Free Republic

Law professors John Eastman of Chapman University and Martin Lederman of Georgetown debated the religious implications of ObamaCare’s contraception mandate during a panel discussion at a recent Federalist Society conference. With the passage of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (or RFRA), Congress was “trying to restore a 200-year-old understanding of what the free exercise clause did” for religious conscience. He said, “The First Amendment was not there to protect religions that could only get their accommodations through the majoritarian process.” With religion, “You can challenge the sincerity of religious beliefs but cannot challenge the merits of it” and people “have...

A school district in Chicago’s northwest suburbs is quitting the National School Lunch Program over new regulations championed by first lady Michelle Obama. The so-called Smart Snacks in School policy, set to take effect on July 1, is the latest attempt by our Regulator-in-Chief to dictate every aspect of Americans’ behavior. It dictates strict calorie, sodium, fat, and sugar guidelines for any food sold in schools during the day. That even includes the ubiquitous bake sales and other fundraisers. Instead of forcing the school district’s 500 low income kids and others to eat “healthier,” however, the administration is only creating...

When Texas Gov. Rick Perry signed a sweeping anti-abortion law in 2013, he did so knowing the measure faced an uncertain future. Indeed, the law is already winding its way through the legal system, and if its opponents have their way, Texas's reproductive legal code will land in the hands of the Supreme Court. But such a decision is likely a year or years a way, and back in the Lone Star State, the final judicial score won't much matter. The law has already had tremendous success in closing abortion clinics and restricting abortion access in Texas. And those successes...

Baehr and Will Davis, were summoned to Washington for a meeting with the Postmaster General. Evan and Will wondered what it could be, “They must have seen the recent coverage in CNBC, maybe they’ll help our company expand?” Or, “maybe they wanted the traditional photo opportunity and positive media buzz that political actors care so much about. Surely their company made the Post Office look good, right?” But when the Postmaster General came out to meet them, the stark reality became clear, they weren’t interested in a photo-op. As Evan and Will describe it: “This 30-minute meeting was the end...

Despite being in good financial standing, adult film performers and others in the porn industry have had bank accounts abruptly terminated—and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) may have had something to do with it. Under "Operation Choke Point," the DOJ and its allies are going after legal but subjectively undesirable business ventures by pressuring banks to terminate their bank accounts or refuse their business. The very premise is clearly chilling—the DOJ is coercing private businesses in an attempt to centrally engineer the American marketplace based on it's own politically biased moral judgements. Targeted business categories so far have included...

The clock is ticking for Minnesota's indoor ice rinks. By 2020, the refrigerant chemical now used at half the state's 240 arenas to make ice no longer will be manufactured or imported into the U.S. as part of a global effort aimed at ridding the world of greenhouse gases linked to depletion of the ozone layer. The phaseout of the odorless gas R-22 is expected to be costly for arenas -- most of which are publicly owned -- because of an anticipated rise in its cost. After the deadline, arenas still will be able to use the refrigerant gas for...

Bitcoin is making news again. Angry investors in the virtual currency are joining a class action to recover nearly US$500 million “lost” when Mt. Gox, a Tokyo-based Bitcoin exchange, crashed at the end of February 2014. The collapse of the exchange is reported to be the result of theft by hackers. In another recent story, US magazine Newsweek claims to have tracked down the mysterious founder of the “crypto-currency”, a Mr Nakamoto in California. Bitcoin’s website names “Satoshi Nakamoto” as the currency’s founder but many believe that is a pseudonym. Bitcoin is associated with some high profile criminal investigations, including...

“As a producer of grass-fed beef, I am familiar with some of the difficulties small farmers face when marketing fresh food directly to consumers. Our bills would make it easier for families to buy wholesome milk directly from farmers by reversing the criminalization of dairy farmers who offer raw milk,” said Rep. Massie. “The federal government should not punish farmers for providing customers the foods they want, and states should be free to set their own laws regulating food safety.” Representative Pingree says this legislation supports small farmers. “Many consumers want to buy fresh, unpasteurized milk and regulations shouldn’t get...

If you think you had it hard during these past few cold months, you should talk to a local food truck owner. Winter is tough on sales for any outdoor food service operator, and this past season was particularly nasty. Spring will bring relief but even that will be short-lived as the following summer months drive customers back into air-conditioned bricks and mortar restaurants. "You get into this wash, rinse and repeat," says Jeremy Scott, who owns and operates Tutta, a food truck serving freshly baked pizzas loaded with smoked meats. Scott recently looked at his sales through two of...

Periods of industry-redefining regulatory change are hardly new. What is unprecedented is the volume and relentless pace of regulation. Organizations have to ensure they can implement the system code changes and update operating processes to comply with the welter of new legislation, regulatory initiatives and rule amendments. And they have less time in which to react to those changes. To further complicate matters, the regulations are coming from multiple sources, with no consideration of whether the objectives are complementary or conflicting, and what the cumulative impact will be. Two primary objectives are driving the extensive regulatory agenda: a desire for...

The California Department of Motor Vehicles began Tuesday to puzzle through the complex question of how to regulate cars that rely on computers—not people—to drive them. Once the stuff of science fiction, “driverless cars” could be commercially available by decade’s end. Google already has sent its fleet of Priuses and Lexuses, fitted with an array of sensors, hundreds of thousands of miles in California, and major automakers are testing their own models. …

Promises: Vulnerable Democrats think they've found a winning strategy for the November elections: Tell voters they can fix ObamaCare, but Republicans won't let them. It's a con. ObamaCare is unfixable. 'Joe Garcia is working to fix ObamaCare," says an ad for the Florida House Democrat. "He voted to let you keep your existing health plan and took the White House to task for the disastrous health care website." Of course, Garcia fails to mention ObamaCare is the reason millions lost their health plans to begin with. Or that its problems extend well beyond a glitchy website. But this is the...

Even independently of the Obama administration’s policies, the U.S. energy grid has been undergoing some major shifts in the past few years. As the shale revolution has gained steam and natural gas has become more abundant, the proportion of electricity we get from coal has decreased while the role of viable-substitute natural gas has gotten bigger. Many defenders of the Obama administration’s incoming regulations for new and existing coal-fired power plants point to this ongoing market shift as part of their rationale, arguing that the transition to cleaner-burning natural gas is happening anyway and that all these regulations are just...

The Center for American Progress recently held a panel discussion on the topic of executive agency overreach, which several panelists called “regulatory capture.” Their major problem with executive agencies, such as the Environmental Protection Agency and others, is how regulators in these agencies are influenced by the private industries they are supposed to regulate. Princeton political professor Nolan McCarty said the real issue is semantics, adding that regulatory capture should be called “regulatory capacity.” The Princeton professor said, “We can’t really expect regulators to effectively pursue the public interest.” The current system that has “biased” regulators who oversee private industries,...

As two days of hearings on the future of digital currencies – think Bitcoin – wrapped up Wednesday in the New York State Legislature, fans of the cyber-cash were getting both bad and good news. Supporters who are drawn to Bitcoin because it largely functions outside governmental control may have been dismayed at the attempt to corral the currency inside state guidelines for the handling of money. But, at the same time, say experts, the simple act of enacting regulations bestows the legitimacy the digital currency needs to become widely used. “Most of the folks in this market who are...

UPDATE (29th January, 13:14 GMT): Read CoinDesk’s report on yesterday’s hearing here. You can watch the full video here. Stay tuned to CoinDesk for more updates on today’s hearing, and be sure to follow us on Twitter for live tweets on the proceedings.

The New York Department of Financial Services is shortly to begin its hearing about bitcoin and other digital currencies. Taking place in the 4th Floor Boardroom of 90 Church Street, New York, the hearing is set to begin at 11:30 (EST) today (28th January) and the second session will begin tomorrow at 10:00. A live webcast of the hearings can be found here.

The progressive liberal has shown through their actions and ideology that they seek above all else, control. The very thought of individual enterprise or liberty is anathema to them as it goes against their desire for an all-powerful state to which all citizens owe their allegiance and blind faith. Of course, they'll be the ones ruling as they obviously know what is best for us common peasants. How can we expected to make decisions on our own without their benevolent guidance and wisdom? The left has many weapons in their arsenal against freedom, and one of the most potent is...

Last week, I attended the largest gun and outdoors show in the world; the Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade Show. The annual Las Vegas event is so huge that only those who work in the industry are allowed to attend. The show doesn't receive much mainstream news coverage because the left-wing media doesn't want the public to know how many patriotic Americans are in the gun industry. Attendance increases every year, with 67,000 attending this year. There were 1,600 exhibitors, and over 400 companies were waitlisted. Conservatives have been losing ground in virtually every area in politics except the Second...

When government grows too large, dependency replaces achievementWhen I was in high school in Detroit, I had a job as a biology laboratory assistant. I spent a substantial amount of time in the greenhouse, preparing botany experiments. I had acquired some seeds of an interesting plant and was anxious to use them to produce my own crop of these plants. I planted the seeds in a special container and kept enriching the soil and providing plenty of moisture and sunlight to enhance and accelerate the growth. I was very disappointed with the results and eventually abandoned the project, leaving the...