When is a Crime a Hate Crime?

When is a Crime a Hate Crime? | The Marshall Project:
Dylann Roof and the challenges of proving bias.
When a white gunman opened fire at South Carolina’s historic Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church on Wednesday night, killing nine African-American worshippers, Charleston Police Chief Greg Mullen said, “we believe this is a hate crime; that is how we are investigating it.”
Attorney General Loretta Lynch likewise announced the Department of Justice had opened a hate crime investigation.
But “‘hate crime’ is a term that means something legally different than it’s used publicly,” says Barry Kowalski, a recently-retired lawyer with the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, which is responsible for these prosecutions.
To prove a hate crime, prosecutors must prove not only that someone committed a particular crime, but also why: in this case, a jury would have to believe beyond a reasonable doubt that Dylann Roof killed nine people and that his actions were motivated by racial animus.
In the Charleston case, this seems like a relatively straightforward proposition:
The shooter didn’t just target a historically black church with a rich history of African-American activism.
He allegedly said, in the course of his attack, “I have to do it.
You rape our women and you’re taking over our country. And you have to go.” It’s unusual that the motive is stated so clearly at the time of the crime, however.
In cases where the motivation is less obvious, prosecutors must cast a wider net for proof: 
“Does the guy belong to a hate group? Can we get a search warrant for his computer? Did he say anything either immediately before or immediately after the crime? What is his connection to these victims?” says Bill Fitzpatrick, the Syracuse, NY District Attorney and President-Elect of the National District Attorneys Association...

Wow. 47 Major Retailers Announce Closing of 6,000 Stores Across the Country

Wow. 47 Major Retailers Announce Closing of 6,000 Stores Across the Country:

"You’ll never hear the Obama administration pass on an opportunity to gloat about the miracles they think they’ve managed to pull off over the past seven years to get America’s economy back on track.

The only problem with that is, it’s not remotely true. Somehow, the spin doctors at the White House always manage to cherry pick rare instances of economic improvement and turn them into something much bigger."

Soooo, there is no proof required?-----Colleges shell out for LGBT students whose families allegedly cut them off

Colleges shell out for LGBT students whose families allegedly cut them off - The College Fix
It helps if you’re an activist
When LGBT college students reveal their true selves to their parents, some of them not only lose emotional support – they lose the financial support they need to continue their studies.
To ensure these students don’t become dropouts, several colleges around the country have set up “emergency” funds with varying requirements for assistance – including giving permission to be used in promotional materials.
Indiana University’s GLBT Alumni Association offers an emergency scholarship for current undergraduate students “who have lost or are facing the loss of financial support from their parents/family after disclosing their sexual orientation or gender identity.”

U.S. to Fast Track $29 Million to Help Charleston Shooting Victims' Families

U.S. to Fast Track $29 Million to Help Charleston Shooting Victims' Families:
"WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Justice Department will fast track the sending of $29 million to South Carolina to help families of victims of the mass murder of nine churchgoers at a historic black church in Charleston, a Justice Department spokesman said on Friday.
An unspecified portion of the money, allocated under the government's national Crime Victim Assistance Formula Grant program, can be used to provide services to the families of victims of the shootings atEmmanuel AME Church, spokesman Kevin Lewis said."

Never trust the liberal media-----AP Photo Points Gun at Ted Cruz's Brain

AP Photo Points Gun at Ted Cruz's Brain:
"Of course, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) is a Republican.
...imagine a similar situation–a U.S. Senator campaigning for President–and instead of a pro-2nd Amendment event, it’s a pro-gun control event.
Imagine this Senator is standing in front of a giant poster of a pistol–one meant to demonize the weapon rather than promote it.
Imagine that this same AP photographer, instead of shifting a foot to the left or the right, framed a picture with the Senator’s nose almost touching the barrel, as a closer crop makes clear.
Imagine that this photographer, even though he took a few shots with this silly setup, took many more without it. Imagine that his editor–unnamed and insulated from public backlash–chose not one but two but three of those photos to distribute to AP’s clients.
Imagine this scenario–and how would the world respond if the name on those photos read:
Bernie Sanders?
Hillary Clinton?

TREASON: Look What Obama Just Did for Osama Bin Laden's Bodyguards

TREASON: Look What Obama Just Did for Osama Bin Laden's Bodyguards:

“He has also said that he wants to take a holistic approach,” the official said. “So he wants to focus on the 57 who are cleared for transfer, but he wants to see what we’re doing with the rest of those. So he’s thinking about all 122, not just the 57.”

Yes, that’s right — instead of facing the indignity of being told no by Congress, Obama would rather open the doors on every cell in Guantanamo Bay and send these terrorists back to the battlefield.

If that’s not treason, I’m not sure what is."

Canada: Never mind. We’ll just ship our energy to China

Canada: Never mind. We’ll just ship our energy to China « Hot Air
When we’ve discussed our energy partnership with Canada in the past, realists have tended to note how our cooperative relationship has produced jobs, lower gas and oil prices and an improved national security position.
And why would the Canadians want to do business anywhere else when they have a ready partner with massive refinery capacity and global leading technology resources?
But opponents have fought expansions to this partnership, particularly when it comes to new pipelines or expanding the types of fossil fuel products we work together to process.
They also seem to want to keep us from opening up foreign markets by lifting US export bans on crude oil and liquefied natural gas. (LNG)
In the past, I have expressed concerns of my own on these pages, one of them being that if we became too intractable with the Canadians, they may just take their toys and play elsewhere. 
One possible example could be opening up their western seaboard and exporting energy products all over the world themselves, including to China. 
Opponents responded by scoffing, assuming we would work out something with the Canadians. Besides… if you wanted to drive a pipeline from the rich oil and gas fields of northern British Columbia to some processing facility and port on that nation’s rugged northwestern coast, you would have to blast your way through a stretch of some of the most inhospitable peaks of the Canadian Rockies imaginable.
I mean, you’d have to be insane just to consider the project. 
Insane, I tell ya!
Boy howdee… those crazy Canadians.
TransCanada Corp said on Friday it expects to start construction this year on natural gas pipeline to British Columbia’s Pacific Coast worth at least C$5 billion ($4.1 billion) following a conditional go-ahead by a Petronas-led consortium for what could be Canada’s first LNG export terminal....

History for June 22

History for June 22 - On-This-Day.com
George Vancouver 1757, Erich Maria Remarque 1898, John Dillinger 1902 - Gangster 

Kris Kristofferson 1936 - Singer, Brit Hume 1943 - Broadcast journalist, Todd Rungren 1948 - Musician 


Meryl Streep 1949 - Actress, Cyndi Lauper 1953 - Singer, Bruce Campbell 1958 


1611 - English explorer Henry Hudson, his son and several other people were set adrift in present-day Hudson Bay by mutineers. 


1832 - J.I. Howe patented the pin machine. 


1874 - Dr. Andrew Taylor Still began the first known practice of osteopathy. 


1933 - Germany became a one political party country when Hitler banned parties other than the Nazis. 


1939 - The first U.S. water-ski tournament was held at Jones Beach, on Long Island, New York. 


1942 - In France, Pierre Laval declared "I wish for a German victory". 


1944 - U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt signed the "GI Bill of Rights" to provide broad benefits for veterans of the war. 


1970 - U.S. President Richard Nixon signed an extension of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. It required that the voting age in the United States to be 18. 


1992 - The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled that hate-crime laws that ban cross-burning and similar expressions of racial bias violated free-speech rights. 


1998 - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that evidence illegally obtained by authorities could be used at revocation hearings for a convicted criminal's parole. 


1999 - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that persons with remediable handicaps cannot claim discrimination in employment under the Americans with Disability Act. 

10 Undersea Creatures With Terrifying Teeth

10 Undersea Creatures With Terrifying Teeth - Listverse

Black Dragonfish
Idiacanthus Atlanticus

Photo via Discovery Channel Asia

A member of the Stomiidae family, the black dragonfish is a deep-sea species occurring throughout the southern hemisphere at depths of around 2,000 meters (7,000 ft). Like many deep-sea species, black dragonfish undertake vertical migrations, swimming toward the surface at night to feed before descending back into the depths during daylight hours.

Monica Conyers Suing McDonald’s Over Injured Finger

Monica Conyers Suing McDonald’s Over Injured Finger « CBS Detroit:
"DETROIT (WWJ) – New Year’s Day 2015 began on a down note for Monica Conyers according to a lawsuit filed on Thursday.
According to the Detroit News Conyers has filed a suit for $25,000 against the golden arches.
While visiting a McDonald’s on January 1, the former Detroit city councilwoman alleges she cut her finger on a chair inside a location at Detroit Metropolitan Airport.
According to the suit, while sitting at a table, she grabbed a chair to adjust it then felt a sharp pair in the ring finger of her right hand. 
She was helped by police and paramedic.
The suit alleges Conyers suffered “extreme pain and anguish” and has lost the full use of her hand.
The ex-councilwoman entered prison in 2010 after pleading guilty in 2009 to taking bribes while on the Detroit council. 
She was released in December 2012, after serving 27 months at Alderson Federal Prison Camp, often referred to as “Camp Cupcake.”
Many remember Conyers, before her conviction on bribery, making her mark in Detroit politics lobbing a “Shrek” comment at then-City Council President Ken Cockrel."

Uber Driver Is An Employee, Not Contractor, Rules California Labor Commission

Uber Driver Is An Employee, Not Contractor, Rules California Labor Commission:
Could the world wake up one morning and find ride-hailing service Uber struck dead, shackled to hundreds of thousands of drivers that have suddenly been deemed expensive employees?
In the wake of a ruling from a California Labor Commissioner Wednesday that said Uber driver Barbara Berwick was an employee, it sounded like it was possible.
The ruling was called Uber’s “worst nightmare,” a bad omen that “should frighten” and “ blasts a big hole in” all contractor-based businesses.
One reporter wondered on Twitter if Uber’s $50 billion valuation priced in the fact that it could be “instantly vaporized” and said he’d been told the lawsuits were “an existential threat” to the company and others like it...

SICK: While America Grieves, Obama Goes to Hollywood to Do THIS... Media Silent

SICK: While America Grieves, Obama Goes to Hollywood to Do THIS... Media Silent:

"On Thursday, as the entire nation grieved over the horrific massacre that occurred in Charleston the previous night, President Barack Hussein Obama flew to California on Air Force One to attend a bunch of lavish fundraisers among Hollywood’s elite.

Obama reportedly first attended a fundraiser at the home of television producer Chuck Lorre, after which he attended another one at the home of actor and filmmaker Tyler Perry. Both fundraisers commanded attendance fees in the tens of thousands, money that was to benefit the Democratic National Committee."

You Think The Deficit Is Bad? Federal Unfunded Liabilities Exceed $127 Trillion

You Think The Deficit Is Bad? Federal Unfunded Liabilities Exceed $127 Trillion - Forbes:

...The federal unfunded liabilities are catastrophic for future taxpayers and economic growth.
At usdebtclock.org, federal unfunded liabilities are estimated at near $127 trillion, which is roughly $1.1 million per taxpayer and nearly double 2012’s total world output.
...The authors’ state, “today there are about 4 payees for every 1 beneficiary, but by the year 2030 there will only be 2 payees for every 1 beneficiary.
Simple arithmetic will note that this is not sustainable over the long run.”
To understand the magnitude of this problem, the authors note one solution that includes all the following: 
“raise income taxes by 17 percent, 
raise payroll taxes by 24 percent, 
cut federal purchases by 26 percent, and 
cut Social Security and Medicare benefits by 11 percent...”

Every growing!-----U.S. National Debt Clock : Real Time

U.S. National Debt Clock : Real Time

Government paves way for multi-employer pension plan cuts

My Way News - Government paves way for multi-employer pension plan cuts:
"WASHINGTON (AP) — The government is preparing to cut benefits over the next few years for hundreds of thousands of retirees covered by underfunded multi-employer private pension plans.
The Obama administration announced on Wednesday that well-known mediator Kenneth Feinberg review applications from pension plans under a law passed last year.
The law would cut benefits as a last ditch means to stave off insolvency of troubled plans such as the huge Teamsters Central State Fund.
The new law earned mixed reviews from the unions whose members are covered by such defined benefit plans, including construction workers, Teamster truckers and food service workers.
The Teamsters and AARP opposed the law when it passed last year as part of a governmentwide spending bill.
But other unions saw it as a solution that was preferable to plans becoming insolvent and getting a federal bailout.
Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew named Feinberg, an attorney, to review applications for fairness...
More than 10 million people are covered by 1,400 or so multi-employer plans, but about 1 million of those are covered by plans expected to run out of money in coming years. 
They would be eligible under the new system that would cut benefits to people already in retirement.
People 80 years old and over are protected from any upcoming cuts, while those over 75 are partially protected."

Listen to Dana Loesch’s Fiery Rebuttal After Guest Claims ‘Very Serious Data’ Show Gun Control Prevents Murders | Video | TheBlaze.com

Listen to Dana Loesch’s Fiery Rebuttal After Guest Claims ‘Very Serious Data’ Show Gun Control Prevents Murders | Video | TheBlaze.com:

"Discussing the prospect of a push for greater gun control in the aftermath of the tragic Charleston church shooting, Blaze TV host Dana Loesch clashed with anti-gun advocate Nomiki Konst on Thursday night over whether stronger gun laws would prevent future mass shootings."

Not all black lives matter?-----11 people shot in Detroit on Saturday, 1 fatally

11 people shot in Detroit on Saturday, 1 fatally:
"In two separate incidents, 11 people were shot in Detroit in a matter of hours Saturday, one fatally.
Ten people were shot at a block party on a basketball court at Webb and Dexter on the city's west side Saturday night. One of those victims died.
Police do not know the reason for the shooting, and are still investigating.
...In another unrelated incident, one man is in stable condition at a local hospital after being shot during a holdup on a gas station in the 20200 block of Van Dyke on the city's east side.
... police do not know the reason for the shooting and thus far people at the party were not being cooperative with police seeking information."

Wait Lists Grow as Many More Veterans Seek Care and Funding Falls Far Short

Wait Lists Grow as Many More Veterans Seek Care and Funding Falls Far Short - The New York Times:
"One year after outrage about long waiting lists for health care shook the Department of Veterans Affairs, the agency is facing a new crisis:
The number of veterans on waiting lists of one month or more is now 50 percent higher than it was during the height of last year’s problems, department officials say.
The department is also facing a nearly $3 billion budget shortfall, which could affect care for many veterans."

EPA's Unattainable Ozone Regulations will Kill American Jobs and GDP

EPA's Unattainable Ozone Regulations will Kill American Jobs and GDP | Americans for Tax Reform:
Last month, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finally released guidelines for regulations that were put in place back in 2008 to reduce ozone levels to 75 parts per billion (ppb). Yet before states even had an opportunity to make efforts to achieve these levels, the EPA has already begun planning to implement even more onerous regulations.
Even though 40 percent of the U.S. population lives in areas already unable to meet the 2008 air quality standards that the EPA previously put in place, the agency now wants to cut levels even further, potentially as low as 65 ppb. 
These new regulations would likely have disastrous results for the economy.
The National Association of Manufacturers estimates that the new ozone regulation could reduce U.S. GDP by $270 billion per year and $3.4 trillion from 2017 to 2040 and result in 2.9 million fewer jobs or job equivalents per year on average through 2040. 
Such a massive increase in ozone regulations is not even certain to have a positive impact on the environment or public health. 
Louis Anthony Cox Jr., Chief Sciences Officer of NextHealth Technologies explains: 
"If we look at actual data instead of at EPA’s model-based predictions, it is clear that, in many places in the United States, much larger reductions in ozone levels have already occurred in recent decades than those that are now being proposed.
Yet, these relatively large reductions in ozone levels have caused no detectable public health benefits..."

Young Black Man Takes President Obama to Task for Pushing His Anti-Gun Agenda in Wake of Charleston Tragedy | Video | TheBlaze.com

Young Black Man Takes President Obama to Task for Pushing His Anti-Gun Agenda in Wake of Charleston Tragedy | Video | TheBlaze.com:

“Why is some lunatic who clearly lacks a stable mental state representative of every gun-toting American?” Pearson asked Obama, whom he called “egotistical” and “self-righteous” for using the tragedy for political gain.

In less than 24 hours, the preteen’s latest clip has been viewed almost 300,000 times. Check it out:"

In her sixth state pageant, Emily Kieliszewski finally gets her Miss Michigan crown

In her sixth state pageant, Emily Kieliszewski finally gets her Miss Michigan crown | MLive.com:
"MUSKEGON, MI – If at first you don't succeed, you've got to try, try again.
It's an old adage, but for new Miss Michigan Emily Kieliszewski, no statement could be truer.
The 23-year-old from Alpena was crowned inside the Frauenthal Center for the Performing Arts in Muskegon on Saturday, June 20.
It was her sixth time competing in the state pageant."