Free Republic

There is already a rush to call Dylann Roof’s murder of nine black churchgoers in Charleston an “act of domestic terrorism.” This is a deliberate political strategy, intended by its ultra-liberal authors to transform this terrible tragedy into an indictment of American conservatism. “Terrorism” is a slippery term to define. Under U.S. law, terrorism is defined as "the unlawful use of force and violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.” This is a perfectly good legal definition for the lawyers, but it...

For decades, Gustavo Gutiérrez, a Peruvian theologian and Dominican priest, was treated with suspicion and even contempt by the Vatican’s hierarchy, which saw him as a dangerous Marxist firebrand who used faith as an instrument of revolution. Gutiérrez was the founder of a progressive movement within the Catholic church known as liberation theology, and while he was never censured in the manner that some of his philosophical compatriots were, there were often rumblings that Gutiérrez was being investigated by Pope John Paul II’s doctrinal czar, a German cardinal named Joseph Ratzinger who would later become Pope Benedict.

In case you have been off the grid and don’t know what’s happening in Baltimore, this is a pretty good description from SooperMexican.

If you try to shut down public debate, is this a way of ensuring that you win—or an admission that you have already lost? The question seems relevant today, because the most remarkable characteristic of our current national debate is that one side wants desperately to stamp it out whenever it occurs. Recently, for example, a gay New York businessman had the temerity to sponsor a “fireside chat” with Republican presidential candidate and arch-conservative Ted Cruz. He was, of course, required to repent the error, calling it “a terrible mistake” to actually talk to a politician who disagrees with him...

We live in a constitutional republic in which our elected officials are bound by the constraints of the Constitution, which means they don't have a license to do whatever they please, even if they think it would be best for the country. That President Barack Obama so flagrantly violates this enshrined legal principle and much of his Democratic Party supports him in doing so is why so many other people are outraged and, at times, fear for their country. Under past presidents in my lifetime (I was born after FDR), Republican and Democratic, we have not had to live in...

“Universal voting would counteract money more than anything,” makes as much sense as anything else Obama has said. The idea that people utilizing their freedom of association to pool resources in order to influence politics is somehow corruptive of the political process stems from the unspoken idea that the country is one big commons owned collectively by us all and the government's purpose is to decide how to fairly allocate the commons. In an actual free country there is no such problem. The country isn't one big socialized commons. But in a socialized country where the presumption is that everything...

The latest trend among leftists who were shocked by their defeat at the polls Tuesday is an apparently spontaneous campaign called “Don't Give,” which calls on people to stop donating to the poorer Israelis and the socio-economically weaker regions known as “the periphery,” because these Israelis insist on voting for Likud, in election after election. The campaign's name in Hebrew, Lo Latet, is a reference to Latet (“To Give”), a major charity group that collects donations for the needy. The campaign started as a Facebook trend, which gathered steam after it was reported about in the news, and has turned...

This reporter apparently thinks it is “racist” for people to think we should protect our border. Thankfully, this man wasn’t willing to be accused of something as vile as being a racist.

When I wrote my recent Townhall column, “Hillary Will Be President Of Nothing,” I expected that the response from the foam-lipped Left would be irrational, unhinged hate. And I looked forward to it since, like all good conservatives, I feed off of impotent leftist rage. But little did I know that my column would itself be the recipient of one of those legendary “trigger warnings” that liberal feminist believe strong, independent, capable womyn need to avoid the emotional catastrophe of being offended. Nor did I expect that I would also have to apologize to a hideous demigod of unrepentant evil....

A New Hampshire ex-official believed to be the first transgender person elected to a state legislature was charged Thursday with calling in a bomb threat to a hospital, police said. Police arrested 31-year-old Stacie Laughton of Nashua on Thursday following the Feb. 27 threat to Southern New Hampshire Medical Center. Police evacuated the building but found no suspicious device. An investigation led police to issue a warrant for Laughton's arrest; the Nashua resident complied.

State Department Spokesperson Marie Harf told Chris Matthews tonight that we cannot win this war with ISIS by killing them. She said we have to get to the root cause of why people are attracted to Jihad — you know like poverty, jobs, etc… “We’re killing a lot of them and we’re going to keep killing more of them. So are the Egyptians, so are the Jordanians. They’re in this fight with us. But we cannot win this war by killing them. We cannot kill our way out of this war. We need in the medium to longer term to...

Jon Stewart is leaving The Daily Show. The Comedy Central host informed his audience during Tuesday night’s taping he is stepping down from his role hosting the late-night series, a post he’s held since 1999. EW obtained this statement from Comedy Central president Michele Ganeless: “For the better part of the last two decades, I have had the incredible honor and privilege of working with Jon Stewart. His comedic brilliance is second to none. Jon has been at the heart of Comedy Central, championing and nurturing the best talent in the industry, in front of and behind the camera. Through...

... Tragically, a record number of Americans subscribe to some version of this mythology, with 63 percent (67 percent of men polled and 58 percent of women) believing that guns truly do make them safer. The public’s confidence in firearms, however, is woefully misguided: The evidence overwhelmingly shows that guns leave everybody less safe, including their owners. ... That is, in the absence of guns, would-be criminals are not switching to knives or some other weapons to carry out homicide. These results are supported by a host of previous studies that illustrate that guns increase the rate of homicides. The...

<p>Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) gave her most definitive answer to date about her 2016 plans in an interview with Fortune published Tuesday.</p> <p>So are you going to run for President? No.</p> <p>In the past, Warren has denied that she's running for president, always speaking in the present tense.</p>

How far left was I? So far left my beloved uncle was a card-carrying member of the Communist Party in a Communist country. When I returned to his Slovak village to buy him a mass card, the priest refused to sell me one. So far left that a self-identified terrorist proposed marriage to me. So far left I was a two-time Peace Corps volunteer and I have a degree from UC Berkeley. So far left that my Teamster mother used to tell anyone who would listen that she voted for Gus Hall, Communist Party chairman, for president. I wore a...

Harry Reid had an accident while exercising, the Senate Democratic leader's office tells reporters. Here's the full statement: “On Thursday, Senator Reid received treatment at University Medical Center in Las Vegas for injuries sustained in an accident he suffered while exercising at home in Henderson. “A piece of equipment Senator Reid was using to exercise broke, causing him to fall and break a number of ribs and bones in his face. “Senator Reid will return to Washington this weekend and be in the office Tuesday as the Senate prepares to reconvene. His doctors expect a full recovery. “Senator Reid was...

You know the Catholic Church is in trouble when the left-wing Guardian refers to Francis as the “superman pope.” He didn’t earn this dubious honor just by brokering Obama’s embrace of the communist slave state in Cuba. He has promoted state-inflicted poverty by attacking economic freedom and is now pushing the global warming hoax: In 2015, the pope will issue a lengthy message on the subject to the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics, give an address to the UN general assembly and call a summit of the world’s main religions. The reason for such frenetic activity, says Bishop Marcelo Sorondo, chancellor...

Full Title: Why do you MANSPREAD? Woman with her tape measure confronts splay-legged men on the subway about the space they consume It is a gripe that frustrates subway riders daily: men with their legs splayed. So one woman decided to confront male commuters about the amount of space they consume. The investigation comes a month before New York City's MTA launches a campaign targeting 'manspreaders'.

Overruling the objections of gun-rights advocates, the U.S. Senate on Monday confirmed Dr. Vivek Murthy, a British-born, American-educated internal medicine specialist, to become the 19th surgeon general of the United States. The 51-43 vote makes Murthy, a 37-year-old graduate of Harvard University and Yale University Medical School, the third-youngest physician to lead the U.S. Public Health Service's 6,800 commissioned officers. Murthy founded Doctors for America, a national physicians group that worked to pass the Affordable Healthcare Act, and has worked to promote HIV/AIDS education both in the United States and India. At Brigham & Womens Hospital in Boston, his research...

Although Lena Dunham danced half-naked in an MTV "Rock the Vote" PSA last month, the Washington Post reports that Dunham does not practice what she preaches. Although the PSA is meant to encourage and shame young people into voting in the 2014 midterm, Dunham herself did not vote in the last midterm. The same is true for at least four others who appeared in the video with Dunham: Rock The Vote released a public service announcement last month with a parody of Lil Jon's "Turn Down For What" that featured public figures who explained why they planned to vote in...