Wake
Easygoing Conservative
- Jun 11, 2013
- 4,787
- 1,550
- 345
- Moderator
- #1
George Zimmerman was found not guilty. Not guilty, at all. However, being presumed not guilty doesn't make one innocent. Just consider O.J. Simpson. But again, not being guilty could also mean being innocent. So, in the wake of this verdict we're left with quite a bit of anger, emotion, and questions. Instead of arguing one side or another, I feel there are quite a few assertions from both sides that deserve to be refuted. It is my goal in this thread to speak to various points of this tragedy in order to stoke the healing process. We need to absorb the evidence, reflect, and embrace all of our brothers and sisters---no matter the skin color---for the sake of peace and prosperity. This post is a bit long, so I've broken it down into easily-digested segments. Please enjoy!
But, George Zimmerman is a racist! ...is he? To those out there who believe this, I would tell you you've made an assumption. You do not know George Zimmerman. Nor have you ever interacted with him. How can you know what is in his heart, if you consider this? Furthermore, both the grieving parents of Trayvon Martin and (somewhat belatedly) the prosecuting attornies, have said that this was never about race. Also, the FBI in their ongoing investigation even checked GZ's history (and 40 witnesses) to see if he was a racist... they found nothing. Or, that would be the case in a vacuum. Some things did come to light. It was learned that George Zimmerman mentored two young African-American children even though their program had been disbanded. He also dated a black woman and took her to the prom. He even went after Sanford PD when they didn't do enough to help Sherman Ware, a homeless black man who had been beaten up by the son of a white police lieutenant. If a black man was called a racist against white people even though nothing proved it and the contrary showed that he helped them... what could that mean? Furthermore, nothing in the trial ever proved that George was a racist. That could mean he's not a racist. Deep down he may very well be. Or, someone's profiting from racial tensions. It could be true that people have been manipulated into viewing GZ as a racist. Lastly, in an interview of one of GZ's neighbors during the FBI's civil rights investigation: "(Omitted) who is a black female, did not see any racial bias in Zimmerman. He was always very respectful to her."
George Zimmerman is innocent. Well, no, you don't know that for sure. Being presumed not guilty by a jury doesn't mean you're actually innocent. Just as some innocent people have been found guilty of murder, so to have some truly guilty people gotten away with it. If you think being found not guilty means that you're innocent, would you say the same thing about O.J. Simpson and Casey Anthony? "Not guilty" and "innocent" are two completely different worlds, and the space between them is vast. Like those who erroneously assume George Zimmerman is a murderous racist, those who proclaim to the heavens that he's as pure and innocent as the new-fallen snow are wrong as well. We ought to qualify our statements. He could be a racist murderer who walked. He could be an innocent man who got put through the media's meat grinder. Thing is, we don't know for sure, so to make baseless assertions like this helps no one and hurts many. There is the notion that one is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. While that sounds nice, that completely overlooks the fact that, sometimes, wicked people slip through the cracks in the system. Our system has failed in some instances by throwing the book at the innocent and letting the wicked escape justice. Even though our system isn't perfect it's one of the better systems out there. We have no completely accurate way of discerning the liars from the honest. Maybe if a god does exist out there it'll address both the wrongly freed and condemned in due time. What we can't do as responsible human beings is make reckless assumptions.
It's open season on black boys and men. If making stupidly unfair and dishonest comments was a criminal offense, a lot of people would be in prison. What you may not know is that it's been "open season" on black men and boys for quite some time, if you consider that 93% of black murder victims are killed by other black people. That's according to the Bureau of Justice's statistics. So, yeah, black people are killing black people. I blame it on some of the culture, the lack of good parents, and rap music that foments hatred, rivalry, and violence. Why do some liberals ignore this? It's as if people like Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson willfully ignore the cold reality that the worst murderous enemy of black people in America is, well, black people. And that doesn't mean that there are many awesome, kind, and good African-Americans out there. It's just irksome for instigators to say it's open season on black males when a Hispanic man shoots a young black man in self-defense... while ignoring that 93% of all black murder victims have been killed by black people. All of this hyperbole and a half by these racemongers is dishonest, malicious, and wrong. They keep picking, tearing, and slashing at the scab of a wound that's ready and willing to heal if just given the chance. Instead of stirring up hate and tension, we need to love and respect one another, cultures loving, respecting, and working with other cultures for the peace and prosperity of all. I don't say I want equality and peace while seeing racism in everything and making constant accusations. We need to heal this wound, so we need to let it heal.
Why all of the gloating and jubilation? Personally I find it disgusting. This was a tragedy. A young man lost his life, and another man's life will never be the same. There were no heroes or monsters here. And yet there are those who are content to treat this case like a game. Those who do so really don't have the respect or the common sense to be a part of this discussion. And, now that one side has "won," these sore winners are spreading forth their vile in a sort of crude, guttural celebration. To be honest it is and always will be a despicable thing. That's not to say there are sore and whiny "losers," either. Sore winners are even worse than sore losers, because even though they've "won" they can't help but make themselves look grotesque and stupid. I'd say you guys who are doing this should be ashamed of yourselves, because you're fanning the flames just as vigorously as the racemongers. This isn't some game to send a thrill up your leg. It's sad, gloomy, and unfortunate. Have some class, respect, and common human decency, please. By jubilating like cretins, you end up seeming more and more worthy of being called white trash. And, well, that's not a good thing. I expect more from responsible adults.
The true villains in this story. People have been poisoning the waters for quite some time. Men like Al Sharpton and Jessie Jackson, as has been said by so many from the Right to the Left, instigate racial animosity. What happens to men like them when we finally have racial peace and equality? One might think they'd have little to no importance then. A point made by some this week is that these guys need to fan the flames to stay relevant. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.... did he race-bait or stir the pot? I don't believe so. No, he did what he could to bring about peace and equality, while fighting against real racism and racial injustice. As they say, never let a crisis go to waste... and a tragedy has indeed been turned into one. Dwelling on it more, it really is something how these people keep picking at this scab. They won't leave it the hell alone. Let it heal! Please, back off and stop stirring it up. People are going to hurt and may even die as a result of these foolish actions. Some say a race war won't happen in America, but it may very well happen in part by these racebaiters/racemongers who---in spite of what they say---end up inciting racial hatred and bitterness. Those African American racemongers who stir up this animosity... they don't take responsibility for their own behavior. Young people are impressionable, and are willing to lap up ideas and notions, even if they haven't reconciled the facts. If they don't acknowledge the evidence, while gulping down lies and hyperbole from those who want violence and hatred, you end up with angry and ignorant young folk like those who riot or protest in the street and rage and gnash their teeth online. People, knowledge is power. The more you know, the more informed you become. And the more informed you are the less likely you are to be manipulated and deceived by people who truly don't have your personal interest at heart.
George Zimmerman made no mistakes. Well, no. He may very well have made some mistakes. Even one of the jurors said that he made mistakes. He probably would have been better off if he listened to the 911 caller and didn't follow Martin. However, none of that is illegal. George did have some part in how this tragedy unfolded, so to pretend that he not just innocent, but made no mistakes whatsoever is, in my opinion, dishonest.
Trayvon Martin was just an unarmed black kid with Skittles. Really? Just because I'm not armed and have candy in my possession doesn't mean I can't commit illegal and dangerous acts. You can choke people to death unarmed and break faces in with your fists. I don't care if you're wearing a pink leotard and carrying a satchel full of Snickers---you can still hurt or kill people. Though GZ did follow TM a bit, GZ was then retreating to his car, and TM had four minutes to get away. Instead, somehow he came back and attacked George. Martin punched George in the nose, and straddled him while beating/slamming George's head into the concrete. I don't care who you are, what you look like, or what's on you when you're doing this. If you're trying to murder me I'm going to shoot you off. What was George supposed to do? Perhaps he was supposed to wait patiently for another minute or two until he loses consciousness and dies. It may sound sharp, but maybe some liberals and Martin supporters would have rather he died. I say this because as of yet they have said very little about what else George was supposed to do when he was getting assaulted. Concrete is a weapon. If I grab your head and bash you against the hard concrete, could that kill you after a few blows? Martin wasn't unarmed because he had his strong hands and a hard surface to use to snuff out a life. Those who practice martial arts aren't unarmed, either, because bare hand combat can be lethal. So the notion that because this young man had Skittles and didn't carry a weapon then he must be unable to do wrong... is absurd.
He was just a punk. The same impartiality that doesn't rush to condemn GZ also doesn't rush to condemn TM. You don't know this young man---he's not a child but a young man. I don't know Trayvon. Because I don't know him I can't demonize him, because that would be just as wrong and dishonest as those who went way beyond their means to malign George's character. Yes, there are some pictures of his where negative inferences on his nature could be made. Well, so? How many of us didn't do silly or foolish things, or broke the laws and did mischievous things? When I was very young, 15 years old, I had done dumb, reckless and bad things. However, that doesn't make you a bad person. Smoking marijuana doesn't make you a bad person, either. Listening to rap music, knowing how to fight, and taking pictures of yourself doesn't make you horrible, either. Young folk are known to do stupid things. We've all gone through phases, and some of us have grown out of them. Whatever the case is, until you've known Trayvon Martin as deeply as his loving parents, you don't get to demonize him. Same goes for George. None of you even know them; all you know is what's been said or shown on TV. There are no monsters here, or heroes. Neither Trayvon nor George are bad people, and I suspect this tragedy was tragedy that's been blown out of freaking proportion thanks to yours truly---the media and the racemongers. If we want our nation to heal we need to stop getting emotional, stirring the pot, and using hyperbole and deceit to turn people into monsters. Those who truly have peace and harmony on their agenda will try to look at this tragedy with impartiality and objectivity. I feel so badly for both families, and my heart goes out to them.
The jury was racist. Absolutely not. This is just another half-digested chunk of food in the vomit of deliberate racebaiting. We have a system in which a man's guilt or non-guilt is determined by a jury of his peers. This held true for Jodi Arias, Casey Anthony, and O.J. Simpson. Speaking of O.J., was the jury racist as well when they found him not guilty? Both the prosecution and the defense agreed to these six women, so to stand up and say that their choice was racist is truly galling. Who the hell are you to say this? You weren't there, you didn't reconcile all of the evidence, and you certainly didn't sit in and view all of the happenings in the trial in rapt attention. Either we have a system or we don't. To cry like little children and have selective outrage when a jury frees one non-black man but stay quiet and content when a black man is freed by the same jury system... that shows just how discredited these people are. You didn't see white people protesting the verdict in the O.J. trial. They didn't act like caged animals out to break stuff and hurt people. There weren't any chants of "justice for Nicole and Ron" after the verdict was reached. No one called that jury racist, either. This is just whiny crying for having the ending of their fantasy ripped out of their book. We need to respect the jury, unless we risk obliterating our credibility by being so bold as to then go on a moral crusade against six random jurors who simply followed through on the task the were given by our system. We punish people based on the concreteness of evidence and law, not emotions and anger. Emotion... can cause us to do and say terrible things, and I know this from personal experience. Please, we need to cool our heads and take a break. People don't deserve to be hurt as a result of this verdict, nor property. I wonder what true civil rights leaders like Dr. MLK Jr. would do. I don't know what it would have been like to walk in his shoes, but I imagine he'd pray for peace and tranquility. He was so much more of an honorable man than Al Sharpton.
Who doesn't like mocking this thug? Seriously, knock it off. Like those who mock GZ, I'm asking that people stop mocking this dead young man, too. Just stop it. While you can speak ill of the dead, it's at the risk of hurting your image. Some people get off on viciously mocking Trayvon. It's sickening to hear it. Yeah, TM wasn't 100% faultless, but neither was GZ. All of this vitreol does nothing but spread bitterness, hatred, and ill will. Just stop it, grow up, and show some sort of respect and self-control. If people get hurt or die in part from this mocking and anger, some of that blood is on your hands.
George Zimmerman did nothing but tell the truth. That's doubtful. 90%, probably, but 100%? Unlikely. I read once that one tell of a liar is to move your eyes to your left/upper left when responding. Supposedly doing so is because the part of the brain responsible for creativity (fabrication and deceit as well) is on the left side of your brain. When your eyes move to the right/upper right, that signifies remembrance... recall. Apparently the part of your brain involved in remembering is on your right side as well as, I think, the hypothalamus. That said, there were times when, during his interview with Sean Hannity, his eyes darted to his left when responding to Sean's questions. While I don't know if this is an accurate science, it does carry some weight. I'm sure there are personal experiences in your life as well when you've noticed liars who moved their eyes to their left. So, I'm doubtful Zimmerman was 100% honest. It's possible he lied about some of the things he said, and the tells he gave adds some weight to that notion.
We have to get rid of the Stand Your Ground law. While it's A-OK to want to get rid of laws you disagree with, it makes no sense to want to get rid of SYG as a result of this trial. This case had absolutely nothing to do with Stand Your Ground. It's self defense. If you want some sort of relevant repercussion as a result of this trial, get rid of self defense. I mean, that's what GZ was tried on... not SYG. Wanting to get rid of SYG because of the verdict is like wanting to get rid of border security as a result of Roe v Wade. It makes no sense. And if you were to fight against self defense, as GZ used, good luck. You'll unite the Right and the Left extremely quickly if you do. So, please spare us this nonsensical pining to get rid of something that had absolutely nothing to do with what caused your anger in the first place. I guess it really is true you can't let a crisis go to waste.
Black people are just violent and stupid. In spite of some of the riots, protests, and violence in the aftermath, this is absolutely untrue. There are many good, kind, decent African American people out there. Some on the deep end of the political Right will spit up their racial hatred towards black people, using TM to say that all black people are stupid ghetto thugs. I hate it, because it's neither fair nor honest. People who act this way are beyond hope, so it's best to simply ignore them as they should be.
Retaliation. All of this violence and destruction by those thugs who can't accept a verdict needs to be stopped. This violence is unacceptable, and those who keep fanning the flames need to be held responsible for it as well. If you want to retaliate non-violently, which can be perceived as having a tantrum, that's OK. It doesn't seem to matter to some of these people that there's a mountain of evidence that supports George, so it doesn't really matter what they do so long as people or property isn't harmed. Some of this outrage is whining so palpable you can cut it with a butterknife, and frankly it's getting tiresome. Just now as of 7/18/2013 a congressman named Bobby Rush was on Sean Hannity... and he's the poster boy of butthurt ignorance regarding the verdict. If some of these angry people are as seemingly obtuse and stupid as him, then all of these acts and vows for retaliation maes a bit more sense. Nothing is more dangerous to society than stupid and ignorant people who will not look at the evidence. I bet if dishonesty and unfairness was outlawed, most of them would be locked up. It's so incredibly amusing to see some of these guys twist, distort, and outright ignore the facts and the testimonies. Hopefully they'll burn themselves out and crawl back into their abodes. These ignorant thugs think they can break people and property over a self-defense case they disagree with, regardless of our system. And they wonder why we arm ourselves.
A call for peace. We need to not hurt people or property over this verdict. Racebaiting, gloating, and hatred needs to cease. Seeing everything through the lens of race helps no one. Those who rush to judgment need to stop and let our system work. Despicable people like Al Sharpton fan the flames of animosity for their own personal gain; it needs to stop. MLK Jr would be rolling in his grave if he knew how much these new "civil leaders" have been making a mockery out of black Americans. Because of ignorant people like Al who keep raking at the healing scab of race relations, they give normal and decent African Americans a bad name. A jury of his peers rendered a verdict if not guilty. We need to respect our legal process. We need to love our fellow human beings as we love ourselves, and stop insulting the dead and those we don't even know. People need to STOP SAYING THINGS THAT HAVE NO EVIDENCE ATTACHED TO THEM. It's so sickening to have to deal with people like this, because it's so disingenuous and unfair it's like arguing with radical Islamists who deny the Halocaust. We will never have peace if we don't look deep within ourselves and reconcile reality... instead of being blinded with one's emotions, anger, assumptions, and hatred. There is a reason why our legal system is not founded on emotions, but on objective evidence. If having true racial harmony means that civil rights leaders become unnecessary, it is better for society. Now you see civil rights leaders doing as much as they can to stir it all up... I pray for the day that we don't need them any more. Though I never knew MLK Jr. in person, strangely, I miss him. We need men like him who will speak the blind, unbiased truth, and will not speak falsities to placate/incite one group or another. No matter your race, I would ask you to start up social conversations with members of a different race/culture. Make friends. Help one another, and lean on one another. Whether you're black, white, hispanic, Asian, whatever... please, I ask you to try to spark up meaningful and genuine friendships amongst yourselves for the sake of peace and prosperity.
But, George Zimmerman is a racist! ...is he? To those out there who believe this, I would tell you you've made an assumption. You do not know George Zimmerman. Nor have you ever interacted with him. How can you know what is in his heart, if you consider this? Furthermore, both the grieving parents of Trayvon Martin and (somewhat belatedly) the prosecuting attornies, have said that this was never about race. Also, the FBI in their ongoing investigation even checked GZ's history (and 40 witnesses) to see if he was a racist... they found nothing. Or, that would be the case in a vacuum. Some things did come to light. It was learned that George Zimmerman mentored two young African-American children even though their program had been disbanded. He also dated a black woman and took her to the prom. He even went after Sanford PD when they didn't do enough to help Sherman Ware, a homeless black man who had been beaten up by the son of a white police lieutenant. If a black man was called a racist against white people even though nothing proved it and the contrary showed that he helped them... what could that mean? Furthermore, nothing in the trial ever proved that George was a racist. That could mean he's not a racist. Deep down he may very well be. Or, someone's profiting from racial tensions. It could be true that people have been manipulated into viewing GZ as a racist. Lastly, in an interview of one of GZ's neighbors during the FBI's civil rights investigation: "(Omitted) who is a black female, did not see any racial bias in Zimmerman. He was always very respectful to her."
George Zimmerman is innocent. Well, no, you don't know that for sure. Being presumed not guilty by a jury doesn't mean you're actually innocent. Just as some innocent people have been found guilty of murder, so to have some truly guilty people gotten away with it. If you think being found not guilty means that you're innocent, would you say the same thing about O.J. Simpson and Casey Anthony? "Not guilty" and "innocent" are two completely different worlds, and the space between them is vast. Like those who erroneously assume George Zimmerman is a murderous racist, those who proclaim to the heavens that he's as pure and innocent as the new-fallen snow are wrong as well. We ought to qualify our statements. He could be a racist murderer who walked. He could be an innocent man who got put through the media's meat grinder. Thing is, we don't know for sure, so to make baseless assertions like this helps no one and hurts many. There is the notion that one is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. While that sounds nice, that completely overlooks the fact that, sometimes, wicked people slip through the cracks in the system. Our system has failed in some instances by throwing the book at the innocent and letting the wicked escape justice. Even though our system isn't perfect it's one of the better systems out there. We have no completely accurate way of discerning the liars from the honest. Maybe if a god does exist out there it'll address both the wrongly freed and condemned in due time. What we can't do as responsible human beings is make reckless assumptions.
It's open season on black boys and men. If making stupidly unfair and dishonest comments was a criminal offense, a lot of people would be in prison. What you may not know is that it's been "open season" on black men and boys for quite some time, if you consider that 93% of black murder victims are killed by other black people. That's according to the Bureau of Justice's statistics. So, yeah, black people are killing black people. I blame it on some of the culture, the lack of good parents, and rap music that foments hatred, rivalry, and violence. Why do some liberals ignore this? It's as if people like Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson willfully ignore the cold reality that the worst murderous enemy of black people in America is, well, black people. And that doesn't mean that there are many awesome, kind, and good African-Americans out there. It's just irksome for instigators to say it's open season on black males when a Hispanic man shoots a young black man in self-defense... while ignoring that 93% of all black murder victims have been killed by black people. All of this hyperbole and a half by these racemongers is dishonest, malicious, and wrong. They keep picking, tearing, and slashing at the scab of a wound that's ready and willing to heal if just given the chance. Instead of stirring up hate and tension, we need to love and respect one another, cultures loving, respecting, and working with other cultures for the peace and prosperity of all. I don't say I want equality and peace while seeing racism in everything and making constant accusations. We need to heal this wound, so we need to let it heal.
Why all of the gloating and jubilation? Personally I find it disgusting. This was a tragedy. A young man lost his life, and another man's life will never be the same. There were no heroes or monsters here. And yet there are those who are content to treat this case like a game. Those who do so really don't have the respect or the common sense to be a part of this discussion. And, now that one side has "won," these sore winners are spreading forth their vile in a sort of crude, guttural celebration. To be honest it is and always will be a despicable thing. That's not to say there are sore and whiny "losers," either. Sore winners are even worse than sore losers, because even though they've "won" they can't help but make themselves look grotesque and stupid. I'd say you guys who are doing this should be ashamed of yourselves, because you're fanning the flames just as vigorously as the racemongers. This isn't some game to send a thrill up your leg. It's sad, gloomy, and unfortunate. Have some class, respect, and common human decency, please. By jubilating like cretins, you end up seeming more and more worthy of being called white trash. And, well, that's not a good thing. I expect more from responsible adults.
The true villains in this story. People have been poisoning the waters for quite some time. Men like Al Sharpton and Jessie Jackson, as has been said by so many from the Right to the Left, instigate racial animosity. What happens to men like them when we finally have racial peace and equality? One might think they'd have little to no importance then. A point made by some this week is that these guys need to fan the flames to stay relevant. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.... did he race-bait or stir the pot? I don't believe so. No, he did what he could to bring about peace and equality, while fighting against real racism and racial injustice. As they say, never let a crisis go to waste... and a tragedy has indeed been turned into one. Dwelling on it more, it really is something how these people keep picking at this scab. They won't leave it the hell alone. Let it heal! Please, back off and stop stirring it up. People are going to hurt and may even die as a result of these foolish actions. Some say a race war won't happen in America, but it may very well happen in part by these racebaiters/racemongers who---in spite of what they say---end up inciting racial hatred and bitterness. Those African American racemongers who stir up this animosity... they don't take responsibility for their own behavior. Young people are impressionable, and are willing to lap up ideas and notions, even if they haven't reconciled the facts. If they don't acknowledge the evidence, while gulping down lies and hyperbole from those who want violence and hatred, you end up with angry and ignorant young folk like those who riot or protest in the street and rage and gnash their teeth online. People, knowledge is power. The more you know, the more informed you become. And the more informed you are the less likely you are to be manipulated and deceived by people who truly don't have your personal interest at heart.
George Zimmerman made no mistakes. Well, no. He may very well have made some mistakes. Even one of the jurors said that he made mistakes. He probably would have been better off if he listened to the 911 caller and didn't follow Martin. However, none of that is illegal. George did have some part in how this tragedy unfolded, so to pretend that he not just innocent, but made no mistakes whatsoever is, in my opinion, dishonest.
Trayvon Martin was just an unarmed black kid with Skittles. Really? Just because I'm not armed and have candy in my possession doesn't mean I can't commit illegal and dangerous acts. You can choke people to death unarmed and break faces in with your fists. I don't care if you're wearing a pink leotard and carrying a satchel full of Snickers---you can still hurt or kill people. Though GZ did follow TM a bit, GZ was then retreating to his car, and TM had four minutes to get away. Instead, somehow he came back and attacked George. Martin punched George in the nose, and straddled him while beating/slamming George's head into the concrete. I don't care who you are, what you look like, or what's on you when you're doing this. If you're trying to murder me I'm going to shoot you off. What was George supposed to do? Perhaps he was supposed to wait patiently for another minute or two until he loses consciousness and dies. It may sound sharp, but maybe some liberals and Martin supporters would have rather he died. I say this because as of yet they have said very little about what else George was supposed to do when he was getting assaulted. Concrete is a weapon. If I grab your head and bash you against the hard concrete, could that kill you after a few blows? Martin wasn't unarmed because he had his strong hands and a hard surface to use to snuff out a life. Those who practice martial arts aren't unarmed, either, because bare hand combat can be lethal. So the notion that because this young man had Skittles and didn't carry a weapon then he must be unable to do wrong... is absurd.
He was just a punk. The same impartiality that doesn't rush to condemn GZ also doesn't rush to condemn TM. You don't know this young man---he's not a child but a young man. I don't know Trayvon. Because I don't know him I can't demonize him, because that would be just as wrong and dishonest as those who went way beyond their means to malign George's character. Yes, there are some pictures of his where negative inferences on his nature could be made. Well, so? How many of us didn't do silly or foolish things, or broke the laws and did mischievous things? When I was very young, 15 years old, I had done dumb, reckless and bad things. However, that doesn't make you a bad person. Smoking marijuana doesn't make you a bad person, either. Listening to rap music, knowing how to fight, and taking pictures of yourself doesn't make you horrible, either. Young folk are known to do stupid things. We've all gone through phases, and some of us have grown out of them. Whatever the case is, until you've known Trayvon Martin as deeply as his loving parents, you don't get to demonize him. Same goes for George. None of you even know them; all you know is what's been said or shown on TV. There are no monsters here, or heroes. Neither Trayvon nor George are bad people, and I suspect this tragedy was tragedy that's been blown out of freaking proportion thanks to yours truly---the media and the racemongers. If we want our nation to heal we need to stop getting emotional, stirring the pot, and using hyperbole and deceit to turn people into monsters. Those who truly have peace and harmony on their agenda will try to look at this tragedy with impartiality and objectivity. I feel so badly for both families, and my heart goes out to them.
The jury was racist. Absolutely not. This is just another half-digested chunk of food in the vomit of deliberate racebaiting. We have a system in which a man's guilt or non-guilt is determined by a jury of his peers. This held true for Jodi Arias, Casey Anthony, and O.J. Simpson. Speaking of O.J., was the jury racist as well when they found him not guilty? Both the prosecution and the defense agreed to these six women, so to stand up and say that their choice was racist is truly galling. Who the hell are you to say this? You weren't there, you didn't reconcile all of the evidence, and you certainly didn't sit in and view all of the happenings in the trial in rapt attention. Either we have a system or we don't. To cry like little children and have selective outrage when a jury frees one non-black man but stay quiet and content when a black man is freed by the same jury system... that shows just how discredited these people are. You didn't see white people protesting the verdict in the O.J. trial. They didn't act like caged animals out to break stuff and hurt people. There weren't any chants of "justice for Nicole and Ron" after the verdict was reached. No one called that jury racist, either. This is just whiny crying for having the ending of their fantasy ripped out of their book. We need to respect the jury, unless we risk obliterating our credibility by being so bold as to then go on a moral crusade against six random jurors who simply followed through on the task the were given by our system. We punish people based on the concreteness of evidence and law, not emotions and anger. Emotion... can cause us to do and say terrible things, and I know this from personal experience. Please, we need to cool our heads and take a break. People don't deserve to be hurt as a result of this verdict, nor property. I wonder what true civil rights leaders like Dr. MLK Jr. would do. I don't know what it would have been like to walk in his shoes, but I imagine he'd pray for peace and tranquility. He was so much more of an honorable man than Al Sharpton.
Who doesn't like mocking this thug? Seriously, knock it off. Like those who mock GZ, I'm asking that people stop mocking this dead young man, too. Just stop it. While you can speak ill of the dead, it's at the risk of hurting your image. Some people get off on viciously mocking Trayvon. It's sickening to hear it. Yeah, TM wasn't 100% faultless, but neither was GZ. All of this vitreol does nothing but spread bitterness, hatred, and ill will. Just stop it, grow up, and show some sort of respect and self-control. If people get hurt or die in part from this mocking and anger, some of that blood is on your hands.
George Zimmerman did nothing but tell the truth. That's doubtful. 90%, probably, but 100%? Unlikely. I read once that one tell of a liar is to move your eyes to your left/upper left when responding. Supposedly doing so is because the part of the brain responsible for creativity (fabrication and deceit as well) is on the left side of your brain. When your eyes move to the right/upper right, that signifies remembrance... recall. Apparently the part of your brain involved in remembering is on your right side as well as, I think, the hypothalamus. That said, there were times when, during his interview with Sean Hannity, his eyes darted to his left when responding to Sean's questions. While I don't know if this is an accurate science, it does carry some weight. I'm sure there are personal experiences in your life as well when you've noticed liars who moved their eyes to their left. So, I'm doubtful Zimmerman was 100% honest. It's possible he lied about some of the things he said, and the tells he gave adds some weight to that notion.
We have to get rid of the Stand Your Ground law. While it's A-OK to want to get rid of laws you disagree with, it makes no sense to want to get rid of SYG as a result of this trial. This case had absolutely nothing to do with Stand Your Ground. It's self defense. If you want some sort of relevant repercussion as a result of this trial, get rid of self defense. I mean, that's what GZ was tried on... not SYG. Wanting to get rid of SYG because of the verdict is like wanting to get rid of border security as a result of Roe v Wade. It makes no sense. And if you were to fight against self defense, as GZ used, good luck. You'll unite the Right and the Left extremely quickly if you do. So, please spare us this nonsensical pining to get rid of something that had absolutely nothing to do with what caused your anger in the first place. I guess it really is true you can't let a crisis go to waste.
Black people are just violent and stupid. In spite of some of the riots, protests, and violence in the aftermath, this is absolutely untrue. There are many good, kind, decent African American people out there. Some on the deep end of the political Right will spit up their racial hatred towards black people, using TM to say that all black people are stupid ghetto thugs. I hate it, because it's neither fair nor honest. People who act this way are beyond hope, so it's best to simply ignore them as they should be.
Retaliation. All of this violence and destruction by those thugs who can't accept a verdict needs to be stopped. This violence is unacceptable, and those who keep fanning the flames need to be held responsible for it as well. If you want to retaliate non-violently, which can be perceived as having a tantrum, that's OK. It doesn't seem to matter to some of these people that there's a mountain of evidence that supports George, so it doesn't really matter what they do so long as people or property isn't harmed. Some of this outrage is whining so palpable you can cut it with a butterknife, and frankly it's getting tiresome. Just now as of 7/18/2013 a congressman named Bobby Rush was on Sean Hannity... and he's the poster boy of butthurt ignorance regarding the verdict. If some of these angry people are as seemingly obtuse and stupid as him, then all of these acts and vows for retaliation maes a bit more sense. Nothing is more dangerous to society than stupid and ignorant people who will not look at the evidence. I bet if dishonesty and unfairness was outlawed, most of them would be locked up. It's so incredibly amusing to see some of these guys twist, distort, and outright ignore the facts and the testimonies. Hopefully they'll burn themselves out and crawl back into their abodes. These ignorant thugs think they can break people and property over a self-defense case they disagree with, regardless of our system. And they wonder why we arm ourselves.
A call for peace. We need to not hurt people or property over this verdict. Racebaiting, gloating, and hatred needs to cease. Seeing everything through the lens of race helps no one. Those who rush to judgment need to stop and let our system work. Despicable people like Al Sharpton fan the flames of animosity for their own personal gain; it needs to stop. MLK Jr would be rolling in his grave if he knew how much these new "civil leaders" have been making a mockery out of black Americans. Because of ignorant people like Al who keep raking at the healing scab of race relations, they give normal and decent African Americans a bad name. A jury of his peers rendered a verdict if not guilty. We need to respect our legal process. We need to love our fellow human beings as we love ourselves, and stop insulting the dead and those we don't even know. People need to STOP SAYING THINGS THAT HAVE NO EVIDENCE ATTACHED TO THEM. It's so sickening to have to deal with people like this, because it's so disingenuous and unfair it's like arguing with radical Islamists who deny the Halocaust. We will never have peace if we don't look deep within ourselves and reconcile reality... instead of being blinded with one's emotions, anger, assumptions, and hatred. There is a reason why our legal system is not founded on emotions, but on objective evidence. If having true racial harmony means that civil rights leaders become unnecessary, it is better for society. Now you see civil rights leaders doing as much as they can to stir it all up... I pray for the day that we don't need them any more. Though I never knew MLK Jr. in person, strangely, I miss him. We need men like him who will speak the blind, unbiased truth, and will not speak falsities to placate/incite one group or another. No matter your race, I would ask you to start up social conversations with members of a different race/culture. Make friends. Help one another, and lean on one another. Whether you're black, white, hispanic, Asian, whatever... please, I ask you to try to spark up meaningful and genuine friendships amongst yourselves for the sake of peace and prosperity.
Last edited: