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Why Did John Wilkes Booth Kill Lincoln?

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Kathryn (Kathy) Hansen Profile
John Wilkes Booth was a Southerner and, along with many other people, refused to accept that the war was over. He came from a family of famous actors and actresses. But John Wilkes was never given the name and credit of an actor that his brother was. He was convinced that if he could assassinate the President that he would be hailed as a hero, and that the South would fight on.

He did, indeed, know the theatre inside and out, and the people of the theatre knew him. Once he knew which box President Lincoln would be in, it was fairly easy to plot his course. The President had supposedly refused extra body guards that evening. Whether that would have saved him or not will never be known. Boothe did not plan on breaking his ankle when he jumped from the theatre seats to the stage.

Though he made an immediate getaway, the broken ankle was ultimately his undoing as he simply could not travel without the aid of a doctor. The leg was patched up, but his trail was hot, and the time it took to take care of the break allowed the captors to get to him. He was mortally wounded in the fight with those that had followed and found him.
Troy Cowan Profile
Troy Cowan answered

An alternate view.

  John Wilkes Booth was working with vice-president Andrew Johnson to kidnap Lincoln. All attempts failed.
  On the afternoon of April 14, 1865, the plan to kidnap Lincoln was aborted because some of the coconspirators got themselves drunk.
  With the war coming to an end Booth went to see Johnson to tell him that he had given up on abducting Lincoln. Vice-president Johnson convinced Booth that the Confederacy could be saved by killing Lincoln.

Source for failure of last attempt on kidnapping: Lincoln, Davis, and Booth: Family Secrets
Source for Andrew Johnson's involvement: John Wilkes Booth by Finis Bates

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Troy Cowan
Troy Cowan commented
John said, "The scientific method works in historical analysis also..."!

I can't let that go by without comment, it is clearly misinformation. The scientific method requires a second experiment with the same out come. With humans and history that cannot be done.
...................
I put Finis Bates is a fraud into my address bar to see the truth obtained by the scientific method. Surely, John would not recommend reading studies not using the required method. The first post I read had a statement by a well respected authority who said that at the autopsy the hotel clerk identified Booth's body by the tattoo on his arm. The clerk said he had seen it many times. This authority used this identification as proof that it was Booth killed in the Garrett barn. Left out of the article was that the clerk identified the tattoo on Booth's right arm. Most people believe the tattoo was on his left hand. Others have identified Booth by the tattoo on his left wrist, his left arm, and on his chest. I find it strange that no one said Booth had a tattoo before Lincoln's assassination. No one, not even his sister Asia. Most people quote Asia as the source for the tattoo, but Asia never said he had a tattoo. She said that when Booth was ten-years-old he wrote his initials on his left hand between his thumb and forefinger using India ink.

John said, "I just think there've been too many times where evidence has been manipulated and facts distorted." That we can agree on.
John McCann
John McCann commented
" The scientific method requires a second experiment with the same out come. With humans and history that cannot be done. "

Experimental science, not observational science. Tell that to a paleontologist, the part about repeatability of experimentation, and then tell him he is not a scientist. You are misinformed as I am a scientist. ( that bit on science by you sounded creationist to me )

Then you go on to say absolutely nothing, but say much of it! After you say you put " Finis Bates is a fraud " into your address bar you go off on some incoherent tangent that is beyond convoluted and having nothing to do with defending Bates. ?!?! ( who is this " well respected authority "--- please don't tell me )

So, as I said I wanted to get rid of you. We are through here, so please go on if you wish but I will no longer pay any attention.
Troy Cowan
Troy Cowan commented
John, the point was that your accepted sources leave out information detrimental to their argument. It seems to me that your trusted sources are full of baloney and can't be trusted.

I hope you keep your word and do not respond to this thread any longer. It appears that you have your mind made up and are unwilling to allow others to express ideas that are in opposition to your truth.
Hunter DeRensis Profile
Hunter DeRensis answered
 I don't know who mentioned the kkk and lincoln liking blacks but that is false. The kkk was not formed in Lincolns lifetime. And Lincoln believed that whites were superior to blacks. He just hated slavery.
Anonymous Profile
Anonymous answered
Because he hated jews so he wanted to exterminate them by throwing them in frying pans.
Anonymous Profile
Anonymous answered
Because the south never liked the north when the north had thought about ABOLISHING SLAVERY! That was a big highlight in the civil war....[x]

[breezy]

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