Free Republic

With an increased focus on novelty and convenience cooking, the 1960s were a time of truly odd food. Some concoctions of the era, such as 7-Up basted ham, the tuna-berry sandwich and ham-banana rolls, have been pretty much relegated to that time. But some of the other food trends of the 1960s have had some real staying power.

If you think state and federal government COVID-19 policies are too restrictive, you haven’t been to a college campus lately. Schools across the country have imposed extreme, micromanaging rules on 19-22 year olds—a demographic more likely to die from the seasonal flu and pneumonia than COVID.Paying top dollar at already overpriced institutions for vastly inferior remote learning, university students remain unnecessarily isolated and barred from using the services and facilities they and their families are paying for. Many schools, like Southern Methodist University, forbid students from having guests in their dorm rooms. Others have even installed security cameras in the...

On May 13th, 1967, I was shot through my upper right thigh, shattering my femur and almost severing my leg. I celebrate this day every year because it was the day I almost died but through God’s grace, I have lived this half century more. I was a twenty-one year old Lance Corporal (E-3) in the Marines serving as an Artillery Scout (an enlisted Forward Observer) with Golf Company 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines (2/1) about 16 kilometers Southwest of Danang, Vietnam. Our company was on a local sweep a little north of Hill 55, following the edge of the Song...

The way things are going, every kid is going to go to school wearing bubble wrap and a helmet. Back in the 1970s (and earlier), parents didn’t stress about our health and safety as much as they do today. It’s not that they cared less – they just didn’t worry compulsively about it. Parents of 2014 need to be reminded of how less restricted, less supervised, less obsessively safety-conscious things were… and it was just fine. 1. JARTS: IMPALING ARROWS OF DEATH Can your mind comprehend a more deadly toy than a weighted spear that kids hurl through the air...

Columns Reversing the Sixties: The 2012 Republican Agenda By Bob Burnett Friday March 23, 2012 - 12:44:00 PM Bookmark and Share One of the most surprising aspects of contemporary Republican politics has been their across-the-board attack on women’s health services and women’s rights. Rather than an isolated misogynistic program, these attacks should be viewed as one part of a conservative agenda to role back gains made in the sixties. Recently, MoveOn reported Top 10 Shocking Attacks from the GOP’s War on Women ranging from changing the definition of rape to denying abortions in all circumstances to limiting access to contraception...

Before we bust out the .50 caliber rifles and start shooting people from a mile away it’s important to know exactly who we’re talking about. Your parents, the baby boomers, are between 40 and 60 years old. They “stopped a war.” They “can’t remember the 60s” and they ruined everything for every generation to come. Though their politics were knee-jerk liberal 25 years ago, today they combine the worst of both parties. They pretend to be Democrats but secretly vote Republican at the last second so they don’t have to pay taxes on the incredible amount of income they’ve accrued...

Greg Hassall and Charles Purcell do battle over the fab four. FOR OK, Ob-la-di Ob-la-da is the most annoying song ever written. And you won't find Revolution No 9 on too many iPods. But how many bands' dud tracks can you count on one hand? The Beatles deserve their place in the pop pantheon. They revolutionised the way pop music was written, recorded and talked about. They were funny, charismatic, hungry to learn and unafraid of controversy. They matured spectacularly over seven tumultuous years, then quit on a high note with the peerless Abbey Road. They were a genuine band,...