Jul
13

5 News Stories I’ve Been Neglecting

Trayvon Martin’s Death and the Trial of George Zimmerman

I’m glad I neither jumped on the bandwagon to judge Zimmerman guilty of a racist hate crime NOR assumed Trayvon was some gangsta punk lookin’ for trouble. It’s taken awhile for some of the details to come out, so we at least have a better idea of what really happened, rather than just relying on assumptions and an edited 911 call. (Not to mention the initial, prejudicial photos showing Martin at his young-and-innocent best contrasted with an unflattering shot of Zimmerman.)

Say what you will about Zimmerman’s wisdom in following Martin, against the 911 operator’s advice. You may question Zimmerman’s claim of self-defense. You might also wonder about Zimmerman and his wife’s apparent deceit about their financial assets. But, even the Huffington Post is now reporting that there is no evidence of Zimmerman being racist, according to newly-released FBI findings.

This is not a case of some white (or half-white) cracker “hunting” an innocent black kid “like a dog”, beating him up and gunning him down. Rather, a zealous, safety-conscious, neighborhood watchman observed & followed a suspicious-looking/acting individual (i.e., wearing gang-type clothing). Pursuit led to confrontation, which escalated into a physical altercation and, sadly, someone died. It’s tragic, but cries of racism or anything else are uncalled for. The courts will, hopefully, determine what (if anything) Zimmerman is actually guilty of and appropriate punishment.

Fast and Furious Gun-Walking Case

I admit that I haven’t been following this one closely. The whole thing is a travesty, but it just didn’t pique my interest as it did some. Still, A.G. Holder’s brazen refusal to cooperate with the Congressional investigation and his lies and obfuscations only make it more clear that the man is an arrogant sonofagun with something to hide. Same goes for Obama. The project is also an obvious attempt at creating a situation to encourage gun-control laws. Outrageous!

Sandusky Child Sex Abuse Case

Now that the jury has convicted Jerry Sandusky of 45 out of 48 charges of sex abuse perpetrated upon young men he was coaching and who looked up to him, I think I can safely say that he is a sick, perverted SOB and I’m glad he has been removed from society. On the other hand, I hope he doesn’t commit suicide, and I don’t want to hear that he was gang-raped or anything else some would call “prison justice”. In fact, while I think he should remain in prison for a looooooooong time, I also hope that he finds forgiveness, healing, and mercy at the foot of the cross of Jesus Christ.

Civil War in Syria

14,000 killed…. My instinct is to want to get al Assad out of power ASAP and immediately put him on trial. Not sure what the charge would be — crimes against humanity? On the other hand, the ‘Arab Spring’ has not been going so well for the cause of freedom elsewhere. “Democracy”, perhaps, but they keep voting Islamists into office. (Not sure if those elections were completely legit, but I wouldn’t bet on it.) As with Mubarak in Egypt, it may be better, overall, to have an arrogant, power-mad jerk in power like al Assad than to risk a power vacuum being filled by radical jihadists (like Morsi).

Who Should Romney Pick for V.P.?

Now that’s a hard one. In an online survey several weeks ago, I chose Condoleezza Rice for the ticket. She’s not the most conservative (e.g., kinda soft on immigration and calls herself “mildly pro-choice”), but I figured she would be a pretty good running-mate for Romney, not “too religious”, and would definitely add some much-needed foreign policy knowledge/experience. Oh, yeah — and she’s a double minority. It seems that at least one major source agrees with me that Rice is an interesting choice and puts her at the top of the heap. But, Rice has stated repeatedly that she has no interest in the V.P. slot.

Until recently, most popular opinion polls have made Marco Rubio the favored choice. I like him a lot, and I’m sure his minority status, youth, and conservative record would be great assets. He has also said he “won’t be the one”, but if tapped for the job, some have speculated that he may suddenly feel obligated. But, the matter of his parents’ citizenship status at the time of his birth will need to be cleared up, before we know if he is even eligible. Frankly, I’d really like Rubio to remain a Florida Senator for awhile and do some good in that position. On the other hand, he may be exactly what the GOP ticket needs.

There are a few other names being tossed around who I like — e.g., Gov. Bobby Jindal, Rep. Paul Ryan — but, again, I’d like to see them continuing to do great things in their current positions. Like Rubio, they’re young and have plenty of time to make a run for the White House. One promising possibility (though maybe not conservative enough for some): former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who is not currently in office.

I suppose the Romney campaign is considering several factors when deciding whom to vet & approach about the V.P. slot: geographic advantage, national profile, areas of knowledge/expertise, affinity groups, executive competence, agreement/comfort level with Romney’s positions, temperament, integrity, etc. But, aside from integrity, it comes down to two things for me. First, the V.P. pick needs to have some solid conservative credentials, which will help assure Republicans and others of the conservative nature of the platform & (potential) administration. Second, s/he must bring a lot of energy and enthusiasm to energize the voters and inject some excitement into the campaign. Hopefully, these two attributes will encourage many Republicans and Independents to vote for Romney, who are now mad or sulking or ambivalent and seriously thinking about either not voting at all or voting for a 3rd party (which will only help keep Obama in office). I can hope, right?