Free Republic

Lady Elizabeth Butler's painting 'The Remnant of an Army' depicts Dr William Brydon, sole survivor of the British retreat from Kabul in 1842 As both Britain and America are plunged into an orgy of tortured introspection over what we are doing in Afghanistan, a further very important factor needs to be fed into the discussion, because it helps to explain not only why we have got into such a tragic mess but also why our armed intervention in that unhappy country is doomed. What we are hardly ever told about Afghanistan is that it has been for 300 years the...

It’s bad enough that President Obama could not be bothered to attend the celebrations marking the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. But Hillary Clinton’s refusal to even acknowledge the role played by Ronald Reagan in the Wall’s demise as well as the downfall of Communism was highly insulting towards one of the greatest figures of our time, and reeked of petty and partisan mean-spiritedness. The Secretary of State’s remarks yesterday in Berlin completely erased from history the huge contribution played not only by President Reagan but also by the United States in confronting the Soviet Empire....

I received the following email, yesterday, on Facebook. Please note the lovely sentiments expressed by the writer. Isn’t his lack of any bigotry, touching? His grasp of the truth, monumental? James Miller November 8 at 6:50pm i hope all you fake imposter jews have another holocaust and this time they get all of you greedy bloodsucking leechs lol....you have the nerve to call yourselves a chosen race....you were crawling around the caves of Germany and Russia when indigenous nubians and kemetans were ruling the world.....the moors came up to europe for 700 years and brought ur people out of the...

Most thoughtful commentators bemoan the decline of bipartisanship and the coarsening of political discourse in the United States. The president promised to reach out to the opposition and hoped for 80 Senate votes for his stimulus bill. But he disregarded all Republican suggestions for the bill and acquiesced in its Pelosification into a groaning, creaking, Democratic gravy train. I remember, as a very young person, the august comparative tranquillity of the Eisenhower era, when the president requested national air time only for matters of indisputable national interest. He never abused this privilege, and there was no call for equal time....

This past week, Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the LDS Church raised a strong voice of warning in defense of religious freedom... Those who see his talk solely, or even primarily, as a reaction to the Proposition 8 battle in California and its aftermath either have not read the talk or willingly wish to minimize its importance. SNIP It is fair to say that no other religious group in the history of the America has greater standing to rise to the defense of religious liberty than do the Latter-day Saints. SNIP Without meaning...

AP) A Russian court ruled against Josef Stalin's grandson Tuesday in a libel suit over a newspaper article that said the Soviet dictator sent thousands of people to their deaths. A judge at a Moscow district court rejected Yevgeny Dzhugashvili's claim that Novaya Gazeta defamed Stalin in an April article referring to the strongman leader as a "bloodthirsty cannibal." A ruling against Novaya Gazeta would have been seen as an exoneration of Stalin more than 50 years after his death. It would have been a major setback to beleaguered Russian liberals who say the country must acknowledge the truth of...

Historical fiction differs from ordinary fiction in that it is presenting the past, history, in a novelistic format, with characters who ellicit sympathy or antipathy, in the context of a story that ought to be plausible against the known historical record. Monsieur Jacq is an Egyptologist. I can't begin to hold a candle to his knowledge of the reign of Ramses II. But one thing I do know is that the Egyptian evidence is mostly elicited from archaeological evidence, hieroglyphics on walls, papyrus, and from whatever contacts they had with other civilizations. That being the case, I could understand M....

NEW YORK – A government that is constitutionally required to offer each citizen a "useful" job in the farms or industries of the nation. A country whose leadership intercedes to ensure every farmer can sell his product for a good return. A nation that has the power to act against "unfair competition" and monopolies in business. This is not a description of Cuba, communist China, or the USSR until 1991. It's the vision of the future of the U.S, as mandated by a radical new "bill of rights" drawn up and pushed by President Obama's newly confirmed regulatory czar, Cass...

The top-selling Bible in North America will undergo its first revision in 25 years, modernizing the language in some sections and promising to reopen a contentious debate about changing gender terms in the sacred text. The New International Version, the Bible of choice for conservative evangelicals, will be revised to reflect changes in English usage and advances in Biblical scholarship, it was announced Tuesday. The revision is scheduled to be completed late next year and published in 2011.

How Did We Come to This? Robert Benne During last week's biennial Church Wide Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the church affirmed major policy recommendations to allow for the blessing of same-sex unions (which practice will soon inflate to same-sex marriage) and the rostering of gay and lesbian pastors in partnered relationships. Earlier in the week it also passed by one vote—out of over a thousand total votes cast—a Social Statement on Sexuality that admitted there was no consensus on the moral evaluation of homosexual conduct, and offered no compelling biblical or theological reasons to support the...

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Josef Stalin was in the dock on Monday when a Russian court held a preliminary hearing in a libel case brought by his grandson over a newspaper story which said the tyrant had ordered the killings of Soviet citizens. Rights groups say the case shows a creeping attempt in modern Russia to paint a more benevolent picture of the Soviet Union's most feared leader, under whose rule millions perished. Stalin's grandson, Yevgeny Dzhugashvili, is seeking 9.5 million roubles ($299,000) from the Novaya Gazeta newspaper and 500,000 roubles from the author of an article published last April claiming...

This is what appears to anger today's Russian historical establishment: accounts of Red Army crimes on the march to Berlin; assertions by the Baltic countries and others in Eastern Europe that Soviet forces came as occupiers as much as liberators; any suggestion that Stalin's Soviet Union and Nazi Germany were anything but complete opposites and bitter enemies.

The fight over school curriculum in Texas, recently focused on biology, has entered a new arena, with a brewing debate over how much faith belongs in American history classrooms. The Texas Board of Education, which recently approved new science standards that made room for creationist critiques of evolution, is revising the state's social studies curriculum. In early recommendations from outside experts appointed by the board, a divide has opened over how central religious theology should be to the teaching of history. Three reviewers, appointed by social conservatives, have recommended revamping the K-12 curriculum to emphasize the roles of the Bible,...

Just about every American, from the time they're 6 or so, learns that Mount Vernon is Founding Father George Washington's home. They draw pictures of the grand farmhouse in art class. Study it in history. File onto buses and reverently visit the hallowed ground along the Potomac River. And right now, that's Mount Vernon's problem. There's just too much George, according to some international culture experts, who are considering whether the historic estate belongs on the United Nations' list of World Heritage sites. A group advising the U.S. government on getting American sites onto the prestigious list initially rejected Mount...

E-mail Author Author Archive Send to a Friend Version November 11, 2005, 2:18 p.m. War & Responsibility “It is deeply irresponsible to rewrite the history of how that war began.� EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the text of a Veterans Day speech President George W. Bush delivered at Tobyhanna Army Depot, in Pennsylvania, as released by the White House. Thank you all very much. Thank you all for coming, please be seated. Thanks for the warm welcome. I'm glad to be back in Pennsylvania and I'm proud to be the first sitting President to visit Monroe County. (Applause.) I'm especially...

Distorting the facts about the Second World War may well be a prelude to a battle over a land corridor through Poland A dispatch from The Daily Telegraph's Moscow correspondent last week showed that the madness is back, in Russia at least, and with it the determination to abuse and manipulate history. A research official in the Russian defence ministry has published an essay saying that Poland effectively started the Second World War by refusing to accede to Germany's "modest" demands. We may take it that this man's view reflects that of the Russian state; it is certainly widely interpreted...

The Moscow Times » Issue 4161 » Window on Eurasia Moscow Distances Itself from Article Blaming Poland for Starting WWII 05 June 2009 By Paul Goble / Special to The Moscow Times The Defense Ministry said today that an article put on its site a few days ago that has sparked outrage with its suggestion that Poland was to blame for the start of World War II “must not be considered the official point of view of the Defense Ministry.” In a statement to journalists, the ministry’s press service said that the article, “Inventions and Falsifications in the Assessment of...

"With The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Civil War, by H. W. Crocker III, we are presented with the same old Lost Cause rhetoric in a new bag, a Confederate catechism for the 21st century." Here's the one quote Smeltzer pulls off the cover to criticize: "You think you know about the Civil War, but did you know: That the Emancipation Proclamation did not free a single slave?" So, stating that the Emancipation Proclamation didn't free the slaves now automatically gets you labeled as a "Lost Causer." Really? (Follow the link and read the rebuttal)

Beethoven: Revealing His True Identity   In the 15th and 16th century, written history underwent a massive campaign of misinformation and deception. With the European slave trade in full swing, Afrikans were transported to various parts of the world and were stripped of every aspect of their humanity, and in most of western civilization, were no longer considered human. This triggered a wholesale interpretation of history that methodically excluded Afrikans from any respectful mention, other than a legacy of slavery. This can result in being taught, or socialized, from one perspective. In this instance, historical information tends to flow strictly...

TOMSK, Russia: For years, the earth in this Siberian city had been giving up clues: a scrap of clothing, a fragment of bone, a skull with a bullet hole. And so a historian named Boris Trenin made a plea to officials. Would they let him examine secret archives to confirm that there was a mass grave here from Stalin's purges? Would they help him tell the story of the thousands of innocent people who were said to have been carted from a prison to a ravine, shot in the head and tossed over? The answer was no, and Trenin understood...

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 22 (HealthDay News) -- It sounds like science fiction, by scientists say it might one day be possible to erase undesirable memories from the brain, selectively and safely. Using a complex genetic approach, U.S. and Chinese researchers believe they have done just that in mice, but the feat is far from being tested on humans. Study co-author Joe Z. Tsien, co-director of the Brain & Behavior Discovery Institute at the Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, says the "work reveals a molecular mechanism of how [memory deletion] can be done quickly and without doing damage to brain cells." The...

BookTV/C-Span2 HEADSUP!!! Tune in at 11:15 PM EASTERN or set your TIVO/DVD Recorder. FR's own "LS" and his latest work-product (book) will be the topic of a segment on BookTV (45 min. in duration). IF you miss this first broadcast, please go to the BookTV/C-Span2 page linked for future date/time of rebroadcasts.

Among the ways in which freedom is being chipped away in Europe, one of the less obvious is the legislation of memory. More and more countries have laws saying you must remember and describe this or that historical event in a certain way, sometimes on pain of criminal prosecution if you give the wrong answer. What the wrong answer is depends on where you are. In Switzerland, you get prosecuted for saying that the terrible thing that happened to the Armenians in the last years of the Ottoman empire was not a genocide. In Turkey, you get prosecuted for saying...

How the New Capitol Visitor Center Distorts American History by Gina L. DiorioWhile the media trains its cameras on the bailout proceedings on Capitol Hill, another fierce battle is being waged just a few feet away. A battle over our nation’s past, it has profound ramifications for our future. Yet, thanks to the mainstream media’s overwhelming lack of interest in telling the story – or perhaps overwhelming interest that the story not be told – most Americans will never hear it. The clash is over the glaring historical omissions of the soon-to-be-opened Capitol Visitor Center (CVC). The largest undertaking in...

Valdosta State professor pens ‘Bitterly Divided: The South’s Inner Civil War’ Generations of students have been taught that the South lost the Civil War because of the North’s superior industry and population. A new book suggests another reason: Southerners were largely responsible for defeating the Confederacy. In “Bitterly Divided: The South’s Inner Civil War” (New Press, $27.95), historian David Williams of Valdosta State University lays out some tradition-upsetting arguments that might make the granite brow of Jefferson Davis crack on Stone Mountain. “With this book,” wrote Publishers Weekly, “the history of the Civil War will never be the same again.”...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqIlXfkylD4“If I read this to you and did not tell you that it was an FBI agent describing what Americans had done to prisoners in their control, you would most certainly believe this must have been done by Nazis, Soviets in their gulags, or some mad regime - Pol Pot or others - that had no concern for human beings. Sadly, that is not the case.”Sen. Dick Durbin on the Senate Floor

Hi everyone - being a relative newbie, I could yet not resist this one: yesterday I saw 'Unforgiven' by Clint Eastwood for the first time. To start: I found it a stunningly good movie. It's been labelled as 'the very last western', or if you will, a revisionist version of trad western fare. I'd agree with both comments; but at the same time it's not out of step with tradional storytelling. What makes it special for me is the deep humanity in it all. Women of low standing are heroines; Clint stays true to the one woman that once saved...

VILLANOVA, Pennsylvania: As the 60th anniversary of the Berlin Airlift approaches, recycled myths about its accomplishments drop from the sky like candy into the waiting arms of Americans hungry for a foreign policy alternative to endless war and secret torture. But politicians and pundits looking for a humanitarian policy to win the world's hearts and minds should look back to the airlift with caution. Sixty years after British and American planes began to fly supplies to West Berliners facing a Soviet blockade, even the faux news program "Colbert Report" has reprised the Cold War refrain that the airlift saved the...

Excerpt - LITTLE ROCK - The permanent exhibits at the Clinton Presidential Library could be revamped or entirely changed as the landmark dedicated to the former president's time in office approaches its fifth anniversary, the facility's director said Tuesday. Library director Terri Garner said discussions have begun about how best to showcase Bill Clinton's pursuits since leaving office in January 2001. That could include displays about work done by the William J. Clinton Foundation, which focuses on HIV/AIDS prevention and environmental policy. Then there's also the matter of his wife, Hillary, and her own political career in the years since....

Who's an Uncle Tom? By Bruce Walker As the Democrats' nomination process descends into the ugly area of racial politics, it may be helpful to explore and to learn about the origin of some of the equally ugly racial mockeries that have become a part of American political life. The term "Uncle Tom" was used extensively during the decade of civil rights reform to describe a black man who simply did what white people wanted. Where did this term come from? The literary reference, of course, comes from Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin, the passionate and simple anti-slavery novel...

In the days when Moses dictated the law of the land, the five daughters of Zelophephad took issue with the rules of inheritance. The Book of Numbers xxvii recounts how the sisters sought counsel with Moses in front of the congregation of travelling Israelites to demand that the laws be altered to accommodate female succession. This bit of biblical history is often brushed over, as are other feminist aspects of the Old Testament, because for thousands of years men alone have interpreted the Hebrew Scriptures, according to a feminist revision of the text. The Torah: A Women's Commentary re-evaluates the...

The authors of the books discussed in this year’s survey are senior scholars who have distinguished themselves through many years of teaching and lecturing, original contributions to biblical research and proven ability to communicate their learning to the general public. Their recent publications offer reliable and accessible points of entry to important areas within the biblical field. What do today’s biblical scholars do? What should they do? In The Nature of Biblical Criticism (Westminster John Knox), John Barton, professor of the interpretation of holy Scripture at Oxford University, contends that the main task of biblical criticism is to read texts...

Among the latest exploits of the United Methodist Women’s Division is a children’s book intended to instill anti-Israel themes among Methodist younsters. Innocuously called, “From Palestine to Seattle; Becoming Neighbors and Friends,” the booklet portrays Israel as an oppressor of Palestinians while omitting all mention of terrorism. It was written by Mary Davis, a former United Methodist missionary in “Palestine,” where she led “study tours,” whose political content no doubt was predictable. The United Methodist Women’s Division, with over $60 million in assets, $30 million in annual income, and nearly 700,000 members, is one of the most powerful women’s groups...

Biblical hero Joseph 'was really a Muslim' Palestinians make astonishing claim, deny they'll help restore burned tomb -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Building at Joseph's Tomb site after Palestinian Authority took control in 2000 . In the wake of an attempt by Palestinians to burn down Joseph's Tomb – Judaism's third holiest site – Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah faction issued a statement denying it will help restore the shrine, referring to both the shrine and the biblical patriarch as "Muslim." "Pay no attention to the rumors that we will work with Israel to restore the burial site of the holy Muslim Joseph,"...

Stalin (and his ilk) were constantly scrubbing history to fit their agenda. It is said, in fact, that in the USSR, the future was known...it was the past that was always changing. Today's American left are driven by the same impulse, and will use whatever means at their disposal to do the same thing. Fortunately, American liberty prevents them from getting away with as much as Stalin could...though if they had the power afforded them by the totalitarian system to which their core ideology is always slouching, they surely would. Using the three pillars of information dissemination—academia, entertainment, and the...

NBC’s Ann Curry interviewed Mitt Romney on Friday morning's Today on the impact of Benazir Bhutto's assassination, and in a tough interview, she dismissed Ronald Reagan’s foreign policy credentials. When Curry questioned Romney’s foreign policy experience, Romney noted that Reagan "was a governor, not a so-called foreign policy expert." Curry dismissively stated "Reagan was not elected at a time of war." No, Reagan was just elected in an intense point in the Cold War. The Soviets had invaded Afghanistan and U.S. diplomats were still being held hostage in Iran. Romney did say that Reagan was "elected at a time of...

THE leader of the world's Anglicans has described the Christmas story of the three wise men as nothing but a "legend" and has said not all followers must believe in the virgin birth of Jesus. The Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams has picked apart elements of the Christmas story, including how a star rose high in the sky and stood still to guide the wise men to Jesus's birth place. Stars simply don't behave like that, he told the BBC during an interview. Dr Williams said there was little evidence that the three wise men had existed at all....

The Archbishop of Canterbury said yesterday that the Christmas story of the Three Wise Men was nothing but a 'legend'. Dr Rowan Williams has claimed there was little evidence that the Magi even existed and there was certainly nothing to prove there were three of them or that they were kings. Dr Williams argued that the traditional Christmas story was nothing but a 'legend' He said the only reference to the wise men from the East was in Matthew's gospel and the details were very vague. Dr Williams said: "Matthew's gospel says they are astrologers, wise men, priests from somewhere...

In his final days as president, Bill Clinton made an agreement with Independent Counsel Robert Ray to have his law license suspended for five years in lieu of disbarment proceedings by the Arkansas Supreme Court Committee on Professional Conduct. In the past, when a licensed attorney search was conducted for Bill Clinton, the Arkansas Judiciary website has shown the record of disciplinary action against Clinton. In a search conducted today, the information about Clinton's suspension has mysteriously disappeared. Old record: Attorney Record Name: William J. Clinton Address: 15 Old House Lane Address: Chappaqua NY 10514 Date First  Licensed: 09/07/1973     Disciplinary...

Sixty-six years ago- on a cold December 7th morning-I learned that Japanese planes had bombed a place called Pearl Harbor. I was only seven years old at the time, and , like most kids my age, barely knew where Japan was -or Pearl Harbor, for that matter. We would soon learn ! The next four years were lessons in history -taught while it was being lived; geography,and the always shifting landscape of alliances, mis-alliances ,patriotism , and politics. I mention the latter because our political leaders did face (sometimes rancorous) opposition at home - but it was almost always loyal...

Another battle over separation of church and state may be on the horizon with a proposal scheduled to go in front of an Assembly committee Wednesday. The issue? What to call the tree that sits in the State Capitol during the holiday season. Currently the tree is referred to as a "holiday tree," but the resolution that will be brought to the Committee on State Affairs would rename it as the Wisconsin State Christmas Tree. Michael Schoenfield, legislative aide to Rep. Marlin Schneider, D-Wisconsin Rapids, who is sponsoring the resolution, said the state should refer to the tree as a...

An American Legion commander in California says he and other veterans will defy a newly imposed ban on flag-folding recitations that include references to God. During thousands of military burials, Veterans Administration employees and volunteers have folded the American flag 13 times and recited the significance of every fold to survivors. The fourth fold, for example, refers to God's "divine guidance." The 11th fold glorifies "the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob." And the 12th fold glorifies "God the Father, the Son and Holy Ghost." Now the National Cemetery Association has made a decision to ban flag-folding recitations by VA...

The National Park Service has banished God from a key display of America's Christian heritage in Washington, and a California pastor who regularly leads teams of visitors to see markers of the nation's religious history wants Him restored. The reference is an engraving of "LAUS DEO," which is Latin for "Praise be to God," and is on the east side of the 100-ounce aluminum cap of the Washington Monument. Since the actual inscription on the cap, which on the other three sides provides other information, is unviewable atop the 555-foot stone column, the National Park Service has created a replica,...

Head-scratching over Sen. Christopher J. Dodd's presidential aspirations goes on everywhere, even in his own family. In a recent puff piece for the new book, "Letters from Nuremberg," older brother Thomas Dodd Jr. told The New York Times, "I don't know what the thinking is on this thing, but he sure is enjoying it.'' Mr. Dodd shares his name with his father, the late Sen. Thomas Dodd, whose reputation "Nuremburg," edited by Christopher Dodd, seeks to redeem. The book is based on letters the elder Dodd wrote to his wife in 1945 and 1946 while he was a prosecutor at...

Medieval women 'had girl power' Books, songs and legal documents were studied A new study by an academic says that "girl power" was alive and kicking around 600 years ago. Dr Sue Niebrzydowski at Bangor university said medieval women enjoyed a golden era with a greater life expectancy than men. "We found women running priories, commissioning books, taking early package tours to visit the Holy Land," she said. She added women were also defending their property and property rights. Dr Niebrzydowski's research involving middle aged women in the middle ages will be discussed at a conference at the university on...

KENNESAW, Ga.--Is the history of our great nation important to you? Union Gen. William T. Sherman said of Confederate Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest, "After all, I think Forrest as the most remarkable man our 'Civil War' produced on either side." This came from a man who was once a foe of Forrest on the field of battle. Why do some folks attack America's heritage? Several years ago, attempts were made to change the name of Forrest Park in Memphis, Tenn. Now, there are people trying to change the name of Nathan Bedford Forrest High School in Jacksonville, Fla. But was...

At issue is the Establishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which bars the government from favoring any one religion, as it applies to a lone white metal Latin cross in the Mojave National Preserve in southern California between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. In 2004, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a cross on a prominent rock on public land was unconstitutional, prompting Congress to pass a law allowing a trade so its immediate area would become private land. People have been putting crosses in the spot since the 1930s, most recently with one man drilling a...

Mary, full of grace, and Luke 1:28 According to The Catholic Encyclopedia (TCE) under the topic of "Hail Mary" it says, "Hail (Mary) full of grace, the Lord is with thee, blessed art thou amongst women." This embodies the words used by the Angel Gabriel in saluting the Blessed Virgin (Luke, I, 28)." The Roman Catholic Church derives all sorts of teachings concerning Mary from the phrase "full of grace." Two of them are... She was conceived without sin. "...It was fitting that the mother of him in whom 'the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily' should herself be 'full...

Roman Catholics often mention that the Bible never says we are saved by faith alone and that the phrase "faith alone" occurs only once in James where it says that we are not saved by faith alone. If this is so, then why do the Protestants say we are justified by faith alone and not by works? Because the Bible teaches that we are justified by faith alone, and not by works. The following is a list of verses about being saved by faith. Please take note that faith and works are contrasted. In other words, we are saved by...

Pope Benedict XVI has drawn fire from Protestants worldwide for saying in early July of 2007, that they are not part of the “true church.” Protestants have weighed in and the response has included everything from disappointment to anger.