No murder charges in Jones' death

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Don't Let Them Win - 2009-07-15 11:10:13

First and foremost, I would like to say that Chris's death is a tragedy and that all parties responsible deserve to pay the maximum penalty for their crime. That being said, as I read through this comment board I see too many attitudes that are unproductive, selfish, cowardly and self-defeating. It is unproductive and selfish to argue about whether or not this was a hate crime. All murders are hate crimes, why else would anyone commit murder? Let's not make this fourteen year old boy a martyr for our own beliefs and causes, but rather mourn his untimely and unnecessary death without the intrusion of politics. It is also incredibly unproductive to sit here and talk about other murder cases that may bare one or two vague resemblances to this case, but nothing noteworthy when you really think about it. I think that the underlying reason for talking about a murder that happened in Pasadena is that the folks from South County areas like Crofton and Annapolis are too afraid to admit that it really can happen there, so you spend your time talking about a murder that happened in the North of the county where it's a little poorer, a little further away, and a little more common. Talking about murders in Pasadena won't bring Chris back, nor will it shed any new light on his particular case. Finally, I see cowardice and a self defeating attitude behind the idea that residents should move out of Crofton to avoid this kind of "gang violence". I use the quotes because these are not real street gangs. Sure, they go out and act tough, act stupid and have now even committed a murder. That aside, the bottom line is that these kids are from Crofton. They didn't grow up on any rough streets. They probably all ate three square meals a day off of mom or dad's table and had a parent wake them up and give them lunch money in the morning. These were not hardened gangsters from westport robbing anyone that makes a wrong turn so that they can buy dope or their next meal. Just

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Brad C. - Baltimore, MD - Karma: Neutral

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what a waste. - 2009-06-30 20:38:11

such a waste of life. Looking at the picture of Chris and his mom makes me sad. I have a thousand pictures of my son and I looking JUST like that. If something happened to him I dont think I could go on. ESPECIALLY if the thugs responsible didnt get charged with his murder. What a complete waste. My heart goes out to you Ms. Adkins. I remember you from when I worked at coconuts. I truly feel terrible for your loss.

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Kellie D. - Crofton, md - Karma: Neutral

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So Hip Hop is to Blame? - 2009-06-26 19:48:23

I highly doubt that the teens contemplated, W.W.J.D (what would Jay-Z do?)before assaulting Christopher Jones. I also doubt that the other teens went there with an intent other than to fight Jones. It is a very sad and unfortunate incident that a fight between teens resulted in the death of a kid.

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S. T - , - Karma: Neutral

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It was just HATE period - 2009-06-24 14:09:22

For Black people to state that this was not a HATE crime is sad. We African-Americans do not hold the card of HATE crimes just for us to use. This child was killed because of of HATE period, a HATE that said he does not think like us and he does not want to be like us and wow he "might", not did, but "might" have said something about us. Let's hurt him and show him what we do to people like that, and if he gets killed then hey more street cred for me, I can go to jail and hold it down like my man T.I.(for buying machine guns and silencers) you know he a soldier so I can do it too. This morning I was watching a documentary of Jay-Z(Shawn Carter) the "CRapper" of such "CRap" at "I got 99 problems but a BIT*H aint one of them". He spoke of the ideology of the "hood" and what those kids had to go through just to survive. He said that those kids who live like that make decisions knowing that people can die from their actions or that they will go to jail from their actions but "they accept this and learn to live with those REGRETTS". I am like wow, that is one of the most messed up things to say. This kid whoever may live by this credo get's to reassuer himself that everything he does is fine because he can learn to live with it. Mr.Carter what about the grief this child has caused families by killing someone they love very much, what? are they supposed to be reassured that "Oh the person who killed their child can live with the consequences" so their supposed ok. Man get a grip, it is this type of pathological mentality that has allowed the Cancer of these thugs to permeate society today. We cannot continue to allow this type of idelogy and behaviour to be apart of our society. All you are doing is just perpetuating a sick logic to sell your cd's. These kids idolize you but you also said something interesting in that you would not bring these type of people to your recording studio either. Wow, they are cool to exploit in your music videos(you know you are no

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Sarah B. - Elkton, MD - Karma: Bad

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Fight? - 2009-06-24 11:23:46

Jason...calling this incident a "fight that went horribly wrong" is giving an incredible amount of leeway to the alleged assailants. It was not, by all reports, a fight, which involves two opposing, but willing, parties. If a man was to beat a woman, you would never say that it was a "fight"....it would be assault.

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T. - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Neutral

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Flabbergasted... - 2009-06-24 10:41:35

Jason...

Now that's where you are dead wrong. It's simply amazing that the only one crying is the family that lost a son. There is no public outrage at the vicious beating of Chris. Whe Noah Jones was beaten to death, there were 20+ articles in the Balt Sun, mostly calling it a hate crime, racism running rampant in all-white Pasadena. The NAACP, churches, local Civic groups and the press all participated in the veritable field day that ensued after Mr. Jones and his friends went to a home with the intention of fighting, and unfortunately Mr. Jones got killed. Totally wrong, but THAT was a fight that went horribly wrong. Chris's attack was pure hatred, beaten by a group of all black youths. Doesn't that sound a little like racism? I'm quick to condemn ANYONE that kills....and that '16 year old boy' is a murderer that should pay the ultimate price. He (through his lawyer) is not taking responsibility for his actions, nor are the rest of the 'gang'. While the grand jury chose not to bring 2nd degree murder, I know what the end result was. Chris is dead, and there are still people like you that don't even want prison time for the murderers Javel George and unnamed supposed 'minors'.

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JJ Thomas - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Excellent

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racism - 2009-06-24 07:15:12

It's simply amazing when a white boy gets killed accidentally how the community cries. Does anyone know if Chris was in a rival gang or not. How could his parents just let him hang with the wrong crowd.

I am saddened that Chris died. I am very concerned that the white community is so quick to condemn African Americans. Does anyone think that putting a 16 year old boy in prison will bring Chris back. It was a fight that went horribly wrong. The grand jury even saw that.

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Jason S. - baltimore, md - Karma: Neutral

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Well put JJ - 2009-06-24 07:08:37

Couldn't agree with you more. It does concern me that the police ruled out "hate crime" right away. Right away, at face value, to put it plainly a group of blacks beat to death a 14 year-old white kid. So how does that justify it being rule out right away? Had it been reversed, this never would have been the case.

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Johnathan Locke - Edgewater, MD - Karma: Excellent

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JJ Thomas - 2009-06-23 14:51:33

Well stated JJ. I couldn't have said it better. We can thank our liberals for this. There's no such thing as racial equality unless you're something other than white or an immigrant. I'm all for equality, but make it EQUAL.

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Dave D. - Riva, MD - Karma: Good

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Judy... - 2009-06-23 13:45:32

Are you implying that people of color are unjustly being jailed? All of them? You seem to leave out the fact that Noah Jones and his associates went to the party, uninvited, with the intention of fighting (with weapons). He didn't deserve to die at all, but his actions played a great part in that. Now compare the case of Chris, and you can see the disparity. Chris was fleeing, had changed schools, etc. Why are we even talking about that case? Is it an attempt to deflect people from the issue at hand? Are you going to cry out for the justice for Chris?

I was able to pull up an archive of the Noah Jones case at the BaltSun site, so there is/was much press about how a group of white youths 'beat to death' a black youth. Every other article was primarily based upon race, how the 'white devils' killed an innocent youth. Now I ask, where are the advocacy groups decrying the actions of the group of black's that killed Chris? Where are the churches, NAACP, etc? They are nowhere, because when a group of black 'youths' kill a white kid, it's racist to even insinuate that it was a hate crime. It's as if it's ok to strike out at whites, because of the years of oppression and injustice.

No one really wants to admit there is a HUGE problem with parenting in the black community. Let me re-phrase that, there is a HUGE problem with parenting period, black and white. We have a generation of kids raising kids, no concept of what it means to be a father, what a PRIVILIGE it is to be a father. Until that changes, we are doomed to see more of what we have today.

I refuse to be afraid to say we need to start using the Death Penalty, and use it frequently. If you kill, you should forfeit your life. Period. Shadow-boxing or not. 14 years old or not. Period.

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JJ Thomas - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Excellent

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Judy-Get your facts straight - 2009-06-23 13:41:07

The fact of the matter is, Noah brought a gun to a party where most kids were white. I happen to know the uncle of one of the kids. The white kids ended up taking the gun from him and NOT shooting him but beating him with it. It is sad, it is gross but if someone has a gun its gonna end up being one or the other person. Noah went to this party starting trouble and it backfired. The white boys were defending themselves. The black kids in Chris's case were looking for him. People say the "didnt mean to kill him" but their intentions werent good. Those animals knew what they were doing!!!

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Rachel B. - , - Karma: Neutral

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Daniel S. - What a joke - 2009-06-23 11:25:47

In July of 2004, a 17-year-old black boy named Noah Jamahl Jones was beaten to death by six young white men at a party in Pasadena, Maryland, a mostly-white suburb of Baltimore. On the 12th of June 2005, an all-white jury found the first defendant not guilty, and charges were dropped against the remaining defendants. In a country where people of color are jailed at an incredibly disproportionate rate, usually for non-violent crimes, a group of vicious white murderers goes free without so much as a stern lecture.
Some people are arguing that Jones is not a modern-day Emmett Till (the black 14-year-old who was murdered 50 years ago by two white men, who were in turn set free by an all-white jury) because two of his friends came to the party armed. In effect, they are saying that he deserved to die because his friends had guns, which is of course absurd. The point is that racial inequality and tensions still exist, regardless.

Now where was the justice for Noah Jamahl Jones? How often did his story make the front page of the "The Capital"? Have we forgotten this story?

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Judy W. - , - Karma: Neutral

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peace and respect - 2009-06-23 02:05:49

I knew this boy. I am sitting here typing this letter with tears in my eyes. I remember his beautiful smile, his sassy sense of humor, and how he was a breath of fresh air. I watched him ride his bike in our neighborhood. I watched him play basketball in front of our house. I watched him interact with kids on both sides of the issue. Every day I am so saddened by all the heartbreaking details of a beautiful child snuffed out, as I inadvertantly watched the events slowly unravel in front of me. And my heart breaks more and more as I read each of these blogs. He would not have been pleased with the hatred and disrespect people have shown one another regarding so many issues. He loved friends from all different races. The back and forth, no holds barred, angry disrespect for one another's opinions and seem to me to be part of what fuel's hate crimes. It is Jerry Springer alive and well in our attitudes toward one another. I am wondering if the gangs are this way because they learned it from us. The i'm white/your black/your black/I'm white/your too liberal/your too conservative/i'm right/your wrong/aclu/naacp/incompetent police/incompetent schools/incompetent parents rhetoric. We are all spinning everything toward our own agenda. I mean this humbly, myself included. We are all part of the problem. Every single one of us. May God forgive us for our hateful hearts and ungodly attitudes. For not loving our neighbors as ourselves, especially when it is anonymous. I will love Christopher forever. And from this day forward, I hope to love others the same way that he did, unashamedly, unabashedly, and with no personal agenda. Please, lets come together as a community instead of attacking eachother, pointing fingers, and adding to the problem.

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carol b. - crofton, md - Karma: Neutral

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T.Green... - 2009-06-22 14:40:41

The two cases are totally different, as one case has an innocent victim being chased down, and the other had a not-so-innocent 'victim' looking for a fight, with a firearm, no less. You are right, it's not a 'race thing' until you/we admit it's a parenting thing. That's where (based upon the high percentage of black youth's in trouble with the law) it becomes a 'race thing', with a clear lack of parenting, or what i heard it referred to as a 'fatherless generation of black youths'.
I am all for holding people accountable...no matter the race, social standing, or, unfortunately age. If they are 13 or older, and commit murder, they should pay the ultimate price. This case just so happens to be all black offenders, with a white victim.

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JJ Thomas - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Excellent

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DANIEL S.-SEVERNA PARK - 2009-06-22 13:31:07

I HOPE YOU FELT THE SAME WAY WHEN NOAH JAMAL JONES WAS BEATEN TO DEATH AND APPARENTLY HE MUST HAVE WALKED OUTSIDE, AND BEAT HIMSELF TO DEATH, BECAUSE NO ONE EVER PAID THE PRICE FOR HIS MURDER. MY HEART GOES TO THE MOM AND HER FAMILY, BUT LETS NOT TURN THIS INTO A RACE THING, BECAUSE IT'S REALLY NOT, IT'S A HUMAN THING. US "BLACKS" LOL, GO THROUGH THE SAME THING EVERYDAY. I JUST LOVE HOW YOU PUT THAT "GANGSTER" IN A SUV-CLASSIC. NOAH DIED BECAUSE HE WAS BLACK, SO AS YOU CAN SEE, IT GOES BOTH WAYS. IT'S A PROBLEM THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED TO ALL, NOT JUST ONE RACE.

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T. GREEN - ANNAPOLIS, MD - Karma: Neutral

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It's all sad! - 2009-06-20 23:46:31

I just still can't believe this happened, even though I know it did. I don't blame the grand jury though, they based their decision on the law. I would have done the same and my decision would not have been based on race any more than theirs was. I do worry about who can protect our kids against this sort of thing. It seems to me that the original school and the perpetrators parents should have done more way before it got to this level!

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Lynn S. - Tracys Landing, MD - Karma: Neutral

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No justice. - 2009-06-20 15:50:40

Judicial decisions like this are why we have vigilante justice.

Hopefully Mr. George and the rest of the animals that killed Chris get the justice they so richly deserve.

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JJ Thomas - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Excellent

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Re: Compassion Gene?/What a Joke/Wh - 2009-06-20 14:10:41

Re: Compassion Gene
Believe me, I never said I didn't have good reason to beat this dude up. Secondly, it was a fair fight up until he made the mistake of letting his guard down. I just capitalized a little too much. I got carried away because I was SO p.o.'d. But what you insinuate, nay, what you believe is that there should be a prerequisite for reproducing. Just like Hitler wanted. While you seem to have compassion, you really only want the world to be just like you. No worries, no troubles, just everyone all smiles and glee. Well, first off; their is no joy without suffering. Secondly, I saw the movie and it didn't end well. Finally, it's not compassion that separates us from the other species of animals, it's rage. The other species don't attack other animals unless they're hungry or they feel threatened, or they have rabies. Don't try and fool yourself otherwise, if that's not already too late.
Re: What a Joke
Don't rely on your government to dole out justice all the time. The system is flawed but it's only because of the people who wanted more and more government, thereby flooding the judicial systems with cases pertaining to all these new laws, bi-laws and ammendmets. If you want justice, really want justice, you can't be afraid to seek it out yourself, no matter the consequences. Just be ready and willing to accept them.
Re: Who's going to protect your kids?
I don't have kids and I'm sort of glad. Sort of glad because it is a rough, scary world with lots of dangers in it, but on the other hand I'd be a great father and if I had a child, I'm sure that he/she would only benefit the world by being a part of it. They would because I would teach them to live without regret. Meaning they wouldn't do things that they'll later regret in life. They would stand up in the face of injustice and protect the little guy, as I have ALWAYS done throughout my life. Finally, they would know how to protect themselves. I've never been one to pick a fight. Picking fights is for suckers. If you get hurt, it's because you hesitated to act. Being a skinny guy, big dudes have gotten in my face my whole life, usually just to pick on a littler guy. Big mistake. The other species of animals never attack another unless they are hungry, feel threatened or have the rabies. Sounds familiar. If you are relying on the government or the police to protect you everywhere you go, that's too bad. Sad really. It would be sort of like lighting your house on fire because you live next door to a fire house. But, they could be out on call and you shouldn't have been playing with fire in the first place.
Now, if I get my feelings hurt (not likely) because of these objections, which some of you may mistake for picking a fight, then so be it.
Oh, and I should have said "Karma-pretty darn crappy sometimes". That's my fault for exposing a weakness to the pack of humans.

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eric sacratini - tracy's landing, MD - Karma: Good

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yo. sacratini - 2009-06-20 13:53:13

My friend it is rare that , with the exception of my own of course, the comments I read on HOMEYTOWNANNAPOLIC.COM contain the high-level of insight and common sense that is reflected in your post. The MOM said "He acted as an adult" . What kind of ridiculous comment is that, it is utter nonsense. He was acting as a teen because he is a teen ! There is no reason to try the tender 16 year old as an adult-- he is not an adult.

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reggie schmoenberg - annapolis, md - Karma: Neutral

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Compassion Gene? - 2009-06-20 13:29:42

Thanks for the memories, Eric S. It's never acceptable to beat someone near death for any reason and it's not a fair fight if you can. The compassion gene should be a prerequisite to human reproduction, if we're not going to teach our children to be civilized and in control of emotions and hormones. Exactly what separates us from animals. The killing pack of teenagers felt powerful as a whole, but weak as individuals. This WAS a Hate Crime. Not addressing this fact is blatant discrimination. It's inevitable, residents will now talk with their feet, surrender to the new mentality and MOVE! Without justice, evil triumphs!

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C. Mac - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Neutral

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Charges - 2009-06-20 12:00:21

I'm torn. I understand the lesser man-slaughter charge, but I'm not sure that he should be tried as an adult. Kids do stuff like this. I remember when I was young I beat this kid up so badly, I thought he was going to die. It scared me, but it turns out that the beating looked worse than it really was. Plus I was young and full of it. I didn't know what a dying person looked like. While I was pummeling this poor kid, I never in a million years thought that I could actually kill him with my bare hands, so I just kept smashing him in the face. Terrible when I think back to that. Karma: pretty darned crappy. My point is that young boys are full of hormones that can literally take over their bodies and their minds. We can't let our emotions take over, especially when the news paper puts family pictures of the Jones boy up. Yes, it was a terrible thing that the George boy did, but he is young and as he matures, will probably look back, as I did, on how terrible a crime he committed and truly regret it. Karma, really, don't underestimate it's power. It's within us, not floating around waiting for the next good/bad doer.

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eric sacratini - tracy's landing, MD - Karma: Good

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What a joke - 2009-06-20 09:34:23

What a joke our md judicial system is. There was nothing else his parents could do for Chris in this situation other then move. I mean they moved him to another high school! His mom was texting him, and there must have been threats previously for all this to take place and his murder was not premediated? I bet there were plenty of blacks on that "grand" jury making plenty of excuses for javel. Well if this wasn't murder I don't know what is, it is also a hate crime. Remember how quick they ruled that it wasn't. The system is set up for gangsters and in the liberal state of Md your only going to see more and more as our judicial system is a joke. This thing has been swept under the rug. Why don't we hear how these gangsters approached Chris. I heard they were in a Suv while he was on a bike! If you hear moreof what really happened you would be more outraged but somehow everything gets smoothed over and is drowned out like when they first said he died from hitting his head. The reality is, gangsters targeted him, beat him because he was white (they did this to other teens as well) there is still others involved that are still free and the max time this gangster is gonna get is 10 years, which he'll probably only serve 4 of those. I think everyone really needs to take a look at reality.

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Daniel S. - Severna Park, md - Karma: Neutral

Report Abuse or Vote In order to allow the user community the ability to collectively rank the value of comments posted on the Capital Gazette websites we have implemented a thumbs-up/down system. All logged-in users may participate by voting up/down each comment. If others vote on your comment, your individual score will go up/down depending on the votes. Initially, everyone starts with a score of zero, and must earn credits to have significant voting weight. Individuals with higher scores will have more voting weight. +20

Who Is going to protect our kids - 2009-06-20 08:35:26

They courts have lost control of what happens to our innocent children. Intent was established when he was bullied at school. Intent was carried out when they deceided amongst themsevels they had to teach him a lesson for supposedly saying something about them. These kids are killers with a rep and will be out on the street in 5yrs. They will be considered the best in their gang because they took out a person who supposedly said something about their gang so now they got street cred. Come on now, we need to really change some laws around here and have people like these kids put away and it has to start in school when they continue to bully kids with out repercussions. If something had really been done when the 14yr old was in trouble we would not be having this discussion but here we are. Since his family and the courts did not think it was serious enough to enforce his sentencing the first time this is what we get....

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Sarah B. - Elkton, MD - Karma: Bad

Report Abuse or Vote In order to allow the user community the ability to collectively rank the value of comments posted on the Capital Gazette websites we have implemented a thumbs-up/down system. All logged-in users may participate by voting up/down each comment. If others vote on your comment, your individual score will go up/down depending on the votes. Initially, everyone starts with a score of zero, and must earn credits to have significant voting weight. Individuals with higher scores will have more voting weight. +36

Shadow Boxing? - 2009-06-20 05:24:32

WTF is that? Isn't that when you are boxing against YOURSELF/SHADOW as in the Rocky movies? Give Javel George to me, I'll show him my version of "Shadow Boxing". Wait, I can't do that. It seems I'm White so if I kill him, by accident of course, it would be a "HATE CRIME".

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Jean R. - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Neutral