Lowell Observatory Pushes To Name an Asteroid "Trayvon"

Flash Modin writes "The observatory where Pluto was discovered is pushing to name an asteroid after a black teenager killed in a controversial confrontation in Florida last year. William Lowell Putnam III says his family has identified with the cause of African American rights, and thus an asteroid named after Trayvon Martin is perfectly appropriate. Putnam is the sole trustee of the observatory, which was founded by Percival Lowell during his search for canals on Mars. Astronomers at the observatory discovered the asteroid in 2000, but it has not been formally named. Putnam has already asked the Minor Planet Center once to designate the asteroid 'Trayvon,' but they told him the designation was 'premature.' Now that there's been a verdict, the observatory is reapplying in hopes the naming body will see things different."

Possible Ironic Outcome

[Ralph Spoilsport]

Name Asteroid after Trayvon. A few weeks later it collides with a smaller rock, that nudges it into a path such that it turns Miami into a large smoking hole in the ground.

Next two asteroids: Edwards & Luna

[SuperKendall]

Perhaps these two [cnn.com] will get even bigger asteroids!

We can name some ice chunks in Saturn's belt after all of the black kids beating up [examiner.com] and killing [theblaze.com] white people over Treyvon.

Re:Trayvon Martin can Life Forever

[AlphaWolf_HK]

Trayvon was a bully actually. He was bragging in a facebook post about how he slapped a bus driver for something to the effect of looking at him wrong. When caught red handed painting graffiti, he was found with burglary tools and women's jewelry in his backpack by a school staff. Also, apparently the stuff he bought at the convenience store just before his death were for the purposes of making "Purple Drank".

Yeah, and this is the guy they want to name an asteroid after.

Re:no

[quantaman]

Even if your ugly characterization is accurate that doesn't actually make his death something other than a tragedy.

People make bad decisions which can cost them their lives, and in a sense its a tragedy, yes, but not a tragedy in the sense that "we have to make sure noone can defend themselves with lethal force".

That's the problem with the "Trayvon" designation for the asteroid, it has nothing to do with Trayvon Martin. It's just a way to signal that you're against racial profiling and guns if you think Zimmerman is guilty, or a way to signal that you believe in self defence and gun rights if you think Zimmerman did the right think. Only two people really know what happened, one of them is dead, and no one really cares anyway except as a proxy in a political debate.

Re:Hope and change bitches! EAT MY SHIT!!!

[FatdogHaiku]

I feel like we're sinking deeper each and every time I find myself saying "We have just reached a new low in stupidity."

The feeling is correct. It's like reading out the altitude in a free falling elevator,
you could never speak fast enough to keep pace with events...
but the direction is certain and the conclusion will be no surprise...

Re:no

[ultranova]

A good part of the reason Zimmerman was acquitted was because of the lack of evidence for all these lazy-ass assertions.

I think we're far past the point where anyone's the least bit interested in evidence. Instead, everyone who talks about this case simply makes up stuff - often ludicrously detailed - to support their own notions, often twisted by insane troll logic (no, you don't really want Zimmerman to be the poster boy for gun rights, now do you?).

Which is why I think this asteroid should be named "Trayvon-Zimmerman". Human capacity for self-deception certainly deserves a monument, and if irony is on our side archeologists in a few (dozen) generations might well promote it to an actual Greek god.