What's the comparison between the assassinations of JFK and Abe Lincoln?

Answer 1

Beth has given us the list from a popular email. Unfortunately, if you take a close look at the items in the list you realize that

1) some of the claims are outright WRONG, or at best questionable

2) for ANY similar type event you will likely find a number of "parallels" between the two, which may be intriguing, but are not very significant

3) a number of the parallels are extremely trivial, and carefully listed to make them sound more significant than they are

4) such lists over-impress us by throwing a lot of things at us at once... and by NOT noting significant DIFFERENCES between the people and events
________________________

Here is a look at the points in Beth's list. For more on these (and other) points, see this snopes article:
http://www.snopes.com/history/american/lincoln-kennedy.asp


TRUE, INTERESTING, BUT IMPORTANT?

Dates 100 years apart
- elected to house 1846/1946
- elected President 1860/1960
- successor born in 1808/1908
[if they lived roughly a century apart, it is hardly surprising you can find a handful of dates that correspond]

Both wives lost children while living in the White House.


TRIVIAL, UNIMPRESSIVE

Names Lincoln and Kennedy each contain seven letters.
[as do several others; most President's names = 5-8 letters]

Names of assassins comprised of fifteen letters.
[so what? a fairly average number, no correspondence of individual names]

Successors named Johnson
[a VERY common name in U.S., second only to Smith]

Both succeeded by Southerners
[Tennessee / Texas; a major region... so what?]

shot on a Friday
[more likely to travel, go out (to a play) over a weekend]

shot in the head
[rather common, unsurprising for a successful assassination]

______________________

DUBIOUS

Both were particularly concerned with civil rights.
[by a strained definition]

Both were assassinated by Southerners.
[only by very loose definition]

Booth ran from the theater and was caught in a warehouse.
Oswald ran from a warehouse and was caught in a theater.
[plays with definitions, esp. of "warehouse"]


FALSE !

'Lincoln's secretary named Kennedy'
[not true, no such person]

'assassins born in 1839/ 1939'
[no, Booth born in 1838]

'Both assassins known by their three names.'
[not so at the time -- WE later called them that]

'Both Booth and Oswald assassinated before their trials.'
[NOT "assassinated", and killing by an angry person not surprising]

Answer 2

Jfk And Lincoln Comparison

Answer 3

there have been NO connections, yet some retrospect similarities that I keep in mind from a printout that got here out quickly after JFK replaced into shot: Lincoln's Secretary replaced into named Kennedy and he recommended Lincoln to not circulate to the Theater. Kennedy's Secretary replaced into named Lincoln and he recommended Kennedy to not circulate to Dallas. Kennedy's murderer killed Kennedy from a warehouse and ran to cover in a theater Lincoln's murderer killed Lincoln in a theater and ran and hid in a storage barn (a warehouse of types). the two presidents had a vice chairman named Johnson. the two surnames have 7 letters. the two have been liked plenty greater suited interior the north than the south. i can't think of of something yet there have been 30 or 40 such data.

Answer 4

I am not sure where you can find the references but for several years there were card printed up that showed how like each other the assassinations of these two people were a lot alike. You might want to ask this question of the librarian at the Library of Congress' website at: www.loc.gov and see what comparisons they give.

Answer 5

Headshots from behind by young male assassins born in the United States.

Answer 6

I think you're looking for this:

Abraham Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846.
John F. Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946.

Abraham Lincoln was elected President in 1860.
John F. Kennedy was elected President in 1960.

The names Lincoln and Kennedy each contain seven letters.
Both were particularly concerned with civil rights.
Both wives lost children while living in the White House.

Both Presidents were shot on a Friday.
Both Presidents were shot in the head.

Lincoln's secretary was named Kennedy.
Kennedy's secretary was named Lincoln.

Both were assassinated by Southerners.
Both were succeeded by Southerners.
Both successors were named Johnson.

Andrew Johnson, who succeeded Lincoln, was born in 1808.
Lyndon Johnson, who succeeded Kennedy, was born in 1908.

John Wilkes Booth, who assassinated Lincoln, was born in 1839.
Lee Harvey Oswald, who assassinated Kennedy, was born in 1939.

Both assassins were known by their three names.
Both names are comprised of fifteen letters.

Lincoln was shot at the theater named "Ford's".
Kennedy was shot in a car called "Lincoln - made by Ford Motor Co".

Booth ran from the theater and was caught in a warehouse.
Oswald ran from a warehouse and was caught in a theater.

Both John Wilkes Booth and Lee Harvey Oswald were assassinated before their trials.

Answer 7

They were both Male Presidents and they were both shot. Both of them had their wives with them. The name Abe has 3 letters and so does Jon. They were both wearing suits. Jon Kennedy has the same first name as Jon Wilkes Booth. There was an audience at the Theater, and in Dallas the day JFK was shot.
The theater was named FORD, and JFK was riding in a Ford.
The names Lincoln and Kennedy have the same amount of letters in them.

Answer 8

Well, since it's Aug, I'm guessing this isn't a school project :)

I'd say that both were assassinated as a result of a conspiracy. JWBooth conspired with fellow Southern conspirators to kill Lincoln, and the Select Committee on Assassinations in 1976 came to an agreement that Kennedy was killed as a result of conspiracy, they just aren't sure who all was involved with Oswald (if he actually was one of/the only gunman).

Also, both died because of lousy security measures. Neither President was adequately protected in public places.

You'd have to know the actual group involved in Kennedy's assassination to figure out comparisons politically. Was it the Mafia? pro-communists? CIA? Mickey Mouse? Who knows...

TM

Answer 9

I was just reading Beth's answer and am amazed! Could it all really be true?
Must investigate:)

But, I think the major issue that led to both presidents' assassinations was their will and efforts to change.
Change for the better, as we know now, but at the time, such liberal views were not widely accepted.

Answer 10

Both men voiced opinions, which contradicted the prevalent views of the majority at the time they were killed.

Otherwise, Abe's foremost opponent performed his own dirty work [Booth], and the true opponents of JFK's ideologies didn't.