Trayvon

I offended several people this week on Facebook posting about the shooting of Trayvon Martin. One nutjob on the Norman Goldman page accused me and my "ilk" of "hating whitey," which is funny considering I'm a bald, middle aged, nearsighted white male.

I also offended several progressives by speculating about the missing minute or less when Trayvon was confronted by Zimmerman and shot. From my own experience, I've been hit, kicked and punched by teenagers from tough backgrounds while working in urban schools and walking at night. I speculated that Trayvon could have been instructed, like so many students have told me when defending their actions, that"my mama says if anyone messes with me-hit'em."

When a kid is walking along the street talking on a phone armed with a bag of Skittles and iced tea and ends up dead, clearly something unjust has occured. Was the shooting a hate crime, an accidental blunder, or something in between? Was Trayvon the one "standing his ground?" There is no question that Mr. Zimmerman is guilty of stalking, shooting and killing an innocent teenager, but the exact nature of his guilt and this tragedy is not clear. Unfortunately, as various parties try to influence the media circus covering the story, it won't be clear for months to come-if ever.