Free Republic

Cody Hudson was interning in a medical office near his home in Florida, taking a gap year before beginning college in Arizona, when the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns went into effect and ended his internship. Like many American families, Cody and his family took the recommended precautions around COVID-19. But when the vaccines became available, his parents were skeptical, Cody told The Defender in an interview. As he began planning for college and started a short-term job at a coffee shop where everyone was vaccinated, Cody started researching the vaccine online and talking to people around him. He concluded the vaccine...

one of the more bizarre moments at the Covid Inquiry so far, Professor Neil Ferguson, the architect of Britain’s lockdown, today denied ever calling for the first national stay-at-home order – in the latest instance of lockdown backpedalling. The Mail has more. Professor Neil Ferguson’s terrifying March 2020 models warned that 500,000 Brits would die unless tougher action was taken to curb the virus’s spread. It spooked Boris Johnson into adopting draconian restrictions that saw the country told they “must stay at home.” Vaccines — considered the only safe route out of the pandemic — were still months away from...

Early in March 2020, I decided to write about the risks posed by COVID-19. I have no background in epidemiology or even health journalism, but I can multiply, divide and make charts, and was frustrated with the lack of quantification in most reporting and public health messaging on what was soon to be declared a pandemic. In the resulting column, I took what seemed to be the most authoritative estimate of COVID’s per-infection fatality rate – 1% – and noted that this was about 10 times the 0.1% fatality rate of seasonal influenza, then conservatively multiplied a Centers for Disease...

The Evangelical Free Church of America is the orthodox version of the credobaptist tradition stemming from Swede immigrants to the United States whereas the Evangelical Covenant Church has embraced liberalism. However the powers that be at the top echelons of the organization are extremely liberal and vindictive. After defrocking Pastor Jeff Kliewer, the pastor of Cornerstone Church in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, they have their sights on a new target: Pastor David Whitney. His crimes stem from his refusal to shut down his church during lockdowns. In the small town of Taneytown, MD, a Republican organization, the Tri-District Republican Club...

On Wednesday, Attorney Bobbie Ann Cox faced off against the New York State Attorney General to defend her victory over New York Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York Department of Health (DOH) in the epic lawsuit Borrello v. Hohul. The case resulted in the New York State Supreme Court in Cattaragugus County striking down Hochul’s unconstitutional “Isolation and Quarantine Procedures” that allowed them to illegally lock citizens up, or lock them down, without any proof of illness and without any due process. The State Attorney appealed the decision. Cox presented her oral arguments in front of the Appellate Division’s...

The last three men to stand trial in connection with a plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer have been found not guilty on all counts.Eric Molitor and twin brothers William Null and Michael Null were among the 14 men charged in state and federal court over the alleged plan to kidnap the governor at her vacation home in Antrim County in 2020, largely over the Democratic governor's strict COVID-19 shutdowns.Molitor, 39, and the Null brothers, both 41, had pleaded not guilty to state charges of providing material support for terrorist acts and illegally possessing firearms.

A federal appeals court has agreed with a lower court that the Biden administration likely can be proven to have pressured Big Tech to censor Americans whose views did not align with the Democrat talking points. And the result is that leftists en masse are trying to deny it, a sentiment expressed by the White House, which stated, “This administration has promoted responsible actions to protect public health, safety, and security when confronted by challenges like a deadly pandemic and foreign attacks on our elections. Our consistent view remains that social media platforms have a critical responsibility to take account...

Esparto High School near Sacramento confirmed it canceled a game after it said six players tested positive for COVID-19. Two California high schools have confirmed that they canceled football games because of COVID-19 cases among students. Esparto High School near Sacramento confirmed that it canceled a game after it stated that six players tested positive for COVID-19. It also stated that multiple players were also injured and that it didn't have enough players for a game. This comes as there have been concerns that virus-related rules might be reimplemented in the coming months. ... Hundreds of miles away, a high...

Former President Donald Trump responded to questions about why he did not terminate the employment of former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director Anthony Fauci amid the early onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.During an interview with radio host Hugh Hewitt, President Trump was asked about Dr. Fauci, who had been on the Trump pandemic response force, in 2020. "First of all, you’re not allowed," the former president said when asked why he didn't fire him, which Mr. Hewitt said was the "biggest knock" on his presidency."No, no, no, Dr. Fauci was there. First of all, he’s civil service,...

Are the gloves starting to come off? If a recent post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, is any indication, high-profile Republicans and conservatives are starting to attack former President Donald Trump over his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic while he was in office. Advertisement Even before the primary season began in earnest, many speculated that his support of lockdown orders and vaccines could become his Achilles heel. But so far, few on the right have raised the issue as they have been hesitant to attack Trump directly. Things appear to be changing, as Georgia Gov....

Public health officials’ efforts to protect citizens from COVID-19 infection and avert death may have backfired, a new study published in Health Economics suggests. What’s more, the efforts could be linked to excess deaths. Mandatory masking and social distancing became everyday directives for millions worldwide when the COVID-19 virus exploded onto the scene in 2020. Shelter-in-place (SIP) or stay-at-home orders quickly followed despite evidence supporting the protocol remaining mixed. Now, a cross-collaborative team of scientists from California, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts is expressing confidence based on results from rigorous research examining whether stay-at-home orders may not have been as effective...

everyone is running from the lockdowns they once supported, and that includes former presidents and governors, and probably mayors too. Apologies would be better so we can at least have an honest accounting rather than an attempt to rewrite the history that everyone knows. Jack Phillips of Epoch Times alerts readers in his article of August 31, 2023, of Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds’ recent statement on the subject of lockdowns. The Iowa State Government’s website says the following: “Since news broke of COVID-19 restrictions being reinstated at some colleges and businesses across the U.S., concerned Iowans have been calling my...

Toll Aviation has signed a deal to bring a new AI-based uncrewed aerial system (UAS) to Australia. V-BAT, made by US-based company Shield AI, is a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) UAS that its manufacturer says can meet “a broad array of civil and defence mission requirements” through its capacity for multi-mission payload sets.

National Public Radio was in a frenzy the other morning but it felt like the movie Groundhog Day: they were spreading tremendous alarm about the rise of Covid cases. We have to stop the spread, the announcer said, and that’s why masks are coming back to classrooms. However, they added, relief is on the way in the form of a new vaccine. Rinse, repeat — as the shampoo bottles say. This line of thinking — stop the spread to reduce strain on hospitals, mask up, and so on — is being echoed by all major media organs. Leading the way...

National Public Radio was in a frenzy the other morning but it felt like the movie Groundhog Day: they were spreading tremendous alarm about the rise of Covid cases. We have to stop the spread, the announcer said, and that’s why masks are coming back to classrooms. However, they added, relief is on the way in the form of a new vaccine. Rinse, repeat — as the shampoo bottles say. This line of thinking — stop the spread to reduce strain on hospitals, mask up, and so on — is being echoed by all major media organs. Leading the way...

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) — COVID-19’s meteoric rise to a global pandemic left countries, states and cities scrambling to fight the virus. Mask mandates and lockdowns became a new normal as schools and businesses learned how to operate in a seemingly alien world. Largely, the world returned to normal following the rollout of vaccines, but with cases rising again nationally, could we return to those lockdowns and mandates in any capacity? “I think we learned a lot from lockdown previously, and if I had to guess today I would say that we’re not heading toward a lockdown,” said Dr. Thomas...

The Scandinavian country suffered fewer excess deaths and far less economic and social damage than other rich countries that had more restrictive pandemic policies.The reigning narrative of Sweden during the pandemic is that the Swedish government took a brazenly hands-off approach to COVID-19—and suffered mass, avoidable deaths as a result. During the spring and summer of 2020, Sweden bucked the international trend by not issuing emergency stay-at-home orders, mask mandates, or school closures. With the exception of restrictions on nursing home visits and large gatherings, the country stayed open during that time. The concurrent spike in COVID deaths it experienced,...

Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo harshly criticized COVID-19 mask mandates and lockdowns, and urged people to consider "refusing to participate." "What do you call re-imposing mask policies that have been proven ineffective or restarting lockdowns that are known to cause harm? You don't call it sanity," Dr. Ladapo posted last week on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. "These terrible policies only work with your cooperation. How about refusing to participate…" Some schools and companies are implementing mask mandates amid a rise in COVID-19 hospitalizations, even though some peer-reviewed research has suggested that face coverings may cause...

Anthony Fauci has reemerged from retirement and urged the Biden administration to implement a “strict lockdown” this winter for all unvaccinated Americans.The disgraced government bureaucrat appeared at a university virtual event recently titled, “Pandemic Lessons and Role of Faculty in Pandemic Preparedness with Dr. Anthony Fauci.”During the appearance Fauci made it clear that he supports locking down and punishing those in society who are not yet vaccinated.Fauci falsely claimed that New York City was overrun and had “cooler trucks outside because they had no places to put the bodies.”“You had to have something to immediately shut down the tsunami of...

No! I will not comply. Here are the reasons why… The COVID crisis was something I will never forget. We did *ACTUAL* journalism through the entire thing. We attempted to get information about lifesaving treatment to people. We informed readers EARLY of the shot. On April 3, 2020, we sounded the alarm about giving up our liberty in the face of fear. It was very controversial at the time. We hope that it doesn’t remain so and that we never do this again. On March 20, 2020, I wrote this column explaining why Italy was ravaged by COVID. It wasn’t...