The assassination was a brutal event and it is also one charged with emotion. Unfortunately it has also been used as a political tool, one to divide people by fueling suspicion.
Gene's LBJ comment may have been part wisecrack, but my parents believed it. I can't understand how anyone could remain in a country if they really believed the leadership was capable of such an act against its own people. But as far as Johnson goes, he was a haunted man, not from guilt of the assignation, but perhaps of the responsibility thrust on him and the incredible tangle he made of Viet Nam. If Johnson felt guilt about Kennedy's death it might have been his efforts to cover up the conspiracy he felt was behind it, a conspiracy by the Soviets. One that if exposed to the American public would surely lead to a war that could end in a nuclear exchange.
As far as Lance's "nut" characterization, I've always hated the term, but it fits. In looking at Oswald's behavior before and after the events, It's consistent with his actions. He had a desperate record of disorganized attempts to connect with something that could further his political beliefs and increase his standing. His prior assignation attempt of General Walker is a clear ini cation of that, along with his posed photo, "hunter of fascists."
There was a cover-up in the assassination investigation. Mostly it was the incompetence of the CIA and FBI in investigating and their failure to share information, something they still haven't gotten right. Coupled with LBJ's instructions to pussyfoot around the Soviet connections, the Warren Commission report did have gaps, mostly those of instances of the US dropping the ball.
Edited to add. The unanswered questions continue to fuel the fire for various conspiracy theories. I think everyone interested in the case, regardless of their opinions, will be frustrated by that.
