Once again you don't have the faintest idea what really took place, JoeB...nor do you want to know what the truth is because it doesn't fit the narrative that you and your liberal friends chose for what happened that night in Sanford!
You've decided that Trayvon Martin is the cherubic faced teen shown in pictures that were taken years before he beat George Zimmerman. He's a poor innocent kid who simply went to the store to buy Skittles and some Arizona Watermelon drink.
You know what? You should also be upset with people like George Zimmerman. I am pro second amendment obviously, but people like this guy give honest gun owners a bad rap. At the same time, I don't doubt that this kid wasn't innocent either. He physically attacked a man when he could have called the police.
I look at this situation a series of unfortunate events due to the actions of TWO dumbasses.
To be quite frank with you, Chris...I've never been of the mind that anything George Zimmerman did that night was the action of a "dumbass".
He saw a suspicious stranger walking through the gated community in which he as part of the neighborhood watch and called the police to report him. Nothing dumb there. He was doing what any good neighbor would do. One could then make the argument that Zimmerman was only trying to do what the police dispatcher was asking him to do when he got out of his vehicle to keep Martin in sight after Martin took off running. When Zimmerman was told by the dispatcher that we don't need you to follow the suspect (once she realized that was what he was doing) what was Zimmerman's reaction? He complied and started walking back to the front gate to meet the responding police unit. None of that is unreasonable behavior. Zimmerman had no inkling that a man who ran from him would double back to confront him. If Zimmerman HAD thought that, judging from his nervousness when Martin walked in a circle around his SUV, I don't think he would have ever gotten out of his truck to confront Martin. Zimmerman got out and tried to follow Martin because he thought Martin was trying to get away before the cops showed up and he wanted to keep him in sight.
You must know how risky it is to confront a potential criminal without any police presence. IMO, the right thing to do would have been to remain in his vehicle and let the police handle it.
TBH, if I was a teenager and some guy was following me (granted I'm a woman, but still . . . ) I would run away too. How would you react?
Zimmerman also could have rolled his window down and tried speaking to the kid. He could have asked him what he is doing around here or something to that effect. Communication is important.
Two things, Chris...I've never seen anyone provide any proof that George Zimmerman wanted to "confront" Trayvon Martin that night! He sure wasn't looking for confrontation when Martin circled his SUV. You listen to those 9/11 tapes and he sounds nervous.
As to how I would react if I felt threatened by a stranger? If I could I would get to a safe place as quickly as possible. One thing I wouldn't do is retrace my steps to confront that stranger once I had successfully gotten away from them.
I agree with that, but Trayvon was, for all intents and purposes, a child. He has a reason for acting stupid. Zimmerman SHOULD have been a little smarter, IMO. Teenaged boys are full of testosterone and they like to fight. That is not unusual at all. I'm willing to bet you had your own share of fights as a teen and young adult, and that if you had felt threatened by some dude who was following you, you MIGHT want to fight him.
I just think this whole situation could have been avoided if both had used their brains a little more. It's really sad for both of them. One is dead, and the other has to live with the fact that he killed a teenager. That cannot be an easy thing to live with. I'll bet that is why he has been in trouble since the incident. He's probably having a difficult time dealing with it.
When I was a "young adult" I was fighting in karate tournaments...not on the streets. Took 3rd in the lightweight division at the East Coast Nationals in 1982...where have the years gone?
And I'm sorry, Chris but if you think an urban kid is still a "child" at 17 then I would guess you don't know many city kids.