Don't you just love people who look at the past with rose colored glasses? People where nicer. Children had respect for their elders. Politicians worked together easily with respect. No wait .. they didn't. My "favorite" is the Caning of Senator Charles Sumner.
That being said, I am completely disgusted by the childish petulant behavior of the House Republicans. "We don't know what we want, but you better give it to us right now!"
And now, a word about "Compromise" from This Day Today: July 16th...
Get it together, people!
I mean seriously.
I usually don't make more than one post per calendar day, but this couldn't wait.
I have made it my business to avoid the Trayvon Martin/George Zimmerman case. To me it's just another court case singled out for special media attention, one out of the thousands that occur in the U.S. It is just one of all those that illustrate the continuing prejudices and racism that continue to run through our society.
Where is the outrage for all the other sons who are assaulted or killed because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time through no fault of their own?
I hate that this case was presented as a referendum on justice for all the kids (regardless of their race or ethnicity) who are unfairly suspected to be up to no good. It's too much pressure for a case like this to withstand.
Those people who were looking to this case for justice would be satisfied with nothing less than the conviction of George Zimmerman whether or not he was guilty of breaking the law. (Maybe the law is bad and should be changed, but that is an entirely different issue.)
Friday, President Obama was quoted as saying, "Trayvon could have been me." That is certainly true. I imagine he was watched and monitored unfairly through his whole life, probably more so as he entered elite universities, etc.
I do think that the prevalence of racism is better than it was 35 years ago. That is not saying that I think it's good. Racial profiling still goes on everyday, just ask your Muslim neighbors.
We don't even have to be in any particular category to be watched. President Obama said that Treyvon Martin could have been him, but the truth is that we're all being watched and monitored everyday. If you didn't realize it before, the recent information that has come out about the NSA data collection systems and capabilities has shown it to us.
We all have cause to feel like Trayvon being watched and followed even though we haven't done anything illegal. Where's President Obama's outrage about that?
What happened between Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman that fateful day is a tragedy. Period. It's just about two people, one African-American and one Hispanic, and their families. It's tragic enough without making it the standard bearer for justice in our society.
Rather than asking one person to be punished for the sins of our society, perhaps we should look at the institutions within our society that have us running so scared, acting so paranoid, that we must watch everyone in order to feel safe.
commentary,current events,government,government shutdown,politics
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