Free Republic

Personal Message: Since you seemingly care more about parodies of the DU (I personally really like them, great work) and simplistic sensationalist headlines than you do about the realities of the harsh international world that we live in - I bid Freep farewell. I do, however, leave you with this... The religious right has officially become as unhinged as the moon-bat anti-war activists on the left. Furiously and stubbornly refusing to relinquish propaganda sentiments in favor of clear and unbiased logic has unfortunately rendered a portion of our party intellectually irrelevant. Just as the followers of Howard Dean can bring...

Over recent days, there have been a number of developments regarding Iran's nuclear program. Some information casts doubts on the accuracy of our intelligence gathering, some confirm our worst suspicions and others are quite inconclusive... ...The unanswered questions about the Iranian nuclear program are numerous and complex. Considering the impact of our decisions, one way or the other, the middle of the road solution is only acceptable in the short term. A long term, pragmatic guarantee of our safety from potential Iranian nuclear weapons is only achievable through establishing conclusive guidelines from which we will not deviate. Should we extend...

As President Bush embarks on his fence mending trip to Europe as it has been dubbed, he has some unprecedented challenges before him. Much has been said about convincing our European allies to view international matters in a more conciliatory light, yet the greatest difficulty lies not in France or Germany. The real dilemma is how to handle Russia and Vladimir Putin. After reluctantly embracing democracy in the early 1990's, Russia has begun a steady retraction of democratic principles and is slowly heading towards an autocracy. With the virtual elimination of a free press in Russia and the apparent erosion...

"Reforming Social Security will not be easy, but if we approach this debate with courage and honesty, I am confident we will succeed, because our children's retirement security is more important than partisan politics." This excerpt is from President Bush's weekly radio address. I am intrigued by the fact that he included the language 'courage and honesty' in his speech. I am further amazed that this excerpt is the leading intro on the WhiteHouse.gov pages. Undoubtedly, the words courage and honesty are going to be leading the Republican colors in the Social Security debate, clearly painting the Democrats as untrustworthy...

What is Dean doing for May Day? Europe has a long tradition of securing social services for their citizens. Along with equality for all come high taxation and serious stifling of individual entrepreneurship, and in turn the economy. Before I outline the European model, ask yourself if this is something you would want and if you see any political parallels within the Democratic Party. European Social Democrats believe in equality for all, irregardless of you ability. In this system, depending on your nation of residence and your level of income, you may work until October each year before you earn...

The following was sent to me by a Venezuelan political activist. Serious aspects of American foreing policy are addressed... With respect to Venezuela’s recent political, social and economic tragedies, I would like to set the record straight with fact and knowledge from my side. I am a Venezuelan. The April 2002 uprising: More than a million people protested the anti-democratic actions and multiple administrative abuses of the Chavez regime that were destroying democratic institutions and violating all Venezuelan law. Chavez acceptance during this period was as low as 11%. He resigned because he was directed to, after allowing the murder...

The Non Proliferation Treaty, signed in 1968, was designed to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons technology beyond the then five nuclear powers – the US, Britain, France, the Soviet Union and China. Beyond this, it outlined obligatory procedures for all signatory nations that wanted to obtain peaceful nuclear technology while expressing the intent of the original five to share their peaceful research and work towards eventual disarmament. Hailed as a diplomatic milestone, most (185) of the world's governments signed the treaty. The NPT is legally open to amendments every five years and the next scheduled window is to take...

Much of the blogosphere is concerned with the fate of CNN's corrupt and untrustworthy despot Jordan. Next week, Jordan will get his - undoubtedly. Meanwhile, in a different part of the world, peoples' struggles are pressing on, void of attention and void of international reason. Hugo Chaves is a ruthless ruler, described by his opposition to model himself after Fidel Castro. Running the danger of destabilizing an entire region while sitting on the fifth largest production of world oil supplies, the Venezuelan proto dictator has his hands firmly in egotistical control. Chavez is continually checking the pulse of the Venezuelan...

If you remember, John Kerry was interested in supplying uranium to Iran in exchange for guarantees that none of the material would be diverted for clandestine purposes and that all of it would be returned to the US when spent. I suspect this sounded like a great idea to the left at the time. As it turns out, Iran has recently broken the pledge made to the EU3 (Britain, France and Germany) in regards to suspending all uranium enrichment activity. Ahead of the resumption of negotiations between Europe and Iran, slated to begin on Monday, Iran has indicated that they...

Anyone that was hoping for a lame-duck second term by President Bush was treated to a rude awakening during tonight's State of the Union address. The President has a clear policy agenda that he wants to accomplish and he clearly determined the political topics for the next two years. Whether the Democrats agree or not, they will agree or disagree with the President's agenda – not anyone else's agenda. Most of America is currently discussing the lengths to which President Bush went in outlining his ideas on social security reform. Granted, social security reform is imperative. However, from the President's...

On the eve of the state of the union address, I cannot help but reflect on the President's inaugural speech and the poignant significance of our present position in history. The President chose to place great emphasis on freedom and America's determination to free people living under oppression. To no surprise, he endured great criticism from the opposing left for his comments. Bush, however, has ignited a revolution. Not only in the literal sense of freeing people living under tyranny but also from a cultural perspective. Over the last four years, America's image around the world as the land of...

You have got to love the ideologues on the progressive left. One day after the historic election in Iraq, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid staged a preemptive State of the Union 'presponse'. Fears are that not too many people will stay tuned to hear the rebuttal allotted to the opposing party after the President's address. They are probably correct that few people will still be listening and chances are that if they stay tuned, they will drown out the mindless repetitive nonsense that has become the message of the Democratic party. Reid, today suggested that we did not need a...

The Iraqi elections must at first light be deemed wildly successful. Despite the threat of violence and promises of 'rivers of blood' the terrorist managed to have only a very limited impact on both turn-out and overall security. Eight homicide bombers managed to detonate explosives at polling sites and a few rockets were launched along with mortars. All in all, estimates hover at around 37 dead across the country. Granted, any loss of life is regrettable and unfortunate. Yet with roughly 5,500 polling stations across Iraq, and violent incidents at only two dozen, the intended terrorist impact was definitely subdued....

Reports surfaced yesterday about continued US involvement in collecting intelligence in Iran. The account is not verifiable since all sources are anonymous. Still, it raises some very interesting and plausible points. What is being alleged revolves around US attempts at mapping Iranian military resources and facilities in the event that the military option must be exercised. Apparently, USAF flights in both Iraq and Afghanistan are crossing into Iranian airspace in an effort to force the Iranians turn on their defensive radar systems. By triangulating the signal, the location of the radar, which also guides anti-aircraft batteries, can be located and...

You might not have known it from today's exploited headlines, but interesting economic news are indeed being made in Washington. Senator Graham (R) of South Carolina and Senator Schumer (D) of New York are proposing to impose a 27.5% tariff on all goods made in China unless the communist manufacturing giant begins to take steps towards floating its currency. The bill has been in the works for quite some time but the Senators finally hope to bring it to a vote once the charade of the Secretary of State confirmation hearing has been ended. This bill, should it pass, will...

No matter what your opinion on the US military effort in Iraq, one would hope that most people are wishing the Iraqis the best as they head to the polls this upcoming weekend. After all, a nation and its people, have much at stake come Sunday's election as their actions will potentially determine the political course of an entire region for generations to come. Unfortunately, very few liberal journalists seem to be cheering for the Iraqi people. Even as polls are emerging showing a very high intended participation rate, a majority of reporting is still focusing on the smaller regions...

In an apparent response to discussions of a presidential mandate won by George W. Bush in the November elections, Democrats seem intent on making life difficult for the ruling majority. As was seen this week during Dr. Rice's confirmation process leading Democrats aren't going to accept a mandate quietly. The issue goes well beyond being sore, narcissistic losers, having an obsessive dislike for the Bush administration's policy towards Iraq or a manifestation of the manic hate some of them have for President Bush. The Democratic leadership has realized that easier than to fix their own party and the lack of...

The president of the National Association of Scholars, Stephen H. Balch, Ph.D., had this to say about the state of education in the U.S. today: "Trendy courses, bloated bureaucracies, and intolerance toward students and professors holding politically incorrect views have become the norm on the majority of our campuses. Grades are routinely inflated and curricula dumbed down, while truth and intellectual integrity are treated as forms of racial, sexual, and capitalist oppression." I'm sure most of us agree that religion has no place in our educational system, but neither do personal politics and ideologies. A Luntz poll of Ivy League...

It is disappointing to see that some lawmakers have lost all respect for representing their constituency and instead are more concerned with ideological grandstanding when given the opportunity to speak on The Hill. Many are spurred on by the potential for large a media coverage, which was the case today when Senator Barbara Boxer took the floor during Condoleezza Rice's Secretary of State confirmation hearing. Although Rice is expected to be confirmed with overwhelming bi-partisan support, Senator Boxer took the opportunity to let the American people know, yet again, how displeased she is with the Bush administration. Here is an...