dippednbutter Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 WASHINGTON >> President Barack Obama spoke in unusually personal terms Friday about the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager in Florida, a case that has roiled civil rights activists and a suburban Orlando community. "If I had a son, he'd look like Trayvon," Obama said, vowing to "get to the bottom of what happened." Obama expressed sympathy for the parents of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, who was shot on Feb. 26 in Sanford, Fla., a suburb of Orlando, by a neighborhood watch volunteer who said he was acting in self-defense. "I can only imagine what these parents are going through, and when I think about this boy, I think about my own kids," Obama said, calling the case a "tragedy." The nation's first black president aimed his message at Martin's parents, saying, "If I had a son, he'd look like Trayvon. I think they are right to expect that all of us as Americans take this with the seriousness that it deserves, and we're going to get to the bottom of what happened." Obama said that "every parent in America should be able to understand why it is absolutely imperative that we investigate every aspect of this and everybody pulls together, federal state and local, to figure out exactly how this tragedy happened." http://www.staradver.../143986426.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucas Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 How about all the other thousands of people being shot daily around the US? Are they not important enough to get to the bottom of it? deactivated170812, Royalty, Shane Ekanayake and 5 others 8 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timster Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 How about all the other thousands of people being shot daily around the US? Are they not important enough to get to the bottom of it? it's called pandering, if Obama were in their city, he'd say exactly the same thing, call it a tragedy and then move on to the next stop. lather, rinse, repeat Tech Star 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rajputwarrior Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 How about all the other thousands of people being shot daily around the US? Are they not important enough to get to the bottom of it? to be fair though this incident is pretty ****ed up because of the retarded laws florida has... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redfish Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 it's called pandering, if Obama were in their city, he'd say exactly the same thing, call it a tragedy and then move on to the next stop. lather, rinse, repeat If I had a son, he'd look like timster. FMH 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
halcyoncmdr Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 Why is this even news? Took Obama a few days to comment and it was a small one. isnt news. Why is it bad that he shows support, but then is bad if he doesn't show support? Who cares really. he made a comment, doesn't reflect negatively on him at all. let it go. im so sick of people making issues out of nothing. That's all politics is though. Making mountains out of mole hills. Nothing is ever really accomplished anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
revparadigm Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 to be fair though this incident is pretty ****ed up because of the retarded laws florida has... Conseal & carry is not a "retarded law"...it works wonders against random criminal acts. You never judge the entire spectrum that a law brings based upon one incident anyways. The vast majority of registered gun owners are responsible & cautious and understand the implications of handling such power. This guy was a self imposed guardian roaming around looking for something bad, he already had it in his mind [based upon what is known that he said] that Trayvon Martin was "suspicious" somehow. I know many people that have conseal & carry permits and none of them are doing it for the purpose of looking to get in a shooting...they are doing it for personal protection. As far what Obama said? Gee johnny on the spot free media exposure for a up coming election. Kinda transparent pandering in this tense situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Montage Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 Yup, protected himself REALLY well here then, didn't he! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mudslag Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 As far what Obama said? Gee johnny on the spot free media exposure for a up coming election. Kinda transparent pandering in this tense situation. He was asked about it by the press. It's not like he called a press conference to talk just about that. He didnt say anything that any parent wouldnt understand. blank 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timster Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 If I had a son, he'd look like timster. .. so if obama had a son, the son would look like a white college kid? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
revparadigm Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 Yup, protected himself REALLY well here then, didn't he! That was a really lame extrapolation of what I said. The people I know do it for protecting themselves...not a lone ranger vigilante hunt. I don't know the man who shot Trayvon Martin and seriously doubt his approach to the situation is anything remotely close to the rest of the conseal & carry crowd. He was asked about it by the press. It's not like he called a press conference to talk just about that. He didnt say anything that any parent wouldnt understand. What does "If I had a son he would look like Trayvon"...really have to do with the situation exactly? Not that hard to connect the dots he threw that in for political purposes...like a implication "shooting the President's son"...lame, lame, lame. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Syanide Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 The thing that happened to that kid is obnoxious, all I will say. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azies Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 Except nobody really knows what really happened? What happened if Zimmerman really was protecting himself? He sustained injuries, gee I wonder how he got them, from the bag of skittles the kid had? Yeah right. Zimmerman protected himself, because he followed the kid and then got attacked, then all these self righteous people playing the race card. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cute James Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 What does "If I had a son he would look like Trayvon"...really have to do with the situation exactly? Not that hard to connect the dots he threw that in for political purposes...like a implication "shooting the President's son"...lame, lame, lame. No, Obama was expressing what many black Americans feel: their colour alone makes some whites view them as criminals. However, the bigger issue is not Obama's statements, but the ridiculous gun laws in America, especially 'Stand Your Ground'. This legislation allows an individual to shoot practically anyone, provided they believe they feel threatened - shoot first, ask questions later. As discussed on The Young Turks earlier: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Gary7 Subscriber² Posted March 23, 2012 Subscriber² Share Posted March 23, 2012 to be fair though this incident is pretty ****ed up because of the retarded laws florida has... There were two entirely different shootings in Sanford. One was by a rent a cop the other a citizen with a CCWP. Do not think that they are the same as they are not. As far as Obama, he is pandering for votes in a state he has NO chance of winning! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
revparadigm Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 No, Obama was expressing what many black Americans feel: their colour alone makes some whites view them as criminals. However, the bigger issue is not Obama's statements, but the ridiculous gun laws in America, especially 'Stand Your Ground'. This legislation allows an individual to shoot practically anyone, provided they believe they feel threatened - shoot first, ask questions later. As discussed on The Young Turks earlier: No, Obama was expressing what many black Americans feel: their colour alone makes some whites view them as criminals. However, the bigger issue is not Obama's statements, but the ridiculous gun laws in America, especially 'Stand Your Ground'. This legislation allows an individual to shoot practically anyone, provided they believe they feel threatened - shoot first, ask questions later. As discussed on The Young Turks earlier: Hogwash. How many conseal & carry people are out there just "practically shooting anyone" just because they carry??? You find me statastics on how supposedly "stand your ground" is getting abused, then we'll have a meaningful discussions on the merits of the law. One bad example here does warrant your generalized - sweeping - blanket statement against the overwhelming majority of conseal & carry permit owners who are upstanding law abiding citizens. Besides you posting a young turks video surely reveals your ideological position before you even need to explain to us anymore. :rolleyes: Tharp Daddy and Mekun 2 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dippednbutter Posted March 24, 2012 Author Share Posted March 24, 2012 I do believe the outrage should not necessarily be inflated to the fact of these individual skin colors but rather how quickly the case became open and shut. I'd prefer a more thorough investigation which will happen but media is already just as quick to lynch Zimmerman. I don't think Obama's statement helps break racial tensions in this case and seems to be aligned with bad politics once again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lels Posted March 24, 2012 Share Posted March 24, 2012 Except nobody really knows what really happened? What happened if Zimmerman really was protecting himself? He sustained injuries, gee I wonder how he got them, from the bag of skittles the kid had? Yeah right. Zimmerman protected himself, because he followed the kid and then got attacked, then all these self righteous people playing the race card. So you say nobody knows what happened and then go on to say Zimmerman was attacked. Nice contradiction. What if Zimmerman sustained the injuries from himself, trying to cover his butt? The kid left him alone, Zimmerman was the one following him, and to me, that seems like the kid would have the right to protect himself as well, if he did in fact attack him. There are also witnesses claiming to hear the kid begging for help, which can also be heard on the 911 tape. If someone is begging for help, do they really need to be shot dead? Maybe the race card is being played a little too much here, but you can also hear Zimmerman make what sounds to be like a racial slur towards the kid in his 911 call. He also claims the kid looked like he was on drugs or something. Would be interesting to know if the kid had any drugs in his system. The fact that this case was open and close so quick without a thorough investigation is pretty suspicious to say the least. Regardless of race, an incident such as this should not go without being thoroughly investigated. And that is the real problem here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mudslag Posted March 24, 2012 Share Posted March 24, 2012 What does "If I had a son he would look like Trayvon"...really have to do with the situation exactly? Not that hard to connect the dots he threw that in for political purposes...like a implication "shooting the President's son"...lame, lame, lame. It was "making a connection" type remark. It may be silly but again he was asked about it, he didn't bring it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cute James Posted March 24, 2012 Share Posted March 24, 2012 Besides you posting a young turks video surely reveals your ideological position before you even need to explain to us anymore. :rolleyes: My apologies. Would you have preferred that I posted a clip from Fox News or Glenn Beck TV? Yes, 'The Young Turks' is a liberal news/commentary programme, but why should this render my post invalid? There are many media outlets - both in the US and in other parts of the world - raising serious questions about America's gun ownership and self-defence laws. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted March 24, 2012 Share Posted March 24, 2012 Reset your brains people - there may be more to this than meets the eye. Since this thing started one thing has bothered me, even though I still think the shooter was wrong in his initial pursuit; various reports stated that he cut off his pursuit and turned back - and he claimed that it was then that he was attacked by the kid. What has really bugged me is that when the cops arrived the shooter had bleeding wounds on his nose and the back of his neck. In my experience a wound to the back of the neck usually happens when one is attacked from behind, or is attacked from the front and knocked down hitting an object. Both of these point to aggression on the part of someone other than the shooter. Now we get this - Link.... Witness: Martin attacked ZimmermanUpdated: Friday, 23 Mar 2012, 6:19 PM EDT Published : Friday, 23 Mar 2012, 5:47 PM EDT ORLANDO - A witness we haven't heard from before paints a much different picture than we've seen so far of what happened the night 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was shot and killed. The night of that shooting, police say there was a witness who saw it all. Our sister station, FOX 35 in Orlando, has spoken to that witness. What Sanford Police investigators have in the folder, they put together on the killing of Trayvon Martin few know about. The file now sits in the hands of the state attorney. Now that file is just weeks away from being opened to a grand jury. It shows more now about why police believed that night that George Zimmerman shouldn't have gone to jail. Zimmerman called 911 and told dispatchers he was following a teen. The dispatcher told Zimmerman not to. And from that moment to the shooting, details are few. But one man's testimony could be key for the police. "The guy on the bottom who had a red sweater on was yelling to me: 'help, help?and I told him to stop and I was calling 911," he said. Trayvon Martin was in a hoodie; Zimmerman was in red. The witness only wanted to be identified as "John," and didn't not want to be shown on camera. His statements to police were instrumental, because police backed up Zimmerman's claims, saying those screams on the 911 call are those of Zimmerman. "When I got upstairs and looked down, the guy who was on top beating up the other guy, was the one laying in the grass, and I believe he was dead at that point," John said. Zimmerman says the shooting was self defense. According to information released on the Sanford city website, Zimmerman said he was going back to his SUV when he was attacked by the teen. Sanford police say Zimmerman was bloody in his face and head, and the back of his shirt was wet and had grass stains, indicating a struggle took place before the shooting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nominak Posted March 24, 2012 Share Posted March 24, 2012 Reset your brains people - there may be more to this than meets the eye. Since this thing started one thing has bothered me, even though I still think the shooter was wrong in his initial pursuit; various reports stated that he cut off his pursuit and turned back - and he claimed that it was then that he was attacked by the kid. What has really bugged me is that when the cops arrived the shooter had bleeding wounds on his nose and the back of his neck. In my experience a wound to the back of the neck usually happens when one is attacked from behind, or is attacked from the front and knocked down hitting an object. Both of these point to aggression on the part of someone other than the shooter. Now we get this - Link.... If I had a racist following me trying to gun me down, i'd probably attack in self defense as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
123456789A Posted March 24, 2012 Share Posted March 24, 2012 How does Obama know exactly what his son would look like? Did he do one of those FBI sketches that they show on America's Most Wanted? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted March 24, 2012 Share Posted March 24, 2012 If I had a racist following me trying to gun me down, i'd probably attack in self defense as well. And you would be wrong. BOTH of them had a responsibility to break off the confrontation. If the Zimmerman (btw: he's Hispanic) cut off following the kid, turned back and was then attacked, grounded, and bloodied and a witness bears that out then he was no longer the aggressor but a victim. In that case self-defense attaches to Zimmerman, not the kid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nominak Posted March 24, 2012 Share Posted March 24, 2012 And you would be wrong. BOTH of them had a responsibility to break off the confrontation. If the Zimmerman (btw: he's Hispanic) cut off following the kid, turned back and was then attacked, grounded, and bloodied and a witness bears that out then he was no longer the aggressor but a victim. In that case self-defense attaches to Zimmerman, not the kid. I know Zimmerman is hispanic. Doesn't make him any less racist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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