343 replies to this topic

[chris v]

Not because of O.J. being black, but because of all the blacks thinking he was being wrongly accused.

Your thought process absolutely scares the $hit out of me.

[old soldier]

I agree with you. Everyone should have a right to defend themsleves, by any means.

One does not know how far their attacker will go, or if they will be alive after the attack is finished.
To hope the attacker will stop soon, is stupid thinking. It’s one thing to punch someone a couple of times and then back off, but a very different case when someone is on top of you and slamming blows so fast, with no sign they will stop any time soon, that you are at their mercy.

Had Zimmerman not shot his weapon, would he be brain dead or just plain dead today? No one knows what was in Trayvons mind or what his intent was. And we never will.

In cases like this, it takes very experienced members of a crime lab to determine what happened. But, if they determine that Zimmerman was right to shoot Trayvon, will there be riots in the streets?

MLK said a man should not be judged by the color of his skin. And I strongly agree with him. But can anyone honestly say that Zimmerman is not being judged by most blacks, because of the color of his skin?

I want ALL those who kill innocent people to go to jail. But there is such a thing as one’s right to defend themselves.

Does it really matter the age, color or whereabouts of the killer or victim, except to try to discover what the motive is?

This is a VERY big issue and the whole nation and people of every color are watching.

The court hearing will be a very defining moment, just as much as the O.J. trial was. Not because of O.J. being black, but because of all the blacks thinking he was being wrongly accused.

there is strong potential for riots because of the progress made with flat screen TV's The best way to pick up a new one is during a riot. It is also a good time to get a replacement couch if there are furniture stores in the riot area. the potential rioters are probably out scouting stores right now in veiw of the injury details released on Zimmerman last week.

[Robert Giacometti]

Nope. I guess we'll just have to just disagree. I think the president answered a question honestly about a subject that was making national and international headlines, not because of Al Sharpton, but because a man's son left to go to the store and ended up shot and killed by one of his neighbors, and the police did not arrest him, and the parents wanted answers, and this country's had a history of treating the deaths of black citizens differently than those of whites, going back to the days when our president and congress would not even pass legislation to outlaw lynching, citing 'states rights'. With this history in mind, regardless of the crime rate, the hoodie, race relations or the fight, the parents and many others in the nation, black and white, wanted answers.

The police chief, without waiting for an investigation, declared there was no 'probable cause' for arrest and called the record of Zimmerman 'squeaky clean' despite his 2 felony arrests for assault, including one on a police officer.

These are some of the reasons reasonable (and unreasonable) people were upset and angered by this case.

Rick Santorum said, "“It’s a horrible case, and it’s chilling to hear what happened. And of course the fact that law enforcement didn’t immediately go after and prosecute this case is another chilling example of horrible decisions made by people in this process."

Mitt Romney said, Romney said: "What happened to Trayvon Martin is a tragedy. There needs to be a thorough investigation that reassures the public that justice is carried out with impartiality and integrity.”

These guys words weren't shortened or taken apart and turned into a political issue, but Obama's were. Seems like a double-standard.

A significant part of the reason why people wanted answers was the misinformation that was being generated by those who benefit from such things!

Sometimes the answer given as to what happened isn't what some want to hear so they twist into something else! The facts are what they are and they still haven't changed, yet some can't deal with truth.

Yes, I agree there is a double standard going here and its regarding the statement about "looking like me"! Romney and Santorum never said anything that had any implications about skin color and President Obama did, That is why President Obama is facing criticism and Romney and Santorum aren't.

As I've said before, If Romney or Santorum had made the same comments about a white victim, they too would be facing scrutiny and deservedly so!

Race relations will never improve as long as there are those who are fighting tooth n nail by twisting, enabling and making excuses to keep the double standard alive, instead of showing the courage to speak out when it benefits their side of an arguement!

[Steve Heard]

A significant part of the reason why people wanted answers was the misinformation that was being generated by those who benefit from such things!

I couldn't agree more! Among the misinformation given was that Zimmerman had a 'squeaky clean' record, when in fact he is the son of a judge who had been arrested twice for assault, once on a woman and another on a police officer. Never convicted he even bragged about getting away with his exploits on his myspace page. Martin, on the other hand, was portrayed as a thug, complete with fake picture of him.

Misinformation indeed.

Sometimes the answer given as to what happened isn't what some want to hear so they twist into something else! The facts are what they are and they still haven't changed, yet some can't deal with truth.

The parents, politicians and protestors (most of them anyway) have repeated over and over that all they want is the truth. Let's hope it comes out, and that it is accepted as such by all involved and all who care.

Yes, I agree there is a double standard going here and its regarding the statement about "looking like me"! Romney and Santorum never said anything that had any implications about skin color and President Obama did, That is why President Obama is facing criticism and Romney and Santorum aren't.

Obama didn't say anything about color, although I'm sure that looking at the way his remarks were taken, he might expand or clarify. I can't speak for hime, but the more thought I've given to it, I think that what he meant was that he was reassuring the parents that the investigation would be complete regardless of the long held, long studied and long documented idea that crimes against or deaths of minorities have not historically been given the same scrutiny as those of white folks.

When the story came out that a black teen went to the store for candy and ended up shot to death by a neighborhood watch captain who was not arrested, many folks wondered how this could be, and they wanted the truth. Then came the contradictory information about the 'squeaky clean' killer and people were even more concerned.

I know that I've looked at children who were victims of crimes and thought that it could have been my daughter.

Regardless, I think his words were meant to give comfort to the parents, not hurt race relations.

As I've said before, If Romney or Santorum had made the same comments about a white victim, they too would be facing scrutiny and deservedly so!

Perhaps by some, but not me. I would take it as a 'there but for the grace of God' kind of statement that I think it was, and I don't think they'd deserve any scrutiny. I guess I just don't think that way. Another reason I'm not a politician.

Race relations will never improve as long as there are those who are fighting tooth n nail by twisting, enabling and making excuses to keep the double standard alive, instead of showing the courage to speak out when it benefits their side of an arguement!

Agreed. People on both sides of the issue have used and misused information to tell the story their own way.

[folsom500]

here is an update on the Case- Zimmerman's Bail has been revoked ...

http://abcnews.go.co...ory?id=16476183

[folsom500]

On the flip side, here is a news clip about whether Zimmerman’s case, plus all charges, should be dropped.

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/trayvon-martin-case-charges-dropped-16393443

Old news - will have to let it play out...

[Robert Giacometti]

Zimmerman passed voice stress tests administered by the police.

http://www.foxnews.c...s-watch-leader/

I had never heard that Zimmerman passed 2 voice stress tests administered by the Police. Maybe the Police did a better job of investigating than what many are accusing them of?

I can see how passing 2 voice stress tests and having witnesses confirming what happened seems to logically confirm releasing him instead of charging him with Murder.

[camay2327]

Zimmerman was just found not guilty by the jury.

 

http://www.cnn.com/2....html?hpt=hp_t1

[The Average Joe]

Having listened to a good portion of the trial, I can't see any other verdict despite all the pressure from the media and upper level state and federal authorities. This case should have never been brought to trial with the evidence available ( as the local authorities declined to do).

Maybe our President should stay out of local police issues and not prejudice the potential juries with irresponsible statements.

 

“You know, if I had a son, he’d look like Trayvon,” Mr. Obama said, pausing for a moment. “I think they are right to expect that all of us as Americans are going to take this with the seriousness it deserves, and we are going to get to the bottom of exactly what happened.”

 

Ok, so we took it with the seriousness it deserves. What will Obama say now that the evidence is in and NAACP is pressing the DOJ for civil rights charges?

 

Remember the term "white-hispanic" that the media kept using? That wasn't to make this a racial thing...nooooo. If there is rioting, the blame falls squarely on the race hustlers like Al Sharpton and the media for making this into something it wasn't.

 

It's pathetic that one of the main topics for the last week (when it was pretty clear he would be found not guilty) has been how to prevent or address potential riots. Who are these people? Did they even follow the case? Or did they prejudge him guilty based on perceived racism? While Martin didn't "deserve" to die, he was a punk, not some innocent teenage boy going about his life. You would think his lifestyle would have politicians trampling each other to get away from any association.

[nomad]

How many "kids" died in Chicago last weekend? 9? Or was it 10? Did any of them look like Treyvon?

[tsukiji]

One wonders if GZ were black, would this still be an issue? Why not?

 

And post-verdict statements by the NAACP and Martin's representatives sure don't come across as lucid and reasonable -- pretty off-putting in fact. Any empathy I might have felt for TM is being eroded by the statements and actions of his supporters. It's hard to be credible when you act like idiots. Sound intelligent. Make logical associations. Act with maturity. You destroy your position when you do otherwise.

 

And I hate that TM is still being referred to as a kid. Yes, he was 17. But he was (allegedly) undertaking some (illicit) adult activities. And he was 5'11, 160 lbs; that is not a kid to me. That's someone who used to be drafted.

 

Slightly biased, but lots of points for consideration: 

[supermom]

This trial was a farce. I no longer have faith in the florida justice system. That child was murdered in cold blood. Period. No one walks away from an argument, calls the cops, gets told to leave the kid alone, goes and gets a gun, follows the kid and starts it up again and would consider for a second that he was "defending himself" in California. 

 

This is a horrific miscarriage of justice.

 

So so sad for those poor parents. 

 

And God what this says about our justice system in that only a man whose parent was a judge could have gotten away with this murder.