Free Republic

Former minister Natan Sharansky, whose book, The Case for Democracy: The Power of Freedom to Overcome Tyranny and Terror has inspired US President George W. Bush, gives Bush a "C" grade for implementing his vision. Sharansky, the former Prisoner of Zion who currently chairs the Adelson Institute for Strategic Studies at the Shalem Center in Jerusalem, told The Jerusalem Post Thursday: "I have to give Bush credit, because he brought back the agenda of linking security and democracy, which was abandoned by the free world after the defeat of the Soviet Union. [But] what makes it hard for him to...

The United States “is not good at counter insurgency and never has been”, according to George Friedman, Chief Executive Officer of Strategic Forecasting. He also calls for an end to the limitedly successful Surge in order to redeploy troops to Kuwait or the uninhabited south west of Iraq, so that they might “flank” any expansive Iranian moves toward Saudi Arabia (for example). First and foremost, the lessons of 2003 to 2006 in Iraq show Iraqi and foreign resistance/insurgency is inversely proportional to the size of the U.S. or U.K. footprint. Dr. Friedman’s analysis calls for a reversal of successful policies...

By , Thursday, August 30, 2007 3:19 PM PDT More than 30 people affiliated with the Mexican Mafia were arrested this morning throughout Imperial and San Diego counties in what the Imperial County District Attorney’s Office is calling “Operation Gangland.”

Finally, the Fredheads can breathe. After months of waiting, former Sen. Fred Thompson (R-Tenn.) will announce his entry into the presidential race next week. Thompson is set to announce his candidacy by video on his website Sept. 6, and then head out on a five-day tour of early voting states. “I believe that there are millions of Americans who know that our security and prosperity are at risk if we don’t address the challenges of our time; the global threat of terrorism; taxes and spending that will bankrupt future generations, and a government that can’t seem to get the most...

AUSTIN — Gov. Rick Perry's campaign Web site touts public education as a long-standing "top priority" of his, but the school year began this week with teachers and administrators still wondering who will be the next commissioner of education. That question mark is one among many with nearly 400 expired gubernatorial appointments this year alone to state boards, commissions and universities. Senators — worried that Perry is dodging their constitutional role of confirming most gubernatorial appointments — are crying foul. By Friday, 388 of Perry's appointments will have already expired so far this year, but only one in eight have...

PATROL BASE DRAGON — Children play. They get dirty, swim in canals and climb up trees; risk is part of the game. When accidents happen, it is nice to have a place to go for cuts, scrapes and serious injuries. For the Iraqi children who live in the countryside just yards from Patrol Base Dragon, near the Euphrates River, that place is the Battalion Aid Station run by Capt. Christopher “Kit” Dominguez, a native of Grand Junction, Colo., and physician’s assistant for Company C, 210th Brigade Support Battalion, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry), out of Fort...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 30 — President Bush, in his first response to low-income families hit by the subprime mortgage crisis, plans to announce several steps Friday aimed at helping Americans with credit difficulties to meet the rising cost of their housing loans, administration officials said Thursday.

TAL ‘AFAR — A major thoroughfare leading into Tal ‘Afar received extensive damage in March when a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device detonated along the route. But with help from Coalition forces and the local Iraqi government, the road has been reopened and completely repaved. After the construction was complete, local Iraqi contractors, the city mayor, local leaders and government officials opened the road during an official ribbon-cutting ceremony. Named after the recently deceased director of municipalities, Mohammed Mostafa Salah, 1st Lt. Brendan Fry, special projects officer, 1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment said the road is significant because it links both...

FORWARD OPERATING BASE HAMMER — A routine meeting on Aug. 18 became a saga of tragedy and heroism when one young Iraqi man gave his life to save his family and his friends in the U.S. Army. The Soldiers he saved that day say they will never forget the man’s sacrifice. The plan was to visit a leader of the al-Arafia Concerned Citizens Program. After a hectic month of raids and route clearance missions, the scouts of 2nd platoon, Troop B, 3rd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, weren’t worried about that day’s particular...

In Ohio, the Columbus Public School system, (CPS), has a very bad reputation. One has only to speak the name of the organization, and chills roll down parents' backs. But, unlike what many at Freerepublic would think, the overwhelmingly Democratic-controlled city council has taken bold measures to address the problem. Study groups were formed, months were invested, dollars were spent. In a bold move sure to create ripples nationwide- the group moved to correct the problem of the odious reputation associated with CPS. They have today announced that they have changed their name... to Columbus City Schools. What tremors this...

Canteen Mission Statement Showing support and boosting the morale ofour military and our allies militaryand the family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before. The first Coast Guard Academy (then called the Revenue Cutter School of Instruction) was held aboard the two-masted topsail schooner Dobbin. The first class of nine cadets boarded the Dobbin in Baltimore, Maryland in 1876 for a two-year training mission Semper Paratus Mantovani Orchestra ~ Americana Suite Glenn Miller ~ American Patrol Kenny Baker All Stars ~ Battle Hymn of The Republic The International Marching Band ~ Under the Double Tree UNITED STATES...

My God.. this guy is just unbearable... such a blowhard.

8/30/2007 - ALI BASE, Iraq (AFPN) -- Members of the 407th Expeditionary Services Squadron hosted the first ever Coalition Games Aug. 20 through 26 at Ali Base and Camp Adder, Iraq. The week-long event gave American, Australian and Romanian forces friendly competitions in basketball, softball, soccer, volleyball, weightlifting, dodgeball, a 10K run and a tug-of-war. Participants included teams from the Air Force, the 82nd Sustainment Brigade and 1/82 Battle Combat Team from the Army, the Navy, Romanian forces, Australian forces, and civilian contractors. The Coalition Games began with a basketball game between the Air Force and Australian forces and a...

Ohio Student Gets Suspended For Stadium Prank A meticulously organized high school prank is more than the subject of hallway gossip. It's also a hit on the Internet. An Ohio student tricked football fans from a crosstown rival school into holding up squares of construction paper at a stadium to spell out a message. The fans were told it would read "Go Darby." Instead, it spelled out "We Suck." And the 20 hours spent snapping pictures, mapping out the bleachers, and strategically placing the construction paper ultimately earned the organizers thousands of viewers on YouTube -- not to mention a...

Short Telegram with Big Ideas by: Bethany Stotts, August 22, 2007 With partisan conflict over the war on terror, a growing budget deficit, and continued vulnerability to domestic terrorist attacks, America seems to be reliving the ‘malaise’ years of the Carter administration. Editorials, articles, and books have proliferated, each declaring the twilight of American hegemony, and an ensuing decline in influence, power, and potential. In the face of such disheartening propaganda, it is easy to wonder whether Americans retain the will left to win an existential war against dedicated Islamic radicals. Authors James Carafano and Paul Rosenzweig argue that America...

A review of [two books] Alexis de Tocqueville: A Life, by Hugh Brogan and Democracy’s Guide, by Joseph Epstein Joseph Epstein, in his new biography of Tocqueville, wryly asks what the great Frenchman himself would have made of "le phénomène de Tocqueville." For as Epstein points out, it is impossible nowadays to think "about America, about democracy, about liberty, about bureaucracy, about equality, about almost any aspect of politics, or for that matter about large stretches of human nature" without reference to Tocqueville. Yet there is, in truth, no simple answer to Epstein's question, because Tocqueville always remained something of...

Do You REALLY Want To Be Like Jesus? One of THE most overused phrases among Christians today is, “I just want to be more and more like Jesus.” HOLD ON–I am NOT saying that is something bad…it’s just that I don’t think that some people have a CLUE what they are talking about when they say those words!People from a churched culture grow up with a “safe” picture of Jesus–he had feathered hair, wore a white robe with a purple sash, was a constant giver of hugs and carried a lamb where ever He went.However, in reading Scripture that is...

V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N for the N-E-A by: Bethany Stotts, August 23, 2007 According to Expedia.com 2006 survey data, the average American employee gets 14 days of vacation annually, and usually only uses 10 of those. In contrast, human resources firm Hewitt Associates reports that Europeans average around four weeks of vacation per year. Hewitt Associates told Vault, an internet-based career-information provider, that Denmark employees receive the most vacation in Europe, with an average 31 days per year, while Switzerland came in on the low end with an average 20 days vacation annually. Vault reports that because Americans receive vacation based on seniority,...

B&F System Inc. Recalls Emergency Tool Kits Due to Fire and Shock Hazards WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed. Name of Product: Emergency Tool Kits Units: About 43,000 Distributor: B&F System Inc., of Dallas, Texas Hazard: Booster cables in the recalled kits can have undersized wiring and inadequate connections, posing a fire and shock hazard to consumers. Incidents/Injuries: None reported. Description: The recalled emergency tool kits have booster cables in...

Master Sgt. Ronald Petersen looks on as Master Sgt. Paul Julbes and Master Sgt. Marvin Wagoner push children on a swing set the airmen just built at the Umut-Nadjeshda Children's Rehabilitation Center Aug. 20 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Les Waters Airmen Swing into Action Top Three Council delivers, sets up swing set for children. By Staff Sgt. Les Waters 376th Air Expeditionary Wing BAGHDAD, Aug. 30, 2007 — What do you get when you combine 11 airmen, a swing set and about 60 children? A recipe for success. Members from the Manas Air...