Free Republic

NEWPORT BEACH (CBS) — A bronze statue of former President Ronald Reagan was vandalized early Sunday, according to officials. Police received a call at approximately 5:30 Sunday morning about a possible vandalism in progress at the Bonita Canyon Sports Park. A witness saw a suspect tie something around the top of the statue and the other end to the front of his vehicle. The witness said the suspect then got into his vehicle and put it in reverse in an attempt to pull the statue down. The suspect, described as a male in dark clothing, fled the scene before officers...

New Americans are sworn in at ceremony celebrating Statue of Liberty's 125th anniversaryArticle by: KAREN MATTHEWS, Associated Press Updated: October 28, 2011 - 9:02 AM NEW YORK - A total of 125 immigrants from 46 countries have been sworn in as United States citizens at a ceremony marking the 125th anniversary of the Statue of Liberty. **SNIP** Lady Liberty is getting a high-tech uplift for her birthday. Internet-connected cameras on her torch that will let viewers gaze out at New York Harbor or see visitors on the grounds below.

Post Columnist Says King Monument is Stalin-like A Washington Post columnist has criticized the new Martin Luther King, Jr. monument, while his paper is publishing a 24-page special supplement hailing the unveiling of the “Stone of Hope” in the memorial that includes the 30-foot tall statue of the civil rights leader. Black columnist Courtland Milloy writes, “Let’s face it: There really is something peculiar about having an artist from communist China sculpt the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial statue. And, yes, it would have been fantastic had an African American sculptor been chosen instead.” He adds, “The sculpture is based...

SEATTLE - He ruled Russia almost a century ago, and yet, somehow, a statue of communist leader Vladimir Lenin found its way to Seattle. It's not one of the city's more famous landmarks - like the Space Needle or Pike Place Market. Instead, the 16-foot-tall statue of the divisive dictator is tucked away in a more residential spot in Seattle's Fremont district. He is as controversial today as he was decades ago. "Why do we have a statue of him?" asked Erin Derring, as she walked by. "We couldn't imagine such a statue in America - you understand why," added...

New York's iconic Statue of Liberty is to close for a year for renovations. The 305ft (93m) copper statue needs $27.5m (£16.8m) in repairs, US Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said. The National Park Service said new stairs and elevators would be installed within the 125-year-old statue, but Liberty Island would remain open. The statue, dedicated in 1886, was given to the US by France. Most of the 3.5m people who visit Liberty Island each year do not climb the statue. Visitors were barred from venturing up inside the statue in the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks, although they were...

Published July 04, 2011 | FoxNews.co A 10-foot bronze statue of former President Ronald Reagan to commemorate 100 years since his birth has been unveiled in London, the Independent newspaper reports. Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice joined British Foreign Secretary William Hague in paying tribute to Reagan Monday at the U.S. Embassy in London. "It is a great honor for me personally to take part in a ceremony for a man who changed the political landscape at the time I first became involved in it," Hague said. "Statues bring us to face to face with our heroes long...

Hungary unveiled a statue of former U.S. President Ronald Reagan on Wednesday, honoring him for his role in helping to end communism. Hundreds took part in the unveiling in Budapest’s Szabadsag, or Freedom, square, including Prime Minister Viktor Orban and former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Mr. Reagan was remembered for his role in “bringing the Cold War to a conclusion, and for the fact that Hungary regained its sovereignty in the process,” the Hungarian government said in a statement. *snip* The 7-foot bronze statue, sculpted by Hungarian artist Istvan Mate, sits in same square as a memorial to...

Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-OH) wipes tears from his eyes as he attends the unveiling ceremony for a statue of the late former President Gerald R. Ford in the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington on May 3, 2011. UPI/Kevin Dietsch

Parishioners arrived at a Roswell church on Christianity's holiest day Sunday to find that someone had desecrated a statue of Jesus. The vandals spray-painted the statue outside St. Peter Chanel Catholic Church on Woodstock Road near Crossville Road. Pink paint was sprayed on the face and hands, and the $80,000 statue was tagged elsewhere with offensive symbols. Church officials believe the vandalism probably happened during the early-morning hours on Sunday; it was discovered by members arriving for early Easter services on Sunday. Kraus speculated that it only took the vandal or vandals a minute or so to spray-paint the statue’s...

NEW YORK, New York elected officials said they want to sell a controversial statue depicting a male "civic virtue" stepping on female figures of "vice" and "corruption." The "Triumph of Virtue" statue, which is more than 100 years old and stands in the city's Queens borough, has been described as sexist by U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., and City Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras, D-Jackson Heights, because it depicts a nude male figure trampling on a pair of female figures, the New York Daily News reported Friday. Weiner and Ferreras have suggested selling the statue on Craigslist to raise funds for the...

A New York politician is calling on the city to remove a public statue in Queens that depicts a nude man standing over two prone women and to sell it on Craigslist. Rep. Anthony Weiner says the statue, Triumph of Civic Virtue, is sexist and plans to hold a press conference Friday calling for its removal.

A Cairo teenager found a priceless statue of Pharaoh Akhenaton near a garbage bin after it was stolen from the Egyptian Museum during anti-regime protests, Egypt's antiquities chief said Thursday. The museum's world renowned collection was burgled and several artifacts went missing last month, including statues of King Tutankhamun and Pharaoh Akhenaton. A 16-year-old protester found the sculpture near a rubbish bin in Tahrir Square,

Stalin statue blown up in Ukraine: CommunistsAFP January 2, 2011, 7:49 am KIEV (AFP) - Extremists blew up a controversial monument to Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin on New Year's night in southeastern Ukraine in an "act of terror", the local Communist Party said on Saturday. The bust in the city of Zaporizhia, unveiled this May, caused a heated controversy in Ukraine which is still split between its nationalist west and the more Russian orientated east which fondly remembers the Soviet past. "A criminal broke into the grounds of the Communist Party regional headquarters, and laid an explosive charge which detonated...

SWIEBODZIN, Poland -- Step aside, Rio de Janeiro. This town is building a Jesus bigger than yours. A Polish priest is on the verge of realizing his dream of erecting what he says will be the world's largest statue of Jesus Christ in a small town in western Poland. Attempts were made Friday to complete the statue - which will rise a couple yards higher than the iconic Christ the Redeemer monument in Rio de Janeiro.

Here's the rub. One package at the Time Warner Center's mall is getting more attention than most from shoppers and visitors alike -- the genitals of a 12-foot-tall bronze nude statue that stands near the complex's entrance. Fernando Botero's "Adam" has provided a titillating temptation to passers-by at the Shops at Columbus Circle to rub his miniscule manhood as friends snap their pictures. In fact, there's so much fondling going on that the patina on the nude's nether regions has turned golden, making it stand out against the darker brown of the rest of the statue.

This is the moment a lightning bolt appears to strike the Statue of Liberty in New York. New York photographer Jay Fine had spent the night braving the storm in Battery Park City, Manhattan, in a bid to get the perfect picture. Jay spent nearly two hours poised with his camera and took more than 80 shots before striking lucky with this particular bolt of lightning at 8.45pm on 22 September. He said he had been waiting 40 years to get the picture. To capture the shots Jay used a Nikon D300s with 60mm f/2.8 lens on the following...

I've been on vacation, visiting the folks back in Colorado. One of my rest stops during the 18 hour drive was off of I-70 in Fruita, where there is a Vietnam memorial. I took a few pictures, including the one above of a mother and father welcoming home their son, returning from his tour. Then as I was driving off, I looked over and then gently slammed on the brakes... I had glanced over at the Memorial site for one last look and noticed a little girl hugging the statue of the young, returning vet. I got choked up....

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - the world famous Christ the Redeemer statue re-opened to the public Wednesday June 30, 2010 after a four month renovation. The 130 ft tall statue of Jesus with arms open wide (98 feet wide!) stands on a 31 ft. tall pedestal (included in the height) overlooking the city of Rio atop Corcovado hill. Money for the renovation came from private firms at a cost of approx. 4 million dollars. The internal structure was renovated and its soapstone mosaic covering was restored by removing a crust of fungi and other microorganisms and repairing small cracks. Lightning...

Thousands of Czechs are protesting plans to place a Michael Jackson statue in Prague. A group of fans plans to erect a 6-foot column with a bronze bust of the King of Pop in Letna Park, where Jackson held a concert in 1996. They want to unveil it Aug. 29 to mark Jackson's 52nd birthday. City authorities have approved the project. By Tuesday, more than 2,000 people had joined a Facebook protest claiming it makes no sense to put the statue in the park because Jackson had no connection with the Czech Republic.