O.J., ten years later

[WilliamPitt]

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/040611

O.J., ten years later
By Bill Simmons
Page 2

Things That Make Me Feel Old, Chapter 253: There's an entire generation that doesn't remember the O.J. Trial.

Some of you remember bits and pieces. Like the surreal Bronco Chase. Marcia Clark breaking out her Mokeski perm. Chris Darden's disastrous idea to have O.J. slip on the murder gloves. Johnnie Cochran wearing so many crazy suits, one reporter purchased a book of 64 crayons so he could accurately describe the colors. The crazed look on O.J.'s face when the verdict was announced, like even he couldn't believe he was going free.

Bits and pieces. If you're 21 or younger.

And if you're older than that, you remember everything that happened 10 years ago, starting with the double murders on June 12, 1994.

We always hear phrases like "Fight of the Century" and "Trial of the Century ... well, this really was the Trial of the Century. A Pro Football Hall of Fame running back might or might not have killed his wife and one of her male friends. All evidence pointed to him. No other suspects. No alibi. A disturbing history of domestic abuse. A definite motive. Blood splattered everywhere, including back at the suspect's house.

It should have been easy. Instead, the trial stretched until September of the following year, fracturing the nation along the way. We learned about the legal process, forensic science and the cult of celebrity (personified by Kato Kaelin, the ultimate freeloader). We learned how quickly a slam-dunk case can get screwed up. We learned about the inherent flaws of our jury system, a process which eliminates just about anyone who follows the news. We learned that our nation could and would poke fun at anything, even when the murders of two innocent people were directly involved. We learned that the stakes change for wealthy defendants, that it's possible to buy your own acquittal. We learned about lawyers, how some will do anything to win a case, no matter what the price.

...more...

[matcom]

1. no. No. NO!!

i have had enough REYGUN to last me 10 lifetimes. the ONLY justice in his kicking the damned bucket this week WAS that it pushed OJ off my screen.

can't we just talk about LynneSin's CATS and her DIRTY CARPETS?

x(

[VelmaD]

2. He's wrong on one count...

I'm over 21 and I DO NOT "remember everything that happened 10 years ago, starting with the double murders on June 12, 1994."

I knew it was going to turn into exactly the kind of circus it became. I knew that people would watch bits and pieces and form concrete opinions without having all the facts. I knew the lawyers would act like lawyers. I knew the media would act like idiots. I was not interested.

When people try to talk to me about it they don't like what I have to say to this day.

[Jokerman]

3. That's when I lost my taste for TV news

I was a Headline News junkie until the O.J. trial. I got so sick of the wall to wall coverage I came up with the "O.J. Rule": I vowed to turn off CNN as soon as they started talking about O.J. If it wasn't important enough to lead over O.J., I didn't want to hear about it. That basically broke me of the CNN habit.

Now it's ten years later and I've given up on TV news completely. So thankfully, the O.J. trial is at least partially responsible for the fact that I've been able to ignore the raygun death frenzy.

[SharonAnn]

4. Hmm, mine was the "Chandra Rule". If it didn't lead over the

speculation about how Gary Condit "must have" killed Chandra and disposed of her body then I didn't want to hear it. And it seemed like nothing did lead over that speculation.

Does anyone remember that for 6-8 weeks before 9-11 it was ACATT? (All Chandra All The Time).

[Skittles]

5. he's a double murderer, giving interviews on TV

it's very distubing.

[supernova]

6. I still find it freaky

he has his children. My god. :wow: Whether he did or didn't do it, the fact that he was a known wife abuser even before the murders.... :::shudder::: :scared:

[moof]

7. The author is in error on one very important point.

The event did not result in

"fracturing the nation along the way"

This "nation" has been fractured by the myth of race since before it was a nation.

This myth has been exploited in various ways during that time,
most recently by people running for elective office.

So what happened ten years ago was, a large portion of the population was made aware of the fracture and given a small clue about it's severity.

Race does not exist, it is a cruel irony that racism not only exists
but continues to thrive under the careful cultivation of people in power.

There are only two main groups of humans on this planet.
Masters and slaves.
If you have any doubt which group you belong to take this simple test.

Is there any felony that you are sure you could commit without the possibility of being caught ?

Or if that's too complicated, if you never worked another day in your life would you or your family's lifestyle be affected ?

[Deja Q]

8. Darden didn't expect OJ to extend his fingers as wide as Limbaugh's butt

Or anybody not to question OJ's obvious extending of his fingers (Darden was off the ball that day, it seems...)

The whole trial did speak volumes, didn't it? :-(