1. The five levels filled up with people trying to get the perfect spot for the night’s
(well, the morning’s, because the law didn’t take effect until midnight) first weddings.


2. Literally everyone was in a good mood…


3. …even if they got stuck sitting in the stairs.


4. Al & Jeff, the second couple to be married, looked around and waved to friends, families, and those who came to support them.


71 more reasons to smile at: BUZZFEED

Former WCCO news anchor Don Shelby is reportedly mulling a run against three-term Republican Rep. Erik Paulsen next year, potentially putting in play a suburban Minneapolis congressional district that has been in Republican hands for decades.

Shelby’s interest burst into the open amid remarks by U.S. Rep. Collin Peterson, D-Minn., who mentioned it at a Washington fundraiser Wednesday attended by about 30 or 40 campaign contributors, lobbyists and Democratic activists.

...

Democrats have been tight-lipped about Shelby’s possible entry into the race, but they made clear Thursday that they would welcome a respected Twin Cities figure with almost universal name recognition across the state.

“I don’t know if he’s in or not,” said DFL Chairman Ken Martin. “If he is considering his options, I don’t think there’s any question that he’d be a very strong candidate against Congressman Paulsen. The fact is, if he gets in the race, it [the district] would become an immediate target for Democrats, not only in this state, but around the country.”

On Monday, it was reported that George Zimmerman helped drag a family from an overturned truck just a mile from the spot where he shot Trayvon Martin. Of course, the right immediately responded with smug satisfaction, saying it confirmed their assertion that Zimmerman was a hero all along for (apparently), ridding the world of a Skittles-bearing teenager who sometimes smoked weed.

The rescue hasn’t gone unnoticed on Twitter, where an hilarious twitter feed erupted. Here are some of the posts on #thanksgeorge:

More at LIBERALS UNITE

[center][font size = 20][font color = blue]Show up at the polls and VOTE. [/font color][/font size]

[font size = 4]Not just in national elections, but in every local election possible.[/font size]



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MIAMI (CBSMiami.com) – As some state lawmakers are calling for a re-thinking of Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law, which allows people to defend themselves from danger without the need to first try to get away, an analysis of state data shows deaths due to self defense are up over 200 percent since the law took effect.

The shooting death of Trayvon Martin by an armed, self-appointed Central Florida crime watch volunteer who claimed he shot in self defense has sparked a national debate about Florida’s law, technically known as the Castle doctrine.

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Until 2005, it was generally considered self defense if someone tried to get into your home or invade your property, so long as you could show deadly force was the last resort. In 2005, the “Stand your Ground” law removed the need to retreat before using force, even in public.

That’s the justification George Zimmerman used when he shot and killed Miami Gardens teen Treyvon Martin, who was returning to his father’s fiance’s house from a convenience store visit when Zimmerman spotted him and deemed him suspicious. Before the police he called arrived, he claims Martin attacked him and he shot in fear for his life.

Police accepted his story, and let him go, sparking national outrage. Zimmerman remains free. .......

More at: MIAMI CBS

MIAMI (CBSMiami.com) – As some state lawmakers are calling for a re-thinking of Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law, which allows people to defend themselves from danger without the need to first try to get away, an analysis of state data shows deaths due to self defense are up over 200 percent since the law took effect.

The shooting death of Trayvon Martin by an armed, self-appointed Central Florida crime watch volunteer who claimed he shot in self defense has sparked a national debate about Florida’s law, technically known as the Castle doctrine.

?w=300

Until 2005, it was generally considered self defense if someone tried to get into your home or invade your property, so long as you could show deadly force was the last resort. In 2005, the “Stand your Ground” law removed the need to retreat before using force, even in public.

That’s the justification George Zimmerman used when he shot and killed Miami Gardens teen Treyvon Martin, who was returning to his father’s fiance’s house from a convenience store visit when Zimmerman spotted him and deemed him suspicious. Before the police he called arrived, he claims Martin attacked him and he shot in fear for his life.

Police accepted his story, and let him go, sparking national outrage. Zimmerman remains free. .......

More at: MIAMI CBS

“The struggle continues, our work isn’t over,” were the words of Melissa Harris-Perry an hour after the not-guilty verdict in the George Zimmerman trial. I agree. Work within the African-American community, work within the criminal-justice system and work on a national level to further the debate over racial profiling, civil rights and “stand-your-ground” laws must continue. The power of racial profiling and the power of the gun lobby is a lethal combination in America.



Averri Liggins, 22, of Atlanta, chants while holding a picture of Trayvon Martin during a protest on July 14, 2013, in Atlanta. (David Goldman/AP)

As a former prosecutor, I never would have brought the Zimmerman case to court. There was a high burden of proof giving way to reasonable doubt. That said, as an African-American, I know it was a victory just putting Zimmerman on trial.

No doubt, there will be a civil suit, and Zimmerman will have to testify. The outcome may echo OJ Simpson’s civil trial, in which he was forced to testify and was found guilty. (I was on the prosecution team in the Simpson criminal case.) Today, the NAACP wrote a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder requesting that the government prosecute Zimmerman under the Civil Rights Act. So truth and justice might be found for Trayvon Martin—in several other courts of law.

Yet I still believe in the criminal-justice system, as I did after the Simpson verdict. The OJ case polarized America, dividing us among hard racial lines. African-Americans felt justified supporting OJ as a “payback” for all the profound injustices we have suffered at the hands of the criminal justice system. But OJ Simpson was the wrong poster child for that righteous campaign. He was no hero, framed by the police. He was a cold-blooded killer, guilty of a gruesome double murder. ..........

More at THE DAILY BEAST

Witness: Sanford police "Blew us off" in teen slaying

SANFORD, Fla. — WFTV reporter Daralene Jones spoke with a woman who heard a Sanford vigilante shoot a 17-year-old boy as he was walking home from a convenience store with a bag of candy.
The shooter, George Zimmerman, claimed self-defense in the killing, Sanford police said.
They said there was not enough evidence to arrest Zimmerman, fueling outrage around Central Florida and the nation.
However, witness Mary Cutcher said she knew the truth. Cutcher said police only took a two or three sentence statement from her, but it took about 30 minutes to tell WFTV the story.

"The cries stopped as soon as the gun went off, so I know it was the little boy," Cutcher said.
INTERVIEW: Witness talks to WFTV about teen slaying

Cutcher said a cry for help got her attention on the day Trayvon Martin was shot and killed in her backyard by Zimmerman, who was a neighborhood vigilante.

Cutcher said that until now, she ignored repeated attempts by national and local media to share what she saw, partially out of fear.

"We said, 'Is everything OK? And he just looked at us. Selma [another witness] asked him again, 'What's up, what's going on, everything OK? And he just said, 'Call the police,' kind of nonchalantly, kind of like, 'Leave me alone,' '' Cutcher said.
According to a partial police report, Cutcher is one of six witnesses that Sanford police took a statement from.
Cutcher said it was short, and police never questioned her in detail until after she repeatedly reached out to them.
"Blew us off, and I called him back again and I said, "I know this was not self-defense. There was no punching, no hitting going on at the time, no wrestling,'" Cutcher said.

Cutcher said she believes whatever confrontation there was, it ended before they got to her backyard. She also said she believes Zimmerman continued to chase Martin as he tried to get home.

More at link: http://www.wftv.com/news/news/witness-sanford-police-blew-us-teen-slaying/nLSqk/