I've held my tongue on the killing of Florida teenager Trayvon Martin, until now. The kid was shot dead by a blockwatch volunteer spending all his spare time "patrolling" and calling 911. Trayvon was unarmed and doing nothing wrong. But bullets beat Skittles everytime. In many states, the shooter would have quickly been charged with manslaughter, at least. Probably murder. But not Florida.
Florida is among those states with an absurd, awful law known as "Stand Your Ground", which says you can use lethal force to defend yourself not only at your own home, but anywhere you might go. Wherever you are, if you feel "threatened" by another person, you can just fuckin' kill him and claim self-defense. And if that's what you tell the cops, the law prevents them from charging you with a crime. Unbelievable! This is a return to the Wild West vigilante days, and Marshall Dillon won't be coming to town.
Who's responsible for this brilliant piece of legal shit? The National Rifle Association, that's who. Your grandfather's NRA lobbied semi-decently for U.S. gunmakers. Today's NRA is bloody, crazy and evil, and they give a shit for nothing. They're modern-day KKK/John Birch Society fanatics. They want "Stand Your Ground" to be the law of the land. They won't rest until every newborn is presented with a pistol, and we're all walkin' around armed to the teeth "protecting" ourselves 24/7. Madness! Madness!!
The Rightards can shriek all they like about the media "rushing to judgment", but their brethren in the stupid state of Florida let the NRA rush them into this legislative cul-de-sac. They should correct their error and repeal "Stand Your Ground" immediately. It won't bring back the dead, but it would clearly be the right thing to do.
Whether they repeal it or not, the state, the homeowners association, and the shooter should brace for some big-ass civil suits.
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