Free Republic

The White House is dispatching Michelle Obama to serve as Grand Marshal of the Nov. 20 season-ending NASCAR Ford 400, a move that seems clearly designed to woo NASCAR voters while also burnishing the first lady’s credentials as a regular gal. Mrs. Obama, who has incurred some bad publicity for taking luxurious jaunts to South Africa and Spain while often being photographed in expensive clothing and accoutrements, has lately been spotted shopping at Target and hanging out at the baseball park, attending the first game of the World Series. The NASCAR appearance is billed as part of the first lady’s...

As part of their Joining Forces initiative, first lady Michelle Obama and Jill Biden will serve as grand marshals for the Sprint Cup Series season-finale Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. NASCAR, Mrs. Obama and Mrs. Biden will recognize service members and military families from the local community in pre-race ceremonies and at a special BBQ lunch and will also invite a military family to join them as they lead the pre-race ceremony and offer the command for drivers to start their engines.

It was the first time the competition was conducted in San Francisco and there was bone-chilling water temperatures along with the usual Bay area wind. But just as surfer Dusty Payne of Hawaii braved the cold to ride a wave, a SHARK (flash scary shark with loud music or sound effect) appeared in the water and SCARED THE DAYLIGHTS out of Dusy who described the sight as quote, "the biggest fin I've ever seen in my life coming at me. I've seen dolphins and it wasn't a dolphin." unquote. So, not only did Dusty lose it, but he also lost...

A decade before Penn State football coach Jerry Sandusky was accused of sexually assaulting young boys, he wrote a book about his life. The book, oddly titled “Touched,” is listed (but not currently available) via Amazon.com, and its sales page is fast becoming a gathering place for those angry at Sandusky for what appears to be a long history of sexual abuse. “Jerry Sandusky’s book is appropriately titled,” wrote one Amazon customer. “It shows the deeper evil that he lives with everyday. We just found out what type of person he really is: a low life animal! He has brought...

This may be the first nonpolitical post I've made but this was just too cool not to share: Despite the fact that one wrong move could put Garrett into an early watery grave, crushed by mega tons of water, he appeared to calm and in control, even as he traversed down the most dangerous part of the wave to set a new world record, surfing a 90 foot wave!

The Penn State legend tried to do an end-run around the trustees, but they still fired him for doing nothing to stop the alleged sexual abuse of young boys. Now it’s time to ditch the rotten college football system, says Buzz Bissinger.Like everyone else, I cannot get the scandal of Pennsylvania State University out of my mind. The story is unfolding at the speed of sound, not just the worst sports scandal in modern history but also one of the worst scandals in modern history: A former Penn State assistant coach for 29 years and alleged sexual predator, Jerry Sandusky,...

Welcome to the..... Kobalt Tools 500 Welcome to the Chase for the Sprint Cup #9 Patriotic Pre-Race Festivities to Honor Active Military and Veterans Phoenix International Raceway and NASCAR fans in attendance for Sunday’s Kobalt Tools 500 will celebrate Veterans Day by paying tribute to the generations of men and women who have served or are currently serving in the U.S. Armed Forces during the pre-race show beginning at noon on November 13. The spectacular pre-race show will also include: · 36 soldiers (nine each from Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines) will be honored in the Bryan Grandstand...

If you're a parent whose children love sports, you've probably been focused on Penn State University. And my guess is, you're sick to your stomach and thinking about the predators out there, the ones that hunt children and use youth sports as cover. At Penn State it's all crisis management and agendas and process and finger-pointing, as administrators' heads are lopped off and fact-finding commissions are formed in the hopes of studying what went wrong. But that's all a bunch of public relations garbage, as if their writs and commissions and carefully lawyered-up anguish can make up for the young...

<p>LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) -- A University of Nebraska regent says he fears for the safety of the Cornhuskers' football traveling party and fans at Saturday's game at Penn State. He wants assurances a security plan is in place to protect them.</p>

Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos has been kidnapped, the Denver Post's bilingual website, VivaColorado.com, reports, with other media sources corroborating the news. No other information is available at this time. Ramos hails from Venezuela, where there is a significant problem with kidnapping. Generally, these crimes are for money and Ramos was a logical target, given that his success in the majors earned him the right to a league-minimum contract, which was $414,500 in 2011. That's a lot of money to most people, especially in Venezuela. The 24-year-old just completed his rookie season with Washington, hitting .267/.334/.445 in 435 plate appearances, slugging...

BISMARCK -- Gov. Jack Dalrymple signed legislation this afternoon repealing the North Dakota law that mandates use of the UND Fighting Sioux nickname. Earlier, by a lopsided margin almost exactly opposite of the vote they cast to defend UND's Fighting Sioux nickname and logo in February, members of the North Dakota House approved a bill today to repeal their earlier action and clear the way for the nickname's retirement. The vote was 63-31, sending the bill to Dalrymple, who at the start of this week's special session had asked the Legislature to repeal the nickname mandate. The Senate had approved...

If Magic Johnson had known just how well he could live with HIV, he wouldn't have retired from the Lakers on Nov. 7, 1991. Johnson would never change what he did for the fight against the HIV/AIDS epidemic when he publicly revealed his diagnosis to a stunned world. His courage that day, along with two subsequent decades of vibrant living, forever altered attitudes about the virus and its effects. Magic is simply glad the world knows such happy endings are possible with access to treatment and vigilance.

Report: Michael Vick most disliked Updated: November 7, 2011, 3:36 PM ET Michael Vick has come all the way back from prison to star in the NFL again. But he apparently still won't win a popularity contest among the league's fans. Vick Forbes.com reported Monday that Vick is the NFL's most disliked player, according to a poll by Nielsen and E-Poll Market Research. Forbes.com reports that 60 percent of those polled picked said they "dislike," "dislike somewhat," or "dislike a lot" the Philadelphia Eagles quarterback. Second on the list was New York Jets receiver Plaxico Burress at 56 percent, who...

Winning the World Series just wasn't enough. The retired manager of the St. Louis Cardinals told a local radio station that his team never got the traditional phone call from the White House after their 6-2 Series win over the Texas Rangers last week. Tony La Russa told CBS affiliate KMOX that amid the celebration last week, "We never did get a call."

Tony LaRussa retires. Press conference now.

We're running out of races and season fast as Martinsville is on tap. Don't miss the action as the Chase for the Cup heats up. A Safe and HaPPY Halloween to ALL!

BALTIMORE (WJZ)– Rapid Redux, a five-year-old thoroughbred gelding, made history Thursday with a 19th consecutive win in Laurel Park. He ties with two other horses with this victory. With his jockey J.D. Acosta, Rapid Redux led throughout the seven-furlong race and covered the distance in one minute and 24.07 seconds. The horse is owned by Robert L. Cole, Jr. of Baltimore County, who bought Rapid Redux at Penn National for $6,250 in Oct. 2010. Since then, the thoroughbred has won 20 out of 21 races and earned $237,009

The arrest of Chris Cook put the Vikings at 36 arrests since 2000, one more than the Cincinnati Bengals, according to information compiled by SignOnSanDiego.com and thedeets.com. Six Vikings have been arrested in the past nine months. It's a good thing Vikings owner Zygi Wilf instituted that Code of Conduct after the Love Boat incident or it could be even worse, right?

Cant post link b/c of copyright complaints Gumbel said the commissioner wants to be seen as a "modern plantation overseer" and is "treating NBA men like they were his boys." He adds that Stern is trying to show that he can keep "hired hands in their place." Will he get fired like Hank Jr?

Breaking on CNN