Free Republic

More fighting in Iraq. Somalia in chaos. People in this country can’t afford their mortgages and in some places now they can’t even afford rice. None of this nor the rest of the grimness on the front page today will matter a bit, though, if two men pursuing a lawsuit in federal court in Hawaii turn out to be right. They think a giant particle accelerator that will begin smashing protons together outside Geneva this summer might produce a black hole or something else that will spell the end of the Earth — and maybe the universe. Scientists say that...

Libertarian Party candidates may have cost Senators Jim Talent (R.-Mo.) and Conrad Burns (R.-Mont.) their seats, tipping the Senate to Democratic control. In Montana, the Libertarian candidate got more than 10,000 votes, or 3%, while Democrat Jon Tester edged Burns by fewer than 3,000 votes. In Missouri, Claire McCaskill defeated Talent by 41,000 votes, a bit less than the 47,000 Libertarian votes. This isn’t the first time Republicans have had to worry about losing votes to Libertarian Party candidates. Senators Harry Reid (Nev.), Maria Cantwell (Wash.), and Tim Johnson (S.D.) all won races in which Libertarian candidates got more votes...

If you suffered from piles, would you want your friends asking about your condition in public? Most people wouldn't, yet new research suggests that the older you become the more likely you are to make someone blush with embarrassment in that way. But old people may not intend to be rude: in fact, age-related changes in brain function may explain their lack of tact, according to a new Australian study just published in the journal Psychology and Aging. Tests carried out by researchers at the University of New South Wales, in Sydney, found that people aged 65 to 93 years...

Have you folks heard of the Constitution Party? www.constitutionparty.com Principal can be very hard to discern in politics. I just know that if the constitution party really had a chance to win they would definitely get my vote. This is a party of mostly Christians that uphold the constitution, guided by the Holy Bible, as the ultimate law of the land.

Austin is becoming the headquarters for the Libertarian Party. The Libertarian Party selected an Austinite to run for president and several state party positions are occupied by people in Austin. The Libertarians believe in liberty. The party platform calls for the government to get out of their lives. "It's not the government's job to tell you how to live your life or to do things that they think are in your best interest. The only valid function of government is to protect your property," Libertarian Presidential candidate Michael Badnarik said. Badnarik understands the odds. "Being realistic, my job is to...

Vin Suprynowicz: Libertarians aim to 'cost Bush the election' On June 14, the Seattle Times editorialized that the entrance requirements for the tedious, moribund, rigorously stage-managed turn-offs that today pass for our presidential "debates" should be loosened -- but not too much. The paper's intent was to get Ralph Nader included. The solution? "It's time to reconsider the current format and the lock on presidential debates by the two major parties," the Times recommends. Right on. But wait. There still has to be "some cutoff point in voter popularity," the Seattlites immediately added. "Otherwise, George Bush and John Kerry would...