I admit to having been skeptical of the official explanation. The main reasons for that were Oswald's quick death at the hands of Ruby and the assassination coming so soon after JFK fired Dulles, then CIA director and popular among DC elites.
Then I learned about Oswald's assassination attempt on General Walker a mere seven months before killing JFK.
If the CIA failed in its many attempts to kill Castro, a much easier target, I hardly expect they would have had much success in a plot to kill JFK. And the fact that the FBI left Oswald alone after he defected to the USSR and returned to the US also points to simple incompetence.
In a similar way, when I read about how the 9/11 hijackers were able to get visas despite submitting shoddy paperwork, that too reinforces the laziness/incompetence explanation for the failure of the US government to thwart that attack.
In fact, the visas for the Saudi hijackers were initially denied, but that decision was overruled by another official named Shayna Steinger. She later testified to Congress about her actions, and amazingly, continued to be promoted. Also, the official who initially denied the applications got fired.
Elsewhere, I found this from Keeping Terror Out (cis.org)
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A normal level of visa scrutiny, for instance, would have excluded almost all the hijackers. Investigative reporter Joel Mowbray acquired copies of 15 of the 19 hijackers' visa applications (the other four were destroyed - yes, destroyed - by the State Department), and every one of the half-dozen current and former consular officers he consulted said every application should have been rejected on its face. Every application was incomplete or contained patently inadequate or absurd answers.
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I can say from personal experience that bureaucrats are often selectively scrupulous about paperwork, and they can move fast if they want to.
This article had some darkly amusing gems: State Dept. Lapses Aided 9/11 Hijackers - ABC News (go.com)
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Brothers Wail and Waleed al Shehri applied together in October 2000. Under "occupation" Wail wrote "teater;" brother Waleed claimed "student." The name and address of alleged employer and school was listed as "South City," and the questionable U.S. destination named as "Wasantwn."
Visas approved.
Abdulaziz Alomari claimed to be a student but didn't name a school; claimed to be married but didn't name a spouse; under nationality and gender, he didn't list anything.
Visa approved.
Three months later, Alomari followed his friend Mohamed Atta through airport security … heading for the World Trade Center.
Khalid Al Mihdhar, who helped crash the plane into the Pentagon, simply listed "Hotel" as his U.S. destination — no name, no city, no state — but no problem getting a visa.
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I read things like this, and it makes me wonder why I ever bothered to fill out a government form completely or honestly or at all.
On a side note, "Wasantwn" is very close to the way "Washington" would be spelled with the equivalent Arabic letters. (waw-sheen-noon-taw-waw-noon).
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