We were told to expect Rittenhouse to walk

And he did...

Court watchers told us that Wisconsin’s self-defense law makes it extremely hard for prosecutors to prove a defendant didn’t feel threatened by the actions of someone in the heat of the moment.

And that was at the heart of the case of Kyle Rittenhouse, an 18-year old who at age 17 took an AK-15-style rifle to a protest in Kenosha, Wis., and shot three people, killing two of them. As of athejury’s decision on Friday, Rittenhouse is, as one of his t-shirts says, “Free AF,” with U.S. Representatives Gosar and Gaetz fake-fighting over who gets to hire him as a D.C. intern.

Here is Wisconsin’s self-defense law. And here is some information on Connecticut’s. One interesting element in Connecticut’s self-defense law is this (from the link above):

Connecticut does not have a stand-your-ground law, but instead requires an individual to retreat when able to do so.

And in Wisconsin:

Wisconsin does not have a stand your ground law. The state’s case law allows juries to consider a failure to retreat when evaluating the necessity of a person’s use of force in public

So the decision still makes no sense, and even without the states’ comparison, the Rittenhouse decision “flies in the face of legal standards for self-defense,” according to the linked The Conversation article.

So what do we do now? I asked that on social media, and here are some of the suggestions that followed. I endorse some and ponder over others:

• Never let a Republican run unopposed.

• Protect voting rights.

• End the filibuster.

• Mobilize.

• End gerrymandering.

• Never vote for a Republican.

• Leave the country.

• Reform gun laws.

• Enforce gun laws.

• Fire Judge Bruce Schroeder.

• Apply for gun permits to be free.

• Create a mechanism to acknowledge and address grievances before they turn into riots.

• Take to the streets.

• Just say “yup” and sit with the crushing weight of that.

• Codify the NRA's own safe gun storage and handling rules into law.

• Tax revolt.

• General strike.

• Get involved in local politics.

• Expand the Supreme Court.

• Strike down the Second Amendment and so-called stand your ground laws.

• Enter into a truth and reconciliation process that includes reparations to African Americans.

• Tax billionaires in the same way everyday people pay taxes.

• Pass common sense immigration and gun safety laws.

• Write letters/postcards to recalcitrant politicians.

• Shitcan the Electoral College.

• Call for Batman. No, don’t. He’s a vigilante.

• Confront white supremacy.

  Feel free to add any we may have missed, and feel free to break off one or two of these and get started. Happy Monday.