Free Republic

On July 31, 2013, NBC chief foreign affairs correspondent Andrea Mitchell celebrated her 35th anniversary at the network and was predictably praised by her media colleagues. Calling in to Mitchell´s 1 p.m. ET hour MSNBC show that day, former Nightly News anchor Tom Brokaw listed numerous historic events that occurred the year Mitchell was hired in 1978, concluding: "The biggest story of all, Andrea Mitchell joins NBC News and no one in public life is ever safe again." While that fawning sentiment may have been true for conservatives and Republicans in public life, it was certainly never the case for

There seems to be a general dismissal of the idea among many -- among white liberals and some blacks -- that it doesn't matter if Trayvon threw the first punch, and it doesn't matter if Trayvon was pounding Zimmerman's head into the concrete. ------ The idea that it's impossible that Trayvon threw the first punch, or was pounding Zimmerman into the concrete, is so stupid and ignorant I can safely dismiss it as a not a genuine belief at all, but merely something claimed publicly for convenience. Which leads me to the other possibility -- that those who want Zimmerman...

Why did the Trayvon Martin-George Zimmerman case become a national obsession? After all, about 14,000 murders take place every year in America. In Chicago alone, murders are on pace to reach around 400, down 27 percent from last year but on par with 2011. In 2012, only 26 percent of homicides were "cleared," meaning the case was closed, with or without the killer being arrested or charged. That Martin, a black person, was killed by Zimmerman, described as a white Hispanic, is rare. Most homicides are same-race crimes. Most black killers kill other blacks. Most white killers kill other whites....

One reason Congress isn't popular is because it reeks of hypocrisy...and Jim McDermott stinks. Though we might disagree on issues, voters generally respect politicians who take principled stands. McDermott seems to be principled, but on the issue of profiling, the emperor of Washington's 7th Congressional District has no clothes. McDermott requested that the FBI's "Faces of Global Terrorism" posters be removed from Seattle buses, arguing that they could cause racial and religious profiling. The "faces" were of known terrorists from regions as disparate as the U.S., the Philippines, Malaysia, Africa, and Chechnya. One could argue McDermott's point while respecting his...

Fox News’ Catherine Herridge is reporting today that the FBI has not ruled out the possibility of a third party involved in the Boston Marathon terrorist bombing. Evidence that the two bombs were detonated not by a cell phone but by parts ripped from a toy car remote control suggest that whoever triggered the explosions had to have been in the line of sight of the bombs.

Comments described as 'potential major warning' of Obama's intent A forensic profiler who worked on the disappearance of Natalie Holloway and the double-murder case against O.J. Simpson says he is becoming alarmed by some of the references President Obama is using. Andrew G. Hodges, M.D., who wrote “The Obama Confession: Secret Fear, Secret Fury,” previously said Obama’s statement “I am not a dictator” actually meant, “I am the dictator president.”

President Obama's grassroots campaign organization is pressing supporters to switch out their Facebook profile picture with a black and white gun control sign. Organizing for America is distributing the digital signs that read: "I am one of the 92 percent of Americans who support universal background checks." In an email, OFA said, "There's another simple thing you can do right now to show the overwhelming support for universal background checks: Take this sign and put it somewhere folks will see it -- in your window, on your desk, or maybe upload it as your Facebook profile picture."

Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio has had a growing reputation as a very spiritual man with a talent for pastoral leadership serving in a region with the largest number of the world’s Catholics. Since 1998, he has been archbishop of Buenos Aires, where his style is low-key and close to the people. He rides the bus, visits the poor, lives in a simple apartment and cooks his own meals. To many in Buenos Aires, he is known simply as “Father Jorge.” He also has created new parishes, restructured the administrative offices, led pro-life initiatives and started new pastoral programs, such as...

Brandon Milton’s crime might have been minor compared with the hundreds of murders and shootings in Chicago every year. .........p>....The effort springs from a Yale University sociologist’s finding that these “hot people” are far more likely, as a result of those social ties, to become a victim or perpetrator of deadly violence themselves.........Each person on the heat list is given a number — a heat index — rating how likely it’s deemed that person will be involved in a murder.Starting this past summer, McCarthy doubled the number of officers in the fugitive unit — in part to focus on these...

SENSE OF ENTITLEMENT Narcissists easily shift blame ✦ A sense of superiority places them above others ✦ Must be the center of attention, constantly seeking approval, acknowledgment, kudos, accolades, praise ✦ Act like they are the lead character in all things in life ✦ Dominate conversations because they believe they have the only worthwhile things to say ✦ Want others to give into their demands, request for favors, and put their needs first ✦ Have inflated egos, inflated sense of entitlement, inflated sense of importance, inflated need to be center stage ✦ Envious of other people’s accomplishments and will steal,...

While Glenn Beck has been keeping a comparatively low profile since his meteoric rise on Fox News in 2009, but that doesn’t mean he’s doing all that badly– in fact, he’s doing better than ever before in terms of income– and better than any other political celebrity. Forbes‘ Power 100 reveals today that, while in overall ranking including influence in the media, Beck is in 23rd place, he outshines Rush Limbaugh, Donald Trump and Alec Baldwin in the income department. RELATED: Glenn Beck, Forbes Cover Boy, Made $32 Million Last Year Politico‘s Dylan Byers took a look at the rankings...

Profiles of Michele Bachmann have been plentiful since the congresswoman became a legitimate contender for the Republican presidential nomination. And now, in the latest issue of The New Yorker, Ryan Lizza delivers a "terrific" and "disturbing" look at Bachmann's worldview, intellectual influences, and life history. Granted unprecedented access to Bachmann and her campaign, Lizza explores the roots of Bachmann's beliefs. Here, six of The New Yorker's best revelations: 1. Bachmann's beliefs were shaped by an evangelical filmmaker Bachmann calls the film series How Should We Then Live? by Francis Schaeffer — who was very influential in the 1970s and '80s...

"I can't trust the current government," and "I'm a sleepwalker," Jared Lee Loughner proclaimed in an Internet video before the shooting of a federal judge, congresswoman and others... His rambling videos had already caused him trouble at school, scaring his community college into suspending him in September. SNIP Pima Community College...issued a statement identifying Loughner as the suspect. It said he was...suspended Sept. 29 for conduct violations. It said he agreed to withdrew from the college on Oct. 4. ...Loughner had five contacts with college police for disrupting classrooms and the library. It said he was prohibited from returning to...

Partiality, favoring one thing over another, is seen in many aspects of life. Common expressions lend themselves to this: the teacher’s pet, the star player, and the best friend. We choose filet mignon over liver, mountains over plains, and trucks over VW bugs. Certainly, in life we have to make judgments. Assuming these choices are acceptable, are there times when partiality is not acceptable? Taking this question further, could profiling be considered a form of partiality? One object is given closer scrutiny than another under profiling. To be clear, I have no problem profiling terrorists or criminals. The facts are...

This image provided by the Mauthnomah County Sheriff's Office shows Mohamed Osman Mohamud, 19, arrested and charged with attempted use of aweapon of mass destruction. Officials say he tried to detonate a vehicle bomb at Pioneer Courthouse Squareduring the tree lighting ceremony Friday, Nov. 26, 2010. They said the bomb was a dummy that FBI agents supplied him. (AP Photo/Mauthnomah County Sheriff's Office) (AP) Are all those from Somalia terrorists? No. From Yemen? Saudi Arabia? Pakistan? No. Are all Muslims? No. But there certainly is a pattern and a profile to look out for here: Federal agents in a sting...

Concerned about the disenfranchising effects of the economic downturn, large numbers of returning combat veterans, election of first African American president, and a perception that gun control laws will soon be strengthened, Janet Napolitano’s Department of Homeland Security issued a report alerting law enforcement agencies of potential threats posed by “rightwing extremists”...

With the holidays fast approaching, the Transportation Safety Agency has announced new security procedures requiring passengers selected for secondary screening to go through a machine that produces a full body scan producing a nude but grainy, black and white image. Passengers choosing to opt out of the scan will face a full body pat. The head of Homeland Security has indicated the government is considering the request of an Islamic organization that has suggested Muslim women be allowed to pat themselves down during a full body search that is part of new enhanced procedures at airports.

Pamela Geller had had enough. The right-wing blogger, whose vehement opposition to the planned Islamic community center near Ground Zero (a "mega-mosque," in her parlance) has earned Geller national headlines, rose from her seat at a Midtown diner last week and, fed up with the line of questioning, stormed out of a Jewish Week interview. "Shame on you," she shouted, "shame on you." "Stop slamming the good guys." ................................................... The sense of drama seems in part to define Geller, who can be seen on the Internet frolicking in a bikini and posing in a skin-tight Superwoman outfit. Her blog "Atlas...

I profile my daughter's dates. I profile my children's friends. I profile my band mates and employees. I profile the fruit I am about to purchase. I profile the sky in order to ascertain my potential need for rain gear. I profile the cleanliness of dining establishments and smiling all the way, I profile the general public as I pleasantly stroll the not-so-mean streets of America. Conditional and environmental awareness is a powerful survival tool. Write that down. Failing to profile based on one's life experiences is to abandon man's basic instinct to learn through trial and error. Such trials,...

FYI EVERYONE: There's a site called spokeo.com which is an online phone book that has name, address, phone number, credit score, income, profession, age, how many people live in the house, their names, price of house, etc, etc. Remove yourself by the Privacy button on the bottom right. They will send you an email,,and you can then 'delist' yourself with the info sent. CUT, PASTE AND REPOST! Look on the very bottom for the Privacy button.50 minutes ago clear