Free Republic

CHICAGO () - When temperatures drop to bone-chilling levels like we’re experiencing now, railroads use open flames to keep the trains moving.. According to Metra spokesman Michael Gillis, they’re using natural gas to heat switches. “It looks like the tracks are on fire, but what it is, there are gas burners next to the switches, and we light them to keep the switches warm, so the switches can move,” said Gillis. “If they freeze up, then our trains can’t change tracks and that leads to congestion…It’s really essential to keep the switches operational so that we can keep our trains...

Chris Matthews endorses Donald Trumphttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9eYU51D3Qg      

Dover, DE - Newt 2012 announced today that Hans Reigle, Chairman of the Kent County Republican Party, is switching his support from Mitt Romney to Newt Gingrich. Reigle has also served as the Mayor of Wyoming, Delaware and over 20 years in the United States Air Force. “I previously endorsed Governor Romney, but since then Newt is the only candidate who has shown a willingness to meet and talk with Delaware voters for more than hour,” said Hans Reigle. ”Over the past few weeks I’ve listened to Newt discussing his vision for achieving $2.50 gasoline, balancing the budget, and shrinking...

BATON ROUGE, La. — The number two ranking member of the state House is becoming a Republican. Rep. Joel Robideaux of Lafayette has been a lifelong independent, but he announced Thursday he's switching to the GOP. The change comes as Robideaux is hoping to become House speaker in the next term that begins in January — in a chamber that is majority Republican. Robideaux says he decided to become a Republican after discussing a possible switch with GOP Gov. Bobby Jindal. "I have prided myself on being able to work with everyone, no matter their party affiliation, and to forge...

US President Barack Obama has changed his plans to attend the UN summit on climate change in Copenhagen next week, the White House has announced. He will arrive later than initially planned, moving his appearance from 9 December to 18 December. The White House said he believed "that continued US leadership can be most productive through his participation at the end of the Copenhagen conference". The summit aims to draw up a treaty to succeed the 1997 Kyoto Protocol. The president had changed his plans after talks with other leaders and after seeing "the progress that has already been made...

British film icon Sir Michael Caine has abandoned his support of the Labour party and announced he will vote Conservative at the next general election. The actor, 76, a former Labour supporter, condemned the “terrible state” that has been allowed to develop in Britain and said he planned to change his allegiance at the next election. For his latest film, Harry Brown, about violence on Britain’s streets, Sir Michael spent time with a gang from a tough inner London estate, who were hired as extras.

US Marine arrested at Logan April 19, 2009 05:42 PM Email| Comments (0)| Text size – + John C. Drake, Globe Staff A US Marine was arrested today at Logan International Airport after federal airport screeners discovered a gun, bomb-making materials, and ammunition in his checked baggage, State Police and Transportation Security Administration officials said. .

TOPEKA, Kan. - The former chairman of the Kansas Republican Party jumped ship in a big way Tuesday, switching his affiliation to Democrat amid speculation that he would become Gov. Kathleen Sebelius' running mate. Johnson County Elections Commissioner Brian Newby confirmed that Mark Parkinson, the state GOP chairman from 1999 to 2003, came to the office and switched his party affiliation shortly before noon. Parkinson's name has been widely circulated as Sebelius' choice for a running mate as the Democratic governor seeks a second term. Current Lt. Gov. John Moore — another former Republican — is retiring when his term...

Piano Man hunt switches to Prague By David Sapsted (Filed: 30/05/2005) The hunt to establish the identity of the "Piano Man" switched to Prague yesterday on the basis of a 22-year-old picture of a teenager with a stocking over his head. The name Tomas Strnad has came to the fore as a possible identity for the mute man found wandering by a beach on the Isle of Sheppey, Kent, almost two months ago who reportedly "comes alive" when he plays the piano. The picture of Mr Strnad, reproduced yesterday in a tabloid newspaper, was supplied by Klaudius Kryspin, a Czech...

With the stroke of a pen, City Councilor David Pfeffer switched sides Friday, leaving his Democratic Party colleagues behind and joining the GOP. "People tell me that, after about 30 years in Santa Fe, I must have seen a lot of changes. Well, I have," Pfeffer, reading from a prepared statement, said Friday during a press conference outside the Santa Fe County office building where he officially switched parties. "I've seen good folks go from acceptance of one's differences to intolerance; from respect to disdain; from peacefully getting along to outright hatred; from multicultural coexistence to profound elitism; from civilized...

Annapolis Alderman George O. Kelley Sr. switched to the Republican Party yesterday, much to the delight of GOP officials eager to prove their inclusiveness. The Ward 4 alderman, frequently mentioned as a possible challenger to Mayor Ellen O. Moyer next fall, received several warm embraces from Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele during an afternoon news conference at Maryland Republican Party headquarters on West Street. Mr. Kelley, a 48-year-old retired police officer, wouldn't commit to running against Ms. Moyer, saying only that he has "options." He said he switched parties because the Republicans more closely match his priorities, including promoting economic...

BERLIN (Reuters) - Two years of U.S.-led 'war on terror' have damaged al Qaeda and forced it to switch tactics, but it is too soon to proclaim that Washington is winning the struggle, security analysts say. President Bush told Americans this week that nearly two-thirds of al Qaeda's known leaders had been captured or killed, and declared: "We are rolling back the terrorist threat to civilization." In the two years since September 11, the group behind the suicide attacks with hijacked planes on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon has failed to achieve any major new strike in the...

China dam switches on power China's Three Gorges Dam, the world's largest water control project, has begun generating electricity. China says it badly needs the electricity the dam will generate The first of the dam's 26 generators to go into operation was connected to the power grid at 0131 local time on Thursday (1831 GMT on Wednesday), 20 days ahead of schedule, Xinhua news agency reported. The generating unit will supply 12.9 million kWh per day to the power grids in central and east China, the project's vice general manager said. Yang Qing said the unit would have to pass...