George Zimmerman’s defense claims that un-armed Trayvon Martin was just as deadly as his pistol. That’s nonsense.
Trayvon Martin punched George Zimmerman. George Zimmerman shot Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman’s defense? I was getting beat up. In some circles (namely, Fox News), this argument seems to be catching a foothold. The argument is predicated on one unstated but very apparent belief: all young black men are deadly.
In a fight, the two combatants are expected to act with equal force; a fist begets a fist, a gun begets a gun. Well, Zimmerman’s defense (and Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity) is arguing that he used an appropriate amount of force because Martin was on top of him punching him. If self-defense demands that the forceful response be reasonable and appropriate, one would have to argue that Trayvon could have killed Zimmerman easily with his fists. The fists of a seventeen year old black kid are as deadly as a 9mm pistol.
Wow. That means my skinny poet fingers are deadly weapons. I don’t feel like much of a danger to anyone, but that’s what I’m supposed to believe. In third grade, I punched a kid named Jake in the stomach for hitting me too hard with a kickball. Little did we know that Jake barely escaped death at the hands of an eight-year old killing machine.
When I was twenty-one, a young black guy punched me in the face. He was probably about 17 or 18 (Trayvon’s age). He was skinny to the point of looking emaciated, and he wore a silly red baseball cap, so he looked a lot like a stop sign. That’s irrelevant. Size and age are not factors when facing a young black man. Young black men are Death’s own instruments; it is known. He punched me in the face; I didn’t die. I don’t know if I was just lucky or if young black men are impervious to each others’ grim reaper strikes.
I don’t mean to make light of Trayvon Martin’s death, or of the seriousness of Zimmerman’s trial. I mean to point out the absurdity of saying a barehanded seventeen-year old is as deadly as a pistol.
At this point, the whole trial seems to hinge on making the jury believe that. I’m scared it will work.
Photo–Flickr/Tanozzo
I know in your mind you believe that because you survived a punch, it’s not as deadly as a gun. Being 39, I’ was in many fights when I was younger, so I would agree in concept. What you’re not realizing is that simply throwing a punch is enough to be charged with attempted murder in many states now. And it wasn’t just punching, it was slamming the head into the sidewalk either once or multiple times. If Zimmerman had chased him down with his gun out, than I agree with your reaction to try to grab the gun. But… Read more »
Get real man. In close quarters a fist or a knife are more deadly than a pistol especially if the gun has to first have the slide racked or have the safety removed. A 17 year old male can be very strong, aggressive, quick, and skilled in hand to hand fighting. An attacker can cross 21 feet in less than two seconds. Ten feet in one second. Especially a strong athletic 17 year old. The pics the mass media keeps showing of Martin are depicting him as a 13 year old kid not a scary looking 17 year old.
What’s scary about him? I spent a year as a 17 year old black kid, and people were scared of me on occasion. It was always unfounded,but nonetheless it was a reality. I’m curious as to what you think is scary about him.
I think that the events running up to the punch are important too. Zimmerman walked up behind someone with a gun. No-one made him do that, in fact he was advised not to do that. Also, If there is a bar fight between two unarmed, but unequal people, say a special forces solider, and and guy who thinks he’s a bit tough. The law comes down heavily on the solider, he has special training, and a therefore a greater responsibility than the civilian. If the solider beats up the civilian it was a decision to beat up the civilian, not… Read more »
I think when it comes to self defense, part of the idea is to end a future attack. Let’s say a person punches another person. The second person can’t retaliate by shooting him because there is no indication that the attack will continue, but if he is hit again, he can shoot because there is no indication the attack will end. There are people who are beaten to death. If someone is hit enough times, they could die or sustain permanent and / or serious injury. Most places have a requirement to retreat and that seems quite reasonable. If a… Read more »
Here’s a little trick when traveling in gun country- choke him out, check his waist and ankle and stomp on his hands while he’s unconscious… I got my ass kicked by a teenage (black) boxer and didn’t die, i did eventually wrap him up and stomp that damned south paw of his- actually I went to the next bar on my crawl & never again suggested someone turn off that fucking boom box on the subway… I know this is offensive- George Zimmerman got out of bed that morning, and probably many more prior, with a woody thinking about shooting… Read more »
Indeed, to add to the above: Florida has a strong Stand Your Ground law; it’s the crux of this case. Martin was being chased by an aggressive man who confronted him angrily. He likely felt threatened. If he punched Zimmerman, it’s probably because he felt threatened. He was standing his ground.
But nobody brings that up. Apparently, only white men can feel threatened by black men. Black men have no right to feel afraid, or maybe, not to even have feelings. Like wild beasts. At least, that’s the subtext I get from the national dialogue.
Yes, thank you. Stand Your Ground is taking a beating over this, but only because it’s being applied bass ackwards. When you purposely pursue someone you shouldn’t be pursuing as Zimmerman did, that’s not standing your ground. On the other hand, if someone is pursuing you in a threatening manner and you’re defending yourself, that IS standing your ground.
I thought the defense case is that Trayvon tried to grab the gun and turn it on Zimmerman. Which brings us to one of the key issues in this tragedy, carrying a gun for self-defense. Don’t do it unless you understand all of the criminal and civil repercussions of actually having to defend yourself with this type of weapon. You’re only going to get a small fraction of the information you need in a concealed carry class.
Here’s a real world example of how things can go terribly wrong when you don’t know what you’re doing.
“I thought the defense case is that Trayvon tried to grab the gun and turn it on Zimmerman.”
If someone was following me and pulled a gun, I’m pretty sure I’d try to grab it. If I wasn’t doing anything wrong, my expectation is that this person is trying to do something bad to me. I’d have no qualms about using his gun on him.
Dunno about this case but depending of the context a unarmed man can be just as deadly as a armed man. Sure guns are faster but in the end the other person is dead.
And if you deliberately attack someone enough strongly wihout making clear that your intent is not to kill, you consciously make a decision that may lead to your death or permanent injuries.
You have to remember that in combat, trying to kill the opponent is often the most reasonable course of action.
Yes, punches are deadly:
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/05/05/soccer-referee-dies-after-getting-punched-in-the-head-by-angry-teen-player-he-called-foul-on/