[identity profile] flewellyn.livejournal.com 2007-06-20 06:38 pm (UTC)(link)
I read about this yesterday. Absolutely horrifying, and it underscores the need for hate crime legislation on the federal level.

[identity profile] allthelivesofme.livejournal.com 2007-06-20 06:47 pm (UTC)(link)
Agreed.

I think one of my new favorite arguments I heard against that whole "Murder is already illegal! They just want special protections!" thing is, "Well, why have terrorism charges? Murder is murder, right?"

[identity profile] flewellyn.livejournal.com 2007-06-20 07:57 pm (UTC)(link)
It's more than just an analogy, too. Hate crimes are indeed a form of terrorism, as their effect , and often their goal, is to terrorise an entire community of people.

[identity profile] allthelivesofme.livejournal.com 2007-06-20 06:51 pm (UTC)(link)
Essay about hate crimes legislation (http://slacktivist.typepad.com/slacktivist/2007/04/frc_terrorism_i.html).