Free Republic

Swiss voters overwhelmingly rejected a proposal that would have guaranteed everyone in the Alpine nation an unconditional basic income, according to projections published Sunday by public broadcaster SRF1. The plan could have seen people in this wealthy nation of 8 million people receive about 2,500 Swiss francs ($2,560) per month — enough to cover their basic needs. Proponents argued that a basic income would free people from meaningless toil and allow them to pursue more productive or creative goals in life. Critics said the plan would explode the state budget and encourage idleness, arguments that appear to have convinced voters....

Swiss voters rejected by a wide margin on Sunday a proposal to introduce a guaranteed basic income for everyone living in the wealthy country after an uneasy debate about the future of work at a time of increasing automation. Supporters had said introducing a monthly income of 2,500 Swiss francs ($2,563) per adult and 625 francs per child under 18 no matter how much they work would promote human dignity and public service. Opponents, including the government, said it would cost too much and weaken the economy.

"The Swiss have put on one of the most bizarre opening ceremonies in history to mark the completion of the world's longest tunnel."

The massive feminization of culture has had a major impact on European politics and the decisions which have lead to the European Migrant Crisis. Iben Thranholm joins Stefan Molyneux to discuss the deficiency of masculinity in European culture, how feminism has programmed women to see men as the enemy and the future of western civilization. "As the refugee crisis erupted and overwhelmed Europe, its political leaders - spearheaded by German Chancellor Angela Merkel - acted like timid mother hens, not as strong men responsible for guarding their country from an invasion." - Iben Thranholm Iben Thranholm is one of Denmark’s...

A village in Switzerland has decided to pay a fine of £200,000 rather than accept 10 refugees. The village, Oberwil-Lieli, has a population of about 2,200 people and is an alpine resort town. The residents of the village voted against accepting any refugees in a close 52 to 48 percent vote.The village is home to 300 millionaires, meaning that the fine probably won't have any real effect on the villagers.The mayor the village denied that there was a racial motive behind the vote, and expressed concerns that accepting the refugees would send the "wrong message" and encourage people to make the dangerous...

Last year the UK TV personality Ursula Presgrave generated controversy by her Facebook posting: “Anyone born with down syndrome should be put down, it’s just cruel to let them lead a pointless life of a vegetable.” Aside from the remarkable ignorance she displays about people with Down Syndrome, I’m troubled by the dehumanizing rhetoric. She thinks we should “put down” some of our fellow human beings, as though they are nothing but animals. It may seem at first glance that her comments have no real connection to the assisted suicide debate, because she is calling for murder, not suicide. However,...

School students must shake their teachers’ hands or their parents will be liable to pay a fine of up to 5,000 francs, authorities in the canton of Basel-Country have ruled. The decision, announced on Wednesday, comes nearly two months after two Muslim schoolboys refused to shake their female teacher’s hand at a school in Therwil, near Basel, because they said physical contact with a woman who wasn’t a family member went against their religion. The incident caused outrage across Switzerland, not only because it was seen as sex discrimination but because their refusal was considered an affront to an intrinsic...

One of Europe’s wealthiest villages is refusing to accept any asylum seekers - and has instead voted to pay a fine of £200,000. Fears women and children could be at risk from sex attacks as well as the disruption to their peaceful way of life has led the super-rich of Switzerland’s alpine resort of Oberwil-Lieli to vote ‘no’ in a referendum to accept just ten migrants. The picturesque village, where 300 millionaires make up 2,200 population, they all used their financial muscle to reject a Government imposed quota.

The world's longest railway tunnel is set to open in just over a week - after some 17 years of construction. Measuring 35.4-miles in length, the Gotthard Base Tunnel (GBT) is 7,545 feet below the Gotthard massif, cutting through the Swiss Alps. The tunnel was first conceived in sketch-form in 1947 but construction began 17 years ago. It consists of two single-track tunnels connecting Erstfeld (Uri) with Bodio (Ticino) and passing below Sedrun (Graubünden).

Supernatural experiences are happening now with in my Body and Bride but do not let this distract you for though you walk on the waters with me it is My Testimony that keeps you afloat for I AM in and through all things and it is as you cause others to understand My love for them that I elevate you to walk in the heavenlies for you are not earthly bound and it is "My Spirit IN YOU" that performs what seems impossible to others for as Stephen did now you shall do ! Acts 6 Seven Chosen to Serve...

Devastating 'World War ZERO' destroyed ancient Mediterranean civilisations and plunged Europe into a dark age 11:41, 13 MAY 2016 UPDATED 11:44, 13 MAY 2016 BY JASPER HAMILL Controversial theory finally identifies mysterious 'Sea Peoples' blamed for cataclysmic series of events which changed the course of history It was a disaster which destroyed the ancient world's greatest civilisations and plunged Europe into a dark age that lasted centuries. Now one archaeologist think he's worked out who's to blame for sparking an event he calls "World War Zero", but which most academics refer to as the The Late Bronze Age Collapse ....

Venezuela sent $1.3 billion worth of gold bars to Switzerland in mid-January, according to data from the Swiss Federal Customs Administration. That gold was shipped out just weeks before two big debt payments due this month, totaling $2.3 billion. On Friday alone, Venezuela has to pay bondholders $1.5 billion. Venezuela is running out of cash and many experts believe there's a high chance it will default by this fall when a string of big debt payments are due. "It's a question of when Venezuela will default, not if," says Russ Dallen, managing partner at LatInvest, a firm that invests in...

The Trojan War was a grander event than even Homer would have us believe. The famous conflict may have been one of the final acts in what one archaeologist has controversially dubbed "World War Zero" -- an event he claims brought the eastern Mediterranean Bronze Age world crashing down 3200 years ago. And the catalyst for the war? A mysterious and arguably powerful civilisation almost entirely overlooked by archaeologists: the Luwians. By the second millennium BC, civilisation had taken hold throughout the eastern Mediterranean. The Egyptian New Kingdom coexisted with the Hittites of central Anatolia and the Mycenaeans of mainland...

icture a tiny, Christmas town filled with classic Alpine chalets and surrounded by mountains, with the citizens working dutifully to contribute to the common good, and you will envision Zermatt, Switzerland. Zermatt is a picturesque tourist town that would fit the typical political progressive’s idea of utopia on earth: modern, clean and government-controlled. Environmental preservation is key. Residents pride themselves on the pure, glacial water flowing through the town. Cars are banned, except for the few licensees who are permitted to drive electric vehicles. I spoke with a shopkeeper who explained the government’s protection of the Swiss deer. If you...

perhaps they need more refugees (satire) Swiss authorities were monitoring the social media activity of about 400 possible jihadists who might pose a security threat, the NDB federal intelligence service said on Monday. Switzerland is not a primary target for Islamist attacks because it is not part of the military campaign against groups such as Islamic State, but the security threat level has been elevated nonetheless, the NDB's annual report said. The report showed a photo of a Swiss passport next to an explosive belt posted online by a suspected Swiss jihadist who had traveled to the Middle East, and...

The Eidgenossen matter. The who? What? Why? OK, let me back up. Two weeks ago, while talking about the Battle of Crecy I mentioned the concept of a Revolution in Military Affairs. At that time I gave a fairly simple definition. A better, or perhaps just more complete definition of a Revolution in Military Affairs (RMA) might go like this: “A fundamental change in the practice of warfare

Switzerland has suspended the citizenship process for the family of two teenage Muslim brothers who refused to shake hands with female teachers. The brothers aged 14 and 15 said physical contact with women who were not family members was against their faith. Some Swiss Muslim groups said there was no religious justification for refusing to shake a female teacher's hand and urged the Swiss not to give in to extremist demands. But one Islamic organisation said a handshake between men and women was prohibited.

In January, researchers at Caltech in the US suggested a large, additional planet might be lurking in the icy outer reaches of the Solar System. Now, a team at the University of Bern in Switzerland has worked out what they say are upper and lower limits on how big, bright and cold it might be. The study has been accepted by the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics. Prof Mike Brown and Dr Konstantin Batygin made their case for the existence of a ninth planet in our Solar System orbiting far beyond even the dwarf world Pluto. There are no direct observations...

Some male Muslim students in Switzerland will no longer need to shake hands with their female teachers, following a ruling that has caused an uproar and consternation in the country. Education authorities in the northern Swiss municipality of Therwil, in the canton of Basel-Country, reached the controversial decision after two male students complained that the Swiss custom of shaking hands with the teacher is counter to their religious beliefs if the teacher is a woman.

Switzerland on Friday unveiled tough draft legislation for unilateral curbs on immigration, raising the stakes in talks with Brussels on limiting the influx of foreigners from the European Union. Switzerland is two-thirds of the way through a three-year timetable to enforce a binding 2014 referendum vote in favor of immigration quotas which would violate a bilateral pact guaranteeing freedom of movement for EU workers.