Free Republic

“Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech.” The words of the First Amendment couldn’t be plainer. Yet more than two centuries after the Bill of Rights was written, they remain the subject of fierce debate. Actually, I should amend that (no pun intended). These words would be the subject of debate if debate were permitted. But these days, apparently, we’re all so thin-skinned that we can’t bear to hear an opinion that challenges our worldview. This is even true, ironically, at our institutions of higher learning. Some colleges are far more interested in swaddling their students in...

Following this morning's construction spending release from the U.S. Census Bureau, the nowcast for real residential investment growth increased from -1.1 percent to 1.8 percent. This was more than offset by declines in the nowcasts for real nonresidential structures investment growth (-19.3 percent to -22.5 percent) and real state and local government spending growth (0.3 percent to -0.8 percent).

Not so long ago, The Age made a rather costly mistake by identifying an entirely innocent Muslim lad as the teen terrorist who attacked two policemen in Melbourne, very nearly killing one of them. This sort of error is apt to happen when competent sub-editors are shown the door, replaced by cheap-to-hire, hip-dude children working under the supervision of the few older hands not quite sharp enough to have read the signs of a newspaper in terminal decline and landed jobs at the ABC. Fairfax Media dug deep, slung the slandered kid a sum variously reported to be as much...

On one side is the CEO of the world's largest company, the president of the United States and a growing chunk of the Fortune 500. On the other side is a solo wedding photographer in New Mexico, a 70-year-old grandma florist in Washington and a few bakers. One side wants the state to conscript the religious businesswomen and men into participating in ceremonies that violate their beliefs. The other side wants to make it possible for religious people to live their own lives according to their consciences. Yet somehow, the Left and most of the mainstream press paint the current...

Three years ago, film-goers were treated to “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen,” which critic Kenneth Turan called a “pleasant fantasy” about the Middle East. Today, of course, Yemen is the hub of a bloody conflict, one which President Obama persists in viewing with equal unreality. Most obviously: Yemen is not, as the administration has touted, a “success” brought about by its “smart diplomacy.” Most importantly: Iran has a plan. Yemen is a vital component. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sees that. So does Saudi King Salman (and no, I will not dwell on the pun). His foreign minister, Saud al-Faisal,...

Manufacturing industries need to embrace 3D printing, which will have an even bigger impact on economies and society than the internet, an Australian technology specialist says. Steve Sammartino is a digital entrepreneur and venture capitalist who advises business on how to adjust to disruptive technologies and the digital revolution. While most of us have heard about 3D printing and its potential to improve medical treatments and manufacturing processes, Mr Sammartino says 3D printing will be far more than a niche tool. He says it will transform everything about the way we live within a matter of years. Speaking to The...

Mayor Bill de Blasio excoriated a controversial Indiana religious freedom law, telling reporters today that it is “deeply disturbing” and “doomed to failure.” Following the lead of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Mr. de Blasio also said he would ban non-essential city travel to the Hoosier State. “It’s a deeply disturbing reality right now in Indiana and I hope before it’s too late, they turn back,” Mr. de Blasio, a Democrat, said at an unrelated press conference in Brooklyn. He promised that the law, which critics say will allow businesses to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation, will backfire on the...

The recent spate of softening economic indicators continues today with the ADP employment report for March. Private-sector job growth came to 189,000, the lowest result in more than a year, and the manufacturing sector dropped for the first time in 14 months:CLICK ABOVE LINK FOR THE VIDEO Private sector employment increased by 189,000 jobs from February to March according to the March ADP National Employment Report®. …Payrolls for businesses with 49 or fewer employees increased by 108,000 jobs in March, up from 103,000 in February. Employment among companies with 50-499 employees increased by 62,000 jobs, up from 57,000 the...

Connecticut's governor is blasting the governor of Indiana for signing the state's controversial Religious Freedom Restoration Act, calling it discriminatory against the gay community and asking for its repeal. The Indiana measure, which Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) signed last week, prohibits state laws that "substantially burden" a person's ability to follow his or her religious beliefs. The definition of "person" includes religious institutions, businesses and associations. Gov. Dannel P. Malloy told MSNBC's "Morning Joe" on Tuesday that the law is covering "outright bigotry" in Indiana. "The reality is, the governor is not a stupid man, but he’s done stupid...

George Stephanopoulos was one of the leading members of Clinton's 1992 U.S. presidential campaign and worked in the Clinton administration before turning "journalist." In 2012, he injected the birth-control-pill issue into the 2012 presidential election debate to create the illusion of a GOP "War on Women." The objective may have been to help create camaraderie among women to benefit Hillary. Now, it seems that he is doing it again. Out of the clear blue, he pounded Mike Pence on signing a bill that many states have. The issue this time is LGBT. Is it possible that Hillary is going to...

A pan-Arab military coalition has begun waging war in Yemen, ostensibly on behalf of deposed Yemeni President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi. Is this Arab League-approved "joint army" a credible combat force? That depends on who emerges as the joint army's central actor and commander. So far, Saudi Arabia has served as the coalition's most prominent public advocate and actor. The Saudis contend Iran backs the Houthi insurgents who overthrew Hadi. Strong evidence supports their contention. Yemen's war involves sectarian sympathies. Ayatollah-led Iran, the world's great Shia Muslim power, supports the Shia Houthi movement. Saudi Arabia's Wahabi-sect leaders have concluded that...

The following steps need to be taken if the U.S. is going to achieve its best days. 1.) Universal white male guilt 2.) Free abortions for all women 3.) Gay marriage 4.) Trans-gender optional restrooms 5.) Reparations for Politically Correct victims groups. One last thing before you respond. Do you know what today is? That's right- HAPPY APRIL FOOLS' DAY!!!!!

The Bible - Almighty God’s Infallible Word – exposes in greater depth the inner workings not just of fallen corrupt mankind, but of the demonic "political" machine of heaven’s lawless angelic intelligences and their fierce leader, the original radical, slanderer, blasphemer and character assassin - (aka. Lucifer). My friends, we are ALL subjected to a GREAT spiritual war raging today for the hearts, minds and souls of mankind and are at the very end of our times journey as a human race. My dear friends, ALL things are headed to that great Day and time called the “Day of the...

PLAINFIELD, Ind. - The Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) Wednesday expressed concern about Indiana's Religious Freedom Restoration Act. "ISNA welcomes the protection of an individual's right to free exercise of religion being given the legal 'strict scrutiny' standard, but has serious concerns about the extension of those rights to corporations as well as the protections against civil liability for discrimination by protected corporations against individuals. "For example, if a corporation refused to hire a person because they were a Muslim and their religious beliefs did not permit them to hire Muslims, then the prospective employee could not succeed in...

Last week, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence signed a law with the same name as one signed on the federal level by President Bill Clinton in 1993, which was co-sponsored by Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., the presumptive next Senate minority leader. Naturally, Pence found himself on the wrong end of a partisan barrage from ABC News' George Stephanopoulos for signing that law the following Sunday. It sure is nice to be a Democrat. What exactly does the law state? The Religious Freedom Restoration Act in Indiana states that "a governmental entity may not substantially burden a person's exercise of religion, even...

President Barack Obama finds Indiana’s religious freedom law and others like it “unthinkable,” the White House said Wednesday. “I do think in the mind of the president, the thought that we would have state legislatures in the 21st century in the United States of America passing laws that would use religion to try to justify discriminating against people for who they love is unthinkable,” White House press secretary Josh Earnest said. Critics say Indiana’s law now allows for businesses to discriminate against gays and lesbians.

A couple years ago, scholars from Harvard and the University of California, Berkeley tried to determine which regions around the country offered higher rates of youth mobility for children born to parents with low-incomes. Interestingly, the greatest areas for mobility are the Midwest and Rocky Mountain regions. Many states in this region – North Dakota, Oklahoma, Texas, Wyoming and Colorado, for example – have long welcomed energy development within their borders and have embraced the recent advances in mining and drilling technologies that led to the mid-2010s nationwide energy boom. When the above map is compared to one showing the...

WASHINGTON — Senator Robert Menendez was indicted on federal corruption charges on Wednesday, setting the stage for a bitter court fight and putting his political future in doubt. Mr. Menendez was charged with eight counts of bribery, which carry up to 15 years in prison on each charge. He was also charged with conspiracy, fraud, and making false statements on government documents, the Justice Department said. Mr. Menendez is the first senator to face federal bribery charges since another New Jersey Democrat, Harrison A. Williams Jr., was indicted in 1980 in the Abscam scandal. The charges had long been expected...

A curious condition of early 21st-century life is that for every citizen trained in causal reasoning and dedicated to truth, there is a mob of determinedly unenlightened dolts incapable of distinguishing public opinion from empirical fact, whose greatest champion is the censorial Left. Enter the latest limp cant against Social Services Minister Scott Morrison by former students of his alma mater, Sydney Boys High School. In an online letter endorsed by John Pilger, the moribund band of brothers exhorts the school to withdraw a speaking invitation to Morrison on the charge that he advocated policies in violation of the UN...

A pizza parlour that said it will use Indiana's heavily-criticized new religious freedom law to deny services to same-sex couples provoked a massive backlash across the Internet on Tuesday and Wednesday. Indiana's Republican governor Mike Pence responded Tuesday to national outrage over the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, by saying he'll "fix" the bill to ensure businesses cannot use the law to deny services to the LGBTQ community. But, not before Memories Pizza in Walkerton, Indiana, chimed in. "If a gay couple came in and wanted us to provide pizzas for their wedding, we would have to say no," owner Crystal...