(CNN) - Obama said Friday that "Trayvon Martin could have been me

[Braegnok]

Vary well put Ed;  

 

It's time to stop the racial BS and put aside the pain of the past.

Edited July 21, 2013 by Braegnok

[Waco]

This whole thing is a clusterfuck and it'd be better if people just shut up about it and moved on.

 

The worst part is that people who form ignorant opinions are the ones that make the most noise.

[Deathmineral]

For those asking why race is a concern in all of this, it's because of money. Organizations like the NAACP get involved in stuff like this because that's how they make money. That organization would disappear if they didn't promote the idea of racism. The same goes for the media that reports on this stuff, they need those ratings, they need a hot topic that's going to get everyone talking and watching. That's just the truth of the matter, these people don't really care about Trayvon or Zimmerman, they care about the money they can make by exploiting Trayvon and Zimmerman.

 

I live in a small town in Missouri, I have a lot of racist friends, I can tell you right now, none of them care about Trayvon or Zimmerman, it doesn't concern them. What happened miles and miles away doesn't affect the people in my community and so they aren't concerned with it. Race doesn't matter here in any form aside from making money. That's America, for those outside of the US asking, this is what America does and how it behaves, it's about money, not race.

Edited July 20, 2013 by Deathmineral

[dihartnell]

Ive always wondered how many people have to be shot before the US embraces gun control? Im only looking from the outside in and from a country that has very strict gun control but seems to be too easy for unfit people to get as many guns as they like.

 

In nz we have strict gun control. Holders are licensed and you cant get hand guns or automatics or any military style gun and gun owners are licensed and vetted by police and have to sit an exam. Gun stores have strict reporting regimes.

 

Ducks and deer are what guns are mostly used for here in NZ but very little gun vs people. Still have a few incidents of illegal guns but not many. Our Police are not overtly armed with guns although some patrol cars have them in their car in a lock box and we have AOS (like Swat) for serious gun related incidents.

 

For what its worth in NZ having that handgun is illegal so having it while on neighborhood patrol would likely have amounted to premeditation and likely found guilty of murder or at the very least manslaughter as an alternative charge.

[InCrYsIs]

Ive always wondered how many people have to be shot before the US embraces gun control? Im only looking from the outside in and from a country that has very strict gun control but seems to be too easy for unfit people to get as many guns as they like.

 

In nz we have strict gun control. Holders are licensed and you cant get hand guns or automatics or any military style gun and gun owners are licensed and vetted by police and have to sit an exam. Gun stores have strict reporting regimes.

 

Ducks and deer are what guns are mostly used for here in NZ but very little gun vs people. Still have a few incidents of illegal guns but not many. Our Police are not overtly armed with guns although some patrol cars have them in their car in a lock box and we have AOS (like Swat) for serious gun related incidents.

 

For what its worth in NZ having that handgun is illegal so having it while on neighborhood patrol would likely have amounted to premeditation and likely found guilty of murder or at the very least manslaughter as an alternative charge.

There are gun control laws, criminals don't have any laws.  The system can only make more laws that impede law abiding citizens.  No win situation.  All I can say is that I carried concealed and if someone gets on top of me a starts ground and pounding me they are going to get shot.  There is nothing else you can do.  More control laws wouldn't have stopped this.

[IVIYTH0S]

 

Ive always wondered how many people have to be shot before the US embraces gun control? Im only looking from the outside in and from a country that has very strict gun control but seems to be too easy for unfit people to get as many guns as they like.

 

In nz we have strict gun control. Holders are licensed and you cant get hand guns or automatics or any military style gun and gun owners are licensed and vetted by police and have to sit an exam. Gun stores have strict reporting regimes.

 

Ducks and deer are what guns are mostly used for here in NZ but very little gun vs people. Still have a few incidents of illegal guns but not many. Our Police are not overtly armed with guns although some patrol cars have them in their car in a lock box and we have AOS (like Swat) for serious gun related incidents.

 

For what its worth in NZ having that handgun is illegal so having it while on neighborhood patrol would likely have amounted to premeditation and likely found guilty of murder or at the very least manslaughter as an alternative charge.

There are gun control laws, criminals don't have any laws.  The system can only make more laws that impede law abiding citizens.  No win situation.  All I can say is that I carried concealed and if someone gets on top of me a starts ground and pounding me they are going to get shot.  There is nothing else you can do.  More control laws wouldn't have stopped this.

 

+1

If the gun control was stronger, it's possible Trayvon could have had the firearm (illegally) while Zimmerman would be gunless...ended up being the shooter.

[ccokeman]

Its ok to scream more gun control as a solution but if the existing laws were enforced you might see a difference. However when you have a disregard for the law, are you going to get a weapon by walking into your local gun shop and filling out the federal forms? Hell no you are not, you will buy it out of trunk, at a yard sale or on a street corner, from a friend or somewhere else. Trayvon was the aggressor here, People still do not realize this. A 17+ year old male is a man in all physical sense of the word and in that respect he was no child. At 17 my child could damn near whip my ass at 6'3" 250lbs and I am no pushover at 6'2" 290.

[Phil]

The bottom line is that Zimmerman was acquitted because there wasn't enough evidence to convict.  So yes, it was completely innappropriate for Obama to insinuate things that had no facts to back them up.  If not for the context of the trial, I would have no problem with what Obama said, but like most Americans he chose to ignore the facts and assume he knows something that is unknowable.  And BTW he's Zimmerman's president too.  This case was sickening for the huge number of people who simply made it about something it wasn't either to suit an agenda or because they were too lazy to think.

[Andrewr05]

This case was sickening for the huge number of people who simply made it about something it wasn't either to suit an agenda or because they were too lazy to think.

I'm not implying that I'm 'holier-than-thou' or better than anyone but it all comes down to stubborn people who see things in black and white (the saying... not caucasion vs. other) and simply refuse to have any new opinions on things.

 

This isn't a liberal/democrat versus conservative/republican thing either, there are bull-headed people from all parties, religions, races, creeds etc.

[Phil]

 

This case was sickening for the huge number of people who simply made it about something it wasn't either to suit an agenda or because they were too lazy to think.

I'm not implying that I'm 'holier-than-thou' or better than anyone but it all comes down to stubborn people who see things in black and white (the saying... not caucasion vs. other) and simply refuse to have any new opinions on things.

 

This isn't a liberal/democrat versus conservative/republican thing either, there are bull-headed people from all parties, religions, races, creeds etc.

 

No, definitely not partisan.  All sides wanted a piece of the Zimmerman case.  It's pretty much a people are assholes thing.

[VaporX]

If not for the context of the trial, I would have no problem with what Obama said,

I do have a problem with what he said, the apologist attitude about racism among blacks has gone on long enough. Race I said racism among blacks. If you take a hard serious look the racism that exists in this country is now 50% white hate groups and 50% Black groups.

 

I am tired of being told that I owe something to black people for slavery that happened before I or they where born. I am tired of hearing some black kid scream how his people have been abused when he has not know a single moment of slavery yet act like it was all done to him.

 

I have enough American Indian blood in me to qualify for minority status if I choose. Yet never have I stood up and screamed that I am owed special treatment because of the genocide attempted on my ancestors. Sorry but killing a people off is worse than enslaving them.

 

Here is the real kicker, I live in a predominately black neighborhood. It is not low rent or high crime and the people here are wonderful and THEY AGREE with me.

[wevsspot]

I'm color blind when it comes to race, and that is why this whole fiasco pisses me off - and pisses me off even more when the president of the USA (and all it's citizens therein) makes dumb a*& statements based on the color of his or someone else's skin.

 

One of my best friends is black.  One of my grand daughters is half white / half black.  I've got nieces and nephews that are half white / half hispanic, half hispanic / half indian.  We live in a country that offers opportunity for everyone, regardless of the color of their skin.  But it's up to every individual - regardless of what race or ethnic group they belong to, to make the most of those opportunities.

 

You know what though, we all suffer from the bad apples that exist within our respective races.