14 1 The Blue Banner I 3282012
Campus \bice
RAMPAGE
continued from page 13
Muslim man commits a crime.
The media instantly labels the “ter
rorist” as a Muslim, not as a once fun,
social guy.
We have a double standard problem
in this country.
In the 2009 Fort Hood Shooting
where an Army psychiatrist, Maj.
Nidal Hasan, opened fire, killing 12
people and wounding 31, the media
released the handgun he used, his poor
performance evaluation and his name
all in a matter of hours.
Audiences globally didn’t know
about his past relationships, where he
hung out on the weekends or what his
favorite movie was.
We were just stuck with a picture of
a brown man, staring into the camera,
slightly smirking.
As of this past Friday, 17 charges
were filed against Bales.
While citizens and government of
ficials of Afghanistan are calling for
an immediate trial, it will be likely
months to years before the public ever
sees Bales step foot into a courtroom.
Hasan’s trial is set to take place in
June.
Bales’ case will most likely sur
round the idea that his damaged
mental state and post traumatic stress
disorder influenced his killing spree
through the small Afghan village.
While PTSD is a very serious
condition, and can always worsen,
those men and women in the military
that suffer probably don’t want Bales
looked to as the poster child for this
unfortunate disease.
Bales could face the death penalty if
convicted on all crimes.
Killing for killing is in itself unjusti
fied, therefore I hope Bales doesn’t
get the death penalty.
War is not a justification for what is
called the worst killing of civilians in
all of war history by one soldier.
We are still living in a culture of
black and white, us versus them, good
versus evil.
Bales’s actions shouldn’t be justi
fied.
It is my belief that everyone has the
ability to snap in a time of increased
pressure, depression and stress. But
the majority of the population of the
world knows how to suppress the
thought of possible action.
We as a culture should not be
humanizing these events, or justify
ing that these things just “happen” in
times of war.
We must relieve ourselves of using
a double standard to justify horrible
actions, and realize that humanizing
these actions doesn’t help solve for
the future.
RACISM
continued from page 13
man captain for an all-white, gated
neighborhood, called 9-1-1 to let them
know that there was someone walk
ing in their neighborhood who looked
suspicious.
TTie officer on the other line told
Zimmerman there was no reason to
watch him and to leave Martin alone.
Obviously having a better judgment,
Zimmerman went against the po
lice officer’s request and confronted
Martin.
Literally wailing for help, as heard
on a 9-1-1 phone call tape, Martin was
dead a few minutes later.
His crime? Being young and black.
Zimmerman’s father recently came
out with a statement saying that
Zimmerman has a multi-cultural and
Hispanic background, obviously jus
tifying why Zimmerman’s choice was
not racially motivated.
This incident happened on Feb.
27. Martin’s parents are left without
a son, and Zimmerman has not been
questioned about the attack.
How are we living in the most suc
cessful country with the most educat
ed people and still dealing with unjust
situations such as these?
The white man is the colored man’s
burden.
History provided countless times
when the colored man is constantly
defeated by the white man.
It’s the harsh reality, but it is the true
reality.
Sometimes we put ourselves in this
bubble of hope and color blindness
where we believe that racism is gone
and we don’t have to deal with it
anymore.
Just because the colored and the
whites are allowed to share bathrooms
doesn’t mean they clean their hands
the same way.
So many questions come to mind
for this case.
For instance, why did Zimmerman
find Martin suspicious if his actions
supposedly weren’t racially moti
vated?
The one time Zimmerman was
asked about his reaction to Martin, he
claimed it was self-defense, but how
can something be self defense when
he initiated the first interaction?
Why did Zimmerman feel the need
to bust out his nine millimeter hand
gun in the first place?
These questions will only be asked
if there are enough people who de
mand answers.
This incident happened almost four
weeks ago.
Zimmerman is a free man who has
taken the life of a young boy who was
determined to make something out of
his life.
If that doesn’t outrage the general
public, then we have serious issues we
need to address before we can save
humanity.
The first step would be to accept
each other’s differences.
Too many people think color blind
ness is a fair trade to end racism.
Wrong. People who embrace the art
of color blindness are disguising a
subconscious non-acceptance to the
differences someone may actually
have. To a certain extent, yes, people
are all the same.
If you share the same goal, ambi
tions and favorite foods, those are
things we have in common. But if
one person is black and one person
is white, there needs to be a sense of
acknowledgement.
We go two ways; either we think we
might offend someone so we stick to
finding similarities we have with one
another or we believe that the “other”
is so completely different that we
choose to falsify any connection we
have with one another.
The law was created to ensure a
greater sense of protection for the
people using the logic of putting ‘the
bad guys’ in jail. Except in this case,
the bad guys happen to be the same
guys who have the ability to cheat the
system and hold no responsibility.
If Martin had been white, there
would have been an outcry. It certain
ly would not have taken three weeks
for news reporters to find this story.
Zimmerman was intoxicated when
he made his decisions that night.
Martin was an A/B student hoping
to be an engineer one day. Martin
could have been the difference. He
could have very well been the future
of the young black youth around the
country.
But he is just a victim of racism,
another number to the United States
justice system, another young black
man to law enforcement.
Prayers and thoughtful wishes go
out to the Martin family.
One day, a fair trial will be served
for all those who had to die to con
tinue to spread awareness about this
ongoing war.
INNOCENT
continued from page 13
West Memphis Three, a name synony
mous with child killings.
On May 5,1993, three 8-year-old boys,
Stevie Branch, Michael Moore and Chris
topher Byers, were reported missing. The
boys were found a little over a day later
in a muddy ditch, naked and hogtied with
their own shoelaces.
Byers had lacerations to various areas
of his body as well as the mutilation of his
genitals.
Police officers James Sudbury and
Steve Jones felt the crime had indications
of “cult” overtones, and believed Echols,
someone who constantly dressed in black
attire and listened to Metallica and other
metal bands, to have an interest in occult
ism.
On June 3, Misskelley, with a reported
IQ of 72, a score which made him bor
derline intellectually functioning, was
questioned alone without consent from his
parents.
Misskelley initially confessed to the
crime, but he later tried to retract his con
fession, stating intimidation, fatigue and
threats from police coerced his statement.
Misskelley’s statements to the police
leaked to the press and reported on the
front page of the Memphis newspaper
before any trials began, further demon
strating the warped reality of justice the
town withheld.
Authorities arrested Baldwin and
Echols shortly after the confession and
the three received life sentences, with
Echols being put to death.
During the trials. Dr. Dale Griffis, an
expert on occultism who received his cre
dentials through an online website, made
a testimony about what typically indicated
involvement with the occult: black nail
polish along with social withdrawal.
Also, sacrificing children to the all-
powerful Satan is a prevalent indicator of
occultism.
Sacrificing children to the beast aside,
Griffis pretty much described your aver
age, moody. Smashing Pumpkins - listen
ing teenager.
It was later found that the damages
to Byers’ body were actually caused by
animals living within the wooded area
where his body was found .This case dem
onstrates how flawed our legal and justice
systems can actually be.
A terrible murder happens, the town
thinks it’s some sort of Satanic ritual and
the small town police, desperate to solve
a murder case, find the easiest people to
blame.
Voila, you have yourself a town that
can now rest easier knowing a murder has
been solved.
Thank God I’m not too fond of Metal
lica.