Mr. POWERS. I would say yes; a lot of his mannerisms were closely
related to other homosexuals that I had seen in my life up to that
period of time.
Mr. JENNER. You said, in the course of your general statement, that
your group had the impression that he might be easily led. Can you
elaborate on that?
Mr. POWERS. Well, let's not say the group felt that he was easy to
lead. I felt--let's say that I felt he was easily led, and the group
felt that it was kind of a group response that you would get here if
what was good for the group was good for everyone, and he would go
along with what the group went along with, and he wouldn't go out on
the limb as one individual; at least at this particular period of time
he did not.
And I would say he was a group response--he was easily led; he was
responsive to the group as a whole.
At the same time I felt that he was an individual such as I see
today. I see individuals that they are fascinated by education, and
of course, not knowing what his IQ was, and what his capacity for
education was--still at the time he impressed me as an individual who
was quite intelligent and he would read quite a lot, and so I would say
he, by "being led," it would be more of a personal opinion of my own
that he was an individual that you could sway.
Now, these are opinions that I have of him after being educated further
myself, and seeing people every day, and in the teaching situation that
I'm in, that is somewhat similar to a mass hysteria, and I think he is
the one that you could brainwash or maybe that's the wrong term.
I think he is the individual that you would brainwash, and quite easy,
and this is the opinion of the personality and mind that he did have.
I think once he believed in something, by gosh he believed in it, and
he stood in his beliefs.
Mr. JENNER. And how long have you been teaching?
Mr. POWERS. This will be my third year of teaching now.
Mr. JENNER. What is the extent of your formal education beyond high
school, if any?
Mr. POWERS. The extent of my formal education beyond high school was a
Bachelor of Science Degree and presently working on a Master's Degree
from the University, and this will either be in physical education or
guidance; I'm not sure which way I'll go yet.
Mr. JENNER. Did you have your University of Minnesota education
attendance after you left the Marines?
Mr. POWERS. I had 1 year at the university before going to the Marine
Corps, and then I went after my service.
Mr. JENNER. Were you aware when you were in the service, or this period
about which we are speaking, that he had not graduated from high school?
Mr. POWERS. Let's say I wasn't consciously aware of it. I was aware of
the fact that I was one of the few boys or the individuals there that
had a college education, and consequently also I had, after being in
the Marines a short period of time, I had a firm belief in finishing my
education.
And I think this here put--or any individual, not only myself, or any
individual that had a college education, there was a number of them
while I was in the Marines at that particular time that did have a
college education, we felt intellectually we were somewhat above these
boys in this particular group that we ran in this particular time. And
I think this was borne out by the fact that we did more serious reading
and we got into less crap games and went on less liberties and things
of this nature, and at this particular time, I only had 1 year of
college education.
Mr. JENNER. Do you have any feeling with respect to Oswald, any
disappointment on his part of his limited education at this stage of
his life or any thing resulting or desire on his part for further
education?
Did you ever have any discussions with him on the subject?
Mr. POWERS. His opinions, is that what you're asking?
Mr. JENNER. Yes.
Mr. POWERS. I think that the reason he was in the Marine Corps was
there wasn't anything better for him to do at this time, was the reason
that he felt, and at least now, in recalling, again trying to recall,
he felt this way about it. And he was somewhat of a rolling stone; he
didn't care to go to school. And he'd just as soon go into the service
to get out of the people's hair at home. This type of attitude.
Mr. JENNER. Did he get into any fights or arguments other than marines
jostling around as you would normally do, anything that attracted your
attention of any kind?
Mr. POWERS. No; I would not say so. There isn't anything that stays in
my mind at this time.