Martin, Zimmerman and Media Hype and Spin

I don't usually talk on what I consider "current events", those articles that everyone has a take on. Here is the extent of what I know about the case. A Hispanic guy named Zimmerman was on neighborhood watch, he followed a young black man named Martin who was wearing a hoodie. Mr. Martin and Mr. Zimmerman fought, Mr. Zimmerman shot Mr. Martin and claimed self defense.

As for what was in the mind of the two involved, nobody knows for sure and never will. The media has raised all kinds of issues, lets consider some of them.

1. The death was racially motivated. Seems unlikely, if Zimmerman had said lots of racial things in the past, that would have come out. I doubt very much he joined the neighborhood watch to let houses get robbed my other Hispanics.

2. Mr. Martin was a bad kid looking for problems. Again, seems unlikely. Mr. Zimmerman had been following Mr. Martin and he knew it because he called a friend and told her about it. He may have struck Mr. Zimmerman first; but, if you follow someone you risk them responding.

3. The death occurred because Florida believes you don't have to disengage from a fight and that you can "stand your ground". It is a stupid law, if you can avoid a fight or killing someone then you should. If you don't have a way to avoid it, then that may be a different situation.

Those are the main issues that I noticed; but, the spin on them is what is really interesting. There are some who have attempted to compare Mr. Martin to Martin Luther King. I find that simply horrendous. Mr. King spent his life trying to bring about civil rights and risked his life to do it. Mr. Martin did no such grand things.

Others have attempted to portray Mr. Zimmerman as some sort of defender of his neighborhood. If he was, he sure did a bad job of it. Neighborhood Watch does not require a gun, you are not there to prevent crimes, you are there to report them.

Here is the problem I have with all the spin, these two don't represent anyone I would want to be and they don't represent most of us. The media is the biggest problem in this whole thing. There was a witness in the case, a black woman who spoke to Mr. Martin on the phone. Apparently she was afraid Mr. Martin was being followed by a gay cracker, according to her testimony. She did not make a great witness; but, you get the witnesses that you get. Now she is being portrayed as a ghetto gal, she was on Piers Morgan explaining why it is okay to say, "Nixxa"; but, not "Nixxer". As if her lack of social graces has anything to do with the case. She is being put on television because it gets a reaction.

Here is how I see the case. A young black man wearing a hoodie was walking through a neighborhood at night. A over zealous neighborhood watch volunteer decided to follow him. Mr. Zimmerman exited his car to question the young man. Mr. Martin decided to respond and punched him or grabbed him or whatever. Mr. Zimmerman was losing the fight and shot Mr. Martin. Nobody wins and everyone loses. Two people who made bad decisions got in a fight, one of them is dead and the others life is ruined. Here is a thought, what if they had both just called the police?

What if Mr. Martin had gone home, called the police and given the license plate number of Mr. Zimmerman. How would the story have turned out? Well, the cops would have explained to Mr. Zimmerman how wrong he was and asked him about his carrying a gun on neighborhood watch, it is frowned upon. Mr. Martin would have been told it was a mistake and that they would make sure it didn't happen again.

Now, what if Mr. Zimmerman had just called the cops and waited. Same answer as above. The cops would have checked out Mr. Martin and asked Mr. Zimmerman why he had a gun with him. Lets also consider this alternative. What if during the course of the fight Mr. Martin had killed Mr. Zimmerman, would your position be the same, self defense or racially motivated? Just imagine the headline, "Neighborhood Watch Volunteer Killed by Pot Smoking African American". Two idiots got in a fight and one died. The media saw an opportunity to get some ratings so they played all the cards they could, the race card, the gun card and now even the gay card. The mainstream media is nothing but vampires that live off of our biases. They make money by playing the emotion card.

Now lets consider the most extreme possibilities. Mr. Zimmerman had hated blacks all his life, he believed all crime is committed by blacks and would join the KKK if they took Hispanics. He joined the Neighborhood Watch so that he could catch and kill a black man, prevent a crime and save the world. He saw a black youth and decided he should kill him and did. Who would support that? Mr. Zimmerman would be seen as just another nut job, no big news story there.

Lets consider another alternative. Mr. Martin was becoming a criminal and was looking to rob a house on his way home. He was an evil young man trained in Mixed Martial Arts, he saw that he was being watched and attacked the person watching him and attacked him. Fortunately, our young Neighbor Hood Watch person managed to save his life by stopping Mr. Martin. Not much of a story there either. You have to have drama and questions. The media lives off of beating a dead horse until it stops giving ratings and viewership.

I would like to recommend that my readers read the linked article. It is by a comedian named Tom Green. He talks about an issue that I have also talked about, how television is focused on rewarding bad behavior. Huffington Post - Reality TV -- Rewarding Bad Behavior.

Two people could have made better decisions, one was more at fault than the other, does it matter which one or even why? How does this go international? How is this evidence of bigger issues? It is the wrong case to prove any point. I don't have a racial bone in my body and have never been accused of such a thing. The woman that helped me through my divorce was black and from the ghetto and I love her with all my heart; but, we were not romantic. We preferred to be friends for live. The love of my life was half Hispanic and half Irish, I will never stop loving her though she is dead. My ex was a Heinz 57, as she used to say, she was a little of everything including American Indian, as my children are. My most read post on this site is about a black pastor, Pastor Carol Daniels. I didn't write it because she was black, I wrote it because I want them to catch her killer and make sure her/her never does that again. I didn't write it was because she was a Pastor, I wrote it because I was concerned people might focus on the wrong thing and miss the perpetrator.

She was killed in a town with Blacks, American Indians, Whites and Hispanics. She believed in love, forgiveness and dedication. I wrote my post long before Mr. Martin was killed. My heart cries out for her family and they have been loving enough to appreciate that and reach out to me, to thank me. An old white, bald, Irish American (actually I am just an American at this point, this is my home and my love is Southern California). I cannot speak for the late Pastor; but, I can make guesses. She traveled every Sunday to be there for people who might need her. While her church was mainly black, I do not believe she would have ever turned anyone, not black, not white, not Mexican and not American Indian. I believe each person who showed up would have been loved, accepted and told about the love of God.

I am a white, Irish-American, bald, short and tubby old man. I preach to gay Hispanics some Sundays. Pastor Daniels is my hero and she was an overweight, African American; but, neither of us saw ourselves as others did. We are Christians and sent here to preach love and forgiveness and tolerance. She did her job and has been an inspiration for me to do mine. Who is your inspiration, Mr. Martin, Mr. Zimmerman, either or all of the above? I think I will stick with Pastor Daniels.

I write this blog to raise real questions. I write it to get people to get beyond the obvious and ignorant. I write it to get people to think differently then they have been trained. To think rather than react. The question we should always ask ourselves i show do we make things better and not how do we be right. Dr. Martin Luther King asked us to be the better us. I ask the same thing.