Caught Short . . .

. . . for words. . .


A friend recently commented to me that he wished the President had not made those recent comments about race relations to which I, naturally, responded, "Why?"  He said that among all of the problems we as a people, society and world currently face, the Trayvon Martin/George Zimmerman situation should not be monopolizing our attention. In short, like a popular song on a top 40 radio station, he was just sick and tired of hearing about it.

Like many other conversations with many people, I was quickly distracted from this one and on to other things.  But later that day, after contemplating our short interchange further, I realized what I could have, should have, and hope to tell my friend upon our next encounter.  And, in brief, that is:  the President's remarks were spot-on.  They were NOT political, they were not platitudinous or pompous blather, trite heard-it-alreadies or scolding.  They were simply a from-the-heart reflection and plea for US to reflect on how we treat each other.  Reflect- probably something very few of us do during our busy, self-absorbed days.  He also described how it feels (and felt to him) being a young black man and some of the racist behaviors with which young black men must cope everyday.  He mentioned the history of mistreatment to which black people have been subjected and alluded to the anger that results.  So many things which white people know, but have somehow tucked away and choose not to think about too much. . . BUT SHOULD!

These are things that middle-aged white men such as my friend and myself do not now, nor have in the past, encountered.  If we have a country, and a world, where people must live together, we must, at the very least, be empathetic to these things.  This is every bit as important as the economy, the environment, budgets and spending, foreign policy, drones and (do-nothing)politicos.  This is our world.  It's the only one we've got. We can, and should, certainly make time to help resolve such such relevant and important issues as THE WAY WE GET ALONG! 

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Two Cents . . .

. . . of mine. . .

The George Zimmerman trial has consumed the American public the past two weeks and certainly for good reason. I may as well weigh-in on it like everybody else because, hey, I'm not above it.  As a matter of fact, no one is. 

First, the obscene quote and knock-knock joke by the prosecution and defense respectively were totally out of order - especially the joke.  On one hand, seeing photos and film of Zimmerman and hearing comments from his parents, I can't help but think that Zimmerman sorely regrets what he has done.  He just appears to be a bit tortured.  (It's just a feeling I get.)  But that doesn't mean that what he did wasn't wrong and that he should not pay some penalty for taking an innocent, human life.  You can't antagonize someone to the point of confrontation then pull out a weapon and kill him in the name of self-defense. That appears to me to be exactly what happened. 

It also seems that by strict letter of the law, in a trial for 2nd degree murder (or manslaughter), one and only one thing has to happen.  The prosecution must prove that Zimmerman killed for reasons other than self defense. And the prosecution must convince the jury that Zimmerman killed for reasons other than self defense beyond a shadow of a doubt.  The defense only needs to place that doubt in the minds of the jurors.  And that is exactly what, I believe, happened in that courtroom.

So I do believe that by the time that George Zimmerman pulled that trigger, he did feel that his life was in danger.  Trayvon Martin was by that point very angry.  Trayvon Martin was provoked.  Trayvon Martin felt that his life was in danger. The trial did not broach anything remotely close these questions.

The trial also failed to address the series of events that occurred prior to that pulling of the trigger that led to that awful, crucial moment.  The trial failed to address how Trayvon Martin must have felt when he finally, and mistakenly, confronted George Zimmerman. Sure, it would have been better to walk away.  But it was not the absolutely-required thing to do.

Finally, if we learn anything at all from the Zimmerman debacle, it is that the contention of the NRA that the more guns we have in society the better off we will be is sheer and utter nonsense. No one should have to fear the prospect of a loaded gun being carried by another human being who is foolishly taking comfort in a law that is cartoonishly named the "Stand Your Ground" law.

What do you think?
Tell me at  
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html

My latest release, Black & White Then Back,
can be downloaded digitally at:

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser:  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak3)

Also, be sure to visit:
http://www.rayjozwiak.com

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