I Ask You, the Reader... Does the Following Constitute a Double Standard?
by: Les Carpenter
Rational Nation USA
Liberty -vs- Tyranny
Finally... George Zimmerman the 28 year old man responsible for the death of Trayvon Martin the 17 year old Florida teenager has been charged with 2'nd degree murder. It is as it should be. Now perhaps the media, the politicians, Sharpton, Jackson, and the pundits on the left and right will give space and allow the justice system to work.
The death of Trayvon, a young man just beginning life is indeed a tragedy that affects us all in one way or another. At the very least it requires us to look at society and how it values life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Or at the very least it should.
There are those who say this incident was racially motivated because Trayvon a black was killed by a white/Hispanic. I am not so sure based on the limited knowledge we now have. Certainly more will surface as the case goes to trial. This is as it should be.
One can not help but wonder what the call for a bounty on George Zimmerman's head by the New Black Panthers amounts to. Is this possibly racially motivated as well? Just asking. Being the inquisitive guy that I am.
At any rate we should all be satisfied that Trayvon Martin's death will be properly placed before a duly appointed jury and that justice will be served. It is as it should be.
The protests over Trayvon Martin's death may have been partly responsible for Zimmerman being charged. But then again there is no certainty he wouldn't have been charged had there been no protests. We just don't know. With any certainty.
It is fairly reasonable however to believe the protests were engineered because Trayvon was black and somehow because of this justice would be slow in coming, if at all. Again racial overtones that certainly should be confronted. By all Americans.
I for one am satisfied, at this juncture anyway that the justice system is working as it should. Ultimately justice will be served and George Zimmerman, the man who took the life of an unarmed 17 year old teenager in Florida will face the judgement of society.
With the racially charged rhetoric, especially coming from the left over the Trayvon Martin case I begin thinking about racial incidents and how they are treated both in the media and by those in power. It seems to me maybe this is a double standard. Let me explain.
Channon Christian and her date Christian Newsom were brutally and heinously murdered in 2007. Their crime? Being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Perhaps just as Trayvon Martin was.
The perpetrators of this crime?
So, tell me, was this crime racially motivated. Was it a hate crime? Was it more or less heinous than the Trayvon Martin case?
What is as interesting as it is tragic is the fact this case did not receive the level of media attention and national exposure the Trayvon Martin case has received. The question is why? Does this constitute a double standard both by the media and the authorities? Why was there no FBI investigation? Why didn't the President (Bush) speak out on this horrible crime?
Equally as important as the foregoing questions is the reality that justice was ultimately served. As it will be in the case of Trayvon Martin.
The broader, and more pressing question is when will people recognize we are all part of the same race? The HUMAN race. As such all are entitled to the basic respect and dignity everyone is rightfully deserving just by the simple fact they are human. At least until such time they prove they aren't.
Link to the above: Wikipedia,
Rational Nation USA
Liberty -vs- Tyranny
 |
| Trayvon Martin |
The death of Trayvon, a young man just beginning life is indeed a tragedy that affects us all in one way or another. At the very least it requires us to look at society and how it values life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Or at the very least it should.
There are those who say this incident was racially motivated because Trayvon a black was killed by a white/Hispanic. I am not so sure based on the limited knowledge we now have. Certainly more will surface as the case goes to trial. This is as it should be.
One can not help but wonder what the call for a bounty on George Zimmerman's head by the New Black Panthers amounts to. Is this possibly racially motivated as well? Just asking. Being the inquisitive guy that I am.
At any rate we should all be satisfied that Trayvon Martin's death will be properly placed before a duly appointed jury and that justice will be served. It is as it should be.
The protests over Trayvon Martin's death may have been partly responsible for Zimmerman being charged. But then again there is no certainty he wouldn't have been charged had there been no protests. We just don't know. With any certainty.
It is fairly reasonable however to believe the protests were engineered because Trayvon was black and somehow because of this justice would be slow in coming, if at all. Again racial overtones that certainly should be confronted. By all Americans.
I for one am satisfied, at this juncture anyway that the justice system is working as it should. Ultimately justice will be served and George Zimmerman, the man who took the life of an unarmed 17 year old teenager in Florida will face the judgement of society.
With the racially charged rhetoric, especially coming from the left over the Trayvon Martin case I begin thinking about racial incidents and how they are treated both in the media and by those in power. It seems to me maybe this is a double standard. Let me explain.
 |
Channon Christian 21, Christopher Newsom 23 |
Authorities say both were raped, tortured, and murdered after being kidnapped on the morning of January 7, 2007. Four people were convicted and sentenced for their involvement in this crime. Letalvis Cobbins was found guilty of first degree murder and rape in August 2009 and was sentenced to life in prison without parole. Lemaricus Davidson was found guilty of first degree murder and rape in October 2009. Davidson is on death row awaiting his death sentence by lethal injection to be carried out. George Thomas, after having been found guilty of first degree murder and rape in December 2009 was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
In May 2010 Vanessa Coleman was found not guilty of first degree murder but was found guilty of being a facilitator in the rape and death of Channon Christian. Coleman was sentence to 53 years in prison.
According to published reports, Newsom and Christian went out for dinner on the evening of Saturday, January 6, 2007. Police say their car was hijacked and the couple was tied up and taken to the apartment of one of the suspects.
There Christian was reportedly raped in Newsom's presence then Newsom was shot and his body burned. Police have not confirmed that his penis was cut off and we have not found any credible source for that information. Police later found a fingerprint on an envelope in Christian's abandoned car, which led them to the apartment where they found Christian's body in a trash can in the kitchen. She had been dismembered.
Again, police have not confirmed the mutilation of her breast. Investigators say they later determined that she had been held for at least two days during which she was tortured, raped, and murdered. Newsom's body was found by a railroad worker near some railroad tracks in East Knoxville.
The perpetrators of this crime?
What is as interesting as it is tragic is the fact this case did not receive the level of media attention and national exposure the Trayvon Martin case has received. The question is why? Does this constitute a double standard both by the media and the authorities? Why was there no FBI investigation? Why didn't the President (Bush) speak out on this horrible crime?
Equally as important as the foregoing questions is the reality that justice was ultimately served. As it will be in the case of Trayvon Martin.
The broader, and more pressing question is when will people recognize we are all part of the same race? The HUMAN race. As such all are entitled to the basic respect and dignity everyone is rightfully deserving just by the simple fact they are human. At least until such time they prove they aren't.
Link to the above: Wikipedia,
Gorges Smythe has left a new comment on your post "I Ask You, the Reader... Does the Following Const...":
ReplyDeleteThe question for me is, if Zimmerman is found innocent, will radical blacks loot and vandalize the property of innocent third parties as they are wont to do? AND, if one of the property owners shoots a looter to protect his property, will the shooter be charged with a hate crime? You can bet Al Sharpton will demand so UNLESS the shooter is black also.
Somehow I inadvertently deleted your comment Gorges. I re-posted it as near as I could remember it.
DeleteThere are double-standards all over this Zimmerman story, and in BOTH directions. a) If Zimmerman was black and Trayvon white, there probably would have been an arrest instantaneously. b) If Zimmerman was black, media clowns like Jackson and Sharpton (Sharpton, especially) wouldn't have given it their time of day. And c)(and as you have clearly pointed out here), if Zimmerman was white and Trayvon black, there wouldn't have been any clamoring whatsoever for a hate crime. Only in a narrative like this one does the perfect storm truly exist.
ReplyDeleteEditors pick news stories, to get better ratings. Sex crimes, crimes involving different races, bloody murders, car crashes, fires. Don't forget about bloodthirsty Americans who want to hear the gory details. They want to know if the guy's penis was cut off.
ReplyDeleteRemember Tawana Brawley? Sharpton truly believes any publicity, is good publicity, even if it is based in lies. He's not alone in that behavior (not limited to race, or gender).
The poor work by the police department helped fuel this "event."
I don't see this case being about race at all. I see it as an idiot, power hungry, community (organizer) patrol guy, with a gun. Who's probably been watching to many cop shows. It's a little hard to call it justified after the 911 authority told Zimmerman, not to follow Martin. Zimmerman calls Shawn Hannity apparently to have his own demagogue in his corner.
I support the Second Amendment, but we all know there are some people who should not own, or be allowed to carry a gun and not all of those are criminals. Unnecessary death is one of the bad side effects of having a Second Amendment. I'll live with that, because it would be much worse, if we did not have a Second Amendment.
I subscribe to Anon's jaundiced view.
ReplyDelete"The News" is not about educating us, it's about selling advertisements, and the more lurid the topic, the more they sell.
The fact that we put people in special categories and encourage tribalism is also a large negative factor, as Les said.
It is very disturbing how the media catapaulted this story to where it is today. Even more so disturbing, as you state, is the clear double standard we see. Great post.
ReplyDeleteThanks for finally talking about > "I Ask You, the Reader... Does the Following Constitute a Double Standard?" < Loved it!
ReplyDeleteMy webpage > mcallen