy, Grass-less Knoll
By Mark D. Roberts | Tuesday, March 24, 2009
“The Grassy Knoll.” Now there’s a phrase that has made it’s way into American culture and history. There are grassy knolls all over our country, but only one gets to be called “The Grassy Knoll.” And I’m quite sure that no other grass covered hillock in America draws so many tourists and conjures up so many feelings of intrigue as the one and only Grassy Knoll of Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas.
In yesterday’s post I described my recent visit to Dealey Plaza, the place where President Kennedy was shot in 1963. The official account of his assassination blames a lone gunman, Lee Harvey Oswald, who supposedly shot the President from the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository building. But many people believe that the official account of the President’s shooting is inadequate. On the basis of circumstantial, acoustic, and supposed eyewitness testimony, those who reject the official Warren Commission conclusion believe that there was at least one additional gunman on the Grassy Knoll, who shot in the direction of the President.
In the early morning when I visited Dealey Plaza, the Grassy Knoll was unoccupied. But when I returned in the early afternoon, it was covered by dozens of people. (See the photo above and to the right.) Most of these were tourists who were listening to three men explain the “real version” of the Kennedy assassination. Two of these men claimed to have been eyewitnesses. All there were extremely well-informed, and were equipped with photos, documents, and other bits of historical evidence. The aren’t in any way official, but simply people who are committed to passing along their version of the story. 
The Grassy Knoll itself, ironically enough, is no longer grassy in the place where, purportedly, a gunman (or two) fired in the direction of President Kennedy. So many people have trampled this small spot of ground that it has no more grass. It’s rather more of a grass-less knoll these days. (Photo: the “grass-less” knoll.)
I’m not overly fascinated by the intrigue surrounding the death of President Kennedy. I do find it fascinating, however, that so many people continue to be fascinated by the possibility that he was killed by more than one conspirator. Many are almost obsessed with this alleged conspiracy. I wonder why. Any ideas?
Topics: Texas |
5 Responses to “The Grassy, Grass-less Knoll”
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March 24th, 2009 at 3:12 am
“Many are almost obsessed with this alleged conspiracy. I wonder why. Any ideas?”
Some people are just obsessed with celebrity. Others are interested in verifying the events as they actually happened, and the causes. Some just don’t trust anything our government says, thus they don’t trust the Warren Report.
I read “Rush to Judgement” some years ago. It had a lot of interesting points.
A lady I once worked with would not go to see JFK because she could not face the thought that there could be a group of people in our government evil enough to take someone’s life as JFK’s was taken.
Thanks for the Knoll shots, Mark!
Tom
March 24th, 2009 at 4:37 am
I think that Thomas Buck got a lot of the points …
Also, people do just love a mystery, sometimes. A few years ago, Jack the Ripper was all the rage as an unsolved mystery. Beyond that, the conspiracy angle is fascinating.
March 24th, 2009 at 8:23 am
I think that JFK’s story and the assassination are so intriguing that if it was not a true story it would not even be believable. It is like a Lifetime movie. A multi-millionaire father who made his money in a somewhat shady fashion (according to most). Multiple good looking sons and daughters. A young good looking war hero with a very attractive wife. The youngest elected president. Hobnobbing with movie stars and with starlets. The mob element. To paraphrase the line in Maltese Falcon, “The stuff that dreams are made of” (at least many people’s dreams). Bugliosi’s recent book is supposed to be the last word on the subject (he supports the Oswald as the only shooter theory). However, I think there were obvious cover-ups of certain elements to try to protect the President’s privacy (reportedly by Bobby Kennedy and others) and I think those things, unfortunately, added to the intrigue. Throw in the whole…CIA trying to assassinate Castro angle…..gee…you’ve got it all as a murder mystery. (not to make light of President Kennedy’s death) There are so many elements to his story and it was all cut off so suddenly with his death). It is almost the ultimate murder mystery and from totally a story angle…having it turn out to be “just Oswald” would be a little disappointing.
March 25th, 2009 at 11:15 am
Also the hard reality that Jack Ruby shot Oswald, before he could be adequately interrogated - the only conspirator, according to the Warren report– that just begs conspiracy for those who believe truth can be contained and controlled.
As to the accuracy of that belief, just ask Chuck Colson how conspiracies tend to work themselves out…
December 3rd, 2009 at 8:45 pm
listen up-the answer you are looking for is in the trees-blow picture up-view trees in blur vision-look to the white in the trees-look at whole tree at once-the writings are in white through the whole tree-it is a sifer-man does not understand how to look at a tree-what did einstine say-what you think you see may not be what it is-you think he just made this up-the only thing stoping man from knowing is his own mind-you people scare me-man scares me-he is -excuse this-dumb