Free Republic

Is the collapse imminent, and our very way of life under threat of total global meltdown? Perhaps the signs and warnings are there, at every level, for those who want to see it. An outright panic has taken hold over many who see September 2015 as a convergence of ominous events – including the Pope’s visit to America, the United Nations summit on Agenda 21-like development, expectations for a stunning policy change at the Federal Reserve, unprecedented experiments at CERN and the end of the seven year business cycle, a date that has already seen the tragic events of 9/11...

Thoth Technology Inc. Space Elevator ... to the stratosphere that is. As Fox News reports, the U.S. patent office granted a patent (9085897) to the Canadian company Thoth Technology Inc., for a “space elevator”, sort of an inflatable incline or similar structure for cars, that you are supposed to be able to use for driving up, all the way to a height of 12 miles (~ 20,000 m) above ground. If you aren’t dizzy enough from driving to the corner store, that really ought to make your day. 12 Miles High There used to be jokes about the “10 mile-high...

1. Malaysia 2. Brazil 3. Egypt 4. China 5. Indonesia 6. South Korea 7. Turkey 8. Chile 9. Colombia 10. Peru 11. Bulgaria 12. Greece 13. Poland 14. Serbia 15. Slovenia 16. Ukraine 17. Ghana 18. Kenya 19. Morocco 20. Nigeria 21. Singapore 22. Taiwan 23. Thailand

So question du jour (and I'm asking it in several places today: it was set off by the attached link and its' discussion here on FR. . ) Replacing low-skilled workers with automation, and now robots, has been an accellerating trend for over a century now, and really looks like we're soon going to hit the point where the curve goes hyperbolic. (especially with the push for $15/hour for minimum wage. . .) Given that, as more and more skilled jobs are automated out of existence. . . .what do we do about the now-unemployed, and likely permanently unemployable? So...

The catalyst was Friday's pronouncement by Jeroen Dijsselbloem who said depositors will be shielded from any losses resulting from the restructuring of the nation’s financial system, but that senior bondholders would certainly be impaired and probably wiped out. In other words, once again the superpriority of various classes has been flipped on its head with general unsecured liabilities ending up senior to, well, senior bank claims.

As we have expected to happen for some time, and as the initial Cody Wilson “Liberator” first demonstrated, 3D-printed firearms made of common addititive-manufacturing plastics like ABS or PLA inevitably had to diverge from common steel firearms practice to take advantage of those plastics’ strength — and overcome their weaknesses. That means that, while early prints were nothing but, for example, a plastic version of an AR lower dimensionally identical to its aluminum forbear, but destined for a short life (especially in PLA), more and more designs are innovating in different directions. This series of videos shows the Shuty, a...

While it’s not good for man to live alone, it’s even worse for him to live at home with his parents. A recent Pew Research poll reveals that though employment is up, the number of millennials living on their own is down. This failure to launch reflects a widespread cultural regression. By returning home after graduation, this generation’s doing more than just perpetuating adolescence. We’re losing at life. There might be more room for activities at your parent’s house but there’s little room for personal growth. And if being determines consciousness, then you’ll bring your future down with you when...

Two weeks after 9/11, on September 26, 2001, Carly Fiorina gave a speech, "Technology, Business and Our Way of Life: What's Next," in which she tied courage, leadership, heroes, and “the questions of life and death” to business leaders learning from one of the greatest civilizations to ever exist: Islamic civilization. Her claims evidence her exceptional ineptitude or blatant, galling, willful deceit.

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - America Movil said on Sunday it removed roaming charges on calls to and data in the United States for 40 million Mexican prepay clients as it gears up to prevent new rival AT&T Inc. stealing market share on its home turf. The company, owned by the family of billionaire Carlos Slim, said calls made to the United States by prepaid customers on "Amigo Optimo" and "Optimo Plus" plans would now be charged local rates. The same would apply when using data in the United States. Its remaining prepaid customers, around 12 million at the end of...

Those that run food banks all over America say that demand for their services just continues to explode. It always amazes me that there are still people out there that insist that an “economic collapse” is not happening. From their air-conditioned homes in their cushy suburban neighborhoods they mock the idea that the U.S. economy is crumbling. But if they would just go down and visit the local food banks in their areas, they would see how much people are hurting. According to Feeding America spokesman Ross Fraser, 46 million Americans got food from a food bank at least one...

Donald Trump, the mercurial real estate tycoon and media personality who, much to the surprise of one and all, has become the front-runner for the Republican nomination for president opened his mind just a little about his attitude toward space exploration, according to a Saturday story in Forbes. In an answer to a question put to him about sending humans to Mars, the current focus at NASA, Trump said, ““Honestly, I think it’s wonderful; I want to rebuild our infrastructure first, ok? I think it’s wonderful.” In other words, dreams of going to Mars must take a back seat to...

However, of the nearly $420,000 Trump has donated to committees, the largest recipient has been the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee with $116,000 — or more than one fourth of his total contributions to all party and political action committees. February 2011: REPUBLICAN DONALD TRUMP’S PAST AND CURRENT GENEROSITY TO DEMOCRATS: Billionaire real estate tycoon Donald Trump’s recent speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference excited a number of Republicans, many of whom applauded his statement that Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) has “zero chance” of winning. It also fueled speculation that the mogul would run for president. Cries of “you’re hired!”...

Donald Trump is the only candidate in the 2016 race who A) fights, B) tells it like it is, and C) has a plan to make America great again. Everybody is talking about how he won the GOP debate. He gets bigger crowds than Bernie Sanders. Sure, he’s advocated liberal policies and supported Democratic politicians in the past, but that just proves Donald Trump is a savvy businessman. RINOs and other members of the politically correct establishment will keep attacking him because they are fat slobs with ugly wives who can’t afford a classy suit. American voters fed up with...

Donald Trump's endorsement of a phone marketing company pursued by the Australian consumer watchdog for allegedly operating as a pyramid scheme, has put the American presidential candidate's business dealings under new scrutiny. Mr Trump earned more than a $1 million from promoting ACN, a North Carolina multilevel marketing firm that the former reality TV show host trumpeted as making "amazing" video phones. "I simply can't imagine anybody using this phone and not loving it," Mr Trump reportedly said in 2011, as part of a promotion tied to the Celebrity Apprentice show he fronted. However, the video phone failed to be...

his is an interesting comment written by Jean-Francois Geneste, Vice-President Chief Scientist of Airbus Group Innovations on his LinkedIn page yesterday. 13. Aug. 2015 I made a major theoretical breakthrough in the field of “energy creation”. This will be presented at the 11th workshop on anomalies in hydrogen loaded metals which will be held next October in Airbus, Toulouse. http://www.iscmns.org/work11/. What it basically consists in is a global theorization of energy creation which includes all known means up today, that they be chemical, nuclear fission or nuclear fusion. Against all expectations, it is proved that there is potential room for...

The amusement is strong from this one.... The economy has made great gains and is approaching an acceptable normal. Policy should shortly acknowledge this reality. The Fed took extraordinary policy measures in response to extraordinary economic conditions. Conditions are no longer extraordinary. Compared to earlier in the year, we know a lot more and can shelve some concerns. We appear to be past the most acute concerns of a spillover from Europe. I have more confidence in the resilience of the economy today compared to even a few months ago. I am much less concerned about a reversal of economic...

Was just wondering, in the last 4-5 days in southeast Wisconsin the gas prices have shot up about 80 cents from where they were on the weekend. Anyone else notice the big spike up around where they are? Usually there's some refinery problem in the news, or something specific in the middle east but I haven't heard anything I can kind of associate this with. We arent in a seasonal gas blend change time period either.

Neal Rubin laments the elimination of Michigan’s film incentive at The Detroit News. But he paints a false picture of the scholarship on this subsidy. The incentives work — 37 other states currently have them — but at a cost. What cost, and what value, depends on who’s crunching the numbers. There are plenty of policies where economists can find different effects, but the studies of film incentives are clear. As Dr. Michael Thom, a professor at the University of Southern California, recently wrote: Think tanks from across the political spectrum — including the liberal Center on Budget and Policy...

My heart really goes out to Mexico and its people. Mexico is a somewhat poor country with high unemployment. Has it ever occurred to Donald Trump that the reason a half dozen or so drug cartels have settled there is because it is right next door to their best customers — United States citizens? How is such a poor country and government supposed to fight gangs that have more money and resources than the government? It appears Trump has found the real secret to reaching high political places — find a scapegoat. It is a tactic that was used by...

A funny thing happened to Donald Trump on the way to the first national debate among Republican presidential hopefuls on Fox News. He was transformed from a media-baiting court jester to a legitimate political force. In the process, he cemented his front-runner status among the crowded field of GOP candidates. This was made possible by the cultural phenomenon that is reality TV. Thanks to the rapid blurring of "real reality" with the "scripted reality" of reality TV, debate viewers had no difficulty fully embracing him as another, over-the-top character in the national reality show that is the presidential race. We...