Is Florida going to become a lean-D state between now and 2020?

[eric82oslo]

I would say you have a much greater chance of getting Debbie Wassermann Schultz elected governor then overturning felon disenfranchisement. Even more than most other states, law and order politics has been a vote winner here.

I think we can imagine that after the Trayvon Martin debacle.

Just like the Trayvon Martin trial (or non-trial to begin with) was all about institutionalized racism and non about keeping law and order in place, the felony disenfranchisement is non about law and order either, yet all about century-old racist laws. It's remarkable though that 90% of US states have gotten ridden of such laws already (or didn't have them to begin with, or haven't yet deared to reintroduce them), so many of them - like Alabama - despite their heavily Republican majorities.

Laws were followed to the T and that's why Zimmerman got off. Otherwise, he would've got the death penalty for murder because he did murder Martin.

No reason for death penalty. It should be abolished in any case, at least all cases that don't involve mass murders. However, no matter what the reason for killing someone is, even if it's 95% accidential, unintentional or based on bad judgement, I think the vast majority agree that it's morally wrong not to get at least a short prison sentence when you happen to murder someone. It's just right for the victims, his family, closest friend, the society as a whole. In the Trayvon Martin case, all the neighbourhood eyewitnesses - at least the two I've heard speak on CNN, two white women - are absoltely sure that he killed the guy, who was both unarmed and half his body-size. In the 911 call, Zimmerman clearly tells the call center that he's following the boy. And Trayvon's mother is 100% sure that it is her son who is screaming for "Help" in the 911 call - which also is what the eye witnesses have told the police.

[barfbag]

I would say you have a much greater chance of getting Debbie Wassermann Schultz elected governor then overturning felon disenfranchisement. Even more than most other states, law and order politics has been a vote winner here.

I think we can imagine that after the Trayvon Martin debacle.

Just like the Trayvon Martin trial (or non-trial to begin with) was all about institutionalized racism and non about keeping law and order in place, the felony disenfranchisement is non about law and order either, yet all about century-old racist laws. It's remarkable though that 90% of US states have gotten ridden of such laws already (or didn't have them to begin with, or haven't yet deared to reintroduce them), so many of them - like Alabama - despite their heavily Republican majorities.

Laws were followed to the T and that's why Zimmerman got off. Otherwise, he would've got the death penalty for murder because he did murder Martin.

No reason for death penalty. It should be abolished in any case, at least all cases that don't involve mass murders. However, no matter what the reason for killing someone is, even if it's 95% accidential, unintentional or based on bad judgement, I think the vast majority agree that it's morally wrong not to get at least a short prison sentence when you happen to murder someone. It's just right for the victims, his family, closest friend, the society as a whole. In the Trayvon Martin case, all the neighbourhood eyewitnesses - at least the two I've heard speak on CNN, two white women - are absoltely sure that he killed the guy, who was both unarmed and half his body-size. In the 911 call, Zimmerman clearly tells the call center that he's following the boy. And Trayvon's mother is 100% sure that it is her son who is screaming for "Help" in the 911 call - which also is what the eye witnesses have told the police.

So if it was self-defense, you think someone should go to prison only to make the attacker's family feel better? I'm not saying Zimmerman was in the right, but laws were followed to a T as far as the court procedure. I agree the death penalty should be reserved for terrorists and non-American war criminals.

[eric82oslo]

I would say you have a much greater chance of getting Debbie Wassermann Schultz elected governor then overturning felon disenfranchisement. Even more than most other states, law and order politics has been a vote winner here.

I think we can imagine that after the Trayvon Martin debacle.

Just like the Trayvon Martin trial (or non-trial to begin with) was all about institutionalized racism and non about keeping law and order in place, the felony disenfranchisement is non about law and order either, yet all about century-old racist laws. It's remarkable though that 90% of US states have gotten ridden of such laws already (or didn't have them to begin with, or haven't yet deared to reintroduce them), so many of them - like Alabama - despite their heavily Republican majorities.

Laws were followed to the T and that's why Zimmerman got off. Otherwise, he would've got the death penalty for murder because he did murder Martin.

No reason for death penalty. It should be abolished in any case, at least all cases that don't involve mass murders. However, no matter what the reason for killing someone is, even if it's 95% accidential, unintentional or based on bad judgement, I think the vast majority agree that it's morally wrong not to get at least a short prison sentence when you happen to murder someone. It's just right for the victims, his family, closest friend, the society as a whole. In the Trayvon Martin case, all the neighbourhood eyewitnesses - at least the two I've heard speak on CNN, two white women - are absoltely sure that he killed the guy, who was both unarmed and half his body-size. In the 911 call, Zimmerman clearly tells the call center that he's following the boy. And Trayvon's mother is 100% sure that it is her son who is screaming for "Help" in the 911 call - which also is what the eye witnesses have told the police.

So if it was self-defense, you think someone should go to prison only to make the attacker's family feel better? I'm not saying Zimmerman was in the right, but laws were followed to a T as far as the court procedure. I agree the death penalty should be reserved for terrorists and non-American war criminals.

You don't need a gun for self defense when you're twice the size of an innocent teenager with no past criminal record and no threatening behavior on the night.

[barfbag]

I would say you have a much greater chance of getting Debbie Wassermann Schultz elected governor then overturning felon disenfranchisement. Even more than most other states, law and order politics has been a vote winner here.

I think we can imagine that after the Trayvon Martin debacle.

Just like the Trayvon Martin trial (or non-trial to begin with) was all about institutionalized racism and non about keeping law and order in place, the felony disenfranchisement is non about law and order either, yet all about century-old racist laws. It's remarkable though that 90% of US states have gotten ridden of such laws already (or didn't have them to begin with, or haven't yet deared to reintroduce them), so many of them - like Alabama - despite their heavily Republican majorities.

Laws were followed to the T and that's why Zimmerman got off. Otherwise, he would've got the death penalty for murder because he did murder Martin.

No reason for death penalty. It should be abolished in any case, at least all cases that don't involve mass murders. However, no matter what the reason for killing someone is, even if it's 95% accidential, unintentional or based on bad judgement, I think the vast majority agree that it's morally wrong not to get at least a short prison sentence when you happen to murder someone. It's just right for the victims, his family, closest friend, the society as a whole. In the Trayvon Martin case, all the neighbourhood eyewitnesses - at least the two I've heard speak on CNN, two white women - are absoltely sure that he killed the guy, who was both unarmed and half his body-size. In the 911 call, Zimmerman clearly tells the call center that he's following the boy. And Trayvon's mother is 100% sure that it is her son who is screaming for "Help" in the 911 call - which also is what the eye witnesses have told the police.

So if it was self-defense, you think someone should go to prison only to make the attacker's family feel better? I'm not saying Zimmerman was in the right, but laws were followed to a T as far as the court procedure. I agree the death penalty should be reserved for terrorists and non-American war criminals.

You don't need a gun for self defense when you're twice the size of an innocent teenager with no past criminal record and no threatening behavior on the night.

You're saying he should go to prison to make Martin's family feel better? How is what he did any worse than what Ted Kennedy did with Chappaquiddick?

[tpfkaw]

You don't need a gun for self defense when you're twice the size of an innocent teenager with no past criminal record and no threatening behavior on the night.

1.  Martin was 7 inches taller than Zimmerman and in much better shape.
2.  That he was an "innocent teenager" is a highly dubious proposition.

[barfbag]

You don't need a gun for self defense when you're twice the size of an innocent teenager with no past criminal record and no threatening behavior on the night.

1.  Martin was 7 inches taller than Zimmerman and in much better shape.
2.  That he was an "innocent teenager" is a highly dubious proposition.

And how is what Zimmerman did any worse than what Ted Kennedy did?

[Secretary of State Liberal Hack]

   

[Cokeland Saxton]

This thread didn’t age well lol

[Vosem]

No one anticipated felon enfranchisement being actually very easy and popular even as Florida stampeded right. This thread is actually a great lesson in us really not knowing what's just around the corner.