Free Republic

receive quite a few emails that pique my interest and occasionally I like to share. This one entitled "An American working in Mexico" is said to be written by Tom O'Malley who was a director with Southwestern Bell in Mexico City. It provides us an inside look at the rigorous process a person must go through in order to work legally in Mexico, including corruption and bribes. - - - - - "I spent 5 years working in Mexico. I worked under a tourist Visa for 3 months and could legally renew it for 3 more months. After that you...

BAGHDAD – A U.S. Army company commander here is working to increase security and build stronger ties between various Iraqi divisions so they may better combat insurgents across Anbar and Baghdad. Capt. Guy Girouard, commander of Company C, 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, devised a plan encouraging Iraqi divisions to communicate better and fight the insurgency along the Anbar-Baghdad border as one force. The 1st Iraqi Army Division leads the security effort in eastern Anbar province while the bordering area of western Baghdad province falls under the 6th IA Div.  With the...

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS 5 / AP) - House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the federal economic stimulus package is working in her home state despite California's high unemployment rate. Pelosi was joined Wednesday in San Francisco by city government leaders, small business owners and workers to praise the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on its one-year anniversary. Mayor Gavin Newsom said the federal money has created more than 2,900 jobs in the city and saved thousands more.

Yet, they cannot comprehend what would motivate Middle America to distrust its government, for it surely does, as Ron Brownstein reports in the National Journal:

Yesterday, Fox News reported the hearings held by Senator Joe Lieberman with cabinet officials concerning a shortage of flu vaccine. I'm sitting in Afghanistan not getting much broadcast TV news. I wanted to find out more, so I searched Google News for related articles. It turns out that as of this writing, the rest of the media is not reporting this event, at least in print. Try this. Go to the Google search page, click on the "News" tab. Now enter "Joe Lieberman".

President Bush has signed into law three tax bills in the past three years; these tax cuts amounted to $1.3 trillion in 2001, $96 billion in 2002, and $330 billion in 2003. Democratic opponents criticized the tax cuts (particularly the first one in 2001) as fiscally irresponsible and weighted primarily toward the wealthy, while Republican supporters claimed that the tax cuts would stimulate economic growth and return money to taxpayers across the board. Major Provisions of the Tax Cuts The 2001 Economic Growth and Recovery Tax Act, by far the largest of the three tax cuts, was intended to provide...

1st Lt. John Reed, a platoon leader with 15th Brigade Support Battalion, attempts to evade Capka, a military working dog, during a demonstration at Forward Operating Base Warrior, Kirkuk, Aug. 1. The demonstration was to not only entertain Soldiers but to educate leaders on the capabilities of the military working dogs. Photo by Staff Sgt. Jason Douglas, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs. FOB WARRIOR — No matter how fast the dozen or so Soldiers ran, they couldn't outrun Buli and Capka, a pair of German Sheppard military working dogs, during a demonstration here, Aug. 1. Soldiers from the 15th Brigade...

Skimpy supplies of flu vaccine and public panic are not the only concerns among officials charged with managing a potential pandemic. Some vital caregivers could be no-shows.

Can't log on to Hotmail. Really can't. Anyone else having this kind of trouble?

Facts and Myths about the Financial Crisis of 2008 Download the PDF to read the paper. Obviously, the authors are not very happy with what has gone on... thus the name of the paper.

Are you a "kid-sick" parent? If so, have hope. You've been diagnosed. And all you need is a good "parent-ectomy" to cheer you up. The Associated Press reported July 12 that many American parents are afflicted with a malady some experts dub "kid-sickness." Contrary to what you might think, this "sickness" is not about parents who are sick of their kids. It's about parents who actually want to spend time with their kids. And it's considered an ailment needing a cure. This summer, more than 10 million children are attending recreational camps across America. And according to Boston-based family therapist...

Members of the Iraqi Army practice how to enter and exit the Riverine Patrol Boat on Lake Qadisiyah, Iraq, Friday. The soldiers were given classes prior to entering the boats on the boats themselves and how to successfully complete an operation on water. 3rd Battalion, 23rd Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 5, and Riverines with Riverine Squadron 2, Detachment 3, are working extensively with the IA and transferring more control of the area. Riverines with Riverine Squadron 2, Detachment 3, perform an unexpected emergency stop while traveling 30 knots on Lake Qadisiyah, Iraq, Friday. Coalition forces are training units...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 14, 2008 – Coalition forces, Iraqi troops, and “Sons of Iraq” security volunteers are working together to rebuild areas south of Arab Jabour, Iraq, a senior military official in Baghdad said this morning. Coalition forces recently completed Operation Marne Thunderbolt, which focused on the disruption of al Qaeda activities in Iraq, Army Colonel Terry R. Ferrell, commander of 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, in Multinational Division Center, said in a conference call with online journalists and “bloggers.” “We’ve focused on moving to places we haven’t been before,” said Ferrell, who has been in the Arab Jabour...

Be Our Guest 'War is just like boxing," said Gen. George Patton. "When you get your opponent on the ropes, you must keep punching the hell out of him and not let him recover." Today in Iraq, the enemy is on the ropes. Our Air Force has pummeled Al Qaeda with 40,000 pounds of bombs. Soldiers and Marines have reduced northern Al Qaeda safe havens to rubble. Contractors are delivering tons of supplies and securing our diplomats. One-time insurgent strongholds are returning to peace. One would expect aspiring political leaders not only to laud our troops for their great work...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 8, 2008 – As the troop surge in Iraq approaches its one-year anniversary, the commander of Multinational Force Iraq said he’s buoyed by successes made and momentum built, but recognizes the job is far from over. Army Gen. David H. Petraeus told the Pentagon Channel the new strategy in Iraq -- with more coalition and Iraqi troops helping quell violence in and around Baghdad and operations that promote closer cooperation with the Iraqi population -- has helped stabilize once-violent areas. President Bush announced the strategy during a Jan. 10, 2007, televised speech to the nation. The plan included...

BAGHDAD, Dec. 5, 2007 – Field commanders deployed throughout Iraq gathered here today to tell Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates firsthand that the U.S. strategy in Iraq is working and to urge vigilance in seeing it through. Gates called the commanders to Camp Victory, home of the Multinational Force Iraq headquarters, during his visit here to hear about their operations. “I think he wanted to hear from us what we are experiencing out here, and I think each one of us told him we’re having success in our individual areas,” said Marine Col. Richard Simcock, commander of Regimental Combat Team...

FORWARD OPERATING BASE KALSU — Since May security in Hawr Rajab and Arab Jabour has improved to the point where Coalition Force missions are no longer solely “kill or capture” missions. Now, many missions focus on developing the infrastructure, which means there are more civilians on the battlefield helping to rebuild Iraq. To be prepared for battlefield operations, Soldiers of the 2-3rd Brigade Troops Battalion (BTB), 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division took time to train American civilians on the basics of first aid and combat patrol operations, Nov. 26. The 2-3rd BTB combat patrols that consisted solely of...

AS the fires roared across the region this week, so did California's governor. Arnold Schwarzenegger zipped from Malibu to Orange County to San Diego to Santa Clarita to Lake Arrowhead, and then back again. He visited fire-command and evacuation centers. He got briefings on firefighting efforts from local officials. He personally thanks fire crews. On Thursday, he played guide to President George W. Bush, who toured the devastation. And if the governor was working hard during this time, so was his image-making machine - making sure each and every one of his good deeds were duly noted by the media....

NEW YORK -- THE CALCULUS OF LIVING PAYCHECK TO PAYCHECK IN AMERICA IS GETTING HARDER. What used to last four days might last half that long now. Pay the gas bill, but skip breakfast. Eat less for lunch so the kids can have a healthy dinner. Across the nation, Americans are increasingly unable to stretch their dollars to the next payday as they juggle higher rent, food and energy bills. It's starting to affect middle-income working families as well as the poor, and has reached the point of affecting day-to-day calculations of merchants like Wal-Mart, 7-Eleven and Family Dollar. Food...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 3, 2007 – The surge of additional forces into Baghdad and other areas of Iraq is working, a top general commanding coalition forces there said yesterday. Even as the Muslim holy month of Ramadan continues, levels of violence in Iraq have dropped, Army Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, commander of Multinational Corps Iraq, said at the National Press Club here. The surge allowed Iraqi and coalition officials to wrest whole provinces from extremist grasp. In December, President Bush accepted recommendations of military leaders to place five more combat brigades and their supporting complements in and around Baghdad. More...