Free Republic

Yesterday, 13 of our own troops were killed and 30 others were injured in Fort Hood, Texas at a secure U.S. Army base and the president is nowhere to be seen. This doesn't even surprise us, but for the people who still support Obama, you now further understand why we call you 'idiots.' Signs of Trinity church, Black Liberation Theology, Bill Ayers and Marxist professors? Hmmm.... After all, President Obama seemed to make it to Manhattan last month when Goldman Sachs, his number one Wall Street campaign contributor along with several other shadow banking firms attended an expensive DNC fundraiser...

Mayor Gavin Newsom was spotted this morning at City Hall, but there's still no word on his mysterious disappearance. He arrived at his office at about 9:30 a.m., walking past members of the media who were hoping he'd comment on his absence. No such luck. "The mayor is back, and he's busy conducting meetings in his office in City Hall right now," said his spokesman, Nathan Ballard. Newsom is meeting with staff and plans to meet with both sides of the hotel workers' dispute sometime today, Ballard said. He is not planning to make any public appearances. "He's been kept...

Here is video about a Seattle man who claims he never actually enlisted in the U.S. Military, but was arrested for going AWOL when he tried to return to the U.S. after an overseas trip. He claims he almost enlisted 10 years ago, but decided at the last minute not to. Apparently, there was a paperwork messup, with military records showing he went through basic training and then went AWOL. The man was released after a week in custody, and now carries papers showing he never was in the military. . . . (Watch Video)

Where is the President?A rare moment of opportunity for Iran to rejoin the family of nations is at hand. With millions of Iranians in cities and towns across the country protesting what is clearly a stolen election, the time is ripe for all those who support freedom and the peace that comes with it to stand with the demonstrators. Curt has a full report here. Among many dramatic scenes, the video below stood out: [video at site] Iranians stood in their windows and on their rooftops chanting "God is Great" and "Death to the Dictator." It reminds me of that...

WASHINGTON, April 9 (Reuters) - [snip] Obama was asked to comment on the situation several times by reporters at a White House event on refinancing for homeowners. Obama, however, stuck closely to the script and replied that he wanted to remain focused on housing.

A Green Bay soldier was supposed to catch a flight Friday morning taking him back to active duty in Iraq, but he intentionally missed it because he says the war is immoral. Specialist Kristoffer Walker and his wife Sierra enjoyed Friday night at home together -- a night they weren't supposed to be together. "Early this morning I made a decision not to go back to Iraq," he told us Friday.

"I'm nervous, scared," Cornell said, wiping puffy eyes beneath his sunglasses Monday at a Savannah hotel after a three-day bus ride from Seattle. "I'm just not a fighter. I know it sounds funny, but I have a really soft heart."

During his stint as a legislator, Obama became quite well known for avoiding issues by voting 'Present' instead of 'Yes' or 'No'. And just like he hasn't kicked his smoking habit, the Comrade-in-Chief hasn't kicked this dirty little habit either. Fox News reports that Obama is AWOL in the Stimulus debate, but continues to make snide obstructionist remarks from the sidelines about how the Republicans aren't cooperating. That kind of thing may have made him think he was being cute while he was just another anonymous face in the legislature, but when he's the President, this is totally unacceptable behavior.

The first female U.S. Iraq war resister to seek refuge in Canada has been ordered to leave the country before the end of the month or face deportation. Kimberley Rivera, who served in Iraq in 2006 and fled to Canada in 2007 after refusing redeployment, was told this morning she has until Jan. 27 to return to the U.S., said Michelle Rubidoux of the War Resisters Support Campaign. "It's ridiculous," said Rubidoux, who accompanied Rivera to her hearing at the Greater Toronto Enforcement Centre on Airport Road. The decision will force Rivera to uproot her family – her husband Mario...

After fighting 15 months in Afghanistan, 22-year-old Trevor Loope of Texas went AWOL from the Army. Stationed at Fort Drum, he left his post one year ago to seek better health care for depression and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. He's hoping Ithaca's Common Council will hear his plea. Flanked with veterans at his side Wednesday night, Loope and his attorney approached city officials asking them to help him avoid criminal charges under Ithaca's new "Community of Sanctuary" law. The law, passed two months ago, is aimed at allowing veterans to exercise free speech and peaceful protests of war in the...

Still seeking to out lib the liberal Mecca’s of San Francisco and Seattle, Portland, Oregon is home to a class of professional protesters who live only to protest. Nothing energizes these moonbats more than the United States defending itself or fighting those who seek our total destruction. It should come as no surprise that once again, the malcontents that have infested Portland are seeking to make Portland a Sanctuary City where those who desert the obligation they volunteered for in our Military can come to when they need a safe place to live. The anti-war ilk in Portland desire the...

A Marine escort picked up Lance Cpl. Lance Hering at the Clallam County jail ...to take the AWOL Marine to Camp Pendleton in San Diego... Port Angeles police officers arrested Lance Cpl. Hering — who may face desertion charges after staging his disappearance in Colorado and spending 26 months in hiding — last Sunday at William R. Fairchild International Airport in Port Angeles. Hering was reported missing in August 2006. A friend said Hering had wandered off after he was injured in a rock-climbing accident near Boulder. After a massive search, authorities concluded the report was a hoax.

A U.S. Army soldier who fled to Canada after learning his unit was being deployed to Iraq won a last-minute stay of deportation Monday. Federal Court Judge Richard Mosley ruled Jeremy Hinzman can stay in Canada while the court decides whether he can appeal his deportation order. "We're elated," Hinzman said moments after the decision was released. "(But) we're not out of the woods at all. We just have a stay of removal." ... In his three-page ruling, Mosley wrote, "Based on the evidence and submissions before me, I am satisfied that the applicants would suffer irreparable harm if a...

"SAN FRANCISCO (August 6, 2008) – About 50 anti-war activists targeted the video game maker Ubisoft today to “help stop the Army’s child recruitment program” in the form of the free “America’s Army” game. Organizers noted that the game “targets children as young as 13” while South Park game companies Ubisoft, Gameloft, and Secret Level were profiting from the illegal recruitment program.“America’s Army”—available since 2002 as a free download—is a game developed by the U.S. military to instruct players in “Army values,” portray the army in a positive light, and increase potential recruits. The “game” is the property and brainchild...

Swiss gourmand Pascal Henry, aged 46, was completing his life's dream: having the best dinners in all restaurants on the globe that carry Michelin's coveted three star-accolade (68 in all). The guy was at his 40th spot, restaurant 'El Bulli' in Roses, Catalunya, Spain. A journalist from a local paper, sitting next to him, asked him for his personal card, as a memento. He rose, said: 'I'll be right back', and went... missing. He had told his acquaintances that his mission would set him back for about the price of a nice new quality car with all extras included. What...

An Oregon soldier whose case has caused a stir in anti-war groups nationwide has been sentenced to six months in jail, a loss of pay, a reduction of rank and a bad-conduct discharge for being absent without leave. Pfc. James Burmeister, who was born in Portland and raised in the Eugene area, received the sentence Wednesday from a military judge at a court martial held at Fort Knox, Ky. Burmeister agreed to plead guilty to the charge in exchange for an agreement by military prosecutors not to seek more serious charges. Anti-war activists from filmmaker Michael Moore to groups such...

I haven't posted a thread in some time, but my sister is freaking out. Her son, 20, was supposed to get on a plane for Germany on Monday (then on to Afghanistan), but he never boarded. He later sent her a text msg and apparently this is all over a woman. I need to know what consequences he faces if he doesn't report soon. Personally, I am shocked. I keep thinking its a joke. UNBELIEVABLE. Any advice is very much appreciated.

A month after US army reservist Matthis Chiroux publicly refused to deploy to Iraq, the former sergeant on Sunday set himself up for possible prosecution by failing to report for active duty with his unit in South Carolina. "Tonight at midnight, I may face further action from the army for refusing to reactivate to participate in the Iraq occupation," Chiroux told reporters in Washington. "I stand here today in defense of those who have been stripped of their voices in this occupation, the warriors of this nation...", Chiroux read from a statement as his father Rob, who had travelled to...

Dozens of friends and family gathered in Manhattan Wednesday to honor New York National Guard soldiers being deployed to Afghanistan - but not one politician showed up. The soldiers of the legendary Manhattan-based Fighting 69th rushed to Ground Zero on 9/11 to help secure the area and search for survivors. They guarded one of the most dangerous roads in Iraq in 2004. Now about 350 soldiers will head to Afghanistan for a year to help train local police. While not every politician was invited to the Hunter College ceremony - one of nine across the state - the lack of...

Since the beginning of the war, hundreds of deserters have fled to Canada, fearful of being jailed or forced to return to duty. It’s starting to look like they need not have bothered: Despite troop shortages and problems hitting recruitment targets, Pentagon officials say it would be a poor use of time to go after deserters. “We don’t actively look for a deserter or have bounty hunters who go out knocking on doors,” Army spokesman Major Nathan Banks says. “It doesn’t serve our purpose to lose manpower or focus in the global war on terror to find them, because the...