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Recent comments from all weblog entries on this site. You also can view recently deleted comments. When I was involved in the AP/Drudge Retort copyright dispute, only one of the dozens of bloggers writing about the situation called me up to interview me: Simon Owens. Part of me, the condescending part, is thinking "Oh, that's adorable. How old is this boy? Really." Another part of me is thi- well, no. There is no other part. As a reporter at three different newspaper during my career as a print journalist, I couldn't imagine not talking to people directly, whether on the phone or in person. You're right, Rogers, the internet was a huge boon to the fact-gathering part of the job but it couldn't, and still doesn't, replace direct contact with one's sources. I don't know whether to sigh sadly or just roll my eyes. Maybe I'll do both. Zimmerman's statement that Trayvon was a little younger than him was accurate in Zimmerman's eyes. Zimmerman was a 28 year-old male who still lived with his parents. Parents who still provided for him, with food and shelter. So technically, Zimmerman views himself as a teen because of his up-bringing. Most 28 year old males don't live with their parents. His age may have been 11 years Trayvon's senior. However, the life he lived created a lack of necessity to mature. Everyone has pointed out the obvious differences in the behavior, mannerisms, and actions of a high school teen and and adult male. The decisions Zimmerman made reflected that of an high school teen more so than a mature twenty-eight year old adult. I still believe Zimmerman was at fault and intended to maliciously harm Trayvon. But I also believe Zimmerman brain has not fully developed. Both of these males are products of their up-bringing. It's a shame Trayvon escaped the statistically higher early mortality rate in Miami only to succumb to the racial profiling epidemic in Sanford. May he Rest in Peace. The judicial system in America runs on the same monetary system that every other corporation in America runs on. So I hate to say it but Zimmerman's retribution will more than likely come in the form of the same self-imposed heroics from @llockhart "The Lord said vengeance is mine" The LORD also was cool with slavery. So maybe you shouldnt be quoting him. That is as effective as a Pol Pot quote. I am completely appalled at the utter ignorance of some Americans. Wrong or right, a life of an unarmed citizen of the "GREAT" USA was lost. Is this what we're condoning now? There may be no evidence to support anything that happened on that fateful night, but several things still stand: A teenage armed with skittles and sweet tea was PURSUED and killed. Take the race of the victim and the prepurtrator out of the equation and Trayvon was still wrongfully murdered. Whether or not justice is served, we ALL will have to give an account for our actions. The Lord said vengeance is mine. I find peace in knowing that no one can get away with anything. I hope others can find comfort in this as well. I'm still trying to understand how Trayvon didn't belong in this gated community, because last time I checked you need a code to drive or walk into the gate, if he got in that means he knew the code and he belonged there. I live around 2 gated communities, one is a lower income housing and there is a security guard at the gate and there is only one way in and one way out, the other is an upscale neighborhood with a keypad....again one way in and one way out. These days and times what does suspusious look like. Who gave Zimmerman the right to take the law into his own hands. Why follow someone you know nothing about. You're asking for trouble. 911 operator told him don't follow the boy, but he did anyway why!!! trayvons body is decomposing with the worms zimmerman is taking long soothing deep breaths of oxygen probably drinking pina colottas LOL at the Zimmerman is a racist and Trayvon was an innocent little harmless youth comments. Why would racist Zimmerman take his own time to mentor a black youth for 3 years? Would a racist do that? I think not. We do know that Trayvon was suspended from school for being in possession of stolen jewelry and having a "burglary tool". Hardly my image of an innocent youth. So what do you think was more likely to happen that night? That a racist Zimmerman stalked and killed a black kid. Or that Zimmerman got jumped and got beat on by someone who didnt like being followed. å½"社ã®å•†å"ã¯çµ¶å¯¾ã®è‡ª ä¿¡ãŒå¾¡åº§ã„ã¾ã™ã€‚ã"安 心購 ルイヴィトン å…¥ãã ã•ã„ã¾ã› å½"åº -- ã¯ä»Šã™ã§ã«3ã¤ã®ç¬¬ä¸€.ã ‚'ã‚„ã‚Šé‚ã'ã¾ã -- 㟠第1時 ヴィトン 財布 é–"ã¯å‡ºè·ã -- ã¾ã™ 商å"ã®å"質第一 å–引先ã®æº€è¶³åº¦ã®ç¬¬ä¸€ .国際速é"郵 ルイヴィトン ãƒãƒƒã‚° 便発é€ã€é«˜å"質ã€ã"安 心購入ãã ã•ã„ã¾ã›ã€‚hj04-25 How do any of us know that the blood on the back of Zimmerman was his because how is it that a boy is beating your head against the ground you pull out an gun and shot him in the chest Trayvon would not have fell backwards he would have fell right on top of Zimmerman causing Zimmerman to have to lift Trayvon off of him and in which Trayvon blood would have been dripping on Zimmerman. And at first Zimmerman said that Trayvon was on top of him with his knees on his hands so how did you manage to grab your gun because I been in fights and when I was on top with my knees on the girls hands she couldn't do nothing but wiggle her body to try and get away from me. And I didn't bang her head against no ground I beat her face with my bare fist. Its just to much confusion I hope if I get mad enough and feel like killing someone I hope I can get away with it by saying it was self defense We learn more and more about the law everyday don't we? It saddens me that the law doesn't equate to what's right and what's wrong. I think the judicial system was designed to protect the guilty at times and it's unfortunate that throughout the history of America, black people were constantly looked at as less than or inferior. I bring that up to paint a picture of some people's mentality. Some people are racist against blacks and that's just the way it is. I believe that if Treyvon were a white "kid" walking through his neighborhood the story would've ended differently. The fact of the matter is, Zimmerman knew what he was doing. He knew Treyvon was a high school kid. He just didn't care. Zimmerman acted on a feeling shared around the world by some people. That's why when I read some of the comments left by random people about this trial, they say things like "One Less" and other disgusting, hurtful things. We don't know every detail, we weren't there but we do know this, Zimmerman was told not to follow Treyvon and he did it anyway. Of course he's switching his story now. What kind of monster knowingly kills a teenager? One that's fighting for his life I suppose. I believe Treyvon was just walking to his destination not looking for trouble. People like Zimmerman feel like they can live above the law, they have that "I can do this and get away with it if I..." attitude and can you blame them? That attitude seems to work for a lot of people, especially those connected to law enforcement. They always slip through the cracks of that shattered glass that is justice. While the world watches this case let's not forget to watch each other. Right is right, wrong is wrong. Don't let ego and pride overrule that fact. We learn more and more about the law everyday don't we? It saddens me that the law doesn't equate to what's right and what's wrong. I think the judicial system was designed to protect the guilty at times and it's unfortunate that throughout the history of America, black people were constantly looked at as less than or inferior. I bring that up to paint a picture of some people's mentality. Some people are racist against blacks and that's just the way it is. I believe that if Treyvon were a white "kid" walking through his neighborhood the story would've ended differently. The fact of the matter is, Zimmerman knew what he was doing. He knew Treyvon was a high school kid. He just didn't care. Zimmerman acted on a feeling shared around the world by some people. That's why when I read some of the comments left by random people about this trial, they say things like "One Less" and other disgusting, hurtful things. We don't know every detail, we weren't there but we do know this, Zimmerman was told not to follow Treyvon and he did it anyway. Of course he's switching his story now. What kind of monster knowingly kills a teenager? One that's fighting for his life I suppose. I believe Treyvon was just walking to his destination not looking for trouble. People like Zimmerman feel like they can live above the law, they have that "I can do this and get away with it if I..." attitude and can you blame them? That attitude seems to work for a lot of people, especially those connected to law enforcement. They always slip through the cracks of that shattered glass that is justice. While the world watches this case let's not forget to watch each other. Right is right, wrong is wrong. Don't let ego and pride overrule that fact. He knew from the start the kid was a teenager. So goes to show Mr. Zmmerman is a smooth operator and will smooth himself right into be innocient in murfer. Which is exactly what ths is "murder'!! if trayvon survived by some miracle do you think that zimmerman would have this bullshit story he made up no all you need to convict a black guy of a crime is the murder weapon... they have the murder weapon they have the murderer and @ all racis: what is the difference between the texture of your mind/consciousness/dreams and the color's mind/consciousness/dreams???? a color? ignorant souls...worry about what life is and why we are here and not some as pointless as the color of skin...the color of skin didnt create the universe....and last time i checked all skeletons look the same when the skin decomposes plus zimmerman's father is a judge so you cant trust that justice system all the evidence was sabataged from the start by the precinct...i have no doubt that zimmermans judge father has enough influence to sabatage a case....if trayvon was a year older this would have been sweeped under the rug @ the truth wtf are you a racist or somethin i bet your white...so you only beieve what the man who murdered a kid in cold blood says, the only evidence to contradict zimmermans account is dead by zimmermans hands and then it took zimmerman and his camp 2 months to get a story togethor,,,fuck outta here with that stupid shit.. zimmerman is the cause and the effect of the entire tragic event, if zimmerman had the flu that day and had to stay in the house this whole situation would be a figment of our imagination but no he wasnt home sick he was outsside at night in the rain during the allstar game stalking a young male minding his own business on the phone with his girlfriend.... why dont you come up with an excuse for the girl on the phones account asshole @mlocke "Once he saw Trayvon he went out of his way to confront the young man." Care you show what evidence you have to support this claim? Even the prosecutor has admitted under oath that they have no evidence to show who started the fight, or that they have any evidence to contradict Zimmermans account that he was attacked while going back to his SUV by Trayvon. @terry That witness video you posted is completely irrelevant. So a kid was walking his dog saw someone on the ground asking for help. (which then his mother said it was too dark out to make out any details of the people) Then his dog ran away at which point he chased his dog and heard a gunshot which he did not see. Also you should be aware that there is an eyewitness that does support that Trayvon at some point was on top of Zimmerman bashing his skull in. The bloody head photo made public the other day supports this eyewitness claim. How Zimmerman got the upper hand and managed to fatally shoot Trayvon is pure speculation. Bottom line. Zimmerman was wrong. Trayvon just happened to be black and clearly he was there to stop black young men from robbing his community. Once he saw Trayvon he went out of his way to confront the young man. Let's say Trayvon was irritated he was being stopped, he knew he hadn't did anything wrong so now he is pissed. H e didn't have to give Zimmerman no explanation and when Zimmerman walked up on him he stood his ground. You can't get attacked unless you walk over there and start harrassing this kid who probably felt like he was no punk and wasn't about to let this guy bother him. So because he wasnt hearing it and Zimmerman bit off more than he could chew instead of taking that ass whopping that he was getting he shot the boy. So if i bother you and you dont like it and defend yourself i shoot you because i got a gun. Black, White it doesn't matter. If you have a gun you can't start something and then shoot nobody. If you carry a gun don't slap me and get mad and shoot me because i slap you back. Spin it anyway you want thats how it is jeff dont you mean the allstar game lol after you feed your mind with that tell me how do you explains trayvons girlfriends statement who was on the phone with him all day leading up to his untimely murder... p.s. your taking sides with a murderer, youll never hear trayvons side of the story and last time i checked when theres a dispute you always check both sides of the story to come to a conclusion and zimmerman made sure you wasnt hearing the other side....for zimmerman to have been in a scuffle or got his brains bashed at night in the rain and was on the floor under trayvon how does trayvon have a fatal precise gunshot wound to the chest... There is absolutely NO EVIDENCE that "80 percent of crime is black criminal on a white victim". This is a complete and total falsehood. I love that 80 percent of crime is black criminal on a white victim...but when the reverse happens all the blacks jump on the white guy...time to even up the score....when you guys put OJ in jail for killing two white people we will go ahead and charge Zimmerman @the truth can you explain this witness interview ??? and it should answer your question care to explain why the evidence your asking me about came out a few days ago and the situation happened 2-3 months ago @terry Zimmerman initiated the contact. Police were en route. There is no justification. He's a vigilante who made the wrong choice and he needs to be duly punished. @the truth no he killed trayvon because he thought he was gonna get away with it...does this not seem like deja vu to you...this situation is of very similar circumstances to the joe horn contraversy almost like a planned duplicate... the difference is joe horn stayed on the phone with the authorities... cant nobody tell me that george zimmerman didnt have that whole joe horn situation studied in his mind, being a self appointed "neighborhood watchman" and all @ #27 jeff: i 100 percent agree with you, theres nothing left to be said after that...you must have went to law school or something. nice intuition So Zimmerman killed Trayvon because he was black and not because he was getting attacked by him?? Is that what im supposed to believe? What I dont understand is how we as Americans we teach our children not to talk to strangers, to get away from them if one seems to be getting to close and if you are attacked by one fight as hard as you can to get away. So if Zimmerman (stranger) had ran up on this kid (Legally)and this kid STOOD HIS GROUND doesn't that make Zimmerman an stranger getting what he deserves an a** whooping. But because he knew he was wrong for stocking this kid and getting his a** whooped he had no choice but to kill him and scream self defense WHAT AN COWARD. I do not believe this has anything to do with race I think he is an WANNA BE COP WHO WAS GUN HAPPY AND WAS TO SCARED TO PLAY WITH THE BIG BOYS SO HE CHOOSE TO PLAY WITH AN KID. And this was an planned attack because what man you know would whether be out neighborhood watching the same night as Superbowl. anyone who thinks a 17yr old is about there age at 28 needs to grow the he** up i hate to be the barrer of bad news but a 35yr old is about your age! i am 29 and get approached by guys 19-22 all the time and i tell them "i have kids your age because my 11yr old is about there age not me!! Stating he is like my age is like a 5 year window. someone that is 28 is not going to say a 17 is like his age, 2 different catagories and what 28 yr old is going to put a 17 yr old on his same level????? Zimmerman thought he was a police officer someone with authority and didn't take into consideration what his actions was doing to Trayvon's thinking. If one is being followed once approached one would be defensive, natural response. Zimmerman is a sad puppy and that gun made him think he was bull dog. To: LOGICandREASON, I truly get your logic..... why are the world making a simple "MURDER OF AN UNDERAGE BLACK TEEN IN COLD BLOOD WITH NO MERCY" so complex? its simple as that... the fone call with 911 is 100% intent in itself, he tells the dispatcher "they always getaway"... meaning he didnt want trayvon to make it home that night and so he killed him carrying out his intent... hes ranting who knows what under his breath to the dispatcher... the officer told him to stop following trayvon and the fact that he did not listen and continued intently stalking his prey makes this a murder that zimmerman could have avoided but on his on choice didnt the fact that zimmerman had a loaded gun on him when he left his car to confront his prey is intent to murder when his life was not in danger to begin with and zimmerman just so happens to disconnect with the dispatcher moments before murder this child...if he was scared for his life why didnt he stay on the phone with 911? so they can hear him kill trayvon he didnt want to wait 2 more minutes for the real officers to arrive because he knew exactly who trayvon was from the start and knew tray would have been in the home in that 2 mins or if not the officers would just ecort him a few feet to his fathers home and not kill him or arrest him(back to his line about "they" always getaway) if zimmerman didnt know trayvon was a few feet away from his fathers home why was he so impatient about him getting away in the 2 mins the officers would have took to get there especially in a gated community with 1 entrance and 1 exit??? because then he would have had to answer to trayvon and trayvons father and trayvon father's girlfriend(zimmermans neighbor) as to why he was following/stalking his young son going to and coming from the store in the rain at night during the superbowl(whos out playing vigilante with a loaded hand gun in a gated community surburb, in the rain, at night during the superbowl???, he had the intent to kill, just picture the setting)...the cops would have been questioning zimmerman about the suspicious suspect then trayvon, trays dad, and trays dads girl would have came outside and saw them and confronted zimmerman and the officers and everyone would have found out zimmy was a crazy racist and had a firearm and just had attempted to murder trayvon...but he murdered the child as fast as he could to avoid that scenario..this is a hate crime murder in the 1st degree, how do you kill a 17 year old black child with an ice tea and skittles screaming so loud for his life that neighbors were scared to look out they windows after stalking him for who knows how long in a car out of harms way, and then say zimmerman had no intent whatsoever, and was defending himself??? defending himself from what? you know who the victim is, you know who the murderer is...what can a case do at this point...this young black child is dead for going to the store for his little brother not coming back, and white america only cares about zimmermans well being??? zimmerman's choice of actions decided the events of that night so he is 100% responsible for the entire situation, not an any way is he a victim and should be charged with definate 1st degree murder so you telling me micheal vick can fight dogs, then lose his career, lose millions, lose endorsements get publicly bashed and degraded, get dropped from his team and go to jail for years and get labeled as the bad guy but a hate crime underage murder so blatant gets sweeped under the rug, it takes a whole nation to bring an intitial arrest then you only pay 15 000(nothing to the son of a judge who lives in a gated white suburb) to get out and hes looked at as a hero and labeled as a good guy and the white people taking up for him on some childish race siding black and white bullshit making this a black vs white thing??? so you telling me the justice system of america values the life of a dog over the lives of our young black future whoever says racism doesnt exist in this day and age, just go to worldstarhiphop.com and click on any of the thousands of videos and read the instantly updated comments...tons and tons and tons of anonymous racist comments... and im a white male, just disguted at my people and the way we treat others who are in reality equals Rather the "kid" as he proclaims is a teenager or anywhere close to 25+, the fact remains that this "kid" lost his life to the senseless and seemingly racist actions of a "self appointed" neighborhood watchman. The mental state of this guy to act as if he's gi joe and hunt out bad guys in a middle class residential neighborhood says unstable to me. It's a shame that the state of Florida is even giving this case any chance of goin anywhere other than Justice for the victim. Gz is a weak coward that preyed upon a defenseless child to flex his stupidity on. Sadly if Trayvon had the gun and defended himself in this same senario, they'd find a way to convict the "kid" for murder. Im pissed at this for all who don't think nothing was wrong with what went on that tragic day. the grim reaper is smiling because he loves your kind. he will show you how he rolls (personally) and it will change your mind on how you think but by then, no one care.. karma! For those who are defending and making excuses for Zimmerman. I would love to see your comments if a black watchmen shot a white teen. Or better yet, if that was your child. This is the world we live in and people refuse to acknowledge it. When the dispatcher told Zimmerman to back off and he did not do so he then became the attacker. So Zimmerman had the right to stand his ground but trayvon didn't? And fear is a powerful tool. That's the only way a 17yr old child can beat up a 28yr old grown man. By the way gangstas and thugs don't walk to the store for skittles and tea. Zimmerman, is a MURDER and I wish Trayvon would have had a weapon to stand his ground... He put NO value on Trayvon's LIFE and I have NO MERCY on his!!! It is a big deal if you think some one is a little younger than you(you being 28) and someone in there late teens. if you cant make that distinction then something is wrong with you, and you may be a peedo. For those of you saying its not a big deal, do you guys also date 16-17 yr old girls, or can you clearly see 17 is not a "few yrs younger", its 11 yrs younger. most are missing the point that, The police dispatcher told him NOT to follow the kid. THE KID HAD EVERY RIGHT TO BE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD, SO ZIMMERMAN WAS WRONG ON ALL ACCOUNTS. HE KILLED A KID FOR LOOKING SUSPICIOUS WHEN THE KID WASNT SUSPICIOUS AT ALL. whats so hard to grasp. for those of you who think he's right, dont you tell your kids NOT to talk to starnger, esp at nite? i know you do. now if this "armed" man was following you kid, for no reason...and that is a fact(he was clearly wrong for suspecting the kid shouldnt be thr, the kid had every right)do you want your kid to stop and talk to him? i know you wouldnt. Maybee some of you should put yourself in the kids shoes instead of just saying it was self defense. didnt he "hunt" a kid down? and dont EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU WITH KIDS, tell them to stay away from strange people. hypocracy at its VERY BEST. just shows how ignorant some folks can be. Honestly I don't give a fuck about the travon martin situation I know young people who died just like him and nothing get done about it I find it weird that a 28 year old considers a 17 year old to be about his age. If that's the case then statutory rape laws wouldn't exist. If i was 28 I would never consider one in their late teens to be about my age. I wouldn't even want to be compared to a 17 year old. I still would like to know why he lied about getting out of the car to check a street sign. Im sorry but this rationale doesn't make sense. If you are 11 yrs older than a person you are not about the same age! I know if someome is that much younger than me and still in high school we have zero in common. You probably wouldnt hang out with someone that much younger than you, so there is no way you would classify you both in the same general category. This boy was still in high school while zimmerman was a working man..keyword MAN. Their ages arent even close!! Trayvon's age had a lot to do with this tragedy because GZ thought he had the upper hand. He would've approached it differently if it had been someone his own age because they would've more likely been armed just like him but he thought he had the upper hand over this kid and the gun gave him the courage he wouldn't have normally had. 28 is not young. That is a fully, mature adult. So if i were to say someone is a little younger than me, I would assume that they were an adult as well. So, yeah, it's contridactory. Not trying to do the lawyers job, just my opinion Zimmerman is a liar and my God will give him the punishment he deserves even if the judicial system doesn't!!! In God We Trust!!!! the underlying thing of the matter is that the city of Sanford police dept is JUST as much at FAULT as Zimmerman....and thats where the other investigation SHOULD BE!!!!! Anna I don't call 16 or 17 yr olds "my age" and I'm 25. Around older people you may still be a "kid," but you certainly aren't a kid to a 17 yr old. I got a rude awakening when some 16 yr old called me "lady." Zimmerman is shady and I have no doubt that he would do it again. I don't think he sees anything wrong with what he did. I think he just thinks of it like he made a mistake. He doesn't seem to understand that he did something wrong in targeting and intimidating some random person just because in his eyes, he was "up to no good." Spiritually speaking, I'm all for an eye for an eye - He himself condemned the kid - Why should he be given the same benefit of the doubt he denied to Trayvon Martin? |
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My first general assignment news writing gig in 1976 quickly taught me telephone dispatches don't breath, lack color, or pulse and fall flat next to stories framed around person to person encounters.
You miss the nouns, the people, places and things around your source, their facial tics, body language, and often times, you miss the entire story. Also, if you're not sitting next to tomorrow's news, some lowlife assignment editor will always send a photographer making twice your wage, while you sit packing away stale donuts behind your desk. Everyone lies and you can't hear or see it on the phone. Or Skype either, for that matter.
I relearned this happy lesson when I launched a local news site in my home town five years ago, a site based loosely on Mister Rogers' cruel.com. People were afraid to talk, especially online, but I have the great good fortune to live in the middle of town, in the middle of a genuine village, across the street from the public library. I could walk out my door 100 paces in any direction and collect a week's worth of news in 20 minutes.
Town fathers soon noticed and spent $100,000+ trying to shut me down. Yes, I pushed every last one of those thieving assholes out of public office.
You're welcome.
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