Free Republic

A biological medication already widely used to treat plaque psoriasis may be able to slow the accumulation of amyloid plaques in the brain that are the hallmark of Alzheimer's disease, a new study has found. The same study found that in older mice with established Alzheimer's, this treatment approach, which suppresses the brain's immune reaction to beta amyloid, brought a marked improvement in cognitive function and may even halt or reverse early signs of Alzheimer's. The new study was published this week in the journal Nature Medicine. Conducted by researchers in Switzerland and Germany, the study offers a glimmer of...

Frosty the Snowman is there — and so is Santa Claus. But the Baby Jesus is stuffed inside a closet at Cottondale Elementary School — leaving many residents of this small town in the Florida panhandle outraged. The Nativity scene had been a part of the school’s holiday lawn decorations for years. But this year the yuletide display is strictly secular. Principal Brenda Jones told television station WJHG the decision to keep Baby Jesus in the closet came after an official with the Dept. of Education dropped by to discuss the separation of church and state. “The Dept. of Education...

~~Come on in and shoot the breeze~~ Gun Talk Radio 12/2/12~~07:00 CST Listen to the podcast Here Or the KIDO 580 stream Here

Astronaut Koichi Wakata and an artist's impression of the robot Photo: EPA The 13-inch android is scheduled to be completed by next summer and will be sent to the orbiting ISS shortly before astronaut Koichi Wakata arrives, according to officials of the Kibo Robot Project. Currently being developed by a consortium of companies, including Toyota, Robo Garage Co. and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, the robot will weigh around 2.2lbs and be able to recognise Wakata's facial features. It will then have the ability to communicate with the astronaut in Japanese and take photographs during their stay on the...

It’s no surprise that Ralph Nader isn’t a fan of former President George W. Bush. After all, the longtime activist ran against him in both 2000 and 2004. But Nader’s even less a fan of President Barack Obama, if only because he thinks Obama was capable of so much more. On issues related to the military and foreign policy, Obama’s worse than Bush, “in the sense that he’s more aggressive, more illegal worldwide,” Nader told POLITICO, going so far as to call Obama a “war criminal.” “He’s gone beyond George W. Bush in drones, for example. He thinks the world...

“He’s gone beyond George W. Bush in drones, for example. He thinks the world is his plate, that national sovereignties mean nothing, drones can go anywhere.”

NEW ORLEANS - The Quicky's convenience store in Mid-City takes its parking lot rules seriously. Very seriously. About 4 p.m. Friday, New Orleans paramedics rushed inside the store for a man with a life-threatening medical issue. They worked on the patient with chest pain, put him inside the vehicle, then started to speed off. The paramedics “heard a loud noise,” and the vehicle came to a screeching halt, according to Jeb Tate, spokesman for New Orleans Emergency Medical Services. The medics stepped out and found a boot on their ambulance. Convenience store employees allegedly put a restrictive parking boot on...

President Obama is once again in disengagement mode. The first family has scheduled another vacation – for three weeks, beginning Dec. 17. This in and of itself doesn’t bother me. Presidents are entitled to take vacations – even presidents who spend more time on the golf course than they do in the Oval Office. I don’t even begrudge him the disruption he’ll be causing his constituents. According to the Hawaii Reporter, the Obamas’ vacation will hugely restrict the comings and goings of the residents living in the upscale Oahu neighborhood, where they’ll be staying. Streets will be barricaded and, unlike...

Howie thread for the week starting with his Sunday Boston Herald column

Conservative talk host Laura Ingraham expects to be back on the air “in the next several days.” When she does return, the program may be unfamiliar to some listeners. She’s not offering many specifics, but in an interview with a Houston station, Ingraham hints it will be more of an entertainment-based show than what’s she’s done for the past 11 years. “It’s time for a new show and it’s time for a new focus that really embraces the culture and expands the conservative reach,” Ingraham told KSEV host Edd Hendee during an appearance yesterday on his morning show. Ingraham thinks...

BUCKWILDIn just a few weeks, it will be time to pack up the beach towels, tanning oils, and tanning oils and say goodbye to Jersey Shore for good. How will you fill your Thursday nights at 10 p.m.? MTV is hoping to hit pay dirt (mud?) several hundred miles southwest of New Jersey with Buckwild, a new reality series about nine young-adult friends in small-town West Virginia who say they are living by the motto, “Whatever happens, happens.” And what seems to be happening is a lot of riding down hills inside giant tires, driving trucks dangerously through mud, tearing...

Alabama Wins SEC Title, Will Face Notre Dame Next (Beat Georgia 32-28) Alabama running back Eddie Lacy scores on a 41-yard touchdown run as he is chased by Georgia's Shawn Williams during the second quarter. (John David Mercer-USA TODAY Photo / December 1, 2012) Brian Hamilton Tribune reporter6:53 p.m. CST, December 1, 2012 ATLANTA -- Notre Dame, the Tide rolls for thee.Alabama rallied twice in the second half to down Georgia 32-28 in the SEC Championship game at the Georgia Dome on Saturday, all but assuredly earning a shot at the No. 1 Irish in the BCS title tilt on...

Sick and tired of a burglar stealing packages from homes in her neighborhood, a San Francisco woman took matters into her own hands on Tuesday, according to the Daily Mail. Luring the thief with a dummy package, Sonya Yu sprayed him with bear repellent and threatened him with a wooden sword, chasing him away. Minutes later, the alleged burglar, Andy Anduha, 51, was apprehended by law enforcement. Protect your home from theft this holiday season Yu, a photographer, recounted the entire incident on her Twitter account as events unfolded. Yu informed her followers that several items had been stolen by...

Television celebrity Kim Kardashian brought out screaming fans, angry Muslim hardliners and police throwing stun grenades on Saturday when she visited Bahrain to launch a milkshake franchise, witnesses said. About 100 Sunni Salafists demonstrated with banners outside The Walk Bahrain, an upmarket mall in the capital Manama, after some MPs tried to block the visit over what they called her "bad reputation", according to a local newspaper. Thousands of fans, who had paid up to 500 Bahraini dinars ($1,360) a ticket, broke into hysterical screams as the 32-year-old celebrity launched the Millions of Milkshakes franchise inside the mall.

The principal of at a high school in Mesa, Arizona violated policy when he required two boys who were fighting to hold hands in front of other students, according to a report on azcentral.com. Tim Richard, principal at Westwood High School, has not been reprimanded but has met with Mesa Public School officials, who advised him not to speak to the media about the incident, according to the article posted on Friday. …

It looks like the Iranian Navy really wanted people to see its new submarine. In a live broadcast on state TV on Wednesday, the Islamic Republic showed off a new Sina 7 submarine that is painted in an unusually bright turquoise blue hue...

It's not the first time we've heard fantastical news from North Korea's state news agency. And if you thought the "peculiar natural wonders" would be buried along with the Dear Leader, my were you mistaken. Today, the Korean Central News Agency said that archaeologists from the History Institute of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea "reconfirmed" the "lair of a unicorn" that was ridden by King Tongmyong. Via the Japan-based Korean News Agency, which distributes KCNA news, here's a bit more of the breaking development: "The lair is located 200 meters from the Yongmyong Temple in Moran Hill in Pyongyang...

Homeland Security to deploy underwater drones that mimic tuna fish With even gossip magazines being (falsely) accused of wanting to deploy aerial drones, it seems like the only place you might be able to escape robotic scrutiny would be somewhere far off at sea. Turns out: not true. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has funded a new underwater robot that can find you even in your underwater lair. The BIOSwimmer was developed by Boston Engineering Corporation's Advanced Systems Group (ASG) as an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) modeled after the shape and swimming mechanics of a tuna fish. According to...

Double-barrel 1911 lands ATF approval, importation to begin next year The ATF has given Arsenal the green light to import their double-barreled, double-everything 1911. Arsenal turned a lot of heads a few months back when they announced their truly unique handgun, the AF2011-A1, but many assumed that the gun would never wind up for sale in the U.S., because it fires two cartridges with one pull of the trigger, making it a machine gun according to federal law. Arsenal maintained that their double trigger design, and matching pair of sears and hammers, would not raise the hackles of the gatekeepers...

Directly electing the European Commission President at the 2014 EU elections would “organize the disappointment in advance”, said European Council President Herman Van Rompuy. Directly electing his own successor would be “even more absurd”, he added in comments that are likely to irritate proponents of increased democracy in the European institutions. Van Rompuy’s statement, made at a public conference in Brussels on Wednesday (28 November), runs in direct opposition with the EU’s major political families, who in their majority, would like to “give faces” to the next European elections in May 2014. But Van Rompuy warned that the “huge legitimacy”...