Free Republic

"A real Fascist dictatorship?" "Nonsense! Nonsense!" snorted Tasbrough. "That couldn't happen here in America, not possibly! We're a country of freemen." "The answer to that," suggested Doremus Jessup, "if Mr. Falck will forgive me, is 'the hell it can't!' Why, there's no country in the world that can get more hysterical--yes, or more obsequious!--than America. Look how Huey Long became absolute monarch over Louisiana. Listen to Father Coughlin on the radio--divine oracles, to millions. Remember how casually most Americans have accepted Tammany grafting and Chicago gangs and the crookedness of so many of President Harding's appointees? "Remember our war hysteria,...

(Original article in Swedish. Translated by SB) Austrian party leader Jörg Haider killed in car accident The Austrian party leader Jörg Haider was killed in a car accident early Saturday morning. The governor of the Austrian province Kärnten, and party leader for BZÖ (The Union for Austria’s Future) Jörg Haider was killed in a traffic accident early Saturday in Klagenfurt, capital of Kärnten, it was reported by the news agency APA. The 58 year old Haider was driving his service car when it for unknown reasons left the road. Haider suffered severe chest and head injuries and died shortly after...

Barack Obama's presidential campaign is getting a bargain for the half-hour of Oct. 29 primetime it's bought on CBS and NBC. The Democratic presidential candidate's camp is paying under $1 million to each network to run the programming it will produce for the first half-hour of primetime that Wednesday night, less than a week before the election. This is considerably less than the networks would otherwise get for the 10-11 ad "units" they run during that half hour, between 8 and 8:30 p.m. Obama is not getting a price break; the campaign will be charged what's called the "lowest unit...

Lee County Sheriff Mike Scott speaks to a crowd of thousands who gathered at Germain Arena at a rally for Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin speak on Monday, Oct. 6, 2008, in Estero. His comments about U.S. Senator Barack Obama brought national attention to the rally. David Albers/ Staff BONITA SPRINGS — Lee County Sheriff Mike Scott’s now infamous appearance at Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin’s public rally has caught the attention of federal officials. Scott is under federal investigation for wearing his uniform during the campaign stump, a spokesman for the Office of Special Counsel said on Tuesday. The...

I saw this mentioned on hillaryclintonforum.net (shout out to the PUMAs for doing so much research!) These are the new official symbols allowed to be used for the Obama campaign to represent different groups. http://www.barackobama.com/people/ Scary!

Tim Gill, the secretive Colorado software multi-millionaire and behind-the-scenes "gay" activist who has boasted of his strategy to buy up campaigns for pro-homosexual candidates soon may be learning he cannot buy the First Amendment. Gill, whose strategic campaign donations in 2004 largely are credited with turning the GOP majority in the Colorado statehouse into a Democratic bastion and whose work in 2006 helped install Democrat Bill Ritter, a vigorously pro-abortion campaigner, in the governor's office, has been blamed by Christian organizations for the 2008 success of a new Colorado law that bans the Bible in the state. But the Christian...

Lieberman Calls Obama 'Naïve,' May Bolt Party in Future Tuesday, October 7, 2008 3:23 PM By: Tim Collie and David Patten Sen. Barack Obama’s “naïve” world view could embolden America’s enemies during one of the most dangerous periods for America since the 1930s, U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman told Newsmax in an exclusive television sit-down interview Tuesday. Lieberman, visiting Fort Lauderdale, Fla., also told Newsmax that he is so disappointed with the Democratic Party, he will consider whether to bolt the Democratic Senate caucus next session. “I believe he’s naïve to think that people like [Mahmoud] Ahmadinejad and Tehran will somehow...

Pan-Arabism & the professorIn the words of political science professor Adeed Dawisha, pan-Arabism at its inception was deeply influenced by European fascism, with the result that "Arab nationalists, infused with the illiberal ideas of cultural nationalism, had almost nothing to say about personal liberty and freedom." Thus, in keeping with his pan-Arab beliefs, Maksoud has apologized or excused the excesses of assorted Arab tyrannies. http://www.campus-watch.org/article/id/1308

NEW YORK (AP) - National Public Radio, already strong online with free downloads from many of its shows, is boosting its digital ambitions with Monday's introduction of social-networking features akin to Facebook. NPR also plans to overhaul its Web site and expand the tools for sharing its programs elsewhere over the next few months. And it is working to increase the flexibility of its popular "podcasts," audio downloads that have tripled in usage over the past two years. These digital initiatives are aimed at capturing and retaining audiences - particularly younger people who aren't habitual radio listeners but who represent...

A local television station's coverage of a Missouri campaign "truth squad" working on behalf of Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama has touched off a national Internet frenzy. < snip > What has prompted all the furor is that several members of Obama's "truth squad" in Missouri are prosecutors or members of law enforcement. They include St. Louis Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce, Jefferson County Sheriff Glenn Boyer and St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Bob McCulloch. All are Democrats. Joyce and McCulloch are featured in a KMOV report by John Mills, in which both say their aim was to refute any false...

No one involved 'has any intention of prosecuting anybody'Missouri law officials, including public prosecutors, who were reportedly planning to "respond immediately" to any misleading advertisements against Barack Obama if they "might violate Missouri ethics laws," have now backed off the intimidating implications of that report, promising they have no intention of prosecuting anyone. < snip > A spokeswoman for St. Louis City Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce . . . told WND that the televised "Truth Squad" announcement was misunderstood. "The only action they would take would be to provide truthful information to the public so they can make up their...

Last Tuesday without any fanfare, the Barack Obama campaign announced Jennifer Joyce and Bob McCulloch, the top prosecutors in St. Louis city and St. Louis County, were joining something called an Obama truth squad. They plan to respond immediately to any misleading advertisements and statements that might violate Missouri ethics laws. "We want to keep this campaign focused on issues," Joyce told me. "Missourians don't want to be distracted by these divisive character attacks." The truth squad's plan is to indentify false attacks and respond immediately with truthful information, Joyce and McCulloch say. Truthful information like: Obama is a Christian...

Chicago-trained thug Barack Obama has recruited musclemen in Missouri to intimidate critics. It’s just the latest example of his bare-knuckle, speech-chilling bully tactics.

Quote from Gov.Blunt "This abuse of the law for intimidation insults the most sacred principles and ideals of Jefferson. I can think of nothing more offensive to Jefferson’s thinking than using the power of the state to deprive Americans of their civil rights. The only conceivable purpose of Messrs. McCulloch, Obama and the others is to frighten people away from expressing themselves, to chill free and open debate, to suppress support and donations to conservative organizations targeted by this anti-civil rights, to strangle criticism of Mr. Obama, to suppress ads about his support of higher taxes, and to choke out...

Wondered why there have been so few 527 ads this election cycle? The question has been posed numerous times on all the cable networks. Well, boys ‘n girls, here’s the answer. Not only are we witnessing the best election money can buy or steal, we now have the added stench of intimidation with the sole intent of limiting free speech and open debate. Barack Obama and his group of Chicago thugs have been threatening to use police state tactics in order to silence critics in Missouri. Additionally, his crack team of legal intimidators have sent letters to news agencies in...

St. Louis Circuit Jennifer Joyce has been caught in a dust-up over her presence on a “Truth Squad” for Barack Obama. < snip > Now, here is a statement from Joyce: As a citizen, I believe that elections should be about issues. I also have enormous respect for our First Amendment and freedom of speech. My sole purpose in participating in this initiative is about getting truthful information to the voters. This has never been or never will be about prosecuting people. Clearly there are those who are attempting to twist the purpose of this initiative for their own benefit....

Please copy, paste, and circulate this press release from the Governor of Missouri. Note the Web domain of the press release, governor.mo.gov. This is not "someone's blog," a "rumor," or a "smear." It is the official Web site of Missouri's state government. The Governor of Missouri says openly that Barack Obama conspired to misuse his state's law enforcement resources to "threaten and intimidate his critics."We cannot overemphasize the gravity of Governor Blunt's accusation. While we are not attorneys and cannot give legal advice, "Conspiracy against rights" is a felony under the U.S. Code, Title 18 (Crimes). At present, Governor Blunt's...

With the Missouri polls showing a dead heat between Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama, every campaign move is igniting scrutiny. That’s the backdrop over a two-day dust-up that is attracting local TV coverage, and has even ignited a Web fight between the Drudge Report and the Daily Kos. At issue is a new Obama “Truth Squad” formed in the state. < snip > Obama’s Missouri Truth Squad members include St. Louis Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce, Jefferson County Sheriff Glenn Boyer and St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Bob McCulloch, among others. The inclusion of such officials has led to...

It appears that when it comes to thuggery and intimidation of the public, Barack Hussein Obama, his surrogates and supporters have no boundaries. Although most of us never thought we would see Stalinist and Hugo Chavez type methods employed in the USA, it has begun in earnest. KMOV-TV in St. Louis, MO reports that the Obama campaign has instructed all Missouri law enforcement to target, intimidate, potentially arrest and prosecute anyone who says anything negative about Barack Obama. They call it ‘protecting Obama from lies’. The problem with this is that Missouri law enforcement is following through with it. Not...

The Barack Obama campaign is asking Missouri law enforcement to target anyone who lies or runs a misleading TV ad during the presidential campaign.

Climate Change: Al Gore has rightly been scolded for encouraging civil disobedience to stop global warming. But his little-noticed follow-up statement might be even more foolish — and dangerous.When it comes to sheer crackpottery on environmental issues, no national figure can measure up to the lofty standard set by the former Tennessee senator and vice president. This is a man who is leading a caravan of humming hybrid drivers to nowhere and is willing to criminalize those who disagree with him to get there. While speaking Wednesday in New York at the Clinton Global Initiative, Gore told young people "looking...

My mother is 66 years old and Italian. She came to this country in 1956, when she was 14 years old. She became a U.S. citizen in 1961. She was an avid Hillary supporter until the end of the primaries thi year. She considered herslef a PUMA, until about a month ago. Nowadays, she calls up my siblings and myself EVERY SINGLE DAY telling us that she basically is leaning towards voting for Barack Obama. She's still undecided, and I believe that between my siblings and their spouses, we will be able to get her over to McCain by the...

Some alleged conservatives have lined up to back former investment banker Henry Paulson's proposed $700 billion-plus bank bailout that amounts to nationalization of a huge chunk of the mortgage business. The cure may be worse than the disease. Call it socialism, state capitalism, crony capitalism, or whatever you want, but Congress is now considering cleaning up the mess that it created. It is the largest "affordable housing" program ever imagined and has nothing do with conservatism. This government-managed capitalism is not capitalism at all. Conservative Lawrence Kudlow, a relentless booster of the stock market day in and day out, not...

Nationalization has its consequences. Just note the rhetoric coming from some prominent voices on the left. The government's foray into offering services normally provided by the private sector by bailing out aging mortgage giants gives it the power to implement "green" building requirements, according to New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman. He suggested Sept. 23 that any construction financed by government-funded mortgages should be certified "green" according to the standards of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System. "If we're going to be in the mortgage business as a government, then every government-funded mortgage -...

Islamofascism: Keep a Wary Eye on Muslim Students and Liberal Faculty September 22, 2008 by Lance I speak from experience in article #2 below. See: Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Trained Muslim Terrorists, Blames Jews For 9/11 - Shlomo Muslim, Ph.D.I Drank Beer with an Al Qaeda Terrorist at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - LanceERAU: Famous For Training Pilots to Fly Into Buildings - Shlomo Muslim, Ph.D.From FrontPage Magazine today:No Terrorist Left Behindby Phil Orenstein | FrontPageMagazine.comAs a nation, we recently commemorated the seventh anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001, one of the most horrific attacks against the United States in our nation’s...

Gordon Brown's plan to provide free nursery places for two-year-olds risks creating a generation of " institutionalised" children, a psychologist warned today. The Prime Minister has said he wants to extend the 15 hours of free childcare from three-and four-year-olds to two-year-olds to increase parents' choice over how they balance work and family life. But Dr Richard House, a child psychologist at Roehampton University, said the drive to get mothers back into the workforce could be harmful to very young children. In an attempt to raise academic standards, all childminders, playgroups and nurseries now have to follow the Early Years...

This past March marked the fifth anniversary of the Richard Daley Chicago Thug Machine’s unlawfully seizing and destroying Meigs Airfield. Per Wikipedia: “Merrill C. Meigs Field Airport (IATA: CGX, ICAO: KCGX), was a single strip airport built on Northerly Island, the man-made peninsula that also sited the 1933-1934 Century of Progress in Chicago, Illinois. The airport opened on December 10, 1948, and became the country's busiest single-strip airport by 1955. The latest air traffic tower was built in 1952 and the terminal was dedicated in 1961. The airfield was named for Merrill C. Meigs, publisher of the Chicago Herald and...

Socialists, like Hugo Chavez in Venezuela or Indira Gandhi in India, are famous for nationalising the biggest corporations. But the US government has taken over three of its biggest corporations within two weeks. Has the US turned socialist? American right-wingers moan that this is indeed the case. Meanwhile, Indian leftists are stunned at nationalisation in a country they view as pitilessly capitalist. Two of the nationalised corporations, Fannie May and Freddie Mac, are by far the biggest mortgage lenders in the world, with $5 trillion of mortgages and loans on their books. That’s five times India’s GDP, to put their...

These are serious times," said Barack Obama recently. "And they call for a serious debate about where we need to take the nation.”[5] That's true! So where does he want "to take our nation?" How does his version of "service" fit his vision of CHANGE? And what will it cost in terms of freedom, privacy, taxes, and government control? There's nothing wrong with the old voluntary, personal service to the poor and needy. For centuries, Christian missionaries have given their lives and comforts to serve God among the sick, hungry and dying people in distant parts of the world. Others...

If Barak Obama pulls off a win this year, either by legal, or not-so-legal means? Given the current economic climate and other factors...how are you preparing? Are you preparing?

The Democrats sure have been busy this week. They have now dropped any pretense of civility or decency in this remarkable 2008 election season. Evidently, the selection of Sarah Palin as John McCain’s running mate has turned a number of Dems into rabid attack dogs. Gone is the appearance of unity. The act of campaigning with any sort of honor or respect has vanished from the Democrat playbook. This campaign went from politics to blood sport a long time ago. Now, the Democratic Party voices are nasty, shrill and vile. Consider what has taken place in just the past few...

Smokers will be stopped in the street and asked to take a carbon monoxide test in London's most hard-hitting anti-smoking campaign. 'Smoking police' will target people at betting shops, bus stops and shopping centres to shock them into giving up cigarettes. They will be asked to breathe into a monitor to show how much carbon monoxide is in their bodies, and could then be signed up to local stop-smoking services and given access to counsellors. Pro-smoking group Forest described the campaign as a humiliating infringement of civil liberties. Ealing Primary Care Trust, which is funding the £75,000 scheme, said it...

That's right. New Jersey now requires flu vaccines for preschoolers and children attending licensed child care centers. Now parents will have an additional item to cross off their checklists once the school bells ring in September. The flu vaccine requirement, along with three additional immunizations, was approved last December. According to the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, studies suggest that young children are "particularly efficient in transmitting influenza to their close contacts," including other children, adults and the elderly. "This new requirement addresses the need to stop flu transmission at a potential source," the department said in...

Christian and other religious groups opposed to abortion were allowed to advertise on Google for the first time from today, after the search engine capitulated in the face of a legal challenge. Google had banned pro-life religious groups from buying adverts against search terms such as “abortion” and “abortion help” but was forced to abandon its policy after it was accused of breaching equalities legislation. The challenge was brought by the Christian Institute, a cross-denominational pressure group, who said that Google’s change of heart was an acknowledgement of the rights of everybody to hold an opinion on the subject. Mike...

<p>Chicago radio station WGN-AM is again coming under attack from the presidential campaign of Sen. Barack Obama for offering airtime to a controversial author. It is the second time in recent weeks the station has been the target of an "Obama Action Wire" alert to supporters of the Illinois Democrat.</p>

Pamela Anderson must be floating on air right about now. As of this week, anti-meat activists have a new standard-bearer: United Nations chief climate expert and staunch vegetarian Rajendra Pachauri. On Monday, Pachauri basically put the UN seal on environmental vegetarianism when he recommended that everyone on Planet Earth begin cutting meat out of their diets to combat climate change. And vegan advocates can hardly contain their excitement. But PETA and company had better savor the flavor, because Pachauri’s rationale has already come under fire. And vegetarian groups are having a pretty tough time coming up with answers to some...

One Remains In Jail Faithful Urged to Call Diocese Joseph Landry (27) and Brian Sherwood (35) were arrested at the Basilica of the Assumption in Baltimore, MD (409 Cathedral St, Baltimore, MD 21201) for passing out pro-life literature after Mass. They were peaceful and respectful. Mr. Landry is currently in Jail with a $10,000 bond. Mr. Sherwood was released late Sunday night on his own recognizance. Mr. Landry States: “I am shocked that we - as devout Catholics - are being arrested at a Catholic church for handing out Catholic literature. “If the bishops don’t have to courage to tell...

WASHINGTON - Leading Republicans and Democrats are calling for a new wave of volunteerism aimed directly at some of the most pressing problems facing the nation, from the high school dropout rate to energy efficiency to the rising number of unemployed. Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass. and Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, introduced the Serve America Act on Friday, a new sweeping bill eight months in the making that would try to attract 175,000 new volunteers in the next five years. The bill has the backing of both major presidential candidates. Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain are both co-sponsors. They...

NEW YORK - Senator Edward M. Kennedy, sidelined from the Senate as he undergoes treatment for a malignant brain tumor, plans to introduce a sweeping new national service bill today to recruit 175,000 Americans of all ages to do service work in health, education, environmental protection and anti-poverty programs, with their work partly subsidized by the federal government. The plan, meant to build on national service initiatives that began under former President John F. Kennedy and expanded under former Presidents George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton, would provide an estimated $5 billion over five years to encourage citizens from...

Unfortunately, we Americans now realize that the decision by Ben Bernanke to slash the Fed Funds rate to 2% (a three hundred twenty five basis point reduction) was just the opening act in this Republican administration's socialism play. At the time some wondered why the government didn't just allow home prices fall to historical averages rather than seeking to lower the value of the U.S. dollar and send inflation to a 17-year high. Now we have learned just this past weekend that the Department of the Treasury has come up with a plan for conservatorship of the GSEs, enacting the...

Here's our "government knows best" quote of the day.This comes from Dr. Tim Johnson, ABC's medical editor, commenting on John McCain's healthcare plan. "The idea that individuals are going to have enough knowledge and enough savvy and enough insight and, frankly, enough guts to make choices all by themselves is pretty much a pipe dream." CONSIDERING THAT MENTALITY ... Let's take a jump across the pond to Great Britain and its universal healthcare program. One half of primary care doctors are accused of ignoring National Health Service guidelines that say morbidly obese patients should have stomach surgery to reduce their...

I got banned from a lefty site this Sunday. I admit it, I was taunting, but kick me off? I've been prowling websites the last year of so searching for a good debate. Most liberals I've engaged with don't want to debate, they just want to aim foul-mouthed tirades at the intellectual inferiors who are too stupid to think just like they do. The best discussions I've had were with European lefties and atheists. They know how to defend their positions and they do it without the rabid attacks. Go to your ordinary lefty site run by Americans and you...

Muslim cabbies whose religious beliefs go against driving passengers who carry alcohol have lost another round in Minnesota courts. The Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday against the cabbies' latest attempt to block penalties from being imposed when they refuse to transport passengers because they're carrying alcoholic beverages.

LONDON: The escalation in Britain's growing surveillance state has created outrage over the way councils are using powers originally designed to combat terrorism and organised crime to spy on residents. British children as young as eight have been recruited by councils to serve as environmental volunteers and report petty offences such as littering by their neighbours. It also emerged last month that around 1,400 security guards, car park attendants and town hall staff have been given police-style powers including the right to issue on-the-spot fines for littering, cycling on the pavement and other offences, the Telegraph reported. Matthew Sinclair, of...

Been away for awhile, busy at work. I wanted to point out today some observations I made about the republican convention. The news media and Katie "Koran" Couric have presented the Democratic convention in glitz and glamor with touching family scenes with Obama and his little girls and with big talk about the past 8 years being crap. (never mind that the 8 years previous with Clinton, the fact we are at war, and the rat congress are mostly to blame. Especially Clinton and the Dems. Lets not forget the RINOS.) All the Democrats are bringing up how their policies...

A city transit worker who was initially deemed to have been acting in self-defense when he fatally stabbed a man this year — a man who was apparently trying to help him fend off an attack — has been indicted on a murder charge, the police said on Friday. The worker, Maurice Parks, 40, appeared briefly in State Supreme Court in Manhattan on Friday, but his arraignment was postponed because he had not yet retained a lawyer. He was being held without bail. Mr. Parks had just finished his late-night shift as a subway motorman on Jan. 10 and was...

Councils are recruiting 'citizen snoopers' to report litter louts, dog foulers and even people who fail to sort out their rubbish properly. The 'environment volunteers' will also be responsible for encouraging neighbours to cut down on waste. The move comes as local authorities dish out £100 fines to householders who leave out too much rubbish or fail to follow recycling rules. Spy on your neighbours: Councils are recruiting spotters to report litter louts, dog foulers and bad recyclers It will fuel fears that Britain is lurching towards a Big Brother society, following the revelation this week that the Home Office...

“Slimy.” “Smear merchant.” “Character assassin.” This kind of name-calling tends to undermine an argument against character assassination, especially when the argument comes with no supporting evidence at all. Yet the Barack Obama campaign feels comfortable with this kind of ad hominem attack on Stanley Kurtz as a means to get him silenced: The campaign e-mailed Chicago supporters who had signed up for the Obama Action Wire with detailed instructions including the station’s telephone number and the show’s extension, as well as a research file on Kurtz, which seems to prove that he’s a conservative, which isn’t in dispute. The file...

In a surprising attempt to stifle broadcast criticism of its candidate, the presidential campaign of freshman Illinois senator Barack Obama is organizing supporters to confront Chicago's WGN radio station for having a critic of the Illinois Democrat on its main evening discussion program. "WGN radio is giving right-wing hatchet man Stanley Kurtz a forum to air his baseless, fear-mongering terrorist smears," Obama's campaign wrote in an e-mail sent to supporters. "He's currently scheduled to spend a solid two-hour block from 9:00 to 11:00 p.m. (Wednesday night) pushing lies, distortions, and manipulations about Barack and University of Illinois professor William Ayers."

About a year ago, I saw a Russian television broadcast in which Vladimir Putin, riding a noble steed, reaches the edge of a lake, deftly removes his shirt and in an impressive display of muscle, leans over and washes his face in the crystal clear water. That is when I began to worry. The leader determined to restore the great nation's lost honor and days of glory was playing the macho worship card. It reminded me of an old Italian propaganda film in which Il Duce - Mussolini - is riding in his official car when he sees a farmer...