Free Republic

SAN DIEGO, Aug. 20 (UPI) -- The University of San Diego has withdrawn its offer of an endowed chair to a Catholic feminist scholar who supports abortion rights. The announcement that Rosemary Radford Ruether had been appointed to the Monsignor John R. Portman Chair in Roman Catholic Theology was greeted with dismay by many Catholic and anti-abortion groups, the San Diego Union-Tribune said Wednesday. Ruether sits on the board of Catholics for a Free Choice.University spokeswoman Patricia Gray Payton said that one person who did not object was the anonymous benefactor who endowed the chair."Her public position and the symbol...

Thousands laid off in California The governor said he had not taken his decision lightly Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger of California has moved to end a budget crisis by sacking 22,000 state workers and ordering pay cuts for 200,000. The most populous state in the US faces a budget deficit of more than $15bn (£7.6bn), and legislators are struggling to agree a spending plan. The cuts, which will save $100m a month, are designed to put pressure on politicians to end the budget crisis. But a leading official in the state challenged the decision to cut pay. California has one...

Cash Infusion for 'Protect Marriage' Group Thursday, July 31, 2008 By Susan Jones, Senior Editor (CNSNews.com) - A conservative advocacy group is giving half-a-million dollars to the organization that is leading the fight to protect marriage in California. The American Family Association said the $500,000 donation comes from "years of savings." In a message to supporters, AFA acknowledged its "obligation to be good stewards of the gifts given to this ministry. We don’t buy anything on credit. We have no debt. We are careful to make sure your gifts are used wisely. We are very frugal with your gifts." AFA...

The wall footings, foundation and floor of the oldest Christian house of worship in California were found during grading work on Monterey's San Carlos Cathedral on Monday. The "third chapel" of the Royal Presidio of Monterey was a rectangular adobe building located directly in front of the present stone church, according to archaeologist Ruben Mendoza of CSU-Monterey Bay. The chapel was built in 1772 after the first two chapels — a lean-to made of brush and a later log pole structure with a thatched roof — burned down. Historian Gary Breschini, writing on the Monterey County Historical Society Web site,...

The Sacramento Bee reports that California State Senator Don Perarta has called off a budget vote, largely because he can’t find more than 25 votes to pass a $9.7 Billion tax increase. Meanwhile, the California Democratic Party has donated $250,000 to help Don Perata pay off his legal bills, as the Senate Democratic leader continues to rack up expenses fending off an ongoing FBI corruption investigation. Time to blow up the box, Arnold.

As California goes, so the nation? Let’s hope not.Thought this was worth posting in its entirety, c/o WSJ.–California as No. 1 July 17, 2008; Page A14 Wall Street JournalNew York City has long been the highest tax jurisdiction in the United States, but California politicians are proposing to steal that brass tiara. California faces a $15 billion budget deficit and Democrats who rule the state Legislature have proposed closing the gap with a $9.7 billion tax hike on business and “the rich.” There’s a movie that describes this idea: Clueless. The plan would raise the top marginal income tax rate...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CSU Dominguez Hills to Host Town Hall on State Budget WHAT: State Budget Town Hall WHEN: Tuesday, July 29, 6 p.m. WHERE: Loker Student Union, California State University, Dominguez Hills, 1000 E. Victoria St., Carson (Carson, CA)— On Tuesday, July 29 – five weeks into the state’s fiscal year – California State University, Dominguez Hills will host a community town hall on the state budget stalemate with Assembly Speaker Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles) and local representative Assemblyman Warren Furutani (D-Carson). Scheduled to begin at 6 p.m., the event will take place in the Dominguez Ballroom at the...

Your daily routine -- switching on a light, cooking a meal, driving down the street -- would generate less greenhouse gases under a first-of-its-kind regional strategy to curb global warming unveiled Wednesday at the state Capitol in Salem. The strategy emerged from the Western Climate Initiative, an alliance of Western states -- including Oregon and Washington -- and Canadian provinces trying to jump ahead of any federal move to regulate greenhouse gases. Large utility companies and factory owners would feel the effects first, followed by fuel distributors, as they face limits on their greenhouse gas emissions. Individual Oregonians would not...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Media inquiries: contact@aipnc.com Fenton, MI – July 23, 2008 – In a statement released today by America’s Independent Party, Chairman Tom Hoefling welcomed California’s American Independent Party to the growing ranks of AIP state affiliates. Hoefling, commenting in the wake of a statement from the office of the California Secretary of State recognizing Edward C. Noonan as the rightful chairman of the American Independent Party and the legitimacy of the actions of the July 5th State Convention in Sacramento, said, “We gratefully accept the AIP State Central Committee’s decision to affiliate nationally with us. We share a...

Drill for oil off the California coast? ( )Yes, need all the domestic supplies we can get ( )No, just look at Santa Barbara's beaches ( )A limited amount in most promising fields Current results (4:13pm Pacific time): 573 votes: Yes: 33% No: 62% Limited: 6%

KGO Poll: The White House says President Bush is planning to lift an executive ban on offshore oil drilling, a move that by itself will not lead to more drilling off America's coastlines. Question: If California offshore oil drilling could dramatically lower the cost of fuel at the pump, would you be okay with it? Current Results: Yes 48% No 52%

Dust storms that fouled Kern County’s air in May could mean months of delay for two major Kern County freeway projects. A project to widen Highway 46 from Holloway Road west to Highway 33 at Blackwells Corner will almost certainly be delayed for five months or more, said Ron Brummett, executive director of the Kern Council of Governments. And the Westside Parkway in Bakersfield, a freeway that’s to run west from a point near Highway 99 to Heath Road, might also be delayed if dickering over air quality standards goes on too long. The Environmental Protection Agency, Brummett said, is...

Old Glory Radio Interview with Brian Brown, Executive Director for the National Organization For Marriage.

Bishops in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles Archdiocese have reiterated that they "cannot approve of redefining marriage" as anything but the union of "a man and a woman in a committed relationship" as same-sex couples prepare to marry in California. The brief statement, signed by Cardinal Roger Mahony and his six auxiliary bishops, was issued hours before California counties were to begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples under a ruling of the California Supreme Court. The court ordered the ruling to become final on June 16 at 5pm. Condemning "all forms of violence, scorn and hatred - whether subtle...

The recent liturgy of ordination to the diaconate honored the ministry of presence which is primary to the vocation of permanent deacons. Nineteen men were ordained as permanent deacons at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angles June 7 before a congregation of more than 2,500 faithful. During the nearly three-hour liturgy, Cardinal Roger Mahony, main celebrant, prayed for the blessings of the Holy Spirit to be poured forth on this class of deacons known as St. Ignatius. "May there abound in them every Gospel virtue," said the cardinal, "love, concern for the sick and poor, unassuming authority, the...

As former Rep. Doug Ose and State Senator Tom McClintock battle it out for the Republican nomination to succeed retiring Rep. John Doolittle today, a new survey for their soon-to-be Democratic rival shows what is likely to be a second difficult race for anyone campaigning in the suburban Sacramento district. The poll, conducted by Benenson Strategy Group for former Air Force pilot Charlie Brown's campaign, was taken 5/14-15 and surveyed 400 likely general election voters for a margin of error of +/- 5%. Brown, Ose and McClintock were tested.

... Barack Obama had the Clifornia Democratic Convention spellbound for 23 minutes as he appeared with state Majority Leader Gloria Romero, State Assembly Majority Leader Karen Bass, and San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris and urged them and all Californians to "turn the page for hope" and to write the next chapter in history...

SACRAMENTO – Powerful state senators from both parties are challenging Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposed spending spree on selected state programs to address global warming. Drawing particular scrutiny is the Institute for Climate Solutions, a new creation of the Schwarzenegger-appointed Public Utilities Commission that would cost ratepayers $600 million over its 10-year life. During a recent Senate committee hearing, Republicans and Democrats claimed the institute was illegal without Legislature approval. That sparked a blunt exchange between lawmakers and Michael Peevey, the commission president who at one time pounded the table to drive home his points. The confrontation was as much about...

The U.S. Supreme Court created a huge political backlash when it ruled that local governments could use eminent domain to seize private property and transfer it to other private owners for "economic development." Since the Kelo ruling in 2005, 42 states have enacted limitations on eminent domain — not always effective ones. But like lawmakers in many other states, some California officials are trying to block real eminent domain reform. On June 3, Californians will vote on Proposition 99, a ballot initiative sponsored by groups representing cities, counties, redevelopment agencies and other pro-condemnation interests. It purports to protect property rights...

ANN ARBOR, MI – The Thomas More Law Center harshly condemned today’s 4-3 ruling of the California Supreme Court, holding that the California Constitution requires recognition of same-sex marriages, in an unprecedented overturning of a citizen initiative statute protecting traditional marriage. The three dissenters on the panel argued that the issue should have been left to the political process. Richard Thompson, President and Chief Counsel of the Thomas More Law Center commented, “This outrageous ruling shows how our most cherished institutions are being destroyed by the tyrannical actions of an out-of-control judiciary. The California Supreme Court took judicial activism to...

Equality Virginia Celebrates with California (May 15) In response to the 4-3 California Supreme Court ruling overturning that state's marriage ban, Equality Virginia released the following statement from Dyana Mason, Executive Director: "All Americans should celebrate the California Supreme Court Decision today. Interpreting that state's constitution, the Court ruled that their same-sex marriage ban was unconstitutional and that all couples, gay and straight, have a right to marry the person they love." The California marriage decision will affect over 36 million people - well over 10% of the total population of America. Unfortunately in Virginia, we took a different path...

Democrat Steve Ybarra deserves condign promotion. Super Delegate isn’t a fitting title for him. He’s a Super-Duper Delegate. He’s the most honest Democrat currently riding dirty on DC and he’s a voice that Ho Chi Dean does not want you to hear broadcast nationwide. Steve Ybarra reveals the liberalism, compassion and equality of the so-called Democratic Party for what they really are: state-sponsored brigandage! When asked whether he supported Hillary or Barack for President, he gave an answer that revealed the true agenda of all liberal political leaders. “What’s in it for me?” Ybarra remains undecided. His conscious can’t seem...

Bill would hold funds from city unless it retracts Marines remarks SACRAMENTO — The lone Republican Bay Area lawmaker wants to withhold state transportation funding from the city of Berkeley until it rescinds a resolution that grants protesters a parking space in front of a U.S. Marines recruiting office. Assemblyman Guy Houston, R-San Ramon, said the Berkeley City Council is making a political war zone out of what should be a public right of way for those who want to join the military. His bill, Assembly Bill 2615, would suspend $3.3 million in Local Road and Street funding over...

Code Pink was out numbered by 3 or 4 to 1 and NOT happy about it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CnnOOo6tRs8 This is what the BBC is saying about America. Is this for real.

The federal government is "asleep at the wheel," California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said at a conference in Santa Barbara, Calif., on Friday. The Republican governor was talking about the fight between the Golden State and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which denied a waiver that would have allowed the state to enforce a law requiring lower greenhouse-gas emissions from vehicles (see Will U.S. Policy Drive Green-Car Tech Away?). "They don’t get it," he said. While climate-change-fighting activities are happening around the world, he said, the U.S. government has yet to enact national climate-change legislation. "They’ve really failed in coming up...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-HSgbeTegko There are other videos regarding this incident as well.

Topic: Globalism The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is planning on building a new super highway system called the Trans-Texas Corridor (TTC). The Trans-Texas Corridor will not be just another interstate and will it will be used by more than just automobiles. It will include 10 lanes for traffic, two high speed rail tracks, four standard rail tracks, utility lines, oil pipelines, and gas pipelines. The Trans-Texas Corridor will consist of many corridors segments that are 1,200 feet wide, with each mile consuming 146 acres of land. This land is currently ranch and farm land that is being taken by...

LOS ANGELES, March 5, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) Thousands of homeschoolers in California are left in legal limbo by an appeals court ruling that homeschooling is not a legal option in the state and that a family who has homeschooled all their children for years must enrol their two youngest in state or private schools. Justice H. Walter Croskey in a written opinion said, "California courts have held that under provisions in the Education Code, parents do not have a constitutional right to homeschool their children." The sweeping February 29th ruling says that California law requires "persons between the ages of six...

DAVIS – A student was in custody Thursday following the discovery of explosive devices at the University of California, Davis. Two partially assembled pipe bombs were found in a student's dorm room, university spokeswoman Lisa Lapin said. Authorities believe it was an isolated incident and said there was no need to detonate any devices. More than 450 students were evacuated Wednesday night from eight dormitories and slept in dining halls or at the homes of family and friends. They were expected to be let back into their dorm rooms later Thursday morning, Lapin said. Police became aware of the situation...

ALAMEDA, Calif.—Hundreds of students have walked out of their classes in Alameda in a protest over the state's proposed budget cuts. Students from Encinal High School marched off campus and straight to the school district's headquarters. Tuesday night, the district school board voted to cut $200,000 out of sports programs and to increase class sizes on some campuses to save money.

LOS ANGELES — A high school football star described as "a Houdini on the football field" was shot dead on Sunday in random gang violence and his mother was returning from her second tour of duty in Iraq. Jamiel Andre Shaw, 17, was shot multiple times on a sidewalk a few yards from his home after he didn't respond when two men pulled up in a car and asked him, "Where you from?" — code for which gang did he belong to, police said. He was not a gang member. Authorities are calling the shooting a random, unprovoked gang attack....

We had mild temps and clear skies this Friday and three patriots, (Kelly, Mary Bell, and me) ready to take on the moonbats of Citizens Action For Peace. My new banner, made by the good folks at Signs Now here in Redlands, gave us greater firepower and got us more honks and feedback than usual. Even though the moonbat's banner is larger, ours with the message "GOD BLESS OUR TROOPS DEFENDERS OF FREEDOM" packed a much greater punch. There must have been an "All You Can Eat" dinner special at one of the local restaurants, because the Screeching Pinko and...

This evening's two man Freep was a little on the wet side due to the rain but our spirits were in no way dampened. In fact this was one of our more enjoyable Freeps due to Screeching Pinko. Shortly after Kelly arrived I began shooting pics of the "Band of Losers" across the street when I heard one of the CodePinkos screeching out "Peace Out Freeper" in a shrieking voice that sounded something like Hillary Clinton's. I couldn't help but laugh and Kelly told me I should be honored. I agree. There's nothing more enjoyable than spoiling a Pinko's fun....

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom has decided that his city is not doing enough to combat climate change. So what is his solution? More government! Not only more government, but a new government bureaucrat will be added to the payroll in San Francisco. Looking for a job? San Francisco's Director of Climate Protection Initiatives will make a generous $160,000 a year. Not bad for a government bureaucrat dedicated to hack science and a phony cause. Wait .. there's more. Newsom could, perhaps, get away with this new position ... if he didn't already have 25 employees on the city's roster...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- California's multibillion-dollar budget shortfall has grown, the state's nonpartisan fiscal watchdog said Wednesday as she offered a trim-and-tax plan that competes with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposal for across-the-board cuts. The report by Legislative Analyst Elizabeth Hill shifted the state's fledgling budget debate to whether new taxes should be part of the solution _ an approach the Republican governor has opposed. It also sparked the kind of partisan sniping that Democrats and Republicans had so far avoided in hopes of preventing a repeat of the protracted budget debate that paralyzed the capital last summer. Schwarzenegger last month pegged...

2008-02-15 L.A.'s defenders of Israel The L.A. battle for Israel's survival There is great racism against Jewish students on college campuses 2008-02-15 L.A.'s defenders of Israel The L.A. battle for Israel's survival By Brad A. Greenberg, Senior Writer A protester from the international pro-Israel group StandWithUs yells outside the Israeli consulate in Los Angeles during the conflict with Hezbollah in July 2006. Photo by Ringo Chiu/Zuma Press The notice shocked Karen Klein, head of Students for Israel at Cal State Northridge: Norman Finkelstein, the much-maligned scholar who wrote "The Holocaust Industry" and has spoken glowingly of Hezbollah, had been invited...

The temps were back down to normal this week but we still had clear skies making for good dry Freeping weather. Our team today was Kelly and I. Kelly brought his new sign that said "Love Our Troops Honk 3 Times Peace, Baby". We got our typical 75%-80% more honks than the moonbats did and we got a few nice comments from motorists waiting for the light to change. We had a few good highlights this evening. The first was a lady coming out of one of the nearby shops who said that she and her daughter were proud of...

Salgado, 40, one of many renters who found themselves homeless after their cash-strapped landlords stopped making mortgage payments and their houses or apartment buildings were foreclosed upon. The California Apartment Assn. estimates a quarter of all foreclosed single-family residences are occupied by renters. This "shadow market" of renters isn't being tracked by organizations that compile statistics on established rental properties. Salgado, works as a service manager at a San Bernardino boat dealer. He returned to his rented Hesperia house 1/23 to find a notice from his property manager, Century 21 Fairway Realty, informing him the property had been foreclosed upon....

Spears' Hospital Escort Prompts New L.A. 'Britney Law'   Britney Spears is to have a law in Los Angeles named after her - because it was her $24,000 (GBP12,000) police escort to hospital last month (Jan08) which prompted councilmen to propose the amendment.The troubled pop star was taken from her Coldwater Canyon home to UCLA Medical Center on 31 January in an ambulance with a motorcade from the Los Angeles Police Department.The job of the motorcade, which included more than 20 police officers, a helicopter and a team of intervention specialists, was to block off traffic ahead and behind...

The Skies were crystal clear and the temps were in the mid seventies giving us a beautiful evening of Southern California Freeping. It was Kelly and me for this Friday's Freep. Even with only two of us the amount honks and waves we got far out numbered anything the moonbats got. We usually get 75% to 80% more honks. The moonbats behaved and stayed on their corner. One of the Code Pinkos did provide us with a little entertainment in that she would wave frantically to passing drivers trying to get them to honk. When she did get a rare...

Sometimes the truth just has a way of coming to light. A public information officer with the Texas Department of Transportation this week wrote a column in the Herald-Press describing the financial woes facing TxDOT and how because of those problems the state’s transportation department doesn’t have the money to deal with many of the state’s transportation issues. Apparently, several of the state’s senators do not feel that is the case at all. David Dewhurst called out the state’s interim chairwoman of the Texas Transportation Commission, Hope Andrade, on this very issue, according to a story from the Associated Press....

In the Trees A republican elephant in the garden of a home where President Bush attended a fundraiser in Hillsborough, California.

Rep. Diane Watson (D-CA), a Hillary Clinton supporter, will take Bill Clinton to more than six African-American churches tomorrow and has asked him write a letter of apology to each church for remarks made during the South Carolina primary campaign. Rep. Watson said the letter is still being developed, but that Mr. Clinton "knows what needs to be in it". While still a Clinton supporter in spite of Clinton's comments, Watson does have some uncomfortable feelings over them. Clinton most likely will not be allowed to speak, but will receive an introduction from a long term community leader. Watson predicts...

Wednesday, Jan 30, 2008 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASECONTACT: Kevin Madden (857) 288-6390 National Review's Jim Geraghty: "When Romney takes his shots at McCain, it's both strong and fair - he acknowledges that McCain has some areas in which he's a conservative, but he takes several fair shots - McCain Feingold; voting against the Bush tax cuts twice (McCain noted earlier that he had voted to make them permanent)." (Jim Geraghty, " How Rarely I Get To Write This: Romney Takes McCain To School," National Review's The Campaign Spot, http://campaignspot.nationalreview.com/, Posted 1/30/08) - Geraghty: "I like that Romney says that the original...

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles has sold its 12-story administrative headquarters building to help pay last year's $660 million settlement with people alleging sex abuse by clergy, a spokesman said Tuesday.The Archdiocesan Catholic Center was sold to Jamison Properties of Los Angeles for $31 million, archdiocese spokesman Tod Tamberg said.Staffers who oversee the archdiocese's cemeteries will move to office space on the grounds of a cemetery, Tamberg said. Others will consolidate in four of the building's floors that church officials will lease from the new owner, Tamberg said.Tamberg did not know what would be on the building's other...

Californians may soon have to deal with climate change on a different scale -- and this time the culprit isn't greenhouse gas. The California Energy Commission is proposing a plan which allows the government to regulate household thermostats in the event of an "energy crisis." Under the proposed rules, all new thermostats will be fitted with technology that will allow the government to adjust the temperature of someone's home by plus or minus four degrees. Originally the plans called for mandatory compliance; however, amid public outcry, the plans have been slightly altered to allow an individual to turn off the...

A self-appointed Minuteman-watcher says he had some video of a police traffic stop—but not for long Santa Ana resident and warehouse worker Naui Huitzilopochtli has been pepper-sprayed, kicked, threatened and insulted for recording with his digital camera. But on Dec. 28, his citizen journalism got him another unexpected treat: being shaken down and probably added to a gang database by Garden Grove police, he says. Huitzilopochtli, whose documentation of rallies involving anti-immigration group the Minutemen has sometimes ended in near-violence at the hands of angry protesters, says he pulled out his camera after noticing a police stop in Garden Grove...

Slower growth in tax revenues, the result of a weakening economy, are prompting governors from New Jersey to California to consider an array of belt-tightening measures to balance their budgets for this year and next. Facing a severe revenue shortfall, Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear has asked most state agencies to trim their spending by 3% in the current fiscal year, which ends June 30. New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine has proposed raising tolls and freezing spending to reduce his state's debt. And California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, in a bid to avert a deficit in the coming fiscal year, has proposed...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger faces a lot of heat for proposing drastic budget cuts that slash services for children, the poor and the elderly while allowing thousands of criminals back on the streets to prey upon children, the poor and the elderly. Some even question how the governor can so glibly suggest closing state parks while maintaining an increasingly costly and aggressive public relations operation to promote himself. The governor surely has a lot to answer for in how he's handled the state budget, which has been filled to overflowing by years of booming property values. But with his outlandish proposal...