On its own, no. If we weren't having a conversation about this particular incident, I think we could have a very productive conversation on the negative effects of "gangsta thug culture," both in the black community and in society at large (where I agree it is prevalent). I would say yes, it (specifically the violence and macho posturing that sometimes comes with it) is a negative influence on our society.

The problem with bringing it up in this context is that there's no evidence beyond Zimmerman's statements that Martin did anything that could be construed as "thuggish." Bringing up "thuggish" behavior Martin engaged in previously (smoking pot, flipping off a camera, whatever sort of delinquency he got into) smacks of blaming the victim, in my opinion.

Talking about this incident, I'd say that "neighborhood watch," vigilante behavior and gun fetishism have a far more negative influence on our society. Promoting the idea that guns are necessary for self-defense has the effect of turning the prejudices of individuals into actual violence. The NRA promoting the idea that Obama and Holder are going to come take your guns away leads to increased sales for gun manufacturers and retailers, and a lot of those guns are being sold to paranoid racist lunatics, the last people we ought to encourage to arm themselves.

Bringing up "thug culture" is problematic because it's at best a secondary issue in the case at hand, and it's blown way out of proportion to the actual harm it inflicts on society, to the exclusion of more relevant and damaging issues.

You don't see the pattern? The three black people get called thugs because they criticize people, or because they do their jobs. The others are only called thugs when they try to intimidate someone recovering from surgery; otherwise, their name comes up because they called black people thugs, or someone else called black people thugs for something the black people said about them.

If you don't see the pattern, it's because you don't want to. I don't really know what else to say.

There are lots of valid criticisms of black Americans. (Most of them go back to the legacy of slavery and Jim Crow, but I don't think anyone is beyond criticism.) If you just want to talk about "thugs" who run around and beat people up because they think being a thug is great because of rappers on MTV and their parents are terrible for not straightening them out, you're full of shit.

The AC who brought up all this crap doesn't know Martin. We know he smoked pot, flipped off a webcam, put gold on his teeth, and got suspended from school. I grew up with a ton of white kids who acted like that, but nobody ever called them thugs, and nobody ever shot them.

Clearly, liberals are the real racists. Like this liberal:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Atwater#Atwater_on_the_Southern_Strategy

Barack Obama: he is a thug because he criticized the Supreme Court, he trained ACORN to intimidate (!) banks, he challenged signatures in a primary election. "If Barack Obama had a son, would he be a violent thug like Trayvon Martin?" "Who is the bigger thug: Trayvon Martin or Barack Obama?"

Eric Holder: New Black Panther Party, Al Sharpton. Holder is a thug because the DOJ is investigating the S&P for its role in the runup to the 2008 financial crisis.

Al Sharpton: Black kids beat up an old white man (for some reason Sharpton is mentioned), Sharpton was at the White House Easter breakfast (the comments are full of the word "thug"), Trayvon Martin is a thug.

George Bush: Kanye West criticized George Bush and is a thug, George Bush personally called John Ashcroft while he was in the hospital to get him to sign off on illegal wiretapping.

Alberto Gonzalez: Gonzalez went to the hospital to speak to Ashcroft in the aforementioned incident.

Rush Limbaugh: Obama is a thug, Obama is a thug, Obama is a thug, basketball is a thug sport.

When people call Obama and Holder thugs, it is because of (fairly mild) criticisms they voice, or investigations they perform (as, you know, the goddamn Attorney General). Sharpton is a thug, and he spends all his time talking about thugs.

When people call Bush and Gonzalez thugs, they're generally referring to an incident where they tried to force the then-Attorney General to give them a paper trail to cover for doing something illegal, while the AG was in the hospital recovering from surgery (at the time, Gonzalez was White House Counsel). The only time Limbaugh's name is tied to the word "thug" is when he uses it to describe black people.

They didn't test the shooter for alcohol or narcotics, they didn't collect his clothing as evidence, they didn't look up the call records on the cell phone found at the scene...

Which they certainly don't have. The New Black Panther Party is approximately as dangerous as (and not as well-organized as) the Hutaree Militia (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hutaree#Michigan_Militia_and_the_Hutaree)

I'm not sure where you get the idea that this situation was completely instigated by Martin (or if you're just trolling). According to Martin's girlfriend, who heard the beginning of the interaction between Martin and Zimmerman, Z confronted M, and the cell phone was on the ground, lending credence to the idea that M was defending himself. You seem to trust Z's word, since M smoked pot and flipped off a webcam; I don't believe Z, because I think that there's generally something wrong with someone who drives around his neighborhood with a gun calling 911 all the time.

Sorry, investigations, including possible arrests. Got distracted.

Assuming, of course, that Martin attacked Zimmerman. We only have Zimmerman's word that that's what happened. That's why arrests are generally made in these situations.

Please perform the following searches:
"barack obama" thug
"eric holder" thug
"al sharpton" thug

"george bush" thug
"alberto gonzalez" thug
"rush limbaugh" thug

Let me know if you see any patterns.

"gangsta thug culture"
"all the rap and hip-hop about how awesome it is to be a career criminal"
"being a gangsta thug is not a s glorious as MTV makes it look"
"THUG LIFE YO!"

Reminds me of the time Newt Gingrich called Obama a "food stamp president." No reference to race, but somehow all the racists understand exactly what he's talking about. Look up "dogwhistle" for me.

So apparently it's not easy to railroad somebody, even if he appears obviously guilty. And OJ even killed white people!

The parent comment is chock-full of racist non sequiturs.

I'll say it: Zimmerman shouldn't be lynched. He was charged with a crime, and I think it's still possible for him to get a fair trial; as long as that happens, I'll be satisfied. If he's acquitted, there's at least a remote possibility that Florida should change their law, assuming his defense is based on the widely-publicized Stand Your Ground law.

Way to bring up lynching though, it's totally germane, since a vigilante killed a black person.

Wait-