13 yr old shot dead by his 75 yr old neighbor

[+ouija ouija]

In general, not aiming this at you personally... People like to cherry pick what suits from the same book to suit their own agenda ..This is fact, I have seen it once too often.. When wee sit and cast judgement on our assumptions with nothing else to go on, it causes more harm than its truly worth...

I have no religion now but was raised in the Christian tradition(Protestant), which means some quotes from the Bible still rattle around in my head. I think the one I used is a good piece of advice regardless of it's source. I agree with you that if you look hard enough in the Bible you will find a quote to support whatever your argument is!

I WISH I HAD NEVER USED THE WORD ASSUMPTION!!!! I was using it in the sense of 'for the sake of argument let's assume such-and-such'/'this is one possibility'. What I have been doing is speculating about the details around the situation ...... looking behind the headline:'Old White Guy Shoots Young Black Boy'. I HAVE NOT BEEN ASSUMING ANYTHING!!

[Sweetpumper]

Never mind. Just saw he was declared sane.

[Beckys_Mom]

I WISH I HAD NEVER USED THE WORD ASSUMPTION!!!! (SNIP)

When you are done yelling, and if you wish to carry on where we left off, I answered your previous post in post 65, I then asked you could you do the same? Vice versa.. Look at post 65 and you will see what I am talking about... And if you do decide to answer it, I don't want to hear more of your yelling........No one does, well, unless they liked it...

What I have been doing is speculating about the details around the situation ...... looking behind the headline:'Old White Guy Shoots Young Black Boy'. I HAVE NOT BEEN ASSUMING ANYTHING!!

All of this I know has nothing to do with anything I have posted... I guess you just felt like letting off steam... But, there is no need for anger and yelling...

Edited July 22, 2013 by Beckys_Mom

[keithisco]

In one of the early reports it said that the boy's brother was arrested when they wen to check the house. Has anyone had an update on this?

[Kowalski]

In one of the early reports it said that the boy's brother was arrested when they wen to check the house. Has anyone had an update on this?

I've seen reports that talk about this, but can't seem to find out why he was arrested or why the mother was questioned for two hours....

[Beckys_Mom]

Of course race is involved as a motivator in this crime. How often do we read "Elderly black man kills white kid trespassing/stealing/staring/acting suspicious"?Not often. Leaving aside the obvious point that white people generally have more valuable property to "defend", xenophobia exists, which is why positive discrimination laws are needed. Here in rural uk we have suspicions when Polish, Irish, or non-uk families move into the neighbourhood - we think maybe we should get a lock for the garden shed or make sure our cars are locked overnight.

Maybe xenophobia has genetic survival values, but it exists amongst all groups of humans. I am not saying it is a good thing, or justifying murder, I am just saying race probably played a part in this crime.

In general - Yes, racist people are still knocking around.. That is something I cannot deny.. Racists remain around us ( wherever we live ) but the thing about racists, they hide in denial and wont admit it, not like what they used to years ago... Some times people will allow their own racists views cloud their judgements on others... People here in the north if Ireland, will for example - Southern Irish..The sec they hear a southern accent, they will brand them a thieving gypsy.. .WHY? Because southern travellers are renowned for stealing from peoples homes up here and then some, it used to happen a lot..

Back to the topic at hand... My OP contains a news article that the media seem to push out - The race issue with this case... I do not agree with it, but that is my own peronal view point... I could well be wrong? ..But my only focus was the murder and not the color of the man or boy, but I think you already know this...

[Kowalski]

'No guns were found' does not automatically mean that 'no guns were stolen'.

Do you have a link to a report that the kid didn't steal anything? I haven't seen that yet. Just because the kid and his mum say there was no stealing going on doesn't mean there wasn't.

That's very true....

From what I've read, it seems the cop's were questioning this family, before the 13 year old was shot. So obviously, they were the prime suspects in the robbery.

[+ouija ouija]

When you are done yelling, and if you wish to carry on where we left off, I answered your previous post in post 65, I then asked you could you do the same? Vice versa.. Look at post 65 and you will see what I am talking about... And if you do decide to answer it, I don't want to hear more of your yelling........No one does, well, unless they liked it...

All of this I know has nothing to do with anything I have posted... I guess you just felt like letting off steam... But, there is no need for anger and yelling...

If I wanna shout, I'm gonna shout! But I wasn't ........ I was simply trying to emphasise the point that, with hindsight, I should have used the word 'speculation' rather than 'assumption'.

It never ceases to surprise me how comments can be misinterpreted online ....... I was not feeling angry when I made that post, just frustrated with myself for not being clearer at the beginning, for using the wrong word.

As for your post #65: I didn't reply to it because in my head(although I did think it was obvious when read), I could have made up an extreme scenario casting either side as the bad guy. I was making the point that if we knew the whole story, both sides, then we may feel differently about things. I didn't think it was necessary to invent a story casting the 13yr old as 'good guy' as well, as I thought I had made my point with the first story.

To go right back to the beginning: all I wanted to do was put forward the old man's perspective ...... speculate on how things had been for him ....... just to balance things up, that's all. He may well have been a rampant racist all his life and only now, when he is at the end of his life, felt he had nothing to lose by shooting a black child just for the hell of it. Who knows what was going on in his mind?

[Beckys_Mom]

As for your post #65: I didn't reply to it because in my head(although I did think it was obvious when read), I could have made up an extreme scenario casting either side as the bad guy. I was making the point that if we knew the whole story, both sides, then we may feel differently about things. I didn't think it was necessary to invent a story casting the 13yr old as 'good guy' as well, as I thought I had made my point with the first story.

My point and the reason why I gave you the same thing, only put into vice versa on the kid being a good kid ect, was to show you that it can be done just as easy and if you felt your example of putting the man into a great view on how good he might have been ( the school teacher, fireman, great all round etc ) Then the same can be done about the kid that so many have commented on ( the entire it might have been him etc ) He too could be painted with a golden brush just as fast...

Just as the same thing ( vice verse ) can be done on the man, painting him out to be the bad guy,... I could have said Or if you like - speculated, that he could have been the opposite of what you had felt? But if I did that, it would mean nothing to you or anyone else, because my pure speculations or even assumptions on this same man would not get me anywhere...It wouldn't lead me to anything positive..... That is the point I am trying to make...

To go right back to the beginning: all I wanted to do was put forward the old man's perspective ...... speculate on how things had been for him ....... just to balance things up, that's all. He may well have been a rampant racist all his life and only now, when he is at the end of his life, felt he had nothing to lose by shooting a black child just for the hell of it. Who knows what was going on in his mind?

You're right, he may well have been any number of those things.. But what was going on in his mind? I honestly cannot say.. I am guessing and from what I read, just anger, he said he was just so very angry.. But what led him to it? That is something again, I cannot tell you... It's a shame it all happened.. He put up security cameras to catch the crooks, I only wish he had them caught, and got it sorted in much better circumstances...

The murder happened over a year ago, and I am not finding anything else on it ... The case is closed by the looks of it...I did try and find something, even on you tube, but all I see are the same reports...

[Mr.United_Nations]

Does it really matter on the skin colour? if both were the same then it would be just "Man shoots kid"

[+ouija ouija]

Does it really matter on the skin colour? if both were the same then it would be just "Man shoots kid"

I think that was established on page 1 .......

[lightly]

The kid did NOT STEAL ANYTHING!

And, you guys wonder, why we cry foul after the TM verdict. Look at all the assumptions and stereotypes been batted about here. It's ridiculous. There's ABSOLUTELY ZERO EVIDENCE that that kid has ever TAKEN ANYTHING from this guy!

ZERO EVIDENCE!

Yup, i hear ya. This is another situation and story we know very little about. And, yup, some of the news coverage seems designed to be inflammatory .

The "news one" article from BM's link begins with: " A 13 year old BLACK boy was shot dead by his 75 year-old WHITE next door neighbor."

The CBS news article didn't mention race at all . Surprisingly?

I wonder if it would have been a bigger news story if a 75year old Black man shot dead a 13 year old White kid in the back ?

*

and then said: I read somewhere that he was 74 and had terminal lung cancer. So the citizens of his state get to provide end of life care for him - what a deal for the state. Better than allowing him to just execute people though...good God.

End of life care could be motive maybe ?? just a thought. an afterthought at that.. .. but it was my first thought, after, i read your comment

Edited July 23, 2013 by lightly

[No Censorship]

He was rightly sentenced to life imprisonment after he was declared sane. That was a fair and just punishment. At least, he got a legal trial by jury. His victim wasn't so lucky.

[+ouija ouija]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2374355/Elderly-neighbor-John-Henry-Spooner-gets-life-parole-shooting-dead-Darius-Simmons-13-year-old-black-boy.html

Sentencing of Spooner.