My Take on Zimmerman

I've been thinking about the Zimmerman trial. Obviously I was not on the jury, and I did not hear all the evidence. Nor did I hear the jury instructions outlining the standards that must be met for any conviction. But I still don't see how a man with a gun can follow and confront an unarmed, innocent teenager -- against police advice -- and participate in a scuffle in which the teenager is killed with that gun, and then walk away scot-free. George Zimmerman was not "standing his ground." He was the aggressor. This was not self-defense. Self-defense would have been staying in his car.

To me it's clearly manslaughter -- or at the very, very least some kind of reckless endangerment. And what if Trayvon Martin had been white and blond, with an Anglo name like Corey Smith or Zack Cunningham? Do we think the half-Hispanic Zimmerman would be walking then? Not a chance.

Of course, Zimmerman would never have confronted a Corey Smith or a Zack Cunningham. The whole thing would never have happened.

Ah, this country. I understand why, deep down, a lot of people are perpetually infuriated. A lot of people feel that way all over the world. It's scary, it really is.

I read a newspaper analysis that suggested the acquittal was the result of overreaching by the state attorney's office -- that prosecutors poorly argued a second-degree murder case, rather than capably arguing a lesser manslaughter charge. That seems probable too.

Anyway, I'm a day late with my not particularly insightful comments and you're probably sick to death of hearing about this case. I went to breakfast with Dad and my stepmother yesterday morning, to a little rednecky neighborhood dive. Dad whispered to me before we entered, "Do NOT talk about George Zimmerman in here!" And I did not.

I spent yesterday taking more photos and going to Lowe's in an ongoing quest for the proper towel bar for the newly renovated bathroom. I swear, I will never renovate a house. I'm sick to death of this project and it's not even mine! I also scanned about fifty old family photos for my stepbrother, who had asked for them.

I am ready to get on that plane this evening. Tomorrow I'll be coming to you from my usual home base on the other side of the Atlantic!

(Photo: Near Gowers Corner, Florida.)