dagblog - Comments for "[Refuted] Egypt Highlights the Peril of Democracy"

Few think a murder charge can

PeraclesPlease — Wed, 02 May 2012 13:13:23 +0000

Few think a murder charge can be won - most seem to think the AG chose 2nd degree murder over manslaughter for political reasons. C-Ya.

Zimmerman faces a murder

rmrd0000 — Wed, 02 May 2012 13:00:02 +0000

In reply to No, what we assume Simpson

Zimmerman faces a murder charge. This has become boring. I'm done.

No, what we assume Simpson

PeraclesPlease — Wed, 02 May 2012 06:40:58 +0000

In reply to We are comparing calling

No, what we assume Simpson did was premeditated murder, straight up.

With Zimmerman, most scenarios have him committing manslaughter or self-defense.

Words have meanings.

We are comparing calling

rmrd0000 — Wed, 02 May 2012 03:34:00 +0000

In reply to A murder, or more likely some

We are comparing calling Zimmerman a murder with calling Simpson and Blak murderers. The results of a trial will not change the label. Zimmerman may get away with murder

We are just going in circles.

A murder, or more likely some

PeraclesPlease — Tue, 01 May 2012 21:59:16 +0000

In reply to The hysteria was because the

A murder, or more likely some type of manslaughter, is suspected. As we don't know many facts, and even the girlfriend's call/story has been under wraps, we're waving in the dark.

Florida laws actually just support the right to stand ground, not attack, so again, we're moving away from facts. If Martin attacked Zimmerman, Z would have right to defend himself. If Z attacked M, there is no defense under this Florida statute. Z was not defending home or car.

The hysteria was because the

rmrd0000 — Tue, 01 May 2012 20:46:45 +0000

In reply to If we're not sure of the

The hysteria was because the Sanford police said that they had no basis to arrest a murderer. Zimmerman was armed. Trayvon had Skittles and iced tea. Trayvon died of a gunshot. A murder occurred. Given Florida laws, we may be left with the fact that Zimmerman got away with murder.

The case will be decided in a Florida court. If the case is dismissed on the basis of "Stand your Ground" or Zimmerman is not convicted, I will be able to say that Zimmerman got away with murder. (Google response to OJ Simpson trial, or the Robert Blake trial, both were considered to have gotten away with murder despite acquittals).

If we're not sure of the

PeraclesPlease — Tue, 01 May 2012 19:45:11 +0000

In reply to The ill-informed guest

If we're not sure of the facts in the Martin-Zimmerman case, then we can't conclude 1) whether Martin was "murdered", and 2) whether it sets a precedent for any black being killed with impunity.

The investigation itself is strange, with long delays to interview key witnesses, when memory will fade. But is that unusual for police investigations, or sadly typical whoever the victim?

Nevertheless, the media has contributed to the hysteria - with bad editing, mangling facts, declaring a racist term used when apparently not, bad use of police videos, etc.

The jurors will hear a quite different case. I believe Martin's girlfriend was interviewed by prosecutors only about 4 April, 6 weeks after his death.

I would add that there is an

rmrd0000 — Tue, 01 May 2012 13:27:17 +0000

In reply to The ill-informed guest

I would add that there is an assault on facts by the punditry. Here is a link to an article describing Rachel Maddow'sappearance on "Meet The Press" this past Sunday. A GOP strategist and a GOP legislator tell Rachel that women do not make $0.77 on the dollar versus men doing the same job. Note that David Gregory the show's host makes no correction of the facts.If you want facts, you had better sort them out on your own.

The ill-informed guest

rmrd0000 — Tue, 01 May 2012 12:49:18 +0000

In reply to This is an "everything is

The ill-informed guest pundits will remain an on air staple. I don't believe that any major media reforms will occur in the short term. I expect misinformation, and therefore try to go to multiple sources on stories that are important to me. You apparently do the same. I think that verifying facts to the best of one's ability is the best that can be done. I think it is easier to fact check pundits today because of the Internet.

On the specifics of the Martin case, the wish of the parents was to have Zimmerman tried before a jury. That may or may not happen. A Florida judge could decide that Zimmerman was protected by the "Stand your ground" and cannot be prosecuted. We may never get to truth. The bottom line in the situation has always been if Martin can be murdered than any "suspicious" black teen can be murdered by a "concerned" citizen.

In the case of Egypt, the Fundamentalists were always a concern. The necrophilia legislation was like a very sick Onion article. Whatever the media reports, the underlying issues of whether Zimmerman will be tried in a court of law or how much influence Muslim Fundamentalists will have in Egypt remain the focus.

This is an "everything is

PeraclesPlease — Tue, 01 May 2012 05:05:47 +0000

In reply to We are in an era where it is

This is an "everything is everything" argument. Of course we know reasons why Presidents' personal foibles might be hushed.

Jessica Lynch was used as a Pentagon PR tool, just as Pat Tillman's death was re-written and covered up. These are scandalous acts - not just facts mangled.

But the facts I'm talking about are simply published details, not "memory" - an officer's report says gun was confiscated - why are well-paid journalists and commentators reporting different weeks later?

"Some of the guest pundits who comment on stories of the day may not have followed that particular case in details. " Well get them the fuck off the air, or complain enough so they have "Bozo the Chimp" put under their picture when they speak. If they're listed as an "expert" and haven't followed the story in detail, or are just making shit up, shame them, the assholes. Shame the stations, the networks.

Of course Fox's methodology is to have guests say the outrageous stuff while moderators look on and smile and ignore known inaccuracies and falsehoods - but the other networks follow this as well. Or some millionaire hosts may just find that they get paid the same whether they follow the details or not, and are really just numbingly ignorant for their professional position.