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4 Advances That Set News Back Jefferson’s vision for news called for a multitude of voices, competing in a freewheeling marketplace of ideas. By the end of his life in 1826, he had watched news make steady progress toward this vision. French historian Alexis de Tocqueville, in his book Democracy in America of that time, marveled at the ability of individual newspapers to attract and organize like-minded citizens into “Associations,” each representing a different voice. But, soon after his death, Jefferson’s vision for news not only stalled, it reversed itself, and continued in the opposite direction through most of the...

CHESAPEAKE, Va. (Catholic Online)- The following letter was written by the mother of three children to the President of the United States: An open letter to Mr. Obama I will not address you as Mr. President. I question whether you are fit to lead anyone. What I have learned today is the very last straw. I cannot even give you the benefit of the doubt any longer. Frankly, I feel foolish for ever being inclined to do so. We have endured a great deal from you in one short year, and it is simply too much to bear any longer....

With so many lawsuits filed every day in America, one more might seem irrelevant. There is one however that should be watched, but will most likely escape notice. For a little while at any rate… *snip* Neil Cavuto welcomed former Chrysler dealer James Anderer to his show on Fox Business News Daily to talk about a case that has been filed by a group of dealers who lost their businesses in the Washington D.C. District Court. Lead Plaintiff Anderer mentioned a team of legal experts while describing the case to Cavuto, and an anonymous source has named Leo Donofrio and...

Gabriel Alfonso Gil-Tzun, 23, has been charged by police in Novato, Calif., with lewd and lascivious acts on a minor. He is also facing multiple charges, as he allegedly molested the 13-year-old girl on several occasions. Novato police Lt. Rich Hill said the arrest is the result of an investigation which began several months ago. According to Hill, Gil-Tzun met the girl through a friend and has engaged in intercourse with her at his house. Months ago, a warrant was issued for Gil-Tzun’s arrest. Last week, an off-duty officer noticed Gil-Tzun at a Terra Linda shopping mall. San Rafael police...

Internet shut-down in Iran ahead protests thelastcrusade.org Internet access in Tehran unavailable on Saturday, two days ahead of planned demonstrations in the Iranian capital. Iranian President Ahmadinejad, citing a “crisis” has shut-down internet access in Iran. In a move that echoes the Democrat's bill S.773 (David Rockefeller), private-sector computers in Iran have been disconnected from the Internet. According to AFP: “Sources close to Iran's technical services told AFP the cut was the result of "a decision by the authorities" rather than a technical breakdown. Telecommunications ministry officials were unavailable for comment.” The internet, SMS text messages and at times...

Notice how this document bears similarities to our Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights. A declaration of rights made by the representatives of the good people of Virginia, assembled in full and free convention; which rights do pertain to them and their posterity, as the basis and foundation of government. SECTION I. That all men are by nature equally free and independent and have certain inherent rights, of which, when they enter into a state of society, they cannot, by any compact, deprive or divest their posterity; namely, the enjoyment of life and liberty, with the means of acquiring...

A New Viet Nam? thelastcrusade.org U.S. residents are split over whether the country can achieve its goals in Afghanistan, according to a Gallup poll released this weekend. Almost three-quarters of those surveyed, 73%, say they fear spending in Afghanistan will interfere with domestic goals. Just over half, 51% , stated their support for the president's strategy, while 48% said they oppose it.

“Uncle Joe” New National Hero Modern Russia Displays Red Roots thelastcrusade.org Joseph Stalin sent over 30 million Russians to their deaths during his reign of terror. His body was removed from the Kremlin. His name was taboo for decades. But the ruthless Soviet dictator is the new hero of modern Russia, and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin now openly praises “Uncle Joe’s” achievements. In a recent appearance on national television, Mr. Putin gave credit to Stalin for making the Soviet Union an industrial superpower and for defeating Hitler in the Second World War. “It’s obvious that, from 1924 to 1953,...

Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) is warning that the "nuclear option" is being considered by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to pass ObamaCare... This means only 50 votes would be needed to pass a healthcare takeover bill that would tax Americans to the tune of $500 billion, while gutting Medicare $464 billion. Grassley, and others believe the current plan on the table would lead to "rationed care, shuttered hospitals, overburdened doctors and waste." No doubt feeling the pressure to punch ObamaCare through before Christmas, Reid is now demanding lawmakers work on Sunday... Reid's quick-step signals a shift for Grassfire. We can't...

President Obama’s nomination of David Hamilton to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals was, according to a senior administration official, “a kind of signal” of the types of nominees the president will choose. The “signal” is that the president is following the example he already set with his nomination of similar radicals like Dawn Johnson and Harold Koh to numerous posts in the executive branch. Thus, it was extremely disappointing when ten Republican senators voted with the Democrats to invoke cloture and deny Senator Jeff Sessions’ attempt to block consideration of Hamilton’s nomination. This allowed the nomination to go forward...

By doubling the money supply and making extensive loans, Paul says, Bernanke's Fed has made "the entire federal government one giant toxic asset." The dollar will tank; inflation will return; the sun will set on what is left of the American empire—or at least so says Paul in his new bestseller, End the Fed. Somebody has to take the fall, and Bernanke—who has trillions of dollars at his disposal but not one dime of PAC money—could be the guy. No one thinks Ron Paul is going to lead the GOP, let alone be president. He's 74 years old and just...

I suppose you have heard by now that on the night of Pres. Obama's Afghanistan speech given at West Point, Chris Matthews of MSNBC said on air that he found it interesting that Obama had made the decision to speak at "the enemy camp." It was a despicable thing to say, but coming from "a tingle up my leg" type journalist, it's no surprise. It was as much of an insult to Obama as it was to West Point. Why would a fellow liberal want to endorse the stereotype that people on the left see the military as "the enemy."...

Are you a “Tenther?” No, that’s not someone who lives in a tent to remain off the grid -- although that may be something we Tenthers will soon consider. No, “the Tenthers are the ones who keep citing the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution every time there is a proposed bill they don’t like, claiming the Constitution prohibits it,” as liberal commentator Alan Colmes explains on his Web site. Well, get ready, because if the health insurance reform legislation now under consideration in the Senate passes, the Tenth Amendment could be all that stands between Americans and the road to...

The Senate may be staying in session this weekend to keep the healthcare ball rolling, but don’t expect any major developments. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), as promised, is keeping senators in Washington on Saturday and Sunday to continue the process of debating and amending healthcare reform legislation. Reid will most likely do the same thing the following two weekends — and possibly the days between Christmas and New Year’s Day. Unlike the Saturday session earlier this month that propelled the healthcare bill into its final stage, this weekend’s proceedings promise little more than partisan arguments and votes on relatively...

Denmark's Speaker of Parliament in Copenhagen said: "The problem is that lots of people go around saying that the climate change we see is a result of human activity. That is a very dangerous claim".

 Click here to send your NJ legislators a message. NJCCTake action here for NJ and here for other states  National Organization for MarriageVote NO in this survey  Leader Newspapers, it's also important that you vote here because this paper is in the district of the state senator in charge of the Judiciary Committee, Sen. Paul Sarlo, a 4th-degree member of the Knights of Columbus who is in favor of Embryonic Stem Cell Research, Civil Unions and not too sure about homosexual marriage.  The heat is on.  E-mail Sen. Sarlo HERE Should New Jersey legislators legalize same-sex marriages? Yes 98.24% (4814)...

But Washington is a city that likes its traditions, and Ms. Rogers has raised a few eyebrows by trying to bend them. When former social secretaries gave a luncheon to welcome Ms. Rogers earlier this year, one participant said, she surprised them by suggesting the Obamas were planning a “non-religious Christmas” — hardly a surprising idea for an administration making a special effort to reach out to other faiths. The lunch conversation inevitably turned to whether the White House would display its crèche, customarily placed in a prominent spot in the East Room. Ms. Rogers, this participant said, replied that...

Updates in the BARNETT v OBAMA case in Judge Carter's court: Request for investigation of misconduct in legal proceedings, submission of perjured affidavits, submission of a letter to court by an attorney with improper purpose of covering up criminal activity and obstruction of justice, withholding evidence by attorneys, and US attorneys acting under conflict of interest From 11.11.09. to 11.22.09. I had the honor to be a delegate at the Continental Congress 2009. One of the guest speakers for the Continental Congress was a former Immigration officer and currently a private investigator in CO, Mr. John Samson. I have stated...

On November 23, 2009, 210 Representatives signed a McDonald v. Chicago brief, asking the Supreme Court to incorporate the Second Amendment right to “keep and bear arms” under the Fourteenth Amendment, thereby restricting a municipality’s ability to enact local gun control laws. All is not as it appears This brief elicited some interesting responses from both sides of the gun control issue. Two representatives endorsed by the Brady Campaign voted in favor of McDonald: Congressman Michael Arcuri, (NY-24, 2008 NRA grade C-), and Patrick Murphy (PA-8, NRA grade D+). According to Tom King, President of the New York Rifle and...

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is trailing two potential Republican challengers in 2010, according to a new Mason-Dixon poll published Friday. If the election were held today, the top Senate Democrat would lose to either real estate businessman Danny Tarkanian (R) or former state GOP chairwoman Sue Lowden, a poll conducted for the Las Vegas Review-Journal found. 51 percent of Nevadans said they prefer Lowden over Reid, with 8 percent undecided, an increase in the margin between the two potential candidates since late August, when Lowden bested Reid 45-40 in a Mason-Dixon poll. Tarkanian, meanwhile, leads Reid 48-42 with...

Over ONE MILLION copies sold! On the NYTimes Bestseller List for 19 weeks, 12 weeks at #1!Buy it… read it… live it!“Conservatism is the antidote to tyranny precisely because its principles are the founding principles.” --Mark Levin in Liberty and TyrannyWelcome to “The Levin Lounge”… Step in and have a virtual FRink.Taking the country by storm, one radio station at a time – and kicking the BUTTS of the competition! Welcome all, to the most FUN LIVE THREAD on FreeRepublic.com! You can call Mark’s show: 1-877-381-3811

WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- The U.S. Senate on Friday picked up its pace on health-care overhaul legislation, holding a series of votes on amendments to the bill and planning a weekend vote on an amendment that would limit the tax deductibility of health-insurance executives' salaries. By a 98-0 vote, the Senate approved an amendment Friday that would express a non-binding "sense of the Senate" that excess funds in the bill generated for the Social Security trust fund are reserved for Social Security and excess funds for a long-term care program created by the bill are reserved for that program. The amendment...

An elderly French couple, having retired after long years of work, were enjoying a tranquil, bucolic existence in a cottage outside of Paris. While rocking on the porch one evening, they were discussing what the other would do if one of them died. After some thought, the husband said, "Well, if one of us dies, I'll move back to Paris." How human! It's always easier to think of others dying, rather than ourselves. You'll die and you'll die and you'll die, but I won't die. Something of the same mind also shows up in our attitude toward sin and sinners....

Pope Leo XIII on True LibertyA Great Pontiff Condemns a Modern ErrorMICHAEL DAVIES IN his encyclical letter Libertas, Pope Leo XIII warns that there are certain so-called liberties which modern society takes for granted that every man possesses as a right. These are the liberties "which the followers of liberalism so eagerly advocate and proclaim." (The terms freedom and liberty will be considered synonymous for the purposes of this article; the Latin word libertas is expressed by either, depending on the translator.) The essence of liberalism is that the individual human being has the right to decide for himself the...

EUROPE AWAKES TO GROWING ISLAMIC PROBLEM thelastcrusade.org “Finally, the Europeans are waking up” Wafa Sultan On November 29, Swiss voters approved a proposal to ban the construction of minarets, after a rightwing campaign that labelled the mosque towers as symbols of militant Islam,The Swiss movement against the militant Islam is spreading to other European countries.In Great Britain, according to the Daily Mail, 75% of the people want a ban on minarets.In France, Le Figaro posed the question, “Should the construction of new minarets be banned in France?” A majority of 73% of respondents favored such a ban. And it...

Almost all of us agree that it's important to teach students the history of the American Revolution, and the basic principles that guided it. Yet the vast majority of Americans flunked a test on the basic facts surrounding that time period, and the liberties it spawned, a new survey finds. The results were unveiled in a poll conducted by the American Revolution Center, a nonprofit organization that seeks to promote public understanding of those historical events and their legacy. The organization conducted a nationwide poll of adults 18 and older, which had a four percent margin of error. The survey...

NEW YORK, December 4 (RIA Novosti) - The Declaration of Independence, one of the world's most historic documents, will go on Christie's auction on Friday. The lot is one of the first written copies of the historic declaration, adopted unanimously on July 4, 1776 by all senators of the then existing 13 states. It is a one-page copy made of parchment, which was evaluated under $500,000 for the auction. The Declaration plays the central role of the 2004 Hollywood film "National Treasure," where the main character [Nicholas Cage] steals the document as he believes that it has secret clues to...

We've now discovered, however, that it isn't settled, because it isn't science. Internal emails from the most prominent global warming scientists reveal that they destroyed the raw temperature data upon which their predictive computer models are based.

Senator Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ) yesterday introduced a new measure, ostensibly designed to assist law enforcement in tracking gun purchases by suspected terrorists. Critics, however, suggest that it is yet another measure aimed at the eventual total disarmament of all law-abiding Americans. In a press release issued yesterday, Senator Lautenberg's office described the act that he calls the PROTECT Act. This is by no means the first Act of Congress named by that acronym. The current measure's full title is "Preserving Records Of TErrorist and Criminal Transactions." However, the only transactions that the measure is designed to preserve are gun...

Abortion Center in Michigan Advertises Business as "Sacred Work" Detroit, MI -- An abortion center in Michigan is drawing guffaws from pro-life advocates for a new series of video advertisements touting its abortions as "sacred work." The ads from Northland Family Planning Centers of Michigan follow comments this week from a pro-abortion religious leader saying abortion is a "God-given right." Full story and video at http://www.LifeNews.com/state4623.html

Today’s Democratic leadership is a predictable lot. They’ve cornered the market on mass manipulation through semantic tinkering. It’s a relatively easy code to crack. To decipher what Democrats mean versus what they say one need merely apply the “forked tongue test.” If Dems say “Fairness Doctrine,” expect unfairness in spades. When Harry Reid tags Obamacare the “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act,” we know that the patient gets hosed, and the “care” breaks the bank. Indeed, if the 111th Congress were to pass the “No Kicking Fuzzy Puppies Act,” bet your Obama tax hike that Nancy Pelosi would be first...

Judiciary Committee Approves Another Obama Pro-Abortion Judge, Louis Butler Washington, DC -- The Senate Judiciary Committee voted along party lines 12-7 today for yet another pro-abortion judicial nominee from President Barack Obama. Democrats supported while Republicans opposed the nomination of Judge Louis B. Butler Jr. for a Federal District Court slot in the Western District of Wisconsin. http://www.LifeNews.com/nat5729.html

Congress wants to wallop business with even more regulation in the wake of the financial panic, but perhaps the Members should pause on Monday and visit the Supreme Court. The Justices will hear arguments on whether major portions of the last great Congressional overreaction, the 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley Act, are constitutional.

The public is "rightfully" making questions about Barack Obama's eligibility to be president into an issue, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin declared yesterday. "Would you make the birth certificate an issue if you ran?" Palin was asked in an interview on the Rusty Humphries national radio show. "I think the public rightfully is still making it an issue. I don't have a problem with that. I don't know if I would have to bother to make it an issue, because I think that members of the electorate still want answers," she replied. Humphries asked: "Do you think it's a fair...

But, if you think she wants to go after the folks who have pushed junk science on the world, um, no Leaked e-mails allegedly undermining climate change science should be treated as a criminal matter, Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) said Wednesday afternoon. Boxer, the top Democrat on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, said that the recently released e-mails, showing scientists allegedly overstating the case for climate change, should be treated as a crime. "You call it 'Climategate'; I call it 'E-mail-theft-gate,'" she said during a committee meeting. "Whatever it is, the main issue is, Are we facing global...

Fort Hood Shooter Faces Charges, None for Killing Soldier's Baby Fort Hood, TX -- Army officials have filed more charges against Nidal Malik Hasan, who stands accused of killing 12 soldiers and one civilian in last month's shooting. However, the charges do not include any for killing soldier Francheska Velez's unborn child, despite requests from pro-life groups. http://www.LifeNews.com/state4620.html

Jeremy Engelking will appear in Douglas County court this afternoon to face a trespassing charge. But here’s the kicker: The Superior man allegedly trespassed on his own property. Engelking, 27, aimed to hunt deer Wednesday morning when he noticed a pipeline crew on his land. He hopped on his ATV and told workers they had no right to be on his property because he had received no compensation from Enbridge Energy Partners L.P. for an easement. Engelking said workers told him he was in an unsafe place and asked him to come to an equipment staging area, where he continued...

A while back in (December, 1906) prominent members of New York's Jewish community organized a strike against Christmas exercises in the city's public schools. In light of state laws prohibiting the teaching of "religious doctrines or tenets of any particular Christian or other religious sect," they asked the Board of Education to bar school-based festivities that had in the past included such elements as religious hymns, pictures of the Madonna, holly, mistletoe, and Christmas trees. (They also maintained that any "symbols of Judaism, Mohammedanism, or infidelism" should be banned as well.) When the Board of Education failed to respond to...

Here's another reason "liberal elites" look down on Sarah Palin: "Would you make the birth certificate an issue if you ran?" she was asked (around 9 minutes into the video above). "I think the public rightfully is still making it an issue. I don't have a problem with that. I don't know if I would have to bother to make it an issue, because I think that members of the electorate still want answers," she replied. "Do you think it's a fair question to be looking at?" Humphries persisted. "I think it's a fair question, just like I think past...

Click the link - leads to a one-page PDF with the details. Long story short, it's now 45%-31%-19%, C-M-L. Moderates declining, conservatives advancing. As Ace, over at Ace of Spades says, "Which would seem to mean that, yeah, the party can and should move away from RINOs in most places and towards conservatives." Ladies and gentlemen, RINO season has just been extended, no limits.

WASHINGTON - On the Senate floor, Democrats are debating Republicans on health care. Behind the scenes, they're debating each other. Those closed-door discussions may be less predictable -- and more consequential -- as majority Democrats struggle to settle controversies within the party that are standing in the way of passage of President Barack Obama's sweeping health care overhaul. The most contentious of these is a proposal for the government to sell insurance in competition with private companies, an approach supported by liberals but opposed by most Democratic moderates and conservatives. Democrats were engaged in urgent talks to settle the government...

Say what you will about Ayn Rand, but one thing is certain: She had no use for common niceties. A grimly precocious, friendless Rand declared her atheism at age 13. "Atlas Shrugged," Rand's secular sermon-as-novel, boils with revulsion toward the "looters" and "moochers" who consume public funds. Rand scornfully excommunicated followers who disagreed with her, and in 1964 she told Playboy that those who place friends and family first in life are "immoral" and "emotional parasites." Shoddy manners aside, 52 years after the release of "Atlas Shrugged," Rand seems to be roaring back. Sales are surging—Brian Doherty, author of "Radicals...

MUSLIM MANIFESTO UNVEILED by Paul L. Williams, Ph.D. thelastcrusade.org Hezbollah, the Shi’ite terrorist group that serves as arm of the Iranian government, announced today that it will not disarm – as demanded by U.N. resolutions – and that it regards the United States as “the enemy.”The declarations came from Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut, Lebanon. Releasing Hezbollah’s first party manifesto in 24 years, Mr. Nasrallah listed America’s offenses as follows: (1) support for Israel; (2) “domination of international institutions,” and (3) “meddling” in the affairs of Islamic states. Such offenses, he said, “places the American administration in the...

GLENN BECK, the most listened to Talk Show Host among White House Peeps (4 out of 5 Marxists agree)! Welcome Sick Twisted Freaks! It’s a morning thread, so bring your coffee and doughnuts! FRink Phrases: “Blow your mind” “Fatty fat fatso” “Having an ADD(or ADHD) moment” “That’s FANSTASTIC!” And of course anytime Pat does his Arlen Specter voice is cause to FRink! Feel free to FReepmail any suggestions to add to the list! ENJOY!

While clunker cars earned their owners big discounts last summer, rebates on purchases of energy-efficient appliances won't be available until April. And the rebates won't apply retroactively to dishwashers, refrigerators, washing machines and other appliances that you buy before then. The federal stimulus law passed in February set aside $300 million nationwide for appliance rebates designed to encourage people to buy machines that use less energy and water. When the program was first announced, Florida said the rebates would be offered as early as the end of 2009. But Florida, like many other states, is waiting to offer the rebates...

Sen. John McCain is urging senior citizens to cut up their AARP membership cards and mail the pieces back to the organization, claiming AARP has betrayed them. Sen. John McCain is urging senior citizens to cut up their AARP membership cards and mail the pieces back to the organization, claiming AARP has betrayed them. Citing AARP's past opposition to proposed cuts in Medicare, McCain expressed dismay Thursday that the senior group has suddenly changed its position to support $460 billion in cuts to the program proposed by Democrats to help pay for health care legislation. "Shame on AARP," McCain, R-Ariz.,...

nsults against West Point by MSNBC pundit Chris Matthews are part of a pattern of left-wing denigrations against Americans serving in uniform. It's a motif indicative of an anti-military mind-set that is as dangerous as it is rude. ... Mr. Matthews quipped on Tuesday: "I saw a lot of, if not resentment, skepticism. I didn't see a lot of warmth in that crowd out there that the president chose to address tonight. And I thought that was interesting: He went to maybe the enemy camp tonight to make his case. I mean that was where Paul Wolfowitz used to write...

This world of ours seems to be divided into two types of people: not "male" and "female," but "nice" and "not nice." As we go through life, we all too often seem to evaluate everyone we meet according to this standard. In the hilarious Mel Brooks Western satire Blazing Saddles, after only one long night of romancing, Lili Von Shtupp falls head over heels for Sheriff Bart. Later, she refers to him by saying, "What a nice guy." In Man of La Mancha, Sancho Panza follows Don Quixote from one misfortune to another. Why would he do such a thing?...

Some are unhappy that the Copenhagen conference on climate change is going forward. I think that it is entirely appropriate in light of the revelations coming out of CRU/IPCC. After all, Copenhagen was where Danish author Hans Christian Andersen published The Emperor's New Clothes in 1837. While we tend to remember the little boy who called out "But he isn't wearing anything at all!" we often forget that the entire story was about far more than a vain ruler. It begins, after all, with two con men who promise they can weave cloth of unsurpassed beauty to the enlightened but...

-can't quote that I know of, but follow the link I provided-