[What follows is based on memory, not research; apologies if I get a fact or two wrong.]<\/p>\n
When the Drudge Report filled up its \u201cheadline\u201d links with reaction to the Zimmerman trial verdict, I figured that this was more wishful thinking than anything, hoping for riots so as to point to what uncivilized people the Left were.\u00a0 But they\u2019re not going away.\u00a0 And I have to admit that, not only do I disagree with the protesters, I\u2019m not even sure what their point of view is.<\/p>\n
As far as I can tell, there are a couple ways the chain of events might have unfolded.\u00a0 Zimmerman\u2019s story is that, in returning to his\u00a0car, Martin knocked him down and started raining down punches.\u00a0 Afraid for his life (and, in various retellings, thinking that Martin had seen and would reach for the gun), he shot him.\u00a0 <\/p>\n
All the forensic evidence \u2014 the injuries on Zimmerman\u2019s head, the bruising on Martin\u2019s fist, the testimony about how the bullet entered Martin (including the statement that the shirt was hanging down, indicating that Martin was on top) \u2014 as well as the eyewitness evidence (the witness indicating that the man with the color shirt that corresponded to Martin was on top) corroborates this version, and makes any other version improbable.<\/p>\n
Alternative #2 is that the two men confronted each other; there was no instigator, each was a hot-head.\u00a0 Nothing corroborates this alternative \u2014 even the cries of \u201chelp\u201d are unlikely if both men were actively aggressors.<\/p>\n
Alternative #3 is that Martin was wholly innocent, that Zimmerman chased him down in his anger about the robberies, landed a couple punches, and decided to finish him off with the gunshot.\u00a0 <\/p>\n
But here\u2019s the thing:\u00a0 I\u2019m not even sure that the Trayvon Martin defenders believe Alternative #3.\u00a0 <\/p>\n
Some of the quotes I read are \u201che was standing his ground\u201d \u2014 as if he was fully justified to start beating on Zimmerman because he was \u201cbeing stalked.\u201d\u00a0 And most quotes are that \u201cZimmerman should have never gotten out of his car in the first place.\u201d\u00a0 <\/p>\n
But he did \u2014 not because he \u201cracially profiled\u201d Martin, but because, in the rain,\u00a0Martin was casually wandering through the back path and seeming to be scoping out the houses.\u00a0 (From all reports, the area is racially diverse, so it wouldn\u2019t make sense to call the cops on every black man.)\u00a0 Did he give up his right to self-defense upon leaving that car?\u00a0 <\/p>\n
Zimmerman also said, \u201che looks like he\u2019s on drugs\u201d \u2014 and there are reports (true?\u00a0 urban legend?) that all it takes is Skittles, iced tea and cough syrup to create a mind-altering drug.\u00a0 I\u2019ve never read anything credible on this, though \u2014 or even a more complete statement from Zimmerman about what being \u201con drugs\u201d looks like.<\/p>\n
From all reports, Martin was a troublemaker, and at risk of heading towards more trouble.\u00a0\u00a0In many of the reports of gang shootings in Chicago, the best the distraught family can say is, \u201csure, he got in trouble a lot.\u00a0 But we hoped he would turn himself around, and now it\u2019s too late.\u201d\u00a0 Would Trayvon Martin have turned himself around?\u00a0 Would any of these young victims of violent crime, in circumstances in which they are not innocent and caught in the cross-fire, but caught up in a life of violence \u2014 would any of these young men have turned themselves around?\u00a0 <\/p>\n
None of which offers any \u201clessons.\u201d\u00a0 Come to think of it, I don\u2019t think there are any lessons.\u00a0 Let\u2019s find our lessons somewhere else and leave this man, these men, alone.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
[What follows is based on memory, not research; apologies if I get a fact or two wrong.] When the Drudge Report filled up its \u201cheadline\u201d links with reaction to the Zimmerman trial verdict, I figured that this was more wishful thinking than anything, hoping for riots so as to point to what uncivilized people the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2209,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-949","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n