We agree, especially about guns being the great equalizer. I tell liberals all the time that feminists should be the greatest supporters of the Second Amendment because it puts power in the hands of women to defend themselves against bigger and stronger men.
If Trayvon Martin had acted the way most normal people act, i.e., retreating when confronted, this incident would have ended very differently, based on what we now know about George Zimmerman.
But Martin probably didn't know at the time who Zimmerman was. We do not have clear evidence that Zimmerman identified himself to Martin as head of the neighborhood watch. And even if Zimmerman did, he wore no uniform and presented no identification. (Not that he needed to; my point is not that Zimmerman did something wrong, just that we have no proof that Martin knew or should have known that Zimmerman was a neighborhood watch leader.)
What complicates this is that in our conservative circles, we understand that there is not **AND CANNOT BE** a “duty to retreat” before pulling a weapon or otherwise acting in self-defense. The NRA, quite correctly, has worked to get “duty to retreat” laws repealed.
Martin's behavior was stupid. It probably got him killed. It may have been an illegal assault, but we don't have the evidence to prove that either way because he's dead and can't make a self-defense claim or tell us what was going through his mind.
What we may have here is a case where nobody — not even Zimmerman — will ever know enough facts to prove that Zimmerman or Martin committed a crime.
All the jury needs to do is decide whether reasonable doubt exists. People are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, and that is the way it should be.
The narrative is that Trayvon was "on his way home from the 7-11" with his skillets and IT when GZ saw and approached him. If he's "on his way home" how does Travon NOT know about Zimmerman and the neighborhood watch in his own neighborhood?
Worse, M displayed the activity of a shark. He actually had the gall to circle Z’s vehicle before taking off RUNNING. If I didn’t know better I would say he was literally trying to get Z to come out so he could beat him up.