America has entered a dangerous stage whereby horrid assassination attempts threaten to morph into a larger civil conflict, as mankind in general descends into a vortex of societal division and rancor.

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You see below the culture of assassination and violence in America, although there have been significant ones elsewhere as well.+

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The most famous in recent times was that of President John F. Kennedy in 1963, whose killer had suspicious links to both the Soviet Union and U.S. intelligence agents. He called himself a “patsy.”

That was followed by the ostensibly lone-wolf shooting of Martin Luther King and the slaying that very same year of JFK’s brother Robert, this time by an assassin, Sirhan Sirhan, who claimed outright he had been brainwashed by secret operatives.

President Gerald Ford escaped an attempt by Lynette Fromme, a former member of the infamous Charles Manson cult, in Sacramento. Fromme, who was standing a little more than an arm’s length from Ford, pointed a M1911 pistol at him in the public grounds of the California State Capitol building and without chambering a round in the gun, unsuccessfully attempted to fire.

The most serious attempt since Robert Kennedy was the attempt on President Ronald Reagan, who was wounded when a .22 caliber bullet ricocheted off a limousine and into his left armpit. (Reagan afterward claimed to have encountered a mysterious “nurse” who some believe was an angel when he was in the operating room.)

Elsewhere, the most mystical attempt was that on Pope John Paul II. His shooting occurred on May 13, 1981, in St. Peter’s Square. That was the anniversary of the apparitions at Fátima and afterward, it was asserted that his life was saved by a mysterious “nun” in the crowd who bumped the arm of Megmet Agca, the would-be assassin, as he fired shots. This has not been substantiated, and Agca said he was sure all four of his shots were on target. Additional accounts describe the Pope as having moved in the last second to better view a pendant of the Virgin Mary worn by a woman in the crowd, causing a less serious result. The path one of the bullets took is widely described as miraculously missing major organs, including his heart, and his aorta. During recovery at the hospital, the future saint asked to see documents on the apparitions and particularly contemplated the famous “third secret,” the prophecy given by the Virgin Mary at Fátima that included the vision of a “bishop” in white felled by bullets. John Paul II was the Pontiff who later authorized release of the secret.

Reflecting on the vision of the Third Secret, John Paul II said he knew it was Our Lady of Fátima who was protecting him, saying that while the assassin’s hand fired the shot, “it was a mother’s hand that guided the bullet’s paths and in his throes the Pope halted at the threshold of death.” As he was rushed to the hospital, the future saint kept repeating, “Totus tuus,’’ meaning “Totally Yours.’’ One of the bullets (four were fired) was later embedded in the crown of a statue of Mary at the Fátima sanctuary in Portugal.

Assassinations and Assassination Attempts in the U.S. Since 1960

Assassinations and assassination attempts have marked dramatic and often tragic events in the political and social history of the United States since 1960. These incidents not only have significant implications for national security and political stability but also profoundly affect the national psyche. This article explores some of the most notable assassination events and attempts during this period.

The 1960s: A Decade of Turbulence

• John F. Kennedy (1963): Perhaps the most infamous assassination in American history, President John F. Kennedy was shot and killed on November 22, 1963, in Dallas, Texas. Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested for the crime but was killed by Jack Ruby two days later, fueling various conspiracy theories that persist today.
• Malcolm X (1965): Civil rights activist Malcolm X was assassinated on February 21, 1965, during a speech in Manhattan’s Audubon Ballroom. Three members of the Nation of Islam were convicted of his murder.
• Martin Luther King Jr. (1968): Civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. James Earl Ray was arrested and convicted for the crime, though he later recanted his confession and claimed innocence.
• Robert F. Kennedy (1968): Shortly after winning the California Democratic primary, Senator Robert Kennedy was assassinated in Los Angeles. Sirhan Sirhan, a 24-year-old Palestinian, was arrested at the scene and later convicted of the murder.

The 1970s and 1980s: Continued Threats

• George Wallace (1972): Alabama Governor George Wallace, a presidential candidate, was shot during a campaign stop in Maryland. He survived but was left paralyzed. Arthur Bremer was found guilty of the attempt.
• Ronald Reagan (1981): Less than three months into his presidency, Ronald Reagan was shot by John Hinckley Jr. in an attempt to impress actress Jodie Foster. Reagan recovered, and Hinckley was found not guilty by reason of insanity.

The 1990s to Present: New Challenges

• Bill Clinton (1994 and 1996): There were two assassination attempts on President Bill Clinton. In 1994, a man fired a semiautomatic rifle at the White House from Pennsylvania Avenue. In 1996, another individual crashed a small plane onto the White House lawn, allegedly trying to kill the President.
• Barack Obama (2008 and later): Barack Obama faced several assassination threats both as a candidate and as president. In one notable incident in 2008, two men with neo-Nazi affiliations were arrested for planning to assassinate Obama at his campaign event.
• Donald Trump (2016): A British man attempted to grab a police officer’s gun to shoot Donald Trump during a campaign rally in Las Vegas. The attempt was not successful, and the man was arrested.  An extremely close call occurred on July 13, 2024, when Trump survived a near-miss in Butler, Pennsylvania, during a campaign rally, the bullet ripping through the upper part of his right ear, a near-miss many call miraculous.
• [Footnote, from the “1990 alleged prophecies,” March 19, 2017 addendum: “A new and great evil has now come and settled and will be there for the duration. It was a choice by man, including My people, who find deception in rancor and rancor where was ordained love. Not for years will an interior light return for those whose god is gold and whose love is cold. Not since times in history deep ago have My children been so skewed in what they perceive with eyes that distort and minds that form reality in a way that has no true destiny. Flee to Saint Joseph, and the Blessed Mother of the holm oak who tells us that brightness can be found only by those who practice the diligence of prayer amid consternation. Those who framed the future in accordance with their own timetables now find disbelief in prophecies though they unfold around you.”]