I Want To Live In A World Where George Zimmerman…..

[KittyWampus]

[rhett o rick]

1. So do I. nm

[treestar]

2. Zimmerman could have rolled down a window and asked

"are you all right?" too.

[SaveAmerica]

12. I've thought that too "You need help finding a house?"

Any number of questions. It's so easy to be afraid of your shadow, though.

[Skittles]

3. if Zimmerman had offered him a ride

he would have found out all he needed to know

[Billsmile]

4. May I add...

A ride in an electric car powered by wind & solar all made in the USA.

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

8. Lol, yes! Hey, if we're contemplating imaginary worlds...

as long as the GOP and their corporate overlords weild so much power.

[Curmudgeoness]

5. So do I. Excellent quote.

What a wonderful world it would be.

[Boom Sound 416]

6. Agreed

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

7. Wow, can you imagine? What an awesome statement. The "community watch" watching over the

community.

[Marie Marie]

15. Now there is an excellent concept.

[WillyT]

9. HUGE K & R !!! - Thank You !!!

[steve2470]

10. good man and good statement ! nt

[dusty trails]

11. Yeah, but ...

I wouldn't trust Zimmerman to not molest the boy.

[defacto7]

17. And in your statement we find the beginning of

distrust that permeates society in such a way that we have an endless circle of fear. I know you are talking about this particular Zimmerman, but the idea of auto-fear of a guy in a car or a hooded teen walking on the street is the distrust America has learned and relearns every time the meme is repeated.

It's time to think about taking chances in the name of being helpful and civil. The fears outweigh the dangers a million to one... or more.

[exboyfil]

23. I would not want my 17 year old to get in to a stranger's car

We just had two kids kidnapped in this state - while one escaped the other was killed by the pervert before he killed himself. We also lost two little girls that most likely got into the vehicle of a stranger. No thank you on that ride.

Martin had reason to be scared. An individual in an auto immediately has power over a pedestrian. An armed individual also has power over an unarmed one.

[defacto7]

25. I understand your parental angst...

We protect our children. We teach our children. We teach them not to be foolish. I did not begin to give credence to teaching our children to be haphazard. But the amount of fear far outweighs the facts. How many people live in your state? A couple hundred? A few thousand? A couple million? More? Already the facts just don't match the fear statistically.

I guess in a nutshell I'm saying, teach facts, teach wisdom, be wise about choices, be aware... but don't teach or be swayed by unrealistic fear. That is a tool of people who want to control, and the most evil of controllers are those who want to hurt others. Take away their button and they have no control. If you give them what they want namely fear, anger, hatred, control of your psyche, they will expand on it and in that lies the circle of fear and hate which perpetuates more fear, actions to pseudo-safety like hiding behind weapons, death by mistakes, death by irresponsibility, death by mental distortion, death by racist acts of violence... and around again we go. That merry-go-round never stops.

Get off the ride. The OP and the ideas of other posters who believe in civility and reaching out have a lot to offer in this thread.

[nolabear]

45. Yes, but if he only offered and Trayvon said "No thanks I'm going to my Dad's"

think what a different world it would be today.

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

24. I can't seem to find exact statistics, but the odds of a child dying in an automobile

accident appear to by vastly greater than the odds of death by abduction, yet how many parents won't let their children ride in automobiles in general? Or cut down the number of automobile trips they take to lower the odds? I'm sure there are many other examples of things parents allow their children to do (play football comes to mind), that are far more likely to result in injury or death, but it's only certain hot-button issues that the parents act upon.

[defacto7]

27. I agree...

My personal opinion is that the media is responsible for much of the over reaction. Then there are the corporations that make massive amounts of money on fear and there are many. I also consider what coming generations will be dealing with as adults due to the distrust and confusion that has been poured into them, I.E. distrust of all humans not their age, race, ethnicity, sex, from their neighborhood, wearing their clothing choices... we need to stop this madness.

It is time to propagate human trust, a chance worth living for.

[heaven05]

40. ooohhh

you're precious.

[defacto7]

44. oooohhh

you're baiting.

[dsc]

26. and that is precisely why no adult male would ever offer a teenage male stranger a ride home

certainly not if said adult were gay.

[jimboss]

13. I want to live in a world where I don't have to worry about being raped, robbed , assaulted or shot

But there will always be criminals to look out for.

It's a nice thought and post but it's never going to happen.

[defacto7]

18. Worry is in the mind of the beholder.

You can worry if you wish but worry is a wasted effort when the real acts are not there. Oh, there is a lot of terrible in the world, but the fear of it is much greater than the facts. There are some places worse than others of course. But don't place your fear based on the media. That is a magnifier.

[heaven05]

39. ?????????

geez The fact is, the world is a very violent place and that is based on facts.

[defacto7]

43. if the fact is that they exist, then yes.

If the facts are based on statistics, then there's not as much as people are basing their fear on. If there is a room with 5 people in it and one person murders another, then the statistics are high that there is danger in that room to everyone. If there is a room with a million people in it and one person murders another, then the statistics are extremely low that there is a danger to everyone.

I will admit though, that a lot depends on where you live. But most US citizens are not as unsafe as they think, but they base their fears and actions on that over reaction.

[heaven05]

46. if

if, if, if and if again. Columbine, Aurora, Sandy hook, Virginia Tech, a three year old killed by a loaded weapon yesterday, happening a lot these days. Mexican cartels, cutting off the heads of competing cartel member, men and women. Syrians killing each other by the thousands, 1,000,000 dead from one war in Iraq. The killing still going om, Afghanistan? Killing still going on. At the very time I'm writing this, how many americans have been shot, "but most US citizens are not as unsafe as they think". That pollyanna bullshit doesn't wash. This is a violent and vicious country, this is a violent and vicious world. And I don't even have to watch the evening news to know that.

[defacto7]

47. Are you incapable of comprehending the sentence?

The "If" stated had nothing to do with "if" there is violence. The "If" has to do with the use of the word facts as in "If the word facts is used this way" or "if the word facts is used that way".

You are arguing with yourself.

Enjoy your stay.

[heaven05]

48. right

obfuscating will get you no where. According to you, there is no 'real' reason to have fear of violence in the streets and homes. What is causing you to not understand the facts of violence in america and how it has made americans very unsafe. No I'm not arguing with myself, I am reacting to that bullshit pollyanna worldview you have that is VERY misleading and how we are not as safe as you say we are. eyes: Yeah enjoy your stay and I will, thanks.

[yardwork]

38. Trayvon was the one who was assaulted and shot

George Zimmerman did that. He could have done something helpful but instead he chose to kill.

We are not powerless. Our choices are very powerful. You can make the world more or less violent with your choices.

[mountain grammy]

14. You mean a world where someone is "judged not by the color of their skin,

but by the content of their character?" Is that what you're getting at, Reverend?

[SCALA13]

16. In a world where a real neighborhood watchman would have done.

[pintobean]

19. Best Zimmerman related post ever.

K&R

[redwitch]

20. Oh so do I!

More than I can say.

[erpowers]

21. Just Asked Him His Name

I wish George Zimmerman would have just asked Trayvon Martin who he was and then told Martin he was a part of the neighborhood watch. It is possible that would have defused the whole situation.

[MissDeeds]

22. Great, great quote

Unfortunately Zimmerman was not interested in human kindness and compassion; he was hell bent on confrontation and acting out his "neighborhood watch guy on steroids" fantasy. What a wonderful country this would be if more people thought like Bishop Brewer.

K&R

[defacto7]

28. Zimmerman is the prime example of the

circle of fear and hate; he is the product of it.

[Gravitycollapse]

29. Powerful.

[moondust]

30. That's more like it.

I think SYG laws probably embolden and elevate levels of aggressive behavior in gun owners, creating more general hostility and paranoia for everybody.

[Scurrilous]

31. K & R

[ReRe]

32. I want to live in a world...

K&R

... where FEAR is unknown.

[tclambert]

33. "Hey, would you like a ride on my flying pig?"

[heaven05]

34. yeah

well you don't and FAT chance of that happening any where near Sanford, fla.

[JDPriestly]

35. Me too.

[Kali]

36. my standard greeting to strangers

whether they be parked at the end of my road, border patrol, off-roader, even a cold phone call (keep the number on a signs at most gates)

can I help you?

puts then in explanation mode sans any defensiveness that asking "what are you doing here?" creates

[Javaman]

37. That world ended after 9/11 and the patriot act allowed any and all fear to rule over us. nt

[Jack Rabbit]

41. Me, too.

!!

[Raine1967]

42. Lost in all of this, is a question I really want to know:

Did Zimmerman live in that community? What was it called the retreat?

I totally agree with this sentiment, and if he were a true neighborhood watch person, he would have identified himself as such. Best as I can tell, he told the police he didn't really know the layout of the community. Did he live there?

I'm not trying to be naive here; I live in a neighborhood built in the 1950's. Every house is a brick townhouse. On our street, we all look out for each other.