Free Republic

October 9, 2009 marks the 75th anniversary of the assassination of King Alexander I of Yugoslavia. This assassination of the Serbian king by a Macedonian terrorist working with Croatian separatists never garnered the notoriety that the June 28, 1914 assassination of Austrian Archduke Ferdinand by Bosnian Serb Gavrilo Princip did. However, the impact of the assassination of King Alexander I and French Foreign Minister Louis Barthou in Marseille, France, though not as “immediate” as the Sarajevo assassination in 1914 that precipitated World War I, was a harbinger of the even greater cataclysm that was coming. Given the climate in Europe...

Two top Republicans sided Sunday with President Barack Obama on his scheduled speech Tuesday to school children. “I have been in communication with Arne Duncan and the team at Department of Education,” former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said on "Fox News Sunday." “I believe this is going to be posted. People are going to see it in advance. It is going be a totally positive speech. If that is what it is, it is good to have the president of the United States saying to young people across America stay in school and do your homework. It’s good for America.”...

There is growing fear among some firearms advocates that anti-gun rights forces are going to push tax hikes on guns and ammunition. Republican Congressman Rodney Alexander says he opposes the idea and has introduced legislation which aims to block any such proposals. The Louisiana lawmaker says there is a quiet movement to slap large tax increases on weapons and bullets as an attempt at backdoor gun control. Such concerns have already led to dramatic increases in ammo sales and concealed weapons permits in Louisiana.

One of the most damaging forces in the study of history in recent years has been revisionism. Revisionist historians have painted Thomas Jefferson as a slave owner who took liberties with his property. Revisionists have tried to make slavery the primary cause of the Civil War. Revisionists have done their damage to figures in the ancient world, as well, with none taking the brunt quite so squarely as Alexander. In his interview with Hannity on Wednesday, Forbes was discussing his most recent book and gave his take on the oft-misunderstood conqueror, calling Alexander one who was given to passions that...

U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander is emerging as the spokesman for the Republican Party's message on energy - and he is thinking big on the subject. Alexander late last month said he will call on the federal government to permit the construction of 100 nuclear power plants over the next 20 years. The project presents a tremendous challenge, but the Tennessee Republican believes the nation is up to the task. Alexander's advocacy certainly should gear the nation to dealing with the energy issues facing it. In politics, Alexander's request is defining the difference between the GOP's energy goals and those of...

A Republican senator wants taxpayers to get their share — literally — of the federal government's takeover of two of the nation's biggest automakers. Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, is introducing a bill that would require the government to distribute stock in General Motors and Chrysler LLC to each individual taxpayer.

Sen. Arlen Specter's switch to the Democratic Party is prompting his campaign donors large and small to demand their money back, including several Republican senators whose political action committees gave tens of thousands of dollars to the Pennsylvania lawmaker. Sen. Johnny Isakson didn't waste any time putting himself at the front of the refund line. The Georgia Republican asked Mr. Specter for a return of his leadership political action committee's $5,000 contribution Tuesday on the Senate floor - just hours after Mr. Specter announced he was changing his political stripes. "Senator Specter readily agreed to return the contribution," said Isakson...

Alexander the Great, whose tomb has been missing for nearly 2,000 years, could be buried in Broome in Western Australia, a Perth man says. Macedonian-born Tim Tutungis told ABC Kimberley that he first heard the 'Broomer' from his old mate, Lou Batalis. "We just got onto the subject of Alexander The Great's tomb, and he said, 'They'll never ever find it, no matter where they look, because Alexander the Great is buried in Broome, in Western Australia'," Mr Tutungis said. "Approximately 50 years ago, some guy went into a cave in Broome and he saw some inscriptions in there and...

Alexander Lewis, who has been at Citigroup since 1999 and before that worked at the Federal Reserve, will head to the Treasury "to work on domestic financial issues," said the Citigroup memo, which was sent Tuesday. -WSJ I suppose it is a step up for his career, but I am not so certain it is a step up for America. Citigroup’s chief economist Lewis Alexander just got a new dream job at the Treasury Department. And wow, he also once worked for the Federal Reserve – impressive! He is a professional con-man. Again, the administration is blatantly recycling old crooks...

Inaugural Poem The following is a transcript of the inaugural poem recited by Elizabeth Alexander. Praise song for the day.Each day we go about our business, walking past each other, catching each others' eyes or not, about to speak or speaking. All about us is noise. All about us is noise and bramble, thorn and din, each one of our ancestors on our tongues. Someone is stitching up a hem, darning a hole in a uniform, patching a tire, repairing the things in need of repair.Someone is trying to make music somewhere with a pair of wooden spoons on an...

After Barack Obama, "the first post-racial President", took the oath of office and gave his inaugural speech, he was followed by only two speakers - of his choosing. The first offered a pray and the second a poem. Below (in comment section) are excerpts from both and links for the videos:

For eight years, the president of the United States — the ex-officio socialite in chief — has turned up his nose at the slightest whiff of social aspiration. Now a new generation of Washington socialites has a dream. They see a dashing, young, brilliant president and his equally brilliant wife ushering in an era of inclusive entertaining. Gone is the white-gloved, debutante-loving, Pilgrim-pedigreed culture that still mattered in Kennedy’s Camelot and Reagan’s Hollywood East. Starting Jan. 20, when President Barack Obama and Michelle move into the White House, the “in crowd” will include just about everyone who, since the dawn...

TAMARAC - Tamarac Actor Jason Alexander, the son of a Coconut Creek Democrat, came here this morning to tell a crowd of mostly elderly Democrats what they should say to persuade undecided voters to choose Barack Obama. Alexander, better known as George Costanza from TV's Seinfeld sitcom, spoke to more than 100 residents of the Kings Point community. He said he does not like the role of celebrity spokesman, but he felt compelled to actively support Obama. "I would kick myself if this election went the wrong way, and I didn't do everything in my power to make sure it...

WASHINGTON -- In an economy that appears to favor Democrats and in a year when Republicans are expected to lose seats in the U.S. Senate, one of them almost certainly will not be Tennessee's. Popular two-term governor Lamar Alexander is seeking re-election this year with a low-key campaign reminding voters that he has proposed concrete solutions, sometimes opposed by President Bush, even as he's climbed to the third spot in the Senate's GOP leadership. His opponent, Nashville lawyer Robert D. Tuke, is lesser known and stresses Alexander's partisanship and ties to Bush and, most recently, to an unpopular vote bailing...

U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., joined a group of senators Thursday in a letter asking Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell to allow the Oct. 1, 2008, expiration of current bans on American energy exploration and production. The letter was authored by U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C. In addition to DeMint and Corker, the letter is signed by Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., and 36 other Republican senators. "We need a balanced approach that will allow us to produce more energy here at home and use less, with a strong emphasis on conservation as we move...

story can't be excerpted due to copyright issues, here's the URL: http://www.thenewsstar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080613/NEWS01/806130316/1001/NEWS This is LA-05, which is basically the eastern half of north Louisiana. Rodney Alexander was a Democrat who switched parties, and the Democrats have never forgiven him, but this is the first time they've been able to recruit a serious candidate to challenge him. This is probably a safe sear (although in this climate who knows) but the GOP will have to play defense in a district that they ordinarily wouldn't have to worry about.

WASHINGTON - U.S. Sens. Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker today accused Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid of playing politics by refusing to allow the confirmation of two nominees to the Tennessee Valley Authority's board of directors. Alexander, a Maryville Republican, chided Reid during a speech on the Senate floor for what he called "partisan, playpen politics." Alexander also released a letter from Reid in which he said could not support the nominees - Susan Richardson Williams of Knoxville and Bishop William H. Graves of Memphis - because of "the inadequacy of bipartisan representation" on the board. Reid noted that the...

Alexander the Great's "Crown," Shield Discovered?Sara Goudarzi for National Geographic NewsApril 23, 2008 An ancient Greek tomb thought to have held the body of Alexander the Great's father is actually that of Alexander's half brother, researchers say. This may mean that some of the artifacts found in the tomb—including a helmet, shield, and silver "crown"—originally belonged to Alexander the Great himself. Alexander's half brother is thought to have claimed these royal trappings after Alexander's death. The tomb was one of three royal Macedonian burials excavated in 1977 by archaeologists working in the northern Greek village of Vergina (see map of...

CARSON, CALIFORNIA (TICKER) —The Seattle Seahawks evidently have cut ties with star running back Shaun Alexander. The Seahawks have released Alexander, according to a report Tuesday by the NFL Network. The 2005 league MVP, Alexander has been hampered by a variety of injuries over the last two seasons. Alexander, 30, is recovering from offseason wrist surgery and underwent a physical this week. The all-time rushing leader in Seahawks franchise history, Alexander appeared in 13 games - 10 starts - last season, rushing for just 716 yards and four touchdowns. Those numbers constituted Alexander’s lowest rushing and scoring totals since his...

Former Knox County Clerk Mike Padgett officially opened his campaign for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate Tuesday night with a fist-pounding speech in which he rhetorically told the incumbent, Republican Lamar Alexander, "We can do better, we should do better." The crowd of several hundred packed into a room at Calhoun's on the River responded frequently with loud applause and cheering. Standing behind him as he kicked off his campaign were family members; Knox County District Attorney General Randy Nichols; Knox County Commission Chairman Thomas "Tank" Strickland; former officeholders and seekers; and friends. Padgett said three points will...