Free Republic

RIVERHEAD, N.Y. -- A black man who grabbed a gun instead of calling police when his son awakened him with a claim that carloads of abusive white teenagers were headed to their home was sentenced to prison Wednesday for killing one of the boys. The sentence -- two to four years -- John White received incensed the family and supporters of Daniel Cicciaro, the 17-year-old who was killed in August 2006. White, a 54-year-old construction laborer from Miller Place, could have received up to 15 years. He was convicted in December after an emotional three-week trial in which defense attorneys...

With all the furor over the possibility of a high-speed financial meltdown, it’s been easy to forget that we still have the problem of a weak real economy, and a Fed that is having a hard time getting traction. And as I’ve pointed out before, we’re quite close to liquidity trap territory: the point at which open-market purchases of Treasury bills, the normal way monetary policy operates, don’t have any effect because the T-bill rate is near zero. , today’s morning update: as of 8:49, the one-month T-bill rate is 0.539, the 3-month rate 0.728.

While a politician might be faulted for pushing a particular agenda that serves his own purposes, who can fault the impartial scientist who warns us of an imminent global-warming Armageddon? After all, the practice of science is an unbiased search for the truth, right? The scientists have spoken on global warming. There is no more debate. But let me play devil’s advocate. Just how good is the science underpinning the theory of manmade global warming? My answer might surprise you: it is 10 miles wide, but only 2 inches deep. Contrary to what you have been led to believe, there...

In an exclusive story by correspondent Nat Helms, NewsMax has revealed that it was a Time magazine reporter's unsubstantiated allegations that sparked the notorious investigation into the death of civilians on November 19, 2005 in Haditha Iraq and subjected eight Marines of Kilo Company, Third battalion, 1st Marines to years of unwarranted harassment and prosecution. The NewsMax story does not identify the Time correspondent by name but Defend our Marines can report it was Time reporter Tim McGirk. The wildest of McGirk's allegations were never reported in print. Neither did McGirk inform his readers about the evident problems his sources...

Cuba invites bids to develop oil reserves 45 miles off the coast of South Florida that are as large as those in ANWR. So why are the United States and its Navy buying oil from a state sponsor of terror? The Heritage Foundation reports that when U.S. Navy and Marine personnel fill up at their local Navy Base Exchange, they're buying their gasoline from a company owned by Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez. Citgo has a $60-million-a-year contract to supply the Navy Exchange with gas through 2010. The irony is that it's also negotiating a multibillion-dollar, multiyear contract to buy four...

Asian women, fancy coffee, farmers markets, dinner parties and gay friends — these are just a sampling of life's pleasures — if you're white. Excuse me? That's according to Christian Lander, the (white) wit behind the Web sensation Stuff White People Like blog, an irreverent daily missive on the passions of posh urbanites of the Caucasian persuasion. It's the latest in a string of racially charged blogs (first came theassimilatednegro.com, then angryasian.com) that act as a virtual shrink's sofa for those tackling the tricky topics of race and class. Lander is not the only one who uses the Web site...

Upright Walking Began 6 Million Years Ago Newswise — A shape comparison of the most complete fossil femur (thigh bone) of one of the earliest known pre-humans, or hominins, with the femora of living apes, modern humans and other fossils, indicates the earliest form of bipedalism occurred at least six million years ago and persisted for at least four million years. William Jungers, Ph.D., of Stony Brook University, and Brian Richmond, Ph.D., of George Washington University, say their finding indicates that the fossil belongs to very early human ancestors, and that upright walking is one of the first human characteristics...

DETROIT - Borders could become the latest victim of the credit squeeze, announcing Thursday that it may put itself up for sale. Rival Barnes & Noble, meanwhile, saw fourth-quarter profits drop 9 percent as the industry struggles with intense competition from discounters. Shares in Borders tumbled more than 39 percent as the nation's second-largest bookseller said it was considering options including the sale of the company or certain divisions, and that it had lined up $42.5 million in financing to help it keep running through the year. "It's a crunch of three C's_ credit, capital and consumer spending," said Dan...

It looks like Winona Ryder may be up to her old tricks again. According to the National Inquirer, Ryder was recently stopped outside of a CVS Pharmacy when she set off the alarm while walking out of the store. The store has officially confirmed the report saying, "Winona had a bag of stuff, but she set off the theft alarm when she left the store. When a security guard stopped her, he found make-up she had not paid for. We took unpaid items back and she left the store."

Sen. Barack Obama called into sports radio 610 WIP this morning, charming the usually rambuctious morning talk show hosts and winning their endorsements. "People are really swept up [by this candidate]," said host Al Morganti. "It's almost like teenaged girls at a concert. It's goofy" Before Obama's interview even began at 8 a.m., jocks Angelo Cataldi and Morganti greeted the Democratic presidential hopeful with a scatted, and offkey, rendition of "Hail to the Chief." Obama's five-minute appearance didn't even touch on sports. The hosts, both entralled by the candidate's charisma, addressed him as if he were a rock star. It...

Two women who were alleged targets of the private eye's investigations say they received calls warning them to remain silent. In another day of dramatic courtroom confrontations, an actress told a federal jury Wednesday that she received a terrifying telephone call threatening her son shortly after she spoke with the FBI about its wiretapping investigation of private eye Anthony Pellicano. Testifying as a government witness, Linda Doucett said an anonymous male caller in November 2003 warned her to remain silent after she had been interviewed by authorities about their probe of Pellicano for alleged wiretapping and other crimes on behalf...

Dulles, Virginia -- The history of the disaster that submerged “The Big Easy,” in 2005 has already been written. In it, race plays a greater role than the real problems exposed by Katrina -- the failure of government at all levels and the unwarranted faith citizens place in bureaucracy. Now, the New Orleans race card is being played again -- this time by busybodies beyond our borders. This month, the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination issued its opinion on Katrina’s aftermath. “The Committee,” the report states, “remains concerned about the disparate impact that [Hurricane Katrina] continues...

Oscar winner Charlize Theron may soon be following Angelina Jolie, Nicole Kidman and Jennifer Lopez into motherhood. The 'Monster' star recently revealed that she is ready to start a family with her leading man Stuart Townsend. Theron tells In Touch magazine in an interview that she has been playing around with the idea of having a baby for a few years, and that she's finally ready to take on the responsibility of a child

New Babylonian town found Azzaman, March 19, 2008 Iraqi archaeologists have discovered a new Babylonian town 180 kilometers south of Baghdad. The head archaeologist Mohammed Yahya said the town is more than 20,000 square meters in area and includes administrative quarters, temples and other buildings of “magnificent and splendid design” Yahya, who is the head of the provincial Antiquities Department in the Province of Diwaniya, where the new Babylonian town was discovered, said he still lacks evidence on the town’s ancient name. The locals call it Shamiya after a provincial district nearby, he said. “We have dug up a sectional...

The US Treasury said Thursday it had struck a series of agreements with big sovereign wealth funds based in Abu Dhabi and Singapore on investments in US markets. The agreements covering investment principles were hammered out following a meeting here between US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, and Abu Dhabi and Singapore government officials. "We had a good discussion today on the issues surrounding sovereign wealth funds. Singapore and UAE have long-established, well-respected funds and are showing real leadership by joining with us today," Paulson said. The agreements encourage sovereign wealth funds to be more transparent and to base their investment...

Should the legislature pass a bill allowing employees to keep a gun in their vehicle on company property? Yes, it's their constitutional right to bear arms. Only if the employee has a permit to carry a gun. No. It's the employer’s right to set the rules on company property. I see both sides and haven't decided.

Led by Mexico’s government, illegal immigrants across the nation are planning disruptive May Day marches demanding that the U.S. government halt immigration raids and that Congress pass laws to legalize them. Hundreds of thousands of rowdy illegal aliens flooded the streets of major cities last year demanding amnesty and other rights, while threatening to shut down streets and launch economic boycotts. They burned U.S. flags and wielded racist, anti-American signs as they chanted for “derechos” (rights) in Spanish. Although many local groups helped promote those marches, they were mainly organized by an umbrella group called National Mobilization to Support Immigrant...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Former Countrywide Financial Corp (CFC.N: Quote, Profile, Research) Chief Operating Officer Stanford Kurland has created a mortgage company that will focus on buying loans from financial companies trying to reduce their mortgage exposure. At least nine other former Countrywide officials are joining Kurland in the creation of the Private National Mortgage Acceptance Co, which like Countrywide is based in Calabasas, California, according to PennyMac's Web site. A spokeswoman on Thursday confirmed that the company and the Web site are real. Before leaving Countrywide in September 2006 after a 27-year career there, Kurland had been considered the...

OMAHA, Neb. (March 20) - U.S. Sen. Chuck Hagel writes in a new book that the United States needs independent leadership and possibly another political party, while suggesting the Iraq war might be remembered as one of the five biggest blunders in history...

Dear Friend of Israel, Tomorrow an important Jewish holiday and an important Christian holiday coincide. As Christians solemnly observe Good Friday - and anticipate Easter, the most joyous day in the Christian year - Jews will be celebrating Purim, which begins tonight at sundown.