Free Republic

Which Future Fear do You Fear More? I have encountered articles and discussions suggesting that fearing terrorist is irrational, even bordering on paranoia. The major source of that fear is the notion of a terrorist possessing a nuclear weapon. We cannot ignore the potential of millions beheaded in a moment. I have also encountered articles and discussions suggesting that fearing global warming is irrational, even bordering on paranoia. The major source of that fear is the notion of a rise in sea levels. We cannot ignore the potential of relocating millions of people in the future.

On Tuesday morning, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will address a joint session of the United States Congress. Netanyahu was invited to speak not through standard diplomatic procedures—the kind of procedures, say, that the President of the United States might go through to speak to Israel’s Knesset. Instead, Netanyahu got a special invitation from Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner. Boehner and Congressional Republicans—who can't seem to do the most basic parts of their job in funding government agencies and our national security apparatus for more than a week at a time—are trying to thumb their noses at the...

Non-profit worker who provoked fury with disrespectful Arlington photo tells how she lost her job, can't date and now lives in fear For almost a year after Lindsey Stone was fired, she refused to leave the house. Her former employer, Life (Living Independently Forever) dismissed her in 2012 over a picture that a coworker had taken of her giving the finger at Arlington National Cemetery. The firing of both women came after an ardent online campaign that had flooded Life, which works with 'pretty high-functioning people with learning difficulties,' according to Stone, with emails. In addition to the firing, it...

A new intelligence assessment, circulated by the Department of Homeland Security this month and reviewed by CNN, focuses on the domestic terror threat from right-wing sovereign citizen extremists and comes as the Obama administration holds a White House conference to focus efforts to fight violent extremism. Some federal and local law enforcement groups view the domestic terror threat from sovereign citizen groups as equal to — and in some cases greater than — the threat from foreign Islamic terror groups, such as ISIS, that garner more public attention.”

They have the heft of an ax, a blade nearly as long as a sword, and the intimidation power to make the hair stand up on the back of your neck. Cheap and easily bought, machetes in America have commonly been reserved for underbrush and sugar-cane cutting. But now, in a spreading trend that so far has drawn little national attention, criminals are using machetes as weapons, striking fear in cities and towns across the country. Witness these recent incidents: In the heartland Indiana city of Evansville in February, a robber pulled a machete on a convenience-store cashier, who put...

If you’ve been on the internet recently, you’ve probably seen the following ad plastered around your screen, showing a farmer in a red hat with the bold text “Grocery stores fear him!”. But what, really, could grocery stores hate so much about this guy? I decided to investigate for myself to see what was going on, and how a company could afford to spend so much money on this crazy advertisement, because I see it everywhere I look, whether I want to or not.

. . . the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics just released a new report. It contains projections based on 2014 data. These data, like Bacchi’s information, are wielded as kryptonite to subdue any thoughts about Jewish sovereignty in parts of the Middle East. Back in the ’40′s it was used to deter any thoughts of a Jewish state in the region at all. Now it is being used to forestall talk of annexing territory beyond the Apartheid Green Line, beyond which all foes and even some friends demand no Jew should live. After reading one article in particular which continued...

In the mid-term elections, the GOP’s not-so-secret weapon was fear. Fear of Ebola, fear of ISIS, and fear of immigrants all played a significant role in shaping the pre-election political climate, and Democrats for the most part, responded by hunkering down into a defensive crouch. Once again, as in 2010, they largely abandoned any pro-active agenda setting of their own, any talk of breaking new ground, exploring new possibilities—even despite the greater-than-hoped-for success of Obamacare—and they certainly lacked the patience, maturity and self-confidence to stand back and criticize the childish, self-defeating fearfulness at the heart of the GOP’s campaign strategy....

...Merkel, the German chancellor, has used her New Year’s Eve address to launch a scathing attack on the country’s growing anti-Muslim protests, calling its leaders racists who are driven by hatred. In a televised message due to be broadcast tonight, Mrs Merkel urged Germans to turn their backs on demonstrations that have seen up to 17,000 people gather each Monday in the eastern city of Dresden to protest against the “Islamisation of the West”. Speaking to those considering joining the protests, she said: “Do not follow those who have called the rallies. Because all too often they have prejudice, coldness,...

....Obama pardoned the national Thanksgiving turkey with a smile on Wednesday, but he admitted before saving the bird from it's likely demise that he found the decades-old tradition somewhat "puzzling." "It is a little puzzling that I do this every year, but I will say that I enjoy it because with all the tough stuff that swirls around in this office it's nice once in a while just to say, 'Happy Thanksgiving,'" he said.

<p>Obama is sneering at the Republicans again, telling them to "pass a bill" regarding immigration. The Democrats are taunting the Republicans and daring them to do something.</p> <p>It appears that there doesn't need to be another "bill" passed, as this ACT is supposed to prevent Obama from doing exactly what he is doing.</p>

The Department of Justice is allegedly wreaking havoc by threatening the Ferguson prosecutor with a bias order, Gotnews.com has learned. An officer who wishes to remain anonymous went on to say that the national guard was called to stop rioting brought on by the DOJ. “That’s the REAL reason the national guard was called. When the governor found out about the bias charge by the feds,” the officer told Gotnews.com.

(Reuters) - With three cases of Ebola diagnosed in the United States but dozens of people being monitored in case they contract the disease, President Barack Obama urged Americans on Saturday not to give in to "hysteria" about the spread of the virus. As though to illustrate his point, a Dallas bus and train station was closed on Saturday afternoon over concern about a woman who fell ill. The woman was first reported to be on the checklist for possible Ebola exposure, but then turned out not to be on any such list. Obama made plain he is not currently...

In Part 1, I briefly discussed the origins of Halloween and debunked a few myths about the holiday.  In Part 2, I covered how Halloween ruins kids and why you shouldn’t observe it.  In this final part we’ll see how Halloween is destructive and fruitless. 3.  Halloween celebrates fear, darkness, and mayhem. Masks obscure.  Costumes disguise.  It’s okay for kids to pretend they are someone else, when they play.  It’s even fun to dress up.  But take a night when everyone is in disguise, and it’s all about secrecy.  And fear.  The purpose of Halloween is to scare and be...

News about the spread of the Ebola virus has been an increasing focus for market participants in recent days. Despite rising media coverage, Ebola seems to have had little discernible effect on consumer sentiment to date. However, as Goldman Sachs notes, the "fear factor" associated with Ebola appears more significant than in past instances of pandemic concern. While expert opinion sees the likelihood of a significant outbreak of Ebola in the US as very low, it is likely any negative macroeconomic consequences are most likely to be transmitted through fear or risk-aversion channels.

by Randy Alcorn In times of doubt, difficulty, and trials, our fundamental beliefs about God and our faith are revealed. So how can Christians find faith in the midst of doubt? How can they trust God’s plan when their lives seem out of His control, and prayers seem to go unanswered or, as it sometimes feels, even unheard?If you or someone you love has been there, these questions may be far more personal than theoretical. You might ask questions like these: Is God good? Is He sovereign? Does He care?When we’re assailed by trials, we need perspective for our minds and relief...

Islamic State Fighters Reportedly ‘Run Away’ from a Certain Type of Soldier. Radical Islamists who decide to embark on suicidal missions often do so with the expectation they will be rewarded with 72 virgins if they die in battle; however, it turns out there is one major caveat to the scenario, according to a U.S. lawmaker. That is, if they are killed by a woman, the deal is off. Rep. Ed Royce (R-Calif.), chairman of the House International Relations Committee, told the New York Post, “These ISIL [Islamic State] soldiers apparently believed that if they were killed in battle, they...

Until the end of August, Reformation Trust is giving away the ebook edition of R.C. Sproul’s Surprised by Suffering: The Role of Pain and Death in the Christian Life. In Surprised by Suffering, R.C. Sproul argues that we should expect pain and sorrow in this life. Some are actually called to a “vocation” of suffering, and all of us are called to undergo the ultimate suffering of death. God promises in His Word that difficult times will come upon us, but He also promises that He allows suffering for our good and His glory, and He will never give us...

In America today, it’s almost impossible for men not to worry. After all, 102 million Americans are unemployed while another 10 million are just a paycheck away from being jobless. World events, like Russia invading the Ukraine to steal the Crimean peninsula (which many believe is a precursor to World War Three); news reports of natural disasters all across the planet; the deadly Ebola virus spreading throughout West Africa; the disappearance of the Malaysian airliner with 239 passengers on board; the constant intrusion into our private lives by an administration bent on reshaping the American dream as we once...

In America today, it’s almost impossible for men not to worry. After all, 102 million Americans are unemployed while another 10 million are just a paycheck away from being jobless. World events, like Russia invading the Ukraine to steal the Crimean peninsula (which many believe is a precursor to World War Three); news reports of natural disasters all across the planet; the deadly Ebola virus spreading throughout West Africa; the disappearance of the Malaysian airliner with 239 passengers on board; the constant intrusion into our private lives by an administration bent on reshaping the American dream as we once...