Free Republic

Well, folks, in the wake of this disastrous election, the year 2012 cannot end too soon. But, as it winds down, it is incumbent upon us to ask just what kind of nation we have left, and from just what reservoir of fortitude and courage we conservatives can draw the strength to continue. As the shock of Tuesday night lingered into Wednesday, the depression I experienced reached depths I have rarely known, as did the sheer existential angst and fear, so evident, as well, in various conservative chat rooms and blogs that I visited. We were told so often that...

Team Obama is giving away free pizza at Miami Dade County early voting location. Jordan Gehrke reported: “Asked the Obama supporter giving out free pizza at polls who she was with. She said nobody, then flashed Obama pin.” Meanwhile, in New York City they’re running out of water.

Consider it a modern take on the legendary tale of Johnny Appleseed. Vancouver, B.C., has announced plans to plant 150,000 fruit and nut trees on city streets, in parks, and on city-owned lands in the next eight years, reports the Vancouver Sun. At the moment, the city has about 600 fruit and nut trees on city streets, and another 425 can be found in the city's parks, community gardens, and pocket orchards. "Street trees play an important role in helping Vancouver adapt to climate change, manage stormwater run-off, support biodiversity, and even provide food," Mayor Gregor Robertson said in a...

La Joya school district officials have added new controls for the district’s free lunch program they say should help pass a state audit later this year. The district is in danger of losing federal funding for up to five years for the program after successive state reviews showed it was distributing an excessive number of free lunches. The Monitor reported in September the district is currently paying about $1.5 million out-of-pocket each month for its free breakfasts and lunches for low-income students. More than 90 percent of students at La Joya campuses rely on the program for free breakfasts and...

Last year, a federal program paid out $1.6 billion to cover free cell phones and the monthly bills of 12.5 million wireless accounts. The program, overseen by the FCC and intended to help low-income Americans, is popular for obvious reasons, with participation rising steeply since 2008, when the government paid $772 million for phones and monthly bills. But observers complain that the program suffers from poor oversight, in which phones go to people who don’t qualify, and hundreds of thousands of those who do qualify have more than one phone.

Which presidential candidate has had the better of the debate about the economy? Mitt Romney - 49% Barack Obama - 50% Other - 1% Total Votes: 8,859

In a speech delivered at Osawatomie High School in Osawatomie, Kansas, on Tuesday, President Barack Obama argued that while a limited government that preserves free markets "speaks to our rugged individualism" as Americans, such a system "doesn't work" and "has never worked" and that Americans must look to a more activist government that taxes more, spends more and regulates more if they want to preserve the middle class. "'[T]here is a certain crowd in Washington who, for the last few decades, have said, let’s respond to this economic challenge with the same old tune. 'The market will take care of...

"In his first term, Obama raised the national debt by $5 trillion, seized control of the healthcare sector on behalf of the federal government, and seized control of General Motors on behalf of the tumor that has been killing it, the UAW. How could he top this in a second term? How about by officially repealing the First Amendment? President Barack Obama called for restrictions to be put on political speech during a Wednesday “Ask Me Anything (AMA)” session on the website Reddit, an Internet link-sharing community."

Milton Friedman explodes the myth that government can provide goods and services at no one's expense

I just met the owner of the newest Chick Fil A. His name is Will and couldn't be a nicer guy. He is planning a hard opening on August 23rd and looking forward to being a part of our community and playing a role in local charities. Let's all come out to support Will at his great restaurant weekend on August 23rd. In fact, let's all come out to eat together all weekend when he opens. Chick Fil A is located on North 1st street on the same parking lot as Five Guys.

Karl Smith’s co-blogger Adam asks ... [Is] being “free-market” compatible with the belief that a government should set top marginal tax rates to maximize revenue? If your argument is that the government should extract the maximum revenue from high income tax payers so as to reduce the tax payments on lower income tax payers then there is nothing in this that violates free market economics. Free market economists who also support a welfare state, are also conceding that taxes should be collected so as to mitigate the consequences of market outcomes on lower income people. Note, for example, that arguing...

If you thought college was a place for young people to speak out, challenges one another's deeply-held beliefs and grow intellectually, chances are you've never been to Indiana University Southeast. The school, located just 10 miles north of Louisville, Ky., is the latest college to see its speech code come under fire from a group that advocates freedom of speech on campuses. One stipulation in the code requires that students may only "express opinions" within a free speech zone, which is antithetical to what a college should stand for, according to the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), an...

The Chicago Public School system has removed 12 principals and assistant principals for allegedly falsifying free and reduced lunch forms for their own children, according to a report from the Office of the Inspector General and CPS. None of the 12 assistant principals or principals have been charged with a crime, but have been removed from their posts pending due process hearings. Their names have been withheld during the hearing process. The program costs about $100 million per year and is meant to provide nutritious meals to needy children. “The investigation by the OIG has uncovered continuing fraud in this...

Don't spend that unemployment check too fast. The government might ask you to pay it back. Overpayments are a rampant problem in the unemployment insurance system. The federal government and states overpaid an estimated $14 billion in benefits in fiscal 2011, or roughly 11% of all the jobless benefits paid out, according to reports from the U.S. Labor Department. Of the states, Indiana was the worst offender, making more improper payments than it did correct ones. Now, the U.S. Department of Labor and the states are in the midst of a massive effort to try to recoup some of their...

In a not-so-subtle rebuke of President Obama’s tendency to offer unsolicited recommendations on how Europeans should handle their debt crises on Sunday evening, Germany’s finance minister suggested that perhaps His Munificence should focus on his own problems before trying to fix everybody else’s. Wolfgang Schaeuble told public broadcaster ZDF in an interview late Sunday that “people are always very quick at giving others advice.”He says: “Mr. Obama should first of all take care of reducing the American deficit, which is higher than in the eurozone.” An unfortunate and embarrassing truth — the EU’s debt-to-GDP ratio is well over eighty percent,...

Floridians lining up for tickets to Barack Obama's grassroots campaign events in Tampa Friday.Ybor City:Riverview:

For one protester, 'Occupy' becomes a way of lifeBy Edith Honan | Reuters – Fri, Jun 15, 2012 NEW YORK (Reuters) - Seven months after Occupy Wall Street's eviction from Zuccotti Park, the round-the-clock encampment in lower Manhattan that was once the movement's center, one protester has created his own version of the communal living experiment in Brooklyn. The spacious apartment in Crown Heights where Austin Guest, a 31-year-old Harvard University graduate, lives with another seasoned protester is a far cry from the crowded, chaotic Zuccotti Park of last fall, where hundreds of protesters camped out each night. Nevertheless, inspired...

Pastrami lovers came out bright and early Friday morning to line up in front of Langer’s Deli in Westlake as the restaurant celebrates its 65th anniversary by giving away free sandwiches. By 7 a.m., nearly 40 people had formed a queue outside the eatery on the corner of South Alvarado and West 7th streets. “This is a way for the owner, Norm Langer, to show his appreciation to his customers and to the community at large for everything they’ve given him,” said spokesman John Schwada. On Friday and Saturday, customers will receive a free No. 19 sandwich, the deli’s most...

Palestinian Authority Arabs serving time in Israel for terror-related offenses are planning a new hunger strike, the PA Minister of Prisoners’ Affairs Isa Karake has announced. A previous hunger strike ended less than a month ago, when Israel caved in to several of the prisoners’ demands. The new hunger strike is to begin Monday and aims at obtaining release for three PA terrorists who never stopped the former hunger strike, Karake said. The three are Mahmoud El-Sarsak, Ikram El-Rihawi, and Samar El-Barq, who have refused to eat for 88, 60, and 40 days respectively. The PA is demanding that Israel...

After that fateful day of September 11th, 2001, Americans had a since of pride and stood hand in hand together simply because they were America. However, people did not rejoice in being American simply because they were American. They rejoiced because our enemy reminded us of the many things we take for granted such as our life, liberty, our pursuit of happiness, and our rights that protect us from becoming slaves to an oppressive state. A phrase that used to be coined throughout American culture was revitalized at this time: “It's a free country, let me do what I want.”...