Free Republic

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama will nominate Army Gen. David Rodriguez to succeed Gen. Carter Ham as commander of U.S. Africa Command and Marine Lt. Gen. John Paxton to succeed Gen. Joseph Dunford as assistant commandant of the Marine Corps, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta announced Thursday. Both appointments must be confirmed by the Senate. Rodriguez is the commander of U.S. Army Forces Command and has served in a “variety of key leadership roles on the battlefield,” Panetta said. He’s “a proven leader” who oversaw coalition and Afghan forces during the surge in Afghanistan, and “was the key architect of the...

Charles Woods, the father of Tyrone Woods, said in an interview, “And apparently even the State Department had a live stream and was aware of their calls for help. This was my son, he wasn’t even there. He was at a safe house about a mile away. He got the distress call. He heard them crying for help. That’s why he and Glenn risked their lives to go that extra mile just to take care of the situation. And I’m sure that she wasn’t the only one that received that distress call: “Come save our lives.” When I heard that...

One of the unanswered questions about the terrorist attack on our consulate in Benghazi is why the US military didn’t intervene. Rumors had swirled that the US asked the Libyan government in Tripoli for permission to fly into Benghazi to break up the attack but had been refused, although no one has claimed that on the record. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta put that rumor to rest yesterday by telling reporters that the US never planned to intervene at all, thanks to a lack of intel on the ground: US military leaders ruled out sending in forces during the attack on...

On Tuesday morning, all three met with a staffer and were driven to the restaurant and arrived shortly before Obama. The three said the restaurant workers and other patrons received notice only a few minutes before the president arrived. Foeller and Dilley said Obama ate half of a cheese sandwich and skipped the ham in his split pea soup. "He's a pretty tall and slender guy," said Dilley. "Maybe that's why."

Today in Washington, First Lady Michelle Obama announced dictates of Obamacare and her Healthy Kids Initiative will require pork, bacon, ham and other non-kosher, non-halal foods be served the nations’ schools, including those operated by Jewish or Muslim organizations. “Everyone understands the benefits of chicken in a diet, but pork is often called “The Other White Meat” said the First Lady. “Lean pork is a great alternative to fatty beef” added Second Lady Jill Biden who joined Mrs. Obama for the announcement, held at the new Mother Seaton – Christ the Redeemer Birth Control Pill Distribution Center. The only hitch...

20 or so people in there, half of them under 30 going for their technician. I was one of 2 in there to upgrade to general, and one showed up for the highest class, amateur extra. Anyways, I ask this kid (22-25yo) "Why are you getting into ham radio"? He matter-of-factly said, "For the upcoming zombie apocalypse". I laughed and half the room turned around, glad to proclaim the same, hell even bragging about it! A couple more admitted that they were embarrased to say that but essentially that is why they were there. I found out with a little...

The newest trend in American communication isn't another smartphone from Apple or Google but one of the elder statesmen of communication: Ham radio licenses are at an all time high, with over 700,000 licenses in the United States, according to the Federal Communications Commission. Ham radio first took the nation by storm nearly a hundred years ago. Last month the FCC logged 700,314 licenses, with nearly 40,000 new ones in the last five years. Compare that with 2005 when only 662,600 people hammed it up and you'll see why the American Radio Relay League -- the authority on all things...

ARRL Field Day Overview ARRL Field Day is the single most popular on-the-air event held annually in the US and Canada.  Each year over 35,000 amateurs gather with their clubs, friends or simply by themselves to operate. ARRL Field Day is not a fully adjudicated contest, which explains much of its popularity.  It is a time where many aspects of Amateur Radio come together to highlight our many roles. While some will treat it as a contest, most groups use the opportunity to practice their emergency response capabilities.  It is an excellent opportunity to demonstrate Amateur Radio to local elected community...

Menu on new flight out of Tel Aviv branded 'insensitive' EasyJet has been branded 'insensitive' by Jewish customers who were served bacon sandwiches on a flight from Israel. Airline staff for the budget airline were forced to apologise on the route to London when passengers of the Jewish faith were offered only ham melts and bacon baguettes. The airline claims to take pride in its inclusion of kosher food on the journey which was was introduced only in November.

Heres the link: http://www.nearmissblog.com/2010/12/spanish-teacher-in-trouble-for-saying.html Watch the video.

It sounds like parody, but (this story) from Spain is evidently true: The parents of a Muslim boy who attends a secondary school in La Línea, Cádiz province, have reported their son's teacher for an incident in the boy's geography class which the child said caused him offence as a Muslim. The teacher, José Reyes Fernández, with more than 20 years in the profession, was explaining to the class how the cold climate in Trevélez, Granada province, aided in the curing of the village's most famous local product, jamón serrano. The boy told his teacher that hearing the word 'ham'...

Original title: Cafe owner ordered to remove extractor fan because neighbour claimed 'smell of frying bacon offends Muslims' A hard-working cafe owner has been ordered to tear down an extractor fan - because the smell of her frying bacon 'offends' Muslims. Planning bosses acted against Beverley Akciecek, 49, after being told her next-door neighbour's Muslim friends had felt 'physically sick' due to the 'foul odour'. Councillors at Stockport Council in Greater Manchester say the smell from the fan is 'unacceptable on the grounds of residential amenity'. The fan has been in Beverley's Snack Shack takeaway in the Shaw Heath area...

Bumble Bee Ham is opening a processing plant and deli in New York just two blocks away from Ground Zero next to a new mosque. The new location will process ham to be shipped out to Bumble Bee Hams across the country and launch a new high end deli on the ground level called “Bacon.” The feature item is a bacon burger made from ground bacon, topped with bacon served open faced on a bacon croissant with bacon ranch and a side of bacon sticks. This has set off a firestorm between many Americans and Muslims against so-called “bacon extremists.”

"The world's most expensive ham" has gone on sale in London, according to retailer Selfridges. The leg of Iberico ham, which costs £1,800, went on sale at the food hall in the retailer's flagship store in Oxford Street, central London. The 7kg (15lb) ham leg comes with its own DNA certificate as proof of authenticity. Pig farmer and ham expert Manuel Maldonado selected 50 pigs that were reared in Extremadura in western Spain. The pigs were fed on a diet of acorns and roots to give the ham a distinctive flavour. 'Gourmet luxury' After being slaughtered their ham was salted...

Alright, here's the deal. Since Thanksgiving was just four weeks ago and since Turkey generally tastes like cardboard covered with gravy and since American's aren't real big on a Christmas Goose, I'm thinkin' you're thinkin' ham for Christmas. Now if there's one thing a true Southern Cook knows it's how to make a good possum stew...if there's two things a true Southern Cook knows it's how to make a tasty ham. Here's the secret. It's really easy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IDRSkBOuuc

A SYDNEY couple has withdrawn their two children from a public primary school, claiming their 11-year-old son was bullied by Muslim students because he ate a salami sandwich during Ramadan. Andrew Grigoriou said yesterday he complained to the school and to police after his son Antonios was chased and later assaulted by Muslim students after a confrontation over the contents of his lunch, The Daily Telegraph reports. Antonios, a Year 5 student of Greek-Australian background at Punchbowl Public School in Sydney's southwest, said he and a friend had to be locked inside the library for an hour after being chased...

No matter what conclusions one gravitates towards regarding climate change and potential solar impacts, the data is irrefutable: the sun is slowly becoming more active. The 10.7cm radio flux spiked in late September with its highest reading in 18 months; now, and this is very significant compared to the pattern since March 2008, it has spiked again, exceeding the late September number and reaching a Cycle 24 maximum of 76.9. This is still a very low value compared to the solar maximum flux numbers, which routinely exceed 200. However, it is an upward move from the “basement” numbers of the...

Ingredients: 6 medium potatoes - peeled and thinly sliced 2 large onions - peeled and thinly sliced 4 hard boiled eggs - chopped 1/2 cup of grated cheddar cheese

I was talking to my daughter at lunch today and she asked me if she had told me about what she had discovered about the Spanish fondness for cured ham. She said she had traveled all over Europe and did not see the cured hams that hang from the ceilings in the delicatessens as is common in Spain. Usually, in the smaller delicatessens they have about fifty to one hundred, "severed legs," as she calls them, hanging from the ceiling, each with a little paper cup hanging below to catch any grease that leeches out of the ham. Here is...