Free Republic

(CNSNews.com) - If Mitt Romney becomes president, he says he won't get rid of Obamacare in its entirety. In an interview on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday, Romney indicated he would keep the provisions dealing with pre-existing conditions and young adults: "Well, I'm not getting rid of all of healthcare reform," Romney told NBC's David Gregory. "Of course, there are a number of things that I like in health care reform that I'm going to put in place. One is to make sure that those with pre-existing conditions can get coverage. Two is to assure that the marketplace allows for...

The African Union’s decision to nominate Sudan for the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) elicited justifiable outrage. Pressure from human rights groups and governments led Kenya to announce its own election bid, causing Sudan to withdraw. This was a welcome development; the notion of the genocidal government sitting on the most visible U.N. human rights body was outrageous. However, notorious human rights violators like Cuba, China, and Russia currently sit on the Council; and even after Sudan’s withdrawal, other African countries with dismal human rights records remain virtually assured of election. The lack of membership standards is a key...

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Bill Clinton will tell delegates at the 2012 Democratic National Convention that Republicans left President Barack Obama “a total mess, he hasn’t finished cleaning it up yet” and that the incumbent president deserves another four years to implement his vision for the country. In early excerpts of the former president’s remarks, Clinton amplifies on the message Democrats delivered on the first day of the convention Tuesday, describing Obama as a champion of the middle class and Republicans as hostile to the interests of regular people. “In Tampa, the Republican argument against the president’s reelection was pretty simple:...

(CNSNews.com) – The Ayatollah Ali Khamenei – the “supreme leader” of Iran – praised America’s “Occupy Wall Street” movement on Thursday, calling it a reflection of people around the world who are “losing their patience” with the dominance of the United States and Israel in the international community. “Everybody has become tired of this faulty international structure,” Khamenei said in his inaugural address to the Non-Aligned Summit, a gathering of 120 nations now taking place in Tehran. “The 99-percent movement of the American people against the centers of wealth and power in America and the widespread protests of the people...

Can we stop calling ObamaCare the Affordable Care Act now? A Young America's Foundation activist forwarded an email from the Vice President for Finance at his school, Guilford College (Greensboro, NC), informing him that, "For the 2012-13 academic year, the annual cost of the student health insurance is increasing from $668 to $1,179. This insurance premium has been charged to your student account." Why the increase? "Our student health insurance policy premium has been substantially increased due to changes required by federal regulations issued on March 16, 2012 under the Affordable Care Act." Guilford College has been forced to raise...

(CNSNews.com) - A survey of 3,130 American adults conducted by the Washington Post and the Kaiser Family Foundation between July 25 and August 5 discovered that large majorities of Americans favor a smaller federal government and believe the government controls too much of our daily lives. The survey discovered these results even though only 25 percent of the people it polled were Republicans, while another 34 percent were Democrats and another 34 percent were Independents. The poll asked: "Would you say you favor a smaller federal government with fewer services, or larger federal government with many services?" Among all those...

"Nearly a year after several advocacy groups threatened a boycott against Johnson & Johnson over the use of potentially harmful chemicals in its Baby Shampoo and other products, the healthcare giant has agreed to remove carcinogens and other toxic chemicals from numerous adult toiletries and cosmetic products by the end of 2015. In all, J&J will reformulate hundreds of items that are sold in 57 countries. The move was announced by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, which is a coalition of more than 175 nonprofit organizations that raised awareness of the issue over the past two years and succeeded last...

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Is a gun like a virus, a car, tobacco or alcohol? Yes say public health experts, who in the wake of recent mass shootings are calling for a fresh look at gun violence as a social disease. SNIP The need for a new approach crystallized last Sunday for one of the nation's leading gun violence experts, Dr. Stephen Hargarten. He found himself treating victims of the Sikh temple shootings at the emergency department he heads in Milwaukee. Seven people were killed, including the gunman, and three were seriously injured. It happened two weeks after the shooting that...

August 09, 2012|Breaking News Desk, Inquirer staff writer The Army has followed the Navy in testing a new generation of blimps at the New Jersey military base where the Hindenberg infamously burst into flames in 1937. The Army's $517 million spy blimp - a high-altitude observation platform, according to the manufacturer - had its maiden flight Tuesday at Ocean County's Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst. (See video: http://ow.ly/cRi5E.) The Long Endurance Multi-Intelligence Vehicle, a 302-foot dirigible, can be manned or remote-controlled, according to Northrop Grumman. For months, the Navy's MZ-3A, a manned 178-footer, has caught the eyes of folks from Philadelphia's suburbs...

TUESDAY, Aug. 7 (HealthDay News) -- Use of powerful antipsychotic medications such as Abilify and Risperdal to control youngsters with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and other behavior problems has skyrocketed in recent years, a new study finds. Antipsychotics are approved to treat bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, other serious mental problems and irritability related to autism. But they don't have U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for ADHD or other childhood behavior problems, and their use for this purpose is considered "off label." "Only a small proportion of antipsychotic treatment of children (6 percent) and adolescents (13 percent) is for FDA-approved clinical indications,"...

Amtrak spent $1.70 for every dollar it earned on food and beverage sales last year, leading to a loss of $84.5 million on the service, according to information provided to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee this week. Committee Chairman John Mica (R-FL) blasted the “inefficient and wasteful” record of the nation’s rail line, pointing out the substantial cost to taxpayers occurring with each transaction. “Over the last 10 years, these losses have amounted to a staggering $833.8 million,” said Mica. “It costs passengers $9.50 to buy a cheeseburger on Amtrak, but the cost to taxpayers is $16.15. Riders pay...

Video at link of Dem. Rep Conyers stumbling through a prepared dissent in Spanish, and the Committee's almost Saturday Nite Live request that he repeat his screed in Yiddish and a few other languages.

Barack Obama announced today the next phase of government national surveillance – with a budget of billions. It’s called “the National Strategy for Biosurveillance.” But, don’t worry, it’s all for the public good, health and safety, officials say.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals has started taking "bets" on its website over when Sen. Charles Grassley will die, after the Iowa Republican scolded the Department of Agriculture for advocating a vegetarian diet. The USDA drew the ire of rural state lawmakers over a newsletter urging department employees to embrace "Meatless Mondays." The USDA later retracted the newsletter and said it wasn't properly vetted, but Grassley vented on Twitter that he plans to "eat more meat on Monday to compensate for stupid USDA recommendation."

And so, the Vioxx saga continues. Nearly eight years after Merck withdrew the controversial painkiller over links to heart attacks and strokes, a new paper indicates the drugmaker hid evidence that Vioxx tripled the risk of cardiovascular death for more than three years before taking the pill off the market in 2004. During the same period, the paper in the American Heart Journal notes, Merck had regularly insisted such an increased [risk] did not exist.

As part of the fiscal 2013 Homeland Security Department appropriations, the House voted June 7 to include an amendment that would prevent Immigrations and Customs Enforcement from funding the position of public advocate. The amendment (page H3622 [.pdf]), offered by Rep. Diane Black (R-Tenn.), passed the House by a voice vote. In introducing the amendment, Black characterized the position as one that advocates "on behalf of illegal aliens, illegal alien advocates and communities that harbor illegals." "Using taxpayer dollars to fund a position whose primary purpose is to advocate on behalf of individuals who have come into our country illegally...

The Constitution created a national government of limited, enumerated powers. Over the years the Supreme Court dismantled many of the original barriers to expansive government. Now the President and the left-wing legal establishment are lobbying the Court to ratify the unprecedented power grab known as Obamacare. America’s health care system is a mess. However, there were better options than a federal takeover through the misnamed Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Which is why a majority of Americans continue to oppose the law and support its repeal. Moreover, Obamacare exceeded the federal government’s authority. States have what is known as...

One of DC Comics oldest heroes is super-coming out. The original Green Lantern - a DC Comics mainstay for the past 70 years - will be revealed to be a gay man in next week's issue of "Earth 2." Alan Scott - formerly a married father of two who first appeared in 1940 - tips readers off to his sexuality early on in the comic when he gives his boyfriend a welcome home kiss.

Congress: The TSA Is Wasting Hundreds Of Millions In Taxpayer Dollars from the oversight-indeed dept The House Oversight Committee has come out with a report slamming the TSA for tremendous amounts of waste, specifically in the "deployment and storage" of its scanning equipment. Basically, it sounds like the TSA likes to go on giant spending sprees, buying up security equipment and then never, ever using it. A few data points As of February 15, 2012, the total value of TSA’s equipment in storage was, according to TSA officials, estimated at $184 million. However, when questioned by Committee staff, TSA’s warehouse...

"A 12-year-old girl has responded with the stunning “I wish we didn’t exist” to questions about how she feels about pollution and humanity’s impact on the earth, according to a new video released by Brian Sussman, author of “Eco-Tyranny: How the Left’s Green Agenda will Dismantle America.” The response came from a 6th-grade girl identified only as Kalie, from Gault Elementary. Sussman met her during Earth Day events in Santa Cruz, Calif., recently, where he traveled to ask “What is the most serious threat facing mankind?”"