Free Republic

Without question, more movies have been made about World War II than any other, but before World War II there was World War I, and some of the best — if not the best — war films ever made were inspired by that conflict. Most movies about the Great War incorporate strong anti-war messages, and to be fair, I can think of few other conflicts (except perhaps the Crimean War or the Thirty Years War) in which this attitude is more appropriate. You’ll see this thread running through almost every one of my picks — it’s just the way it...

A top advisor to President Barack Obama urged Congressional Democrats on Friday to "go on offense" against Republicans on the issue of taxes and argued that the Supreme Court ruling upholding the incumbent's signature health care law should be the "clear and final" word on the issue. In a memo made public by the White House, David Plouffe accused Republicans of "trying to misrepresent" Obama's record on taxes. "We welcome this debate on middle class taxes, and we urge you to seize this opportunity to go on offense to illustrate how the President and Democrats in Congress are standing up...

If you have any doubts that Obama will be sent packing from the White House in November, then cast your eyes at this list of reasons Barack Obama will be a one-term president. 1. Jobs, jobs, jobs While the official unemployment rate has inched down to close to 8 percent, that number would be much higher if all the discouraged job hunters who stopped looking for work were included. Obama’s record as a job creator is dismal, because the basic tenets of his economic ideology are woefully misguided. Government doesn’t create jobs, it just gets in the way of companies...

Days after General Motors announced it was temporarily suspending production of the Chevy Volt, the electric car was named European Car of the Year. The Geneva Auto Show announced Monday that the Volt, which is sold in Europe as the Opel Ampera, was named its 2012 Car of the Year ahead of its annual car show that opens this week.

The Obamas' summer break in Martha's Vineyard has already been branded a PR disaster after the couple arrived four hours apart on separate government jets. But according to new reports, this is the least of their extravagances. White House sources today claimed that the First Lady has spent $10million of U.S. taxpayers' money on vacations alone in the past year. Branding her 'disgusting' and 'a vacation junkie', they say the 47-year-old mother-of-two has been indulging in five-star hotels, where she splashes out on expensive massages and alcohol. The 'top source' told the National Enquirer: 'It's disgusting. Michelle is taking advantage...

Aug 12 (Reuters) - Bank of America Chief Executive Brian Moynihan met privately this week with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Federal Reserve governor Daniel Tarullo amid the campaign to calm investors and employees about the bank's share price fall, the Wall Street Journal reported. The separate meetings took place on Wednesday in Washington, the WSJ said, citing people familiar with the situation. The intent of the meetings with the two top federal officials was for Moynihan to discuss issues related to housing, consumer spending and the U.S. economy, two people familiar with the meetings told the Journal.

It seems like we’ve been talking about the debt ceiling for an awfully long time. Probably because we have been talking about the debt ceiling for an awfully long time. President Obama made a primetime appearance on Monday night to address the nation over this impending financial doom. I disagree with the president on a lot of issues. That’s ok. But lying is not. There were so many mistruths coming out of our leader’s mouth during that speech that I’m throwing any shred of political correctness out the window and calling him out. I’ll be awaiting my invitation to the...

Security forces arrest nearly two dozen PFLP operatives running terrorist cells near Jerusalem; were planning on kidnapping IDF soldiers, shootings, and bombings; many had previously served in Israeli prisons. The IDF and Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) have arrested close to two dozen Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) operatives who were running a number of terror cells near Jerusalem and were planning to kidnap soldiers and perpetrate other terror attacks against Israel, it was released for publication on Sunday. Some of the operatives, the Shin Bet said, were Arabs from east Jerusalem in possession of Israeli identity...

An Obama appointee who played a central role in crafting the 2010 health care bill has cashed out to a well-connected lobbying firm, where her first clients are two of the bill's beneficiaries: abortion provider Planned Parenthood and a hospital chain. Liz Engel was deputy assistant secretary for legislation at the Department of Health and Human Services. Today she is a managing director at the Glover Park Group in the health and wellness practice. Her story further highlights the coziness of this administration with the abortion industry, and also undermines President Obama's portrayal of the health care bill as a...

Democrats have said they only intend to restore the tax rates that existed during the Clinton years. In reality they're proposing rates like those under President Carter. Media reports in recent weeks say that Senate Democrats are considering a 3% surtax on income over $1 million to raise federal revenues. This would come on top of the higher income tax rates that President Obama has already proposed through the cancellation of the Bush era tax-rate reductions. If the Democrats' millionaire surtax were to happen—and were added to other tax increases already enacted last year and other leading tax hike ideas...

A top official from the U.S. Black Chamber, Inc. – the Obama-backed, rival upstart to Harry Alford’s National Black Chamber of Commerce – has a checkered past and faces criminal charges from allegations he exploited a Hurricane Katrina victim. According to Raleigh, N.C.-based WRAL, which broke the story, Brandon Trainer, who led the North Carolina Regional Black Chamber of Commerce and served as treasurer for the U.S. Black Chamber, skipped town in 2006 when he was charged with defrauding a Hurricane Katrina victim out of $1500.

#25 Dan Loeb: $210 Million #25 Dan Loeb: $210 Million Image: 1440wallstreet.com Fund: Third Point What you need to know about Dan Loeb: He may be about to have some embarassing emails come out He's betting on energy

The Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) moves onto day two where high profile politicians and possible 2012 presidential hopefuls gather to discuss the conservative political agenda. This evening, the group will hear from Governor Mitch Daniels (R-IN), who will speak during a banquet paying tribute to former President Ronald Reagan. Earlier, while speaking before attendees, Former Governor Mitt Romney (R-MA) called Pres. Obama “weak” saying he failed on the economy and his foreign policy. Romney says the unemployment rate is Obama’s “inconvenient truth.”

Deception 6) “We reported this to the FBI” Planned Parenthood wrote the FBI a letter a week after our investigation, only after they realized that Live Action had conducted the sting.They say this themselves. As much as they may pretend, Planned Parenthood was not attempting to help send human traffickers to jail; they were attempting to pre-empt the release of Live Action’s footage. If Planned Parenthood really cared about reporting potential sex traffickers to authorities, they would have called police while the pimp was in the clinic, or immediately after. Not wasting a minute. Planned Parenthood, where are the reports...

The top shareholder in the East Mediterranean Gas Company (EMG) has fled Egypt, according to a report by the Associated Press. Hussein Salem, a close confidant of President Hosni Mubarak and the controlling shareholder in EMG, which holds long-term sales contracts to supply natural gas to Israel, fled the capital over the weekend. The company has a multi-billion dollar agreement the Israel Electric Corporation (IEC). Last month, a major agreement was also signed between EMG and Israel Corporation Ltd., Israel's largest holding company.

1. Target audience 2. The movie bombed 3. I have a question. “Shoot!” 4. Attack ad 5. He shot his big mouth off 6. Over my dead body! 7. Annie get your gun 8. Bullets over Broadway 9. Killer app 10. I almost died laughing

WASHINGTON — Nobody got fired — at least, not outright — when William M. Daley arrived in Nashville in the summer of 2000 to impose order on Al Gore’s foundering presidential campaign. Aides were bickering, the candidate seemed demoralized and strategy sessions had deteriorated into what Chris Lehane, a Gore adviser, called a “salon-like atmosphere” of endless talk and no decisions. In marched Mr. Daley as campaign chairman, with his crisp suits and management style to match, fresh from Washington, where he had stepped down as commerce secretary to President Bill Clinton. Suddenly, strategy sessions topped out at 30 minutes

What will the world look like at the end of this century?  I ask this in light of the emergence of Brazil and India, German dominance of the European Union, the rise of China, and the apparent decline of America. China and India each have about a billion people.  Together, they house at least one-third of the human race.  An example of India's presence on the world's stage is the Tata Group.  This is a conglomerate that owns, among other businesses, the London-based Tetley Tea company and the Bermuda-based Orient-Express Hotels.  Tata has unveiled a $2,500 car.  Politically and...

It's that time of the year when numerous organizations and news outlets publish or announce their "Best of..." or "Worst of..." or "Most important of..." or "Most popular of..." lists. Not to be outdone by the so-called elite media, below is a list from an industrious public-interest group whose sole mission is to investigate and prosecute government corruption wherever it is discovered. On Thursday, Judicial Watch released its 2010 list of Washington's “Ten Most Wanted Corrupt Politicians.” While there may be some surprises, readers will note that neither political party has a monopoly on political corruption. Special thanks to Judicial...

The gold bears continue to come out of the woodwork with every tick higher in the precious metal. This type of speculation appears to be particularly rampant in the professional trading community and among "sophisticated investors." The favored argument against gold is that it has no "utility." Gold indeed has very little practical utility. This line of thinking, however, completely disregards the fact that gold has been equated with "value" and "money" throughout human history. While gold is not backed by earnings and dividends, or consumption trends (like oil and food etc.) it is backed by deeply entrenched human psychology....