TMP:

We are officially living in a world where George Zimmerman is treated like a famous person.

The man who will forever be known for killing an unarmed black teenager basked in the limelight Saturday at — where else? — a gun show in central Florida.

According to television station WESH, Zimmerman "greeted people and autographed photos of him posing with his dog."

Organizers of the event were forced change locations after the original venue was hit with a public backlash over Zimmerman's planned appearance.

An unabashed gun lover, Zimmerman went on a tour last year of the Florida firearms factory that makes the gun he used to kill Trayvon Martin — a move his own attorney said was a bad idea.


This is not a bad thing; this is exactly the kind of spotlight we want on the nutty world of gun shows. Imagine if the spotlight were of someone like Harrison Ford (a name pulled out of a generic celebrity hat), then the gun show would look like it's really happening, look groudly American, look exactly like it's not: sane. But Zimmerman is not your average celebrity. The stupidity of this event's organizers is found in their complete failure to see that the only attention Zimmerman could bring to a gun show is necessarily unwanted.