Re: Martin/Zimmerman - why was / is there an effort to paint a picture that wasn't / isn't real?

[Nay]

148. The media has always reported untrue and biased things, but it didn't used to do that 24/7.

IMHO, the 24/7 breathless news cycle with everyone chasing the next angle and/or preparing lies for the consumption of the public (Fox) has made impossible any reasoned discourse. It's always about playing to people's prejudices and emotions, so truth is essentially irrelevant. Unfortunately, jurors are subjected to these waves of bullshit way before they get picked for the jury, so their attitude about any specific case is directly influenced 24/7 by shit. In addition, simply growing up in this heated media/infotainment atmosphere truly has made people more stupid with respect to their ability to filter out bullshit and determine what is truly relevant in a case. This contrived atmosphere also has been scientifically proven to increase fear in the populace and make people feel crime is a lot more prevalent than it really is.

Morally, what was the issue in this case? Well, to me it was: do you, as a citizen, have the right to chase and challenge someone walking in a public place (and not committing any crime), start or instigate a fight with a person who himself will feel stalked/attacked, then kill him if he resists or scares you, and escape conviction for anything? I don't think such a right morally exists. If we can agree that no such right exists but the law allowed this, then the law must be changed. Another moral aspect is the initial response of the police -- the primary investigator wanted GZ arrested, but he was stymied. The investigator was morally correct to hold the view he did, and it's worth another whole investigation to find out why immediate arrest was not taken off the table.

Now, I did not follow any of the TM/GZ stuff on the news. I never watch mainstream news, because it is entirely corrupt and will give me nothing to base any rational opinion on. It doesn't matter if GZ was a racist bastard, and it doesn't matter if TM was a Crip. Only your actions matter. Period.

I did read more in-depth discussions on what Florida law required of the jurors, and I can sorta see how they ruled the way they did. TM's parents are, IMO, correct to say that the law must be changed. But, since the whole affair has been deliberately splattered with all sorts of emotional detritus, a majority of people can't sort it out or respond maturely or appropriately. There are also commercial and RW forces that are using this for their own ends (buy more guns! ni**ers! immorality! stock up on survival stuff!).