Justice

 The jury judged Kyle Rittenhouse innocent under the law. But in my mind, he is not innocent in a larger moral sense. Yes, he was a teenager, and teens often make bad decisions. The decisions to illegally carry a weapon, to often brandish that weapon in a charged situation, to often make only lame efforts to remove himself from danger or engage the police all helped create the situations in which others lost their lives.

There were many unarmed individuals, but he seemed to attract ones who were armed. That rifle of Kyle’s triggered those deaths, that trial and who knows what other consequences.

The other culprit is the law itself. We know laws are not always written out of a moral imperative that seeks fairness for all.

Then there is the judge who prays about the sentence he will give to a rich, white young man who has harassed and raped four young women. His decision, prison would be “inappropriate.” But of course, we know prison would likely be very appropriate for a young man of color.

We still have a long way to go on the road to justice.