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Mr. Slim, Mexico’s richest man and now a major shareholder in and lender to The New York Times, has a complex relationship with the news media. He invests money in an array of television and newspaper companies and says he sees a bright future for those media companies that adapt. But when the news media focus their spotlight on him, he sometimes gives the impression that he wants to be left alone to make more money in peace. An avid newspaper reader of what he calls the “paper generation,” Mr. Slim says he sees the shift to digital news, which...

A man linked to a failed hold-up that left a robber dead Sunday night escaped from a vacant house where witnesses chased him. Kansas City police ended a standoff at the house in the 300 block of Bellefontaine Avenue about 10:30 p.m. after they found a hooded sweatshirt that matched the clothing of the man who witnesses had chased, but no suspect. Police said this morning that they still have not been able to locate the man.

Although it's mostly just mindless business bashing by liberal journalists who have little understanding of how markets actually work, Time magazine's "25 People to Blame for the Financial Crisis," is worth a gander. Former presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton are on the list (and they deserve to be to varying degrees) but so are Herb and Marion Sandler, the liberal philanthropists who somehow convinced Wachovia to buy their troubled financial institution that was built on shaky exotic mortgage products. The Sandlers, who were lampooned by "Saturday Night Live," (see video grab above) are key members of George Soros's...

$90 MILLION GENERATED FOR CONSERVATION . . . New data from the U.S. Treasury Department show sales by firearm and ammunition manufacturers increased 9.7 percent between July and September when compared to the same period the previous year. Sales of pistols and revolvers were up 23.6 percent, ammo sales rose 8.4 percent and long gun sales saw a 4.1 percent increase, according to the latest Pittman-Robertson federal excise tax collection report. Excise taxes are calculated as a percentage of wholesale receipts, paid quarterly by firearm and ammunition manufacturers, and earmarked for state wildlife conservation and habitat restoration programs. These statistics...

At least 15 people were killed in Pakistan's Kurram tribal region on the Afghan border on Monday when a suspected U.S. drone fired missiles at a building used by militants, witnesses and officials said. "Afghan Taliban were holding an important meeting there when the missiles were fired," an intelligence official in the area said of the attack in a mountainous region called Sarpul, on the outskirts of Baggan village. The attack was the first in the Kurram tribal region and came two days after a missile strike in the South Waziristan tribal region killed at least 25 mostly Central Asian...

WASHINGTON - - New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who argues her pro-gun stance aims to protect hunters' rights and the Second Amendment, last week said she and her husband, Jonathan, keep two rifles under their bed to protect their upstate home. Gillibrand said neither she nor her husband is a hunter, and in a general discussion of gun control said, "If I want to protect my family, if I want to have a weapon in the home, that should be my right." The mother of two young children has taken "gun safety procedures to ensure family safety," an aide later...

Welcome to “The Levin Lounge”… Step in and have a virtual FRink.Taking the country by storm, one radio station at a time – and kicking the BUTTS of the competition! Welcome all, to the most FUN LIVE THREAD on FreeRepublic.com! You can talk to Mark: 1-877-381-3811

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...today, as the preeminent civil-rights organization responsible for the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott turns 100, it faces a bigger question--has the organization's time come and gone? "People have been asking that for 100 years," Julian Bond, chairman of the NAACP, told Newsday. "There's still lots of work for us to do. It sounds odd, but we'll be working on the same things from the previous 100 years. We fight racial discrimination." While Bond remained confident in the organization he chaired for more than 10 years, the health of the organization has waned. Membership dwindled and financial constraints forced the organization...

Sacramento, Calif. (AP) -- California lawmakers were trying again Monday to approve a $42 billion budget-balancing plan state leaders say is needed to stave off fiscal calamity, but they appeared to be one vote short of passage. The state Senate and Assembly reconvened after a marathon weekend session that produced some last-minute fireworks but no agreement on the most contentious part of the plan — $14.4 billion in higher taxes. Lawmakers have been trying to pass a combination of spending cuts, tax hikes and additional borrowing negotiated by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and party leaders. The Republican governor and legislative leaders...

"All My Children" episode features characters who take part in a lesbian wedding Ceremony features both women wearing designer dresses and holding red roses Gay and lesbian groups hail the televised wedding as a victory At least one religious group expresses its disapproval of the nuptials Monday's ceremony on ABC's "All My Children" was much the same, except for the couple: Bianca Montgomery and Reese Williams, both wearing designer dresses, united in daytime television's first lesbian wedding. "When my character did first come out of the closet, there was a lot of negative reaction," said Eden Riegel, the actress who...

I’ve always found Democrat Sen. Patty Murray slow on the uptake. I’ll never forget interviewing her many years ago. We were talking about federal entitlement spending. I asked her about FICA taxes. She didn’t know what I was talking about; when I said “payroll taxes,” she still had a frozen blank look on her face. . She’s claiming credit for boosting a project that is already underway and falsely asserting that the money will immediately provide jobs for projects that won’t get underway until at least 2011. The measure, inserted into the bill at the urging of U.S. Sen. Patty...

Here is video of Fox News' Megyn Kelly taking on liberal Bill Press on the so-called "Fairness Doctrine." . . . . . (Watch Video)

California legislators tried and failed for a second day Sunday to close a $40 billion hole in the state's budget, still one Republican vote short of approving a package that contains $14.3 billion in tax increases.

Dozens of Islamic extremists have returned to Britain from terror training camps in Somalia, the British security services believe. Intelligence analysts are worried that they may attempt to launch attacks in this country or use the kudos from having trained and fought in Somalia to try to attract new recruits. The issue was raised by Jonathan Evans, the head of MI5, in his first interview last month. In the US, the outgoing head of the CIA, Michael Hayden, has said that Ethiopia's invasion of Somalia in late 2006 “catalysed” expatriate Somalis around the world. An investigation for Channel 4 News,...

IF IT WERE a movie, it would be called "Revenge of the Tax Code." The complex income tax, which has bedeviled average Americans for years, is biting back at the elite who helped create it. Tom Daschle, former chief lawmaker in the Senate, withdrew his Cabinet nomination because of an "unintentional" $128,000 tax mistake. Rep. Charles Rangel, chief tax-writer in the House, is also entangled in a tax scandal, as is Tim Geithner, the Treasury secretary, and Nancy Killefer, another high-ranking nominee who has withdrawn. What is going on here? Whether you believe the excuses of these folks or not,...

As Geert Wilders said yesterday, the British government was ‘cowardly’ for suppressing his freedom of speech by ejecting him from the U.K. virtually upon arrival at Heathrow. We posted yesterday that Wilders is going on to Rome, where, on February 19th, he will present his film “Fitna” at an invitation-only event. In addition to the screening, a news release issued today from the International Free Press Society notes: The February 19 event will also include an address by Mr. Wilders, a press conference, and a ceremony during which "A Way for Oriana" will award Mr. Wilders with the Orianna Fallaci...

The LA Times and the MSM foist this inexperience hack on the American people, all the while claiming that the most popular governor in America was too inexperienced for the job, and then act surprised when the guy shows that he doesn't know what he's doing? How very MSM of them.

Crazy science, will you ever learn? Just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should. Sure, we could start transplanting monkey heads on humans, but you shouldn't. The atom bomb sure as hell ended World War II, but it began an era of atomic fear and guilt. We ended up with all kinds of hassles, like communism and bad Schwarzenegger movies. This brings us to the crack team of Dave Soldier and Komar & Melamid, who scientifically created the world's worst song. It clocks in at over 20 minutes. The trio has a Web site where they asked visitors...

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. - New Hampshire's top liquor law enforcer wants restaurants and bars to limit patrons to one drink an hour.Video at link.