Free Republic

FL Copeland, the Smiths Station pastor who was recently exposed as leading a double life as a perverted cross-dressing Instagram model, took his own like earlier this afternoon, according to Lee County Sheriff Jay Jones. It was only two days ago that Copeland stood in front of his church and gave a defiant a non-apology apology to his congregation, insisting: “This will not cause my life to change. This will not waver my devotion to my family, to serving my city, and serving my church… I have nothing to be ashamed of.” Earlier today, law enforcement received a request for...

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is being criticized for his silence about antisemitic violence on the streets of New York that took place this week as pro-Palestinian demonstrators attacked pro-Israel counter-protesters and Jews nearby. As Breitbart News reported Thursday, pro-Palestinian demonstrators scuffled with pro-Israel demonstrators in Times Square, and drove down heavily-Jewish 47th Street in Manhattan, taunting Jews. One pro-Palestinian demonstrator launched a firework at bystanders, reportedly causing burns to a 55-year-old woman. Pro-Israel demonstrators were beaten in the street, and pro-Palestinian demonstrators spat at diners at a local steakhouse. Fox News added that a Jewish man was chased...

Politicians are notorious for making promises they can't keep. But they really outdid themselves in Illinois -- and now the state is paying for it. Illinois is on the verge of becoming America's first state with a junk credit rating. The financial mess is the inevitable result of spending more on pensions and services than the state could afford -- then covering it up with reckless budget tricks. After decades of historic mismanagement, Illinois is now grappling with $15 billion of unpaid bills and an unthinkable quarter-trillion dollars owed to public employees when they retire. The budget crisis has forced...

(SNIP) In many ways they are a traditional family: Cliff and Dave both work, and Britt spends her days looking after Gareth. All three adults settle on the couch at night to watch TV once their son has gone to bed. (SNIP) “The only real difference is that we’re buying food for one more person, and that person sleeps in our bed.” (SNIP) Because of ignorance or outright discrimination, some people just seem to react negatively to poly folk. (SNIP) Britt, Cliff and Dave aren’t 100 percent sure of Gareth’s paternity. They think he might be Cliff’s in a biological...

You might well think that the catastrophic destruction of firearms caused by shooters leaving their cleaning rods inside their guns was a rare occurrence, but you would be wrong. It happens far to often. These photos show what happens when a cleaning rod is left in a .338 Lapua Magnum rifle. A member of the SnipersHide forum reported that this KABOOM happened two benches down from him at the range. The shooter only sustained minor injuries. Two holes were punched in roof and pieces of the rifle were scattered around the range.

Why is Free Republic so slow to load, and when it does, it throws me off and I get the "Cannot connect" message from Windows. And it's NOT just during debates. It's happening all the time now. Is it just MY computer? I know HuffPo is down because of the storm, but FR is out of California. In the 12 years I've been here I've never had so much trouble with this site. Until about a month ago.

On Friday, TomKat jumped the couch. Katie Holmes filed for divorce from Tom Cruise after 5 1/2 years of marriage. Best-selling biographer Andrew Morton, author of "Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography" (St. Martins Press), explains why it was a true Hollywood romance --because from the beginning, Holmes was playing a part. When Tom Cruise turned 42, his best friend, controversial Scientology leader David Miscavige, threw a lavish birthday party, costing an estimated $300,000, on board the church’s cruise ship. He flew in singers, dancers and even Tom’s favorite sushi chefs for the bash, where the actor was serenaded with the...

Thiruvananthapuram • A teacher caned herself repeatedly in front of her students at a school in Kerala the other day, provoking the children who committed an “unpardonable” offence to own up and beg pardon. The 500-odd students who assembled at the Government Model Residential School at Painavu, near Idukki district, on Tuesday, had no inkling of what the headmistrees, Meenakshy Kutty, was about to do. Many knew that the teachers were upset about a theft at school. Some Rs650, which a student had got as prize for participating in a competition, had suddenly gone missing. Meenakshy Kutty briefly referred to...

I just ran through the Windows OS validation download update deal. Upon restart, my mouse driver was gone, my pages no longer open full screen, the way I want them to, and no telling what else it overrode and messed with. I am afraid of what I'll find next. I don't recall doing anything special to get pages to open, big enough to see, when I installed the OS on the new drive, in December, does anyone know what I need to do now? It is only an extra click involved, but not the way I want to do things....

PENNSYLVANIA -- In the final stretch of the statewide primary battle, incumbent Arlen Specter abandoned any rational argument for his own reelection. Instead, he released a barrage of television ads describing the race as "Pat Toomey vs. George W. Bush." Specter spent almost no time on recounting the accomplishments of his 24 years in the Senate, preferring instead to replay Bush's five-minute "Arlen Specter is the right man for the job" endorsement. At one of his last campaign stops Monday, Specter told a small crowd that it was "very important to focus on what President Bush wants." Well -- important...