Free Republic

A SHIFT IN THOUGHT   The president is attending the opening of the General Assembly with roughly half the delegation brought by past administrations. Some might see a shrinking superpower. But Trump officials say the US can be more 'efficient' and still lead. UNITED NATIONS, NEW YORK—President Trump has already shaken the post-World War II global order by pulling the United States out of American-led international pacts like the Paris Climate Accords and the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal – and by threatening to dump others, like the Iran nuclear deal. He has cast doubt on longstanding US-led alliances like NATO...

Days after Hurricane Harvey hit, Quartz published a fiery article under the title, "Houston’s flooding shows what happens when you ignore science and let developers run rampant." This piece and others like it are pushing a false narrative about Houston's planning. At worst, there's a "They had it coming" undercurrent to some of these stories, one which that implies that the death and destruction from Harvey can be laid at the feet of Texans and their supposed lax, "don't tread on me" attitude toward government regulation. Although this conclusion may be ideologically satisfying, it's simplistic and implies some damaging "solutions."...

Colin Kaepernick spent his Independence Day in a place where many people lost theirs. The former 49ers quarterback posted on social media yesterday about his trip to Ghana, where he visited former slave trading sites as well as touring local villages and a hospital. He posted a short video of the trip, along with the Frederick Douglass quote: “What have I, or those I represent, to do with your national independence?”

Ever since Donald Trump was elected president, California has resembled the busty blonde B-movie actress in a horror film. You know the look. Eyes wide. Red lips parted halfway between a gasp and a scream. Hands frozen in mid-flail. That was the reaction in the scene where President Trump called California “out of control” and said he might have to cut off federal funds. This terrifying prospect has public officials up and down the state looking everywhere for a copy of the U.S. Constitution. It says he can’t do that, right? States have rights. Right? You might think so if...

The U.S. economy appears to be coming apart at the seams. Unemployment remains at nearly ten percent, the highest level in almost 30 years; foreclosures have forced millions of Americans out of their homes; and real incomes have fallen faster and further than at any time since the Great Depression. Many of those laid off fear that the jobs they have lost -- the secure, often unionized, industrial jobs that provided wealth, security, and opportunity -- will never return. They are probably right. And yet a curious thing has happened in the midst of all this misery. The wealthiest Americans,...

This book starts where 1984 left off, and is a chilling tale that seems all too real. Frankly, this Orwellian story ends with Bush in his Fourth term, and if you don't think that is a possibility, then you are a naive member of the DLC or DNC (of which there are far too many). Fascism creeps in on cat's feet sometimes, as it has been encroaching upon our Constitution and civil liberties under four years of the Bush administration. Now, as Bush begins the next four, we will move from Torquemada Ashcroft to the Torturer's Apprentice Gonzales as our...

Are conservatives usually just grumpy people who just plain suck? Well, yes. Yes they are.

The tragedy of this unequal partnership By opting to join the American hard Right, Tony Blair has made the gravest mistake of his political life Will Hutton Sunday March 30, 2003 The Observer Will Hutton argues that, by opting to join the American hard Right, Tony Blair has made the gravest mistake of his political life, one from which he cannot recover. Blair's drawn face, with its deepening gullies set in a near permanent hard frown, tells the story. This is the internationalist who is aiding and abetting, however unintentionally, the break-up of the UN system. The pro-European who is...

US "Pledge" ruling exposes political scoundrels By Bill Vann 28 June 2002 The ruling by a three-judge federal appeals court panel in San Francisco that compelling the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance to “one nation under God” in public schools is unconstitutional has afforded yet another opportunity for America’s politicians to make fools of themselves. The decision did no more than reaffirm the essential right to freedom from government “establishment of religion” and the principle of separation of church and state enshrined in the First Amendment of the US Constitution. “The statement that the United States is a nation...

More Guns for Everyone! By BOB HERBERT May 9, 2002 Let's see. What America needs is more guns in the hands of more people, right? That would almost certainly be the result of a new and potentially tragic initiative by John Ashcroft's Justice Department. In a reversal of federal policy that has stood for more than 60 years, the department told the Supreme Court this week that individual Americans have a constitutional right to own guns. That sound you hear is the National Rifle Association cheering. The N.R.A. has seldom had a better friend in government than Mr. Ashcroft. That...