A California store owner was shot and killed over a Pride flag displayed at her shop

"a lethal force encounter"
That's a new one.

What has our country come to that a clear hate crime fits under “politics”

I'd love the backstory on the asshat who shot her.

This article is not addressing anything from politics, so I have removed it. No one listed in the article is a policymaker at any level (local, state, or federal), nor is it related to or resulting from any laws/policies.

Almost enough to make you question why this guy was allowed to have a gun.

Be careful, though, because if you follow that train of thought to its logical conclusion (e.g., by suggesting any kind of restrictions on killing devices, or maybe even a vetting process), it means you support totalitarianism.