You are selling Kennedy a bit short, he was an above-average president. (Cuban Missile Crisis, Test Ban Treaty of 1963, Space Program, Peace Corps.)
The conspiracies theories around his death are really annoying though, people just don't want to accept that a bum like Oswald did in fact shot and killed Kennedy.
You consider the fact that he took us to the brink of destruction something to make him "above average?"
How is it his fault? The Soviets instigated the entire situation by sending missiles to Cuba in the first place. And the fact that Kennedy was able to step back giving how hawkish the Joint Chiefs were says a lot IMO, that is something I don't see Nixon or LBJ doing.
The Soviets got exactly what they wanted out of the situation, the missiles in Turkey pointed at them were quietly removed. The Soviets allowed JFK to save face by making that secret while their backing off on the Cuban missiles was not secret at all.
It was actually the exact opposite.
The deal was mean't to help the Soviets save face, the missiles in Turkey were going to go regardless....they were obsolete.