Trayvon Martin and the Disconnect Between the Right & Left

When I first heard about this tragedy I had the impression that Zimmerman was a loose cannon, vigilante that needed to be locked up for good. I couldn't understand why an arrest hadn't been made. I live in central Florida and the local talk radio was saying the same thing.

Then, information came out that offered an explanation as to why the police had NOT made an arrest.

I believe the consensus from the left is that Zimmerman is responsible for Martin's death because he followed him even though he was told (basically) NOT to do so and the ensuing "confrontation" resulted in Zimmerman fatally shooting Martin.

As a conservative I look at it this way. First, something isn't quite right with Zimmerman. Patrolling the neighborhood and calling 911 50 times in a year is a little over the top even if he did actually help the police to apprehend one or two criminals. Second, Zimmerman should NOT have confronted Martin. That is the job of the police. Perhaps he should have simply watched from a very safe distance and then communicated to the police where Martin had gone when they arrived. Third, it's POSSIBLE Zimmerman was physically attacked withOUT provocation and that he was getting pounded and that he shot Martin in self-defense.

From a LEGAL standpoint (I'm not lawyer, just another idiot with an opinion ) it is NOT against the law to walk up to someone and ask them, for example, "Do you live here?" It's also NOT against the law to tell someone to "fuck-off" and continue on one's way. Is it possible that Martin was offended or incensed by Zimmerman's following or a question(s) he may have asked and then attacked him? Is that possible? Well, it seems that it was possible. Does it not? We've all read the witness statements and the police report of him having a broken nose and a cut on the back of his head. Of course, it's also possible that Zimmerman initiated a violent confrontation and proceeded to get his rear-end kicked before pulling out his gun and shooting Martin.

We do know this: There was a physical altercation. What we DON'T know is who started it, how it started and why.

To continue, do you want to know whose side I'm on? I'm on the side of truth and justice. I guess my emotional side thinks Zimmerman is an idiot and that he should be made to pay for shooting Martin. But my rational side says that evidence of his guilt must be established and, to date, I have yet to see the evidence that will prove that Zimmerman is guilty of murder. As much as I don't like it, it is NOT against the law to, again, ask someone where they live. It is NOT against the law to carry a gun. It is NOT against the law to shoot someone who is on top of you and beating your head into the pavement.


I used the word "disconnect" in the title of this thread because there is one between conservatives and liberals on this matter. It is my impression that many liberals will interpret what I stated here as being supportive of Zimmerman when, in fact, nothing could be further from the TRUTH. And the truth is, like I said before, I am on the side of TRUTH and JUSTICE.

What is INJUST are the actions of some prominent liberals such as Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, Spike Lee, the New Black Panthers, Roseanne Barr and more. Barack Obama's comment on Martin only inflamed racial hatred between black and white Americans. Lee tweeting the address of that old couple was reprehensible. Now Sharpton is saying they're going to "escalate" if Zimmerman isn't arrested. What I have NOT heard Sharpton say is what specific charge should be levied and how that charge can be made to stick. THAT is where we have a "disconnect".


That's what scares me about the "loving" left. Many of them seem very apt to just imprison or execute Zimmerman withOUT due process.

I'm very sorry about Trayvon Martin's tragic death. I couldn't give a flying fig about Zimmerman. What I do care about is knowing the truth and doing the just thing through due process.


I understand the evidence will be submitted to a grand jury. It will be very interesting to follow this. On a side-note my guess is that a jury pool will likely be half black and half white. What do you think?

There's more to the story than what is being told. Liberals have nothing to do with it, nor are Conservatives "Right".

A white man did not shoot a black man. A Hispanic Man shot a black man. (No new news here....)

Mistake #1. The fact is if indeed Zimmerman was told by the police to stop, he should have obeyed orders.

Mistake #2 - Having a handgun out in public view walking up to a stranger asking what he's doing in the neighborhood. Martin probably thought he was a gang banger, and he was going to be shot. Well, He was right.
Zimmerman sounds like a head strong prick yielding a firearm being a barny bad ass with no clout.

Mistake #3 - Police should have taken Zimmerman in custody and gotten all of the information, and treated it as a murder, ESPECIALLY if the suspect was un-armed.

Mistake #4 - Involving Al Sharpton and his Croonies to make this a racial war and only to invoke more hatred into a fragile system, and further drive a wedge between black and white people.

Martin was suspended from school.
Martin was in posession of traces of illegal drugs.

Zimmerman was "Trigger Happy" and shot him.

Throw Zimmerman in jail, and get rid of the "Reverend" and his racists.
Two less gang bangers on the street.

By getting out of the car when he was specifically told NOT to, and yielding a gun he provoked him.
Anyone being approached by a strange man with a firearm at his side while being questioned about his or her own business is a threat, and will force a fight or flight response. - I don't care WHO you are - if some strange person approaches you with a firearm and starts asking you questions, you will do what you need to do to protect yourself.

Zimmerman had an obligation by owning that firearm to know better, to keep it restrained and concealed.

You NEVER show your firearm unless you intend to use it.

Bent Gears - Where not all gearheads are straight
http://www.bentgears.com

Pro Firearms:
"When seconds count between living or dying, the police are only minutes away." - Philip Van Cleave (October 30, 2007)

OH PA--LEAZE. How many people wanted Jon Benet's parents arrested? Were they 'lefties' too? Or were they conservatives (like yourself). Should justice have a political tilt?

Dagger of the Mind

Apparently only when it benefits the "Right"

Bent Gears - Where not all gearheads are straight
http://www.bentgears.com

Pro Firearms:
"When seconds count between living or dying, the police are only minutes away." - Philip Van Cleave (October 30, 2007)

Of course not. But, unfortunately, it too often does.

As for JonBenet...without evidence, the most that could be done to the parents would be detaining, and investigation.

And, as memory serves, many from both sides were in favor of this approach.

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If this kid were my son all I'd need to know is what I know. The best and safest place for George Zimmerman would be locked up for as long as possible since there wouldn't be a place on earth he could go, or enough time that could pass for me not find and eliminate him from life's equation. I swear before God and all that is good and just that I wouldn't stop until he were dead from my own hand. Every action has an equal and opposite reaction, and as the boy's father it would be my duty to settle up. This is the problem with violence. It only begets more.

And that's pretty much all I have to say on the subject.

Hey, maybe you folks know something I don't. So, please enlighten me. What specific charges should Zimmerman be charged with and why please?

That was sixteen years ago, not sixteen weeks ago. But I get your point, I think. I believe you're saying that conservatives are just as guilty of rushing to judgement as liberals, correct? To that I would say you are mistaken with this tragedy being the case in point. Prominent liberals and not-so-prominent liberals have already tried and convicted Zimmerman without knowing all the facts. Conservatives aren't doing that. Conservatives play devil's advocate (pun unintended) with the liberals and then liberals accuse the conservatives of politicizing the case and of blindly supporting Zimmerman.

From what I've seen many of my liberal friends have plenty to say about Zimmerman except for one important thing, which is, what specifically is he to be charged with and how? Do you think Zimmerman should go to jail? If so, tell us SPECIFICALLY what the charge is and how it's going to stick. That's all that is asked. This isn't an emotional question. I don't have a horse in the race. I just want to know what is the charge and how it's going to stick.

Don't hate me for asking. There's enough of that in this board and this world already.

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Good lord, it's amazing how hard people are working to justify their defense of Zimmerman. When a person shoots an unarmed person at point blank range, the shooter is very often arrested and charged with a crime, based on the police/magistrate/district attorney/grand jury determination that there exists probable cause to believe a crime has been committed. At some point, if the defendant pleads not guilty, there will be a trial. THEN is the time when all the evidence is presented and a judge or jury decides whether the defendant is guilty.

The outrage in this situation is there is plenty to indicate there's probable cause to believe Zimmerman committed a crime. Thus, he should be arrested and charged. If a bond is set, he can post it and be released from custody pending the resolution of the case. That's the normal procedure. That it hasn't obtained here begs the question. And all the defending of Zimmerman just reeks of partisan politics and demonization of the other.

This.

Where did I defend Zimmerman? If you want to lynch Zimmerman I'm not going to stop you. I'd just like to know what the specific charge is that you'll levy against him. Can we get past all of the emotional hysterics and logically and rationally answer this very simple question? Or is the reason it's not answered is because you can't?

Hmmm... Gee I don't know, how about on the charge of murdering an innocent unarmed 17 year old of whom he was stalking?

And what scares us is that there is a law where a murderer can legally kill someone for any reason and get away with it no questions asked. Had the police taken Zimmerman into custody like they were supposed to, the courts would've been able to do their jobs and prove if Zimmerman was guilty or not.

You've proven my point. You've already tried and convicted Zimmerman and completely exonerated Martin even though you were not there and you do not know what transpired between those two.

Do you believe in due process of the law? It seems that you do NOT.

You see, this is that "disconnect" of which I spoke. It's just emotional rhetoric. Sorry, but that's all it is.

Let me ask you this. If you were prosecuting the case, what would you tell the jury to, hopefully, "clinch" a guilty verdict?