Free Republic

As we initiate new military action in another Arab country (Libya), we must question and demand answers from this administration about the goals of the mission. How realistic are the chances for success? What is the true risk to our military personnel and what exit strategy is in place?

Congressman, Wake Up Mr, or Ms, Freshman (or any Congressman seeking tea party support): Please Vote against the Continuing Resolution. The eyes of the Tea Party are watching. The Continuing Resolution is a Democrat Trojan Horse that contains $105 BILLION life support for Obamacare. Mr. Congressman, don’t get fooled by the laid back Republicans who don’t see this as a golden opportunity. This is your chance. Don’t blow it. Pay attention to Michele Bachmann. Forget about Boehner. It will take courage. Do you have the right stuff? Don’t fall under the spell of the go-along, get-along crowd. You were sent...

California Reapportionment A call to arms, CALIFORNIA REPUBLICANS! Are you interested in California Reapportionment? You’d better be. The latest issue of The American Spectator has an article by Grover Norquist on page 52 titled “The Battle Moves to the States.” Near the end of his piece, Norquist comments: Perhaps the most important task for state-level Republicans will be redistricting.In California, reapportionment is being done by a committee consisting of five state senators, three liberal Democrats, and two apparently conservative Republicans. California has 53 Congressional Districts. The Democrats could, feasibly, put 20 districts in Los Angeles, 10 in San Francisco, 3...

The terrible violence in Arizona last weekend prompted much national discussion on many issues. All Americans are united in their sympathies for the victims and their families. All wonder what could motivate such a horrible act. However, some have attempted to use this tragedy to discredit philosophical adversaries or score political points. This sort of opportunism is simply despicable. We are fortunate to live in a society where violence is universally denounced. Not one public official or commentator has attempted to justify this reprehensible act, yet the newspapers, internet, and airwaves are full of people trying to claim it was...

I am pleased that the Constitution has received a lot of attention in recent weeks, thanks to the tea party movement. The 112th Congress kicked off with a reading of the Constitution on the floor of the House. It goes without saying that Members of Congress should have read the Constitution many times, and should continue to study it. Citing the particular clause of the Constitution that authorizes newly introduced legislation is a reasonable suggestion, yet in reality it will do little to restrain unconstitutional growth of the federal government. We have had such rules in the past and no...

In the 1980’s the United States funded Iraq’s Saddam Hussein yet considered Palestine’s Yasser Arafat and Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi terrorists. And they were. But so was Saddam, who at that time was terrorizing his own people, gassing Iraqi Kurds while receiving America’s financial and political support. In the 1990’s, the US declared Hussein a menace and we apparently changed our mind about Arafat, who was even invited to the White House to shake hands with Bill Clinton. In the 2000’s George W. Bush went back to calling Arafat a terrorist, went to war with Saddam, who we also began calling...

State of the Union speeches are sort of like listening to cheating husbands apologize to their wives. Not only are we told that any past mistakes are yesterday’s news and the worst is behind us, but in an effort to show how things will be different we are given a laundry list of promises that paint a rosier future. Nobody paints rhetorically better than Obama and the smooth talking president’s oratory skills were on full display this week-just as they likely will be next year when things won’t have substantively changed one bit. The most significant change Tuesday night was...

Consider first a static economy, with no inflation, no population growth, and stable wages. Under these conditions the rate of return for a pay as you go system is exactly zero, the same as putting money in a mattress. Social Security is purely insurance against living longer than average, with the benefits paid for by those who die younger than average. (Social Security also transfers some wealth between those making upper middle class wages over a long career to those making lower class wages.)

Unvetted (i.e., without credentials) individuals such as the Wright brothers and Thomas Edison have had a far more beneficial effect on mankind than have all the vaunted, vetted collectives such as the Service Employees International Union, or Napoleon's Army for that matter. Here are a few unvetted individuals I have in mind: Wright brothers, A. Einstein, H. Ford, Thomas Alva Edison, Moses, Abraham Lincoln, Jesus of Nazareth, John Adams, Benito Juarez, Robert Goddard, Ronald Reagan, Frederick Douglass. Often they were at odds with the Establishment and the power structure. They were likely to be dismissed as unusual or strange. On...

As the 2012 election begins to heat up, conservatives will be looking to find alternate ways of getting information, since much of the so-called mainstream press tilts heavily to the left. One way conservatives can connect is through the use of "microblogging". Microblogging is defined as a web service that lets subscribers broadcast short messages to other subscribers of the service. These short posts can be made public on a Web site and/or distributed to a private group. One example of a microblog is Twitter, currently in use by thousands worldwide. Barack Obama used Twitter heavily during the 2008 election,...

George Orwell warned us about the use of “meaningless words” in politics, words that are endlessly repeated by sloganeering politicians until they have no meaning at all. Meaningless words certainly were on display during last week’s congressional debate over the latest tax bill. Over and over again we heard trite, empty phrases like “tax cuts for the wealthiest 2%,” “tax giveaways,” “tax earmarks,” and “borrowing money to give to millionaires.” Time and time again the same falsehoods were presented as fact, and reported as such by a credulous media. But all of these clichés about taxes are based on the...

Grassfire Nation Update On December 20, President Obama will use the FCC to seize control of the Internet. If successful, the move could have a devastating impact on the U.S. economy, investments and innovation while squelching your freedom of speech! Citizen Petition: Stop the Fed Takeover of the Internet Petition Sponsor: Grassfire Nation The Issue Undaunted after a stunning loss of control in Congress, liberals are poised to steal the Internet after a new series of Federal Communication Commission rules are introduced on December 20, and likely approved the following day. Threatened by the Tea Party successes, and determined to...

Let’s say you wanted a way to put fraudulent ballots into innumerable ballot boxes throughout a large county, or even an entire state, even while poll watchers are on duty, and while honest observers are present while the votes are processed at all steps, from the polling places to the data entry points at a secure location. The ideal way to do this is the provisional ballot in the hands of sympathetic municipal union people. continue

Obama at first holds firm, then makes a slight concession Governor-elect Nikki Haley of South Carolina was one of a number of incoming governors to meet with Obama in D.C. over the weekend at the Blair House. Haley challenged Obama over his health care legislation. From the Charleston Post & Courrier "Obama opens door for S.C. opt-out, Haley says" Dec. 3: COLUMBIA -- Republican Gov.-elect Nikki Haley said President Barack Obama agreed Thursday to consider letting South Carolina opt out of the federal health care overhaul if the state comes up with its own solutions to meet some of the...

Deciding which politician to support has long been frustrating for libertarians. Both the liberal and conservative perspectives conflict with cherished libertarian views, so few Democrats or Republicans present a package that libertarians can embrace with enthusiasm. Libertarians do find common ground with conservatives on some issues, and with liberals on others. Roughly, libertarians are economic conservatives and foreign and social policy liberals. So, depending on the pressing issue of the day, libertarians can sometimes identify one candidate or another as “the lesser of the evils.” Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, however, have presented libertarians with a more fundamental...

Doing a bit of digging (;), I came across a rather remarkable video which should give both make you chuckle and pause you to think about the doldrums we're in financially in this place. If you like it, post it everywhere. If you\'re Happy and you know it...Cross-posted at RudyCarrera.com.

The Republican Party has a history of using desperate times to call for drastic measures and when bailing out AIG, bolstering Medicare or bombing Iraq, that party has always been willing to go big and bold on some of the largest government expansions in this nation’s history. But what about cutting government? You know, that stuff GOP politicians always talk about during election time? One might think that in a political environment in which so many are desperate to reverse what they see as unsustainable government growth, Republican rhetoric might at least attempt to reflect that desperation. But when GOP...

This week marked six months since Congress passed the healthcare reform bill in what has become all-too-typical legislative chicanery. Those in power crafted a mammoth piece of legislation and rammed it through Congress under a dire sense of emergency. Insisting on time enough to read the bill was dismissed as dangerous and crazy in a time of crisis. We were told that if we really wanted to see what was in the bill, we would have to pass it first. I cannot imagine the founding fathers intended for Congress to legislate in this manner. I would think if a Member...

When President Obama announced a new $50 billion stimulus plan Labor Day weekend, conservatives scoffed -- and rightfully so. Who does this guy think he's fooling? After the $700 billion TARP bailout, the auto manufacturer bailout, and an $800 billion stimulus, does this president actually think a measly $50 billion is going to successfully turn around an economy where greater sums have failed? But the president and his party have a ready reply for such naysayers: "Imagine if we did nothing?" This open-ended question will undoubtedly continue to provide cover for stimulus-loving liberals, no matter how often conservatives insist that...

Is The Tea Party Movement Another “Great Awakening?” Dr. David M.Berman The Tea Party movement is truly a powerful force. When this movement is compared to others such as the one under Ross Perot, it is clear that the Tea Party movement is much stronger. Both the Republican and Democrat establishments have been forced to acknowledge that the Tea Party has motivated, empowered, and given voice to Conservatives in this country. Primary election surprises have sent shockwaves and the shakeup continues……so what? Does it really matter in the long run? Some may feel that the goal is to stop Obama...