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Melissa mayor mailing resolutions to fellow mayors to stop state from using gas tax funds for non-road projects BY DANNY GALLAGHER, McKinney Courier-Gazette Melissa Mayor David Dorman said he sits in his office everyday and watches as cars zoom down State Highway 121, a road that will soon start collecting tolls from drivers who use it to get to Dallas, McKinney, Frisco or the Dallas North Tollway and back again. Dorman said before that happens, he wants to know the roads his citizens and drivers are paying the state to use will be maintained and built with those funds. “I...

MONTGOMERY The state Senate may have been locked down for most of the year, but it did find time to endorse a widely discredited urban legend spread by the John Birch Society. The upper chamber passed a joint resolution April 10 sponsored by state Sen. Rusty Glover, R-Semmes, claiming that Canada, Mexico and the United States are moving toward a "North American Union" and working on construction of a "NAFTA Superhighway" to link the countries and report edly destroy their sovereignty. "It's about retaining independence," said John McManus, the president of the John Birch Society, in a phone interview Mon...

REFUGIO, Texas - With an abandoned Wild West-vintage town of storefronts slumbering just a block from old US 77, tiny Refugio is a place where myth and reality coexist in a ghostly silence. more stories like this Obama faces heat over aide's NAFTA remarks to Canadians Texas, Ohio could decide Dem nomination Canada says didn't misrepresent Obama over NAFTA McCain tags Dems on trade treaty NAFTA seen differently in Ohio, Texas And now this South Texas outpost is swept up in one of the more intriguing tests of myth vs. reality in today's political life: the battle over the so-called...

Freeper Canteen: Will You Keep Your New Year's Resolution?   Today We Want To Know...If You Will Keep Your New Years Resolution Click here and take the quiz! At the last question, choose HTML, then submit, to get your answer. After you do so, please post your findings in the Canteen!   Have fun! 

A New Year, a new you - that's what most of us like to believe, and it's what all those grim New Year resolutions are about. Lose weight, earn more, get fit, get a new job - all will make you happier. But will they? Or are there more realistic ways to help make 2008 better? Surprisingly, it is possible to approach the question of happiness scientifically: it even has a name - Hedonics, the study of happiness. And now, amid all the cod psychology of self-help books, key points are emerging that may actually make a difference. Here are...

When most of us make resolutions for the new year, we phrase them as "things to do": "I'm going to lose 10 pounds this year," or "I'm going to join a gym (and actually go)." But I'm taking a slightly different tack with my slate of 2008 resolutions. My list includes common mistakes people make when it comes to money - and when I say "people," I definitely include myself. Let's all resolve not to make these blunders in the new year. And make sure you get through the entire list: I've saved the most important point for last. -...

Democrats have introduced resolutions in the House and Senate that would censure President Bush, Vice President Cheney and Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., introduced the censure resolutions in the Senate on Aug. 4; New York Democrat Maurice D. Hinchey introduced them in the House a day later. One resolution (S Res 302, H Res. 625), would censure Bush and Cheney for “misleading the American people” about the need to invade and occupy Iraq, as well as for poor planning and conduct of the war. The other measure (S Res 303, H Res. 626) would censure Bush and...

HotAir has a must see video of Rudy Giuliani talking about the senselessness of non-binding resolutions and what's wrong with Washington from the Mayor's appearance on Lary King Live. In case you haven't seen him make this case in the last few days, this is must see viewing: http://hotair.com/archives/2007/02/14/video-rudy-on-non-binding-resolutions/?s=videoTranscript: GIULIANI: I mean, you can look at the practical and common sense conclusion on that anyway you want. But there's something more important than that. We have a right of free speech in this country and we elect people to make decisions. Here's what I would prefer to see them do,...

I was listening to my colleague Hugh Hewitt's radio show the other when he was interviewing Republican Sen. Norm Coleman from Minnesota. It was nice to hear Sen. Coleman's apparent disdain for the idiotic, meaningless, non-binding Senate resolution complaining about the President's troop surge plan. In fact, here's what Sen. Coleman said to Hugh: [Bottom line is I voted against the resolution that I think is…I’m going to be very blunt…is a pull-out resolution. This isn’t an abandon Iraq resolution. The words don’t exactly say that, but I listened to John Murtha testify, and I listened to the reaction of...

Senator Susan Collins of Maine, who along with John Warner and Chuck Hagel are pushing forward the defeatist Levin-Warner resolution, objects in an interview with Eleanor Clift to the candor that has entered into this debate, and in particular to the assertion that such resolutions embolden the enemy --an observation that general Petraeus and Secretary gates have bothmade. Senator Collins also expands on why she is pushing this "non-binding" resolution, asserting that she hopes the deployment --underway and under the command of the general who designed it and who was unanimously confirmed last week-- would be canceled by the president....

The Washington Post reports at least five Republicans are committed to supporting the Levin-Warner resolution, but this does not square with what has been reported to me, and I won't be trusting the MSM to report this debate fairly. I do not believe that either Norm Coleman or Gordon Smith have declared that they will be voting for the defeatist resolution --rightfully called a "vote of no confidence" by John McCain yesterday-- and the GOP caucus may hold together and kill the resolution in its crib. The seven Republicans up for re-election in 2008 and listed by the Post as...

WASHINGTON - A few senators from President Bush's own party may determine the outcome of an Iraq war vote this week that would deal a blow to him. These Republicans, up for re-election in 2008, are faced with balancing party loyalty against voters' anger at a war that is generally unpopular in their states. On the table is a resolution by Sen. John Warner, R-Va., that would put the Senate on record as opposing President Bush's decision to send 21,500 more troops to Iraq. With Republicans ready to use parliamentary delays that would take 60 votes to force a vote...

Senator John Warner will join what appears to be a unanimous Senate Republican caucus in opposing a Senate vote on his anti-Bush administration resolution, unless competing resolutions are also voted on: "Senator Warner supports the Senate Republican leadership's effort to establish a free and open debate on Iraq on the Senate floor, including possible amendments," a spokesman for the Virginia Republican said yesterday afternoon. Earlier in the day, Mr. Warner told colleagues during a closed-door strategy meeting at the Library of Congress that he opposes the manner in which Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Nevada Democrat, is conducting debate on...

1. I am going to stop automatically assuming all liberals are brain dead. 2. I am going to stop automatically assuming that all pundits with letters after their names (Ph.D.) are totally divorced from reality. After all, statistically speaking, there must be a few who live outside the theoretical world and have had a brush with reality. 3. I am going to stop playing by the arbitrary rules set up by liberals. To wit:

New Years Resolutions Did you make a resolution this year? How's that working for ya so far?:) Perhaps this is the year to take more risks.... Who amongst us does't resolve to lose some weight! (Some say it's all about portion control) Maybe this is the year to look for that perfect new employment opportunity... Or perhaps we could learn more appreciation for the work we have!:) Maybe finally take that cruise you've alway's dreamed about! Of course quitting smoking is always high on the priority list! Maybe this is the year to invest in that new car you've...

NEW YORK - More women make New Year's resolutions, but men are more likely to say they keep them, according to a poll of American adults released on Thursday. Losing weight topped the list of resolutions made by women, while the leading vow among men was to be a better person, according to the poll by WNBC and the Marist Institute for Public Opinion at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, New York. Overall, 44 percent of adults planned to make a resolution, with those under 45 more likely to do so than older adults, the poll said. Forty-six percent of women...

Every Day a New Year by Edward Hudgins Executive Director, The Atlas Society & Objectivist Center http://www.atlassociety.org/ ehudgins@objectivistcenter.org Janus, the Roman god after which the first month of our year is named, had two faces. One looked at the past year and the other looked ahead at the year to come. On New Year's Day in ancient Rome the new magistrates would assume power; we wait until a few days later to swear in ours since politicians hung over from partying would be even less fit for office than they already are. New Year's is traditionally when we reflect upon...

Fellow FReepersPlease post your 2007 New Year's Resolutions below.Yea, I know, some of you don't believe in 'em, etc., but after last year, we do need some change.So, please list them here, no matter what subject or relavance.We can then review them on occasion through the year to see how we're doing.Go for it !!

Link Only-- http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10416938

With each New Year come the same cookie-cutter resolutions: lose weight, get a dream job, be nice to people, make more money, learn a language, get organized, etc. I have decided that, noble though they may be, these resolutions are also officially boring; so this year I’m getting a bit more creative. After all, I’ve already taken up running, keep dreaming about the job, am fairly nice to everyone save dictators and tyrants, have a pathetic income ceiling as a journalist, did the language thing this past year, and have come to realize that over 150 pairs of shoes can...

With each New Year come the same cookie-cutter resolutions: lose weight, get a dream job, be nice to people, make more money, learn a language, get organized, etc. I have decided that, noble though they may be, these resolutions are also officially boring; so this year I’m getting a bit more creative. After all, I’ve already taken up running, keep dreaming about the job, am fairly nice to everyone save dictators and tyrants, have a pathetic income ceiling as a journalist, did the language thing this past year, and have come to realize that over 150 pairs of shoes can...

It's almost 2006, a date that seems like something from a science fiction movie in which men are traveling around on teleporters and making weekend trips to Jupiter. But, no, it's 2006, and most of the day I am still stuck in traffic, especially the traffic in my head. That traffic is thoughts of old times and of how much less time I have left than I did even a few years ago. I've started asking friends what their favorite memories are, what their happiest days were. I get stories of love, of parents' expressing love to children, of romantic...

Some “ Don’t Worry !” Resolutions After much thought, and long hours of agonizing soul-searching – (Oh, all right !) After roughly 30 milliseconds of meditation, I have decided there are at least seven things I am NOT going to worry about in 2006. 1. UFOs and /or the threat of invasion by Wiolawa’s (Don’t ask !) Lizard People. 2. Whether the reunited lovers of Brokeback Mountain will find true happiness – or experience commitment issues. 3. The looming shadow of Zionist world domination . 4. Whether Janet Jackson will get the opportunity to have another “wardrobe mishap”. 5. Whether...

New Year's resolutions are always about doing things, or not doing things. Things like exercising, quitting smoking or otherwise changing your basic daily habits to reach a particular goal. That's why resolutions are so quickly abandoned: They require change. But how about resolving to know things this year? After all, since you were little you looked under the bed and in the closet to make sure the bogeyman wasn't waiting to pounce when the lights went out. Back then you wanted to know, wanted certainty. And there was a warm feeling when you realized there were no dangers lurking. What...

More fruits and vegetables, less meats and sweets. Copy to Ariel Sharon. Don't turn on that television. An hour from now, you'll still be surfing to no clear purpose. "The problem with television isn't sex, or even violence. It's the insidious way it has, when you watch enough of it, of convincing you that life is elsewhere." — Rosemary Graham Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and dull. When you wake up, get up. When with friends, never look at the clock. Look up old friends. Make new ones. Drink more Scotch. For "malt...

NEW YORK -- Ten years ago, Pamela Newman rang in the new year as a waitress. And she swore it would be the last year waiting tables. "I looked around and thought, 'Is this what I want to be doing 10 years from now?'" Newman said. "There was so much I wanted and until that point, I hadn't even thought about how I was going to get there." A decade later, Newman, 35, is where she wants to be. She went from hand-to-mouth living to owning two condominiums in the San Diego area, one of which she rents out, and...

This is an excerpt from the NYT Op Ed page:

The Family Research Council today released a compilation of seven New Year’s resolutions it is recommending for liberals. "I, Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), vow to no longer make false claims that I represent all women." "I, Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean, vow to stop making nasty comments about Republicans, who 'I hate and everything they stand for.'*" "I, Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY), vow to not jump in front of a camera unless I have something of actual substance to say." "I, Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA), vow to stop being a mere puppet of groups like People for the American...

I'm going to quit smoking for the nth time. What resolutions are you making?

George Washington, sometime before the age of 16, transcribed Rules of Civility & Decent Behaviour In Company and Conversation. (Original errors in numbering have been corrected; original spelling is unchanged.)1st Every Action done in Company, ought to be with Some Sign of Respect, to those that are Present. 2d When in Company, put not your Hands to any Part of the Body, not usualy Discovered. 3d Shew Nothing to your Freind that may affright him. 4th In the Presence of Others Sing not to yourself with a humming Noise, nor Drum with your Fingers or Feet. 5th If You Cough,...

In response to repeated requests from White House correspondents, the Bush administration today released a list of the president’s 2006 New Year’s resolutions. Like most Americans’ resolutions, Mr. Bush’s involve weight loss, health, money, relationships and career concerns. The following is the unedited list. “I, George Walker Bush, do resolve to accomplish the following in the year of our Lord, 2006 … – Lose weight: Help the U.S. Senate replace about 1,800 pounds of excess fat with a similar amount of lean muscle. – Exercise more: Specifically exercise my veto power over Congressional spending. – Get Organized: Put liberal Republicans...

In response to repeated requests from White House correspondents, the Bush administration today released a list of the president’s 2006 New Year’s resolutions. Like most Americans’ resolutions, Mr. Bush’s involve weight loss, health, money, relationships and career concerns. The following is the unedited list. “I, George Walker Bush, do resolve to accomplish the following in the year of our Lord, 2006 … – Lose weight: Help the U.S. Senate replace about 1,800 pounds of excess fat with a similar amount of lean muscle. – Exercise more: Specifically exercise my veto power over Congressional spending. – Get Organized: Put liberal Republicans...

Last update - 18:03 16/08/2005 Envoy to UN: Pullout should end UN hostility toward Israel By Reuters The Gaza pullout should mark an end to UN hostility against Israel, UN Ambassador Dan Gillerman said on Monday, urging the world body to support the withdrawal as a historic move toward peace. The comments echoed previous calls by Israel and the United States to halt the litany of anti-Israel resolutions passed by the UN General Assembly each year and dismantle the extensive bureaucracy built up around the Palestinian cause. "It is time for the United Nations to acknowledge Israel's actions," Gillerman told...

Democrat leaders, preparing their rebuttal to the president's speech even before he delivered it, said he should concede he made mistakes as a means to reclaiming credibility on Iraq -- as if they actually want him to have greater credibility. In the same breath they say he lied to get us into war -- an offense so grave that some of them are advocating he be impeached over it. While national Democrat politicians have long been confused over the distinction between intentional wrongs and mistakes -- thanks to Bill Clinton successfully depicting his pre-meditated transgressions as mistakes -- isn't it...

There's something very healthy about this annual ritual of setting goals for the new year. Because without goals, we just don't achieve our objectives. If we don't know where we're going, how can we expect to get there? I've set some personal goals for 2005. Some of them may seem beyond my ability. Some of them may seem too big even for a mass movement to accomplish in the next year or two. Some of them may seem like I'm biting off more than I can chew. I would agree. They are. But, again, without setting goals and objectives, we...

A lot of people make diet and exercise reolutions at this time of year but what about spiritual resolutions? I'm not talking about being more charitable or being "a better person", I'm talking about concrete acts like reading the bible more often or really using that commentary or saying the rosary more frequently. Tell us what your spiritual resolutions are this year (and how well you've done in the past). Give us some motivation and encouragement!

This is New Year’s Eve, a time to reflect back on the year ending—which I’m sure most Christians do with great gratitude. Many of us believe that God was with us in providing political leadership that will continue to support causes we believe so deeply in. And God has seen us through a year of war and international turmoil, a year in which we were spared further terrorist attacks. But New Year’s Eve is also the occasion for looking ahead and making resolutions—resolutions that most of us never keep. Well, I will make mine, and I’m going to do my...

The purpose of FreeRepublic.com's multiple message boards is to limit the topics for each board to particular topics. Posting the same message on all the boards defeats the purpose of multiple-boards for special topics. It is very annoying to see the same message on every bulletin board. PLEASE! DO THE READERS A FAVOR. STOP CROSS-POSTING YOUR MESSAGES!

The UN should be reformed to make intervention in failing states easier, a commission is set to recommend. The panel, which has examined how the UN could respond better to global threats, also calls for the Security Council to be enlarged, the BBC has learned. The report has been called the "biggest make-over" of the UN since 1945. It is thought that if the UN shows greater readiness to act, unilateralism by member states would be less likely. A year ago, in the wake of the international divisions over Iraq, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan warned the UN was at...

UNITED NATIONS (AP) - A U.N. draft resolution on Friday urged warring parties in southern Sudan and western Darfur to reach peace agreements while promising international support and possible debt forgiveness if they do. But the British draft also reiterates that the Security Council will consider "further urgent action" against any party in the Darfur conflict that fails to implement an April ceasefire, protect civilians, cooperate with African Union peacekeepers, disarm militias and prosecute the perpetrators of atrocities. Council members are expected to discuss the draft next week and adopt the resolution during a meeting in Nairobi, Kenya on Nov....

The Prime Minister repeated in Parliament yesterday that the reason for invading Iraq was its persistent failure to abide by UN resolutions. But an important subtext was the evil nature of Saddam Hussein's regime. Referring to the first scientific exhumation of mass graves in Iraq, Tony Blair said that, if the Government's opponents had had their way, "that type of mass murder would still be going on". The human rights dimension of the challenge posed by the Iraqi dictatorship was, on the emotional level, always the most persuasive argument for its removal. Mr Blair used it, though without giving it...

DO-NOTHING SENATORKerry Offered Small Bills, But Little Change___________________________________________“I’ve actually passed 56 individual bills that I’ve personally written. And in addition to that, they’re not always under my name. There’s amendments on certain bills.” (Sen. John Kerry, Third Presidential Debate, Tempe, AZ, 10/13/04)OH REALLY? THE RECORD SHOWS OTHERWISE:Kerry Has “A Short List Of Laws That Bear His Name.”  “Asked what he has accomplished during his 19 years in the Senate, Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry gives a lengthy answer but has a short list of laws that bear his name.” (Nedra Pickler, “Kerry’s Senate Career Marked By Investigations, Not Legislation,” The...

You know that Americans LOVE to give their opinions. We think that our civic duty is to vote and some of us do, but Most of us don’t. However, we think things out, sometimes think we have a better Way to do things in a conservative manner. We ARE The People, You know the ones who give OUR consent to those who govern us. Some of us made our opinions known to the Texas Republican Convention By sending Resolutions up thru the process. If you haven’t read the Texas Republican Party Platform it is quite a strong conservative … if...

So what are you after us about for today?Your New Year's resolutions. Right. Made those about 11 days ago.And how are you doing with them? Broke them about nine days ago.And you feel guilty. Yes. You make resolutions to eat a more healthful diet, get more exercise, quit drinking and smoking . . .And . . . Do you have a light?Don't worry. We are here to make you feel better about yourself. And how do you do that?You take exercise. The resolution was to start running, working out . . . According to researchers in health and exercise science...

<p>A few days ago, it was time to make resolutions for the new year. Now it is time to rue, or rationalize, those already broken. Tempus fugit; resolve weakens.</p> <p>At the end of last week’s edition of Fox News Watch, I asked viewers to e-mail the program not their resolutions, but those they would like the media to make — and not break — in 2004. The response was overwhelming. People who watch television news are resolute in their conviction that journalists need to reform.</p>

Looking back at 2003, it's clear that the United States has made tremendous advances in the War on Terror. Without question, we are safer today than we were that fateful September day two and a half years ago. But last month's thwarted Air France hijacking, and the news of security concerns on flights out of Britain and Mexico, can't help but focus the mind on the fact that the war goes on and the world remains a dangerous place. Terrorism in Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey — not to mention all the pre-empted terrorist attacks that don't make the headlines...

A challenge to Christians for the new year Posted: January 3, 20041:00 a.m. Eastern © 2004 WorldNetDaily.com What's your new year's resolution? It's a question most of us hear for a few weeks following the passage of another year. While we often make futile pledges to alter a personal flaw, it's often done with little resolve and possibly a comprehension that we really don't intend to change when it's all said and done. But a new year is a perfect time to scrutinize our lives and to determine what needs to be amended and addressed in regard to our personal conduct. For...

By any measure, 2003 was a tough year. It ends Orange, and 2004 promises to be as bad or worse. Next year we will enjoy a presidential election that is certain to produce thoughtful speeches, insightful interviews, and cutting debates. Yeah, well, I don't believe it either. But maybe Madeleine the Short is right, and Dubya has bin Laden stashed away somewhere, to be dragged behind his chariot into the convention hall. If that is to be, I only wish I could be in the CBS booth when it happens. I think Dan Rather would cry. Enough idle musing. There...

<p>CRAWFORD, Texas — President Bush said yesterday that his recent decision to ease restrictions on Iran after the country's devastating earthquake does not signal a thaw in U.S. relations with Tehran.</p> <p>While the United States is aiding in humanitarian efforts after last week's earthquake that killed more than 30,000 people, the president said Iran would have to meet several crucial demands before his administration would renew relations with the nation he has dubbed a member of an "axis of evil."</p>

The New Year, like the Christmas Season, always arrives with its own attentive hopes and aspirations. People have always looked to the New Year with the belief that it will bring something better. . . that man, individually or collectively, may have finally reached a point in their cultural and behavioral development where they will have divested themselves of some negative trait. Hence, New Year's resolutions. What do people expect of the New Year? Muriel E. Jones of Prospect Park hopes that people might be more altruistic in the upcoming year and "that we give more of ourselves without necessarily...