This isn’t about a crime. It’s about politics. It’s about optics. It’s about appeasing the mob.

The killing of two men in Kenosha, Wisconsin, has the nation taking sides. Black Lives Matter supporters are generally calling it murder. Opposition to Black Lives Matter are calling it self-defense. All that matters is how the law views the series of events leading up to the three shootings and two deaths.

WATCH: A video sync of the Kyle Rittenhouse shooting in Kenosha, WI with multiple camera angles and object highlights. pic.twitter.com/61XMCdHcmK

— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) August 26, 2020

This is slow motion of the incident last night, What do you think? pic.twitter.com/BuJBAXzmN5

— Luke Rudkowski (@Lukewearechange) August 26, 2020

17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse has been arrested for charges that include 1st degree murder. He evaded capture by crossing state lines, returning to his home state of Illinois. Reports indicate he was not lawfully in possession of the AR-15 he used in the shootings. There may be charges that can stick, but 1st degree murder almost certainly cannot. Unless there is further evidence that we have not seen, our EIC lays out in simple terms why they can’t make murder-one charges stick.

To make 1st degree murder stick against Kyle Rittenhouse, they'd have to demonstrate premeditation. That means they have to prove he planned out and lured the men he shot into chasing and attacking him.

That's ludicrous prima facie.

— JD Rucker (@JDRucker) August 26, 2020

Premeditation is the key here. He was clearly being chased and attacked by the first man he shot, leading to calls that it was self-defense. As for the second and third shooting, he was even more clearly being chased and attacked. Once again, this appears to be self-defense. He may have to answer for other crimes, but murder-one is not one of them. At least it shouldn’t be.

So why are they trying to throw the book at him? Surely they know any decent defense attorney will eat them alive in court. Could it be that they’re simply trying to pander to Black Lives Matter, perhaps in an effort to deescalate the situation with hopes of lowering the charges at a point when things have calmed down? That’s possible. Then again, they may be doing it with the intention of pursuing it and losing, thereby taking the blame away from them. Hey, they tried, but a jury didn’t see it their way?

Or, perhaps they truly believe they can convince a jury that premeditation was inherent with his presence from out of state. In that scenario, they would try to paint him as a young man living out a fantasy of some sort, doing what he could to provoke an altercation through which he could claim self-defense. They’d need evidence that we haven’t seen at this time or a very vindictive jury. Or both.

If that’s the case and they achieve their goal of convicting him on 1st degree murder charges, the nation will be rocked. It will suddenly become much more challenging to defend our property, to defend our very lives.

The nation needs to take a step back and truly examine what is happening to us. If defending oneself from bodily harm is somehow construed by the law as premeditated murder, then we’re in worse trouble than we know.

Coronavirus lockdowns put the future of independent news at risk

Reports indicate rising traffic but drastically lower revenues for mid-sized independent news outlets.

The economic downturn from COVID-19 lockdowns has hit many industries in the gut. One industry that doesn’t get nearly enough attention is journalism. The corporate conglomerates controlling mainstream media outlets are able to weather the storm, but independent news outlets have seen revenues plummet to the point that many are considering shutting down. We know. We’ve had to consider the possibility ourselves.

We’ve always run a very tight ship, keeping expenses to a minimum by limiting travel and technology expenditures. This has proven to be beneficial during the economic crisis, but we would not have made it this far if not for our generous donors. I cannot appropriately express my appreciation to those who have helped us raise nearly $4,000 since we started asking for assistance. It has been a true blessing and has inspired us to work harder to bring the truth to light that mainstream media tries to hide.

As I note below, traffic is through the roof. The appetite for honest news reporting, conservative opinion writing, and right-leaning podcasts is high. Every day we pick up new readers and subscribers; it’s another blessing we do not take for granted. But despite the increases in traffic and viewership, revenues have continued to plummet. We have maxed out on the number of ads we run, and that’s definitely not by choice. Ideally, we would run minimal ads or no ads at all, but this isn’t a hobby. This is a business, the only one that supports my family, so I’ve chosen to do what I hate doing by having plenty of ads on the site. Even with more ads, revenues are not what they were before the coronavirus lockdowns. This is why we’re still desperately asking for help.

The best way NOQ Report readers can help is to donate. Our Giving Fuel page makes it easy to donate one-time or monthly. Alternatively, you can donate through PayPal as well. Our initial estimate of $11,500 to stay afloat through the end of the year was understated. Just as revenues have gone down, so too have expenses risen. We need to pick up quite a bit more than expected; I won’t even venture a guess anymore. At this point, literally everything we receive helps us keep the dream of being a truth-centered news outlet alive.

The second way to help is to become a partner. We’ve strongly considered seeking angel investors in the past but because we were paying the bills, it didn’t seem necessary. Now, we’re struggling to pay the bills. This shouldn’t be the case as our traffic the last year has been going up dramatically. June, 2018, we had 11,678 visitors. A year later in June, 2019, we were up to 116,194. In June, 2020, we had 614,192. We’re heading in the right direction and we believe we’re ready to talk to patriotic investors who want to not only “get in on the action” but more importantly who want to help America hear the truth. Interested investors should contact me directly with the contact button above.

Election year or not, coronavirus lockdowns or not, anarchic riots or not, the need for truthful journalism endures. In these times, we need as many conservative media voices as possible. Please help keep NOQ Report going.

Check out the NEW NOQ Report Podcast.

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