I Can't Believe it's Not Murder!

[Amake]

It's not just for the rich and famous anymore. Being white is good enough, at least as long as you're only killing lesser races. At least in Florida.

For those curious, I Can't Believe it's Not Murder! is an alternative to murder that's almost indiscernible from the real thing. In fact the only difference is that it's not illegal. For George Zimmerman, a respectable, moderately wealthy white man in his physical prime, stalking, starting a fight with and then shooting a little boy in the face could have meant a world of legal trouble - but you could tell just from the boy's name, Trayvon, that no real crime has been committed.

So yeah, Zimmerman was aquitted by a jury of six white women. After all, they couldn't prove that Martin didn't try to fight back when Zimmerman assaulted him. (Although judging by the videos we saw back then, Zimmerman didn't have a scratch on him.) I could honestly not blame black people in Florida if they started shooting white people on sight in self defense because they obviously have no legal right to live there. Yeah, that would start a race war that whitey would win with superior firepower, I'm not recommending it, but I could understand it.

[Aldurin]

[Satan's Onion]

Originally Posted by Hunter S. Thompson, University of Florida graduate

But I also know it [Florida] to be the most corrupt & profoundly degenerate state in the Union. So many of its elected officials are so openly For Sale that politics in Florida is more like an auction than a democratic process. Its Congressmen have been jailed for Felony Fraud & its Senators have routinely committed more heinous crimes than Richard Nixon was ever accused of. ... More murders & rapes go unreported in Florida each year than in Corsica & Sicily combined. The state has no Income Tax & essentially no Law. Its cities are ruled by Depraved sots & its Universities are snake-pits of cheating & random sex in Public.

...

[Flarecobra]

I think the shit would've hit the fan no matter what verdict was reached.

Though if you think about it... imagine how this guy's life will be now. It certainly will not be the same as it was beforehand, and I get the feeling that he might've had a better quality of life in jail.

[Magus]

I think prosecution should have pursued voluntary manslaughter from the get-go instead of adding it at the last minute.

[Red Mage Black]

As far as I saw it and the facts I heard about Zimmerman, he was pretty damn zealous and paranoid. So, shooting may have been more of a panic response than an intended thing. By and far 'concealed carry' does not mean 'intent to shoot anything that threatens'. So, either what Magus said above or Negligent Homicide. I mean, it wasn't like he walked right up to Martin and just shot him, but I'm sure the fact he ran and hid, THEN confronted Zimmerman didn't help matters either.

No, Zimmerman shouldn't have shot him. As I said previously, it sounded more like a panic response. People do stupid shit when they panic. If I was in Martin's shoes, I would have asked the guy outright why he was following me and THEN told him I was going to visit a relative that lived around the area. At the same time, I think 'running and hiding' was also a panic response to being followed by Zimmerman. Both things resulted in a very regrettable outcome. Zimmerman was not an innocent man just trying to protect his neighborhood and yet Trayvon Martin was also not just some 'sweet innocent child' people try to depict him as. Both of them had bad histories and this is the bad thing that tends to happen when two people with such histories meet.

I myself am pretty mad about what things are being said on Twitter and Facebook as a result. Death Threats were never funny, even when the Anonymous idiots from 9gag and 4chan were doing it. I even heard news of shootings against unrelated folks in different states as a result of the verdict. Not to mention, this new Black Panthers thing? That isn't going to solve anything. More racism is never a good thing. In fact, Militant 'Anything' is never a good thing.

Y'know, I don't even believe this was a race issue in the first place, but when the media gets a hold of anything, they'll spin it that way to appeal to folks. I'd like to think the issue of racism was merely media and political related, in any manner. Either way, it was not an incident that should have happened.

As for what's happening with Zimmerman. Due to death threats and the like, protective custody and he's moving out of the country. Can't do much there, but I'm still saddened that people allowed themselves to get riled up this much about one murder/homicide/manslaughter/etc case. (Killers tend to walk free everyday and this seemed no different. Media sensationalism anyone?)

[Nique]

Originally Posted by Red Mage Black

Trayvon Martin was also not just some 'sweet innocent child' people try to depict him as.

Irrelevant. He was an average kid.

If you want to avoid a fight you should probably not stalk people and make them feel threatened especially not any teenage boy at all regardless of race but I guess "stand your ground" only applies if you're white and win the fight by murdering someone.

[Mr.Bookworm]

Originally Posted by Red Mage Black

I mean, it wasn't like he walked right up to Martin and just shot him, but I'm sure the fact he ran and hid, THEN confronted Zimmerman didn't help matters either.

Jesus fucking Christ.

It is in every single goddamn way Zimmerman's fault. Do not play the victim blaming game.

and yet Trayvon Martin was also not just some 'sweet innocent child' people try to depict him as.

Don't you fucking dare start on that shit.

As for what's happening with Zimmerman. Due to death threats and the like, protective custody and he's moving out of the country. Can't do much there, but I'm still saddened that people allowed themselves to get riled up this much about one murder/homicide/manslaughter/etc case. (Killers tend to walk free everyday and this seemed no different. Media sensationalism anyone?)

You have this completely fucking backwards. Every death should be cause for grief. Every miscarriage of justice should be cause for outrage. We should never, ever allow ourselves to stop giving a shit about things like this.

[Osterbaum]

Maybe Zimmerman isn't the devil, but fuck if it isn't entirely his fault. Yeah ok, MAYBE Trayvon Martin could've avoided being shot if he'd acted more calmly or something I guess?!? But what the hell does that even matter. I mean Zimmerman is still pretty clearly the person who instigated the whole situation (the 911 responder even tells him not to go after Martin himself). A boy was shot dead and people are sitting around contemplating how he could've avoided getting shot? It's victim blaming, plain and simple. "Didn't want to get shot? Well you shouldn't have reacted so defensively when some stalker came up to you on the street!"

[Red Mage Black]

Originally Posted by Nique

Irrelevant. He was an average kid.

If you want to avoid a fight you should probably not stalk people and make them feel threatened especially not any teenage boy at all regardless of race but I guess "stand your ground" only applies if you're white and win the fight by murdering someone.

But the whole 'he was sweet and innocent' was the thing the media was playing up to make this a race based incident in the first place. The DA also wasn't doing itself any favors by bringing up the wrong charge. It wasn't 2nd Degree murder, but I do agree they shouldn't have brought in that other charge too late.

I don't know if you're trying to imply I'm being bigoted here. I think you might be reading too much into my analysis. As for the 'stand your ground' law and the politicians there, I don't live in Florida, so I don't know that law that well. I can only reference back to that Hunter S. Thompson quote that Satan's Onion pointed out.

Originally Posted by Osterbaum

Maybe Zimmerman isn't the devil, but fuck if it isn't entirely his fault. Yeah ok, MAYBE Trayvon Martin could've avoided being shot if he'd acted more calmly or something I guess?!? But what the hell does that even matter. I mean Zimmerman is still pretty clearly the person who instigated the whole situation (the 911 responder even tells him not to go after Martin himself). A boy was shot dead and people are sitting around contemplating how he could've avoided getting shot? It's victim blaming, plain and simple. "Didn't want to get shot? Well you shouldn't have reacted so defensively when some stalker came up to you on the street!"

I never said it wasn't Zimmerman's fault and I never blamed Martin whatsoever. I think you might have done the same thing Magus did. I wrote my post from a completely analytical... or is it speculative(?)... point of view. It's not like anyone actually saw what happened, so all of it is speculation anyway.