Free Republic

WASHINGTON, D.C. (WSAZ) -- West Virginia Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito (R) called for hearings into the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, also known as ACORN, Wednesday in a letter to the chair of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity. ...

Ezekiel Emanuel got a memorable introduction to our haphazard health-care system on his first visit to a cancer ward as a medical student. The white coats were ordering a transfusion for a teenage girl, and since shyness does not run in his family — brother Rahm is President Obama's famously foulmouthed chief of staff, brother Ari a similarly silence-deficient Hollywood agent — he interrupted to ask why. Because she had Hodgkin's disease and her platelets were below 20,000, the team explained. Emanuel still had questions: Was there evidence for that protocol? Don't some hospitals wait until 10,000? Why 20,000? Because...

Now that's one smart little monkey who knows where to take a whizz when it needs to. What better to relieve itself on than a politician, most of whom spends their lives whizzing on their constituents day in and day out. Particularly these crooked African politicos who take our billions and billions in aid, pocket most of it and let their people continue to live in the dark ages. I wonder if it was this disgusting chimp?

David Letterman "jokes" about Sarah Palin's teenage daughter having sex with A-Rod during a baseball game. For good measure he suggests the daughter would be of interest to Eliot Spitzer, infamous for soliciting a prostitute. If Ed Schultz condemned Letterman, I missed it. But let Sarah Palin's acceptance of Letterman's belated apology include thanks to the US military for making freedom of speech possible for all Americans, and Schultz condems Palin as "nothing but political slime." View video here.

Obama state senate grant probed By Chris Fusco and Dave McKinneyChicago Sun-Times reporters A $100,000 state grant for a botanic garden in Englewood that then-state Sen. Barack Obama awarded in 2001 to a group headed by a onetime campaign volunteer is now under investigation by the Illinois attorney general amid new questions, prompted by Chicago Sun-Times reports, about whether the money might have been misspent. The garden was never built. And now state records obtained by the Sun-Times show $65,000 of the grant money went to the wife of Kenny B. Smith, the Obama 2000 congressional campaign volunteer who heads...

A week after a high-profile send-up of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin on "Saturday Night Live," the NBC comedy show returned to making fun of the Alaskan governor in a skit where New York Times reporters sought to probe the possibility Palin's husband was having sex with the couple's own daughters. "What about the husband?" asked a Times reporter during a mock assignment meeting for the paper. "You know he's doing those daughters. I mean, come on. It's Alaska." The assignment editor for the Times, portrayed by actor James Franco, responded: "He very well could be. Admittedly, there is...

"Just bought a brand-new purebred puppy? Welcome him or her into your home with a free gift bag! Call us today at 1-866-834-6061 to claim your bag and hear about our products," reads a new ad appearing in the July 7 issue of Dog Fancy magazine, which is on newsstands now. But when respondents call the number, they'll learn that the ad was placed by PETA and that the bag offered is really a body bag--for the unlucky dog in an animal shelter who is "sentenced to death" because the respondents bought a purebred pup from a breeder or a...

Another Controversy for Sarah Palin Former Police Chief Says He Was Fired for Challenging Palin's Campaign Contributors Gov. Sarah Palin is already facing ethical questions over her firing of the Alaska public safety commissioner, and now she faces questions over the firing of a longtime local police chief. After taking over as Mayor of the small town of Wasilla, Palin fired the longtime local police chief. The former police chief, Irl Stambaugh says he was fired because he stepped on the toes of Palin's campaign contributors, including bar owners and the National Rifle Association. Stambaugh's lawyer, William Jermain, says the...

First of all, I urge everyone to please VOTE in this poll. Will Bristol's pregnancy affect your vote. http://www.usmagazine.com/ Also, I am new to this board, but just wanted to tell everyone that I called and cancelled my subscription to US Weekly,. I also told them I wanted to leave an editorial comment, and they passed on what I had to say to their editors. To complain about this cover story, call them toll-free: 1-800-283-3956 We cannot let this go. This is gutter journalism, and of course, they didn't see need to spread any vicious lies about Palin like they...

Is it just me, or was there a tone of defiance in George Stephanopoulos's voice this morning as he declared that Rush Limbaugh can't stop John McCain? The "This Week" host was a guest commentator on today's Good Morning America, and co-anchor Robin Roberts began by playing a clip of a recent Rush comment. ROBIN ROBERTS: Let's start with the Republicans. Of John McCain the big lead over Romney, but not everyone is rallying around McCain. Let's listen to this for a moment. Cut to Rush clip. View video here.

<p>Which lawyer would that be? That would be Jay R. Grodner of Deerfield , Ill. I suspect his life has been made an absolute hell because of something he did a few weeks ago ... and that's the very least this prepuce deserves.</p>

The New York Times is still obsessing over Blackwater – well at least it gives Halliburton a break. Today the Times reports: The American security contractor Blackwater USA has been involved in a far higher rate of shootings while guarding American diplomats in Iraq than other security firms providing similar services to the State Department, according to Bush administration officials and industry officials. The Times doesn't have any precise figures for Blackwater, but explains: In 2005, DynCorp reported 32 shootings during about 3,200 convoy missions, and in 2006 that company reported 10 episodes during about 1,500 convoy missions. While comparable...

Warning! A roving band of Hippie Icons may soon be coming to a city near you! It all started on a sunkist Saturday at Wild Adventure theme park, here in Valdosta, Georgia. Concerts are a regular here, and I've seen some great bands: Foreigner, Styx, REO Speedwagon. Before I begin, let me just say that I am 35 years old. Never really saw the hippie movement. Read about it, saw the footage of Woodstock, etc. But I never really experienced it. And for that, I think God. It was an outdoor event, with families lining lawn chairs up, loading the...

Happy New Year (pardon the title of the thread).I just had to pass this along to all you Freepers and others who may have just come here to FR for the first time to get your mind right.I had the bad fortune of seeing the ABC Early Morning News twice this morning on the first day of the new year.Here is how it unfortunately went.For only about 15 to 20 seconds they spoke of the New Year, 2007.Then next, IMMEDIATELY, in the very next story they proclaimed the 3,000th death in fighting in Iraq.Then, the anchor asked the reporter on...

One of the New York Times' largest shareholders stepped up an attack on the newspaper giant yesterday in a move some industry observers consider a veiled attempt to dethrone company scion Arthur "Pinch" Sulzberger Jr. In a shareholder proposal filed yesterday, Morgan Stanley Investment Management, which owns a 7.6 percent stake in the Times, urged the company to split the jobs of chairman and publisher, positions currently held by Sulzberger.

Let’s see if we get a retraction out of Wonkette now. Thanks to Sean Gleeson for finding this. Update: How did Sean do it? I set up a Facebook account, and followed the trail, from Ashley Herzog, to Megan Del Corral, to Meredith Chan, to “Princess Nina” (whoever that is). I had to do a lot of e-mailing private messaging and stuff. Update: Let’s just get this posted before it mysteriously disappears from Webshots.

If you haven’t seen it yet, don’t miss Hamid Karzai’s devastating response to this question from AP Democratic operative Jennifer Loven, trying to brace Karzai with the leaked NIE: Q: Thank you, sir. Even after hearing that one of the major conclusions of the National Intelligence Estimate in April was that the Iraq war has fueled terror growth around the world, why have you continued to say that the Iraq war has made this country safer?

Billionaire philanthropist George Soros compared the Bush administration to socialist and communist regimes Thursday while criticizing America's war on terror. The liberal political activist said the U.S. strategy of fighting a "war" against terrorism is "false" and a "dismal and disheartening situation." Critics say Soros is only trying to hurt Republicans' chances in the November elections and warn that he is undermining efforts to protect Americans from terrorists. Soros told an audience at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, "We are working with a very false frame when we talk about a 'war on terror,' and yet it is universally...

Feel the love, and the love of country, in this one: Jara sang (1000+ posts) Fri May-26-06 04:50 PM Original messageSo, we are on the eve of yet another nationalist holiday. Is it fascism yet? Before anybody jumps on me for NOT "supporting the troops". I would just like to say that I don't think wars of aggression, bombing and murdering civilians, and imperialist dogma is particularly worthy of a holiday.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Justice Department on Wednesday denied a report that the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dennis Hastert, is under investigation by the FBI in connection with a corruption probe.ABC News, citing high level Justice Department sources, said information implicating Hastert had been developed from convicted lobbyists who are now cooperating with the government.But department officials, who asked to not be identified, said the story was not accurate and that Hastert was not under investigation. "The story is wrong. Hastert is not under investigation," one official said.

Petition for Fire David Gregory.com Bob Wright, Chairman NBC 30 Rockefeller Plaza New York, NY 10112 Dear Chairman Wright: We, the undersigned, are becoming increasingly concerned about the well-being of NBC News' Chief White House Correspondent David Gregory. He has become increasingly ill due to Bush Derangement Syndrome and has turned to alcohol in an attempt to sustain this illness. In the past month, Mr. Gregory has become part of the stories he is supposed to cover. This is not the proper role of a journalist, especially someone as powerful of Mr. Gregory, who covers President Bush and the White...

A bright yellow slime mould that can grow to several metres in diameter has been put in charge of a scrabbling, six-legged robot. The Physarum polycephalum slime, which naturally shies away from light, controls the robot's movement so that it too keeps out of light and seeks out dark places in which to hide itself. Klaus-Peter Zauner at the University of Southampton, UK, who developed the slime-controlled bot with colleagues from Kobe University in south-central Japan, says the idea is to find simpler ways to control a robot’s behaviour. "The computers we have today are very good for what we...

Former U.N. Weapons Inspector Speaks About Iraq Former U.N. Weapons Inspector Scott Ritter is speaking out about the war in Iraq. His speech in Schenectady comes in the midst of President Bush's media blitz, defending the war. Former U.N. Weapons Inspector in Iraq Scott Ritter says politicians on both sides of the aisle just haven't been straight with the American people since the start of the war. Ritter said, “Whatever we're trying to build will collapse unless we first deal with the foundation.� Ritter shared his insight with a fairly full house at the First United Methodist Church in Schenectady....

FORT LAUDERDALE - A Broward county judge on Monday refused to release a 17-year-old suspect in the beating death of a homeless man last week. The other suspect's hearing was delayed one day. The judge, Steven DeLuca, also ordered Thomas Daugherty held for 21 days under juvenile detention and signed an order for a psychological examination of the Plantation youth. Daugherty is being treated as a juvenile, prosecutors have not yet formally announced whether the teen will be charged as a juvenile or an adult.

Global petition to stop the war in Iraq Date: 5 Jan 2006 GLOBAL CALL FOR NONVIOLENT CIVIL RESISTANCE TO END THE U.S.-LED MILITARY OCCUPATION OF IRAQ Contact: dm@aglobalcall.org Global Call to Action Voluntown, CT, USA Our website: www.aglobalcall.org FROM: Nobel Peace and Literature Laureates Cindy Sheehan and other peace and human-rights activists Religious leaders of various traditions Prisoners of Conscience Former government ministers Poets, authors, journalists A Global Call for Nonviolent Civil Resistance at U.S. and British government installations around the world has been issued by Nobel Peace and Literature Laureates along with Cindy Sheehan and other peace and human-rights activists, religious...

JERSEY GOVERNOR RACE TURNS UGLY: CHARGES OF ABORTION, AFFAIRS DRIVE LAST DAYS Sat Nov 05 2005 11:06:43 ET New Jersey Public Radio & Television aired a report Friday night in which New Jersey Democratic Candidate for Governor Jon Corzine was grilled about whether a staffer he allegedly had an affair with -- had an abortion. NJN News’ Michael Aron reported Friday: “The press is interested right now in personal conduct. Corzine was asked about a persistent rumor that he had an affair with a staffer whom the reporter identified by name.” Sen. Jon Corzine: “A, not true. B, I’m not...

if the image above disappears, you can get it here MIDI - KING OF THE ROAD My stock's for sale or rent...what I've said I've never meant That Halliburton rocks...a big gain's nothing to mock I've done so very well with Merck...we were sued by some dumb jerk There are lots of suckers I must thank...I own the bank I had really fooled you with that crap, "Columbine,"...and lots of your money would soon become mine Critics might say it is really a crock...but I have come to love pharmeceutical stock Ronald McDonald has been great...I've made profits while...

Notice where New Orleans lies in the map? Anyone remember how much time pass between the Evac notice and landfall? Give ya a hint. Evac was ordered at 10am sunday. Katrina made landfall at 6:10am monday (both local times). First post, hope it works

More slimy innuendo from the Washington Post aimed at portraying Supreme Court nominee John Roberts as an extremist, this time as someone who regrets slavery ended when the South lost the "War Between the States." A week-and-a-half after she was one of three reporters who wrote a front page hit job, "Roberts Resisted Women's Rights," which distorted an anti-lawyer quip into a slam at women becoming lawyers, Jo Becker got solo authorship on a page two story on Friday about how, when ghostwriting an article for President Reagan, Roberts "scratched out the words 'Civil War' and replaced them with 'War...

Stealing Candy From Babies - The Air America Story I don't listen to Air America. Why? Well, because it doesn't broadcast where I live, that's why. If they did, I might—If Rush Limbaugh were dead, Sean Hannity were in a coma, and G. Gordon Liddy was out of the country toppling some unauthorized dictatorship, that is. ....But what when the motives move from profit to larceny?

XXXXX DRUDGE REPORT XXXXX THU AUG 04, 2005 11:35:09 ET XXXXX NY TIMES INVESTIGATES ADOPTION RECORDS OF SUPREME COURT NOMINEE'S CHILDREN **Exclusive** The DRUDGE REPORT has uncovered a plot in the NEW YORK TIMES' newsroom to look into the adoption of the children of Supreme Court Nominee John G. Roberts. The TIMES has investigative reporter Glen Justice hot on the case to investigate adoption records of Judge Roberts’ two young children, Josie age 5 and Jack age 4, a top source reveals. Judge Roberts and his wife Jane adopted the children when they each were infants. Both children were adopted...

Statement from Senator John Kerry On Terrorist Bombings in London Cold blooded killers will not for a moment stop the critical work of the G-8 nations in our commitment to end poverty around the globe Boston, MA - The following statement was issued today by Senator John Kerry in response to the terrorist bombings in London: “Every American heart feels for the British people and the families of those killed and injured in today's horrific terrorist bombings in London. As a country which has also experienced tragedy at the hands of cowardly killers and which keeps faith with the special...

Like the rest of you thinking people, I am so angry about Dick Durbin's remarks comparing our troops to some of history's worst murderers, I can barely speak about it without going into a swearing tirade. My father (more of a man than any democrat in the the US Senate today) served in the USMC in 3 wars. His concept of duty and honor would be totally incomprehensible to Durbin and the rest of his toadies in the senate. My daughter backpacked through SE Asia and Cambodia several years ago. She has posted on her web site some of her...

A long-time Caledonia Elementary School music teacher and band director was arrested late Monday on charges of possessing and distributing child pornography. Craig Gieser, 48, appeared in Third District Court on Tuesday morning, May 3. He had been hospitalized for several days and then left the area with a friend before being located Monday evening. According to the police report, local authorities were alerted after an undercover detective in New Hampshire, posing as a 14-year-old boy in an internet chatroom, attracted the attention of the suspect. A person using the internet name cgiese1010 asked the “boy” for pictures, and the...

In the months that have passed since Iraq's much-hyped democratic elections, one word keeps creeping into my mind as I assess the tragic events unfolding in Mesopotamia today: Vietnam. The American press and punditry, intimidated and compensated into slavishly reporting on Iraq solely along lines that will not overly alienate them from the powers that be inside the administration of George Bush, have long ago foregone drawing comparisons between the ongoing conflict in Iraq and the one America lost in Southeast Asia some three decades in the past. The lack of a basis for direct comparison makes accomplishing the denigration...

OLYMPIA — The state Legislature kicked off three months ago amid widespread predictions that the Democrats in charge would increase taxes, spend more money, and cater to the demands of political allies. The predictions were right. The Legislature passed a $26 billion operating budget, a nearly $3 billion increase over the current one, and an $8.5 billion transportation package — the largest in state history. To pay for it all, lawmakers made it more expensive to smoke, drink, drive and, for some people, to die.

Thanks to a tip from ann coulter official chat... ...here's a link to the FULL TEXT of Ann's TIME cover story, posted online (for FREE!) here: http://www.timecanada.com/story.adp?storyid=001 April 24 2005 COVER STORYMs. Right She is quite possibly the most divisive figure in the public eye. But love her or hate her, you do not know the real Ann CoulterBy John Cloud Anne Coulter and I were well into a bottle of white Bordeaux—and I believe she was chewing her fourth piece of Nicorette—when it happened. From what little I knew of her—mainly her propensity for declamations such as “liberals love...

...Venezuelans would prefer at this time if the Carter Center stayed away from our country. The role the Center played in the recall referendum, before and after it, left a very bitter taste in all of those like me, who are certain that the outcome was fraudulent. ... Carter ... did not demand that the CNE do the “hot audits” on August 16th. ... There are lies in the reports from the Carter Center, such as that the boxes containing the ballots never left their sight. Thus, Venezuelans in the opposition think the Carter Center failed them completely by being...

Bwahahahah!!! Gasp! Bwahahahahahahah! (tears of laughter, blogger convulsing on the floor subject to one of the biggest laugh attacks recorded in blogdom). (Breathe, breathe deeply, garner composure, start writing again) Today we learn that Jennifer Mc Coy of the Carter Center will brave Venezuela to offer help in consolidating peace and democracy! The nerve! What is in store for us? Are they going to approve the new judicial system whose near uniform composition will ensure "peace" through a "uniform justice" (pun intended)? Will they offer to monitor the 2006 elections to validate yet another "fair" Chavez victory? ... I have...

This link says who voted for Alberto http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=1&vote=00003 Some votes to take note of are Obama, Hillary, and Bayh voted nay, Lieberman voted yea.

John Kerry is back in the Senate, making clear that his presidential aspirations remain intact. Rather than give Condi Rice a pass, he joined Barbara Boxer in making an ideological show out of the secretary of state's confirmation hearings. His Democratic Party colleagues got to watch as the duo did their number on the first African-American woman to be nominated for secretary of state – quite a display of insensitivity for a party that prides itself as the champion of America's minorities. But that wasn't the point. The point was to be once again in President Bush's face. Unwilling to...

<p>If You, Or Someone You Care About, Still Smokes, This May Be the Most Important Letter You Will Ever Read...</p> <p>Just Imagine Being Able to Stop Smoking Without Withdrawals, Nervousness or Stress ? Now Stop Imagining! It's Time to Defeat Your Bad Habit!</p>

By any standard, the ongoing American occupation of Iraq is a disaster. The highly vaunted US military machine, laurelled and praised for its historic march on Baghdad in March and April of 2003, today finds itself a broken force, on the defensive in a land that it may occupy in part, but does not control. The all-out offensive to break the back of the resistance in Falluja has failed, leaving a city destroyed by American firepower, and still very much in the grips of the anti-American fighters. The same is true of Mosul, Samarra, or any other location where the...

This is a rewrite of a song from 5 years ago. How time flies. J.C. Watts called Jesse a race-baiting poverty pimp. Watts was right on the mark. When the victim mentality goes away, the race-baiting poverty pimps will finally go away. MIDI - FOLLOW THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD - scroll down to WIZARD OF OZ section (note: I know that the original song really has nothing to do with the content of this parody, but it is the only song I found where "race-baiting poverty pimp" will fit. :) Race-baiting poverty pimp…race-baiting poverty pimp Reverend Jesse Jackson is a...

A federal judge is scheduled to rule today on a California atheist's lawsuit seeking to bar clergy-led prayer during President Bush's second inauguration next week. Judge John D. Bates yesterday heard oral arguments in the case during a two-hour hearing before a packed courtroom in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Michael Newdow, the 50-year old Sacramento, Calif., lawyer who filed the suit against President Bush last month, took part in the proceedings by telephone. Outside the courthouse, representatives of religious groups protested Mr. Newdow's suit. The Rev. Patrick Mahoney, executive director of the Christian Defense Coalition,...

Twelve soldiers were wounded on Wednesday when two Kassam rockets slammed into their IDF base near the northern Gaza Strip security fence, while two armed Palestinians attempting to infiltrate the nearby Erez crossing were shot dead by troops overnight. At least 10 mortar shells were fired at settlements in Gush Katif and in the northern Gaza Strip on Wednesday, and two Kassam rockets were fired at Sderot and Kibbutz Givim in the western Negev. No one was wounded in any of the attacks, but damage was caused to some 20 homes on the kibbutz.

Taking security forces by surprise, a group calling itself "The Liberation of Galilee" claimed Wednesday it had abducted Israeli-American Dana Bennet, who went missing in 2003, and demanded Israel release 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for information regarding her fate. The group sent a leaflet to the Associated Press claiming it kidnapped the 18-year-old Bennet, who disappeared in August 2003 on her way to spend the night at her uncle's home after finishing her shift as a waitress in a Tiberias restaurant.

Vaseline Man Can't Slip Cops MAY 18--Meet Robert Chamberlain. The 44-year-old Virginia man was arrested earlier this month and charged with felony criminal mischief for damaging a Motel 6 room in upstate New York. But Chamberlain, who has spent time on the pipe, wasn't breaking windows or throwing the television off the balcony. He was nabbed for slathering Vaseline on every single thing in Room 205--mattresses, pillows, sheets, furniture, carpeting, blankets, the TV, etc. A motel clerk discovered the damage after Chamberlain checked out and called the Broome County Sheriff's Office. When Deputy Kevin Smith arrived, the greasy m.o. rang...

A Virginia man admitted Monday to smearing 14 jars of petroleum jelly all over an upstate New York motel room. Robert F. Chamberlain, 45, of McLean, gave no reason for his actions when he appeared in court to plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge of criminal mischief. A Broome County judge sentenced Chamberlain to three years of probation and ordered him to pay $3,886 in damages to the Motel 6 in Chenango. Authorities said Chamberlain coated every object of the motel room with petroleum jelly in May. A cleaning crew discovered the mess after he checked out, and he was...

LONDON - Britain got very little in return for supporting the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq (news - web sites), and U.S. policies make it all but impossible for anyone to act as a bridge between Washington and Europe, French President Jacques Chirac said in an interview published Tuesday. AP Photo "I am not sure, with America as it is these days, that it would be easy for someone, even the British, to be an honest broker. Perhaps that will change, but that is the current state of things," Chirac was quoted as saying in an interview with British reporters...