Free Republic

This redirects the attack on the Electoral College by avoiding the amendment process to the US Constitution.   The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact is an agreement among U.S. states that would effectively end the electoral college system of presidential elections and replace it with a direct nationwide vote of the people. As of February 2008, this interstate compact has been joined by Maryland and New Jersey; their 25 electoral votes amount to 9.3% of the 270 needed for it to take effect. The compact is based on Article II, Section 1 of the U.S. Constitution, which gives each state the...

Just heard the tail end of report, she was attempting to get on an aircraft to head home I believe.

Holding an election to recall state Sen. Jeff Denham, R-Atwater, may seem like a juicy political move for some Senate Democrats. But it also will be an unneeded distraction at a time when the Legislature can least afford one. Democrats say they are going after Denham because he voted against last year's budget, flip-flopped on support for schools and voted against a flood control bond, etc. Yet as we all know, Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata isn't trying to unseat Denham to enforce policy purity, or crack down on hypocrisy. (If that were the case, dozens of recalls would...

Hezbollah is certain that Israel was behind last month's assassination of its senior commander Imad Mugniyeh, a state-backed Iranian television network reported on Saturday. According to the report, Hezbollah's Deputy Secretary General Sheik Naim Qassem reaffirmed that the movement has "100 percent solid evidence that Israel had killed martyr Mugniyeh", in a car bombing on February 12 in Damascus. Hezbollah also urged its supporters to hold a mass rally on Monday in the southern Beirut district of Rweiss to commemorate the slain commander. Similar accusations against Israel were made a few days after the assassination by the Hezbollah head of...

The US Marine Corps has placed two follow-on delivery orders worth a total of $715m with BAE Systems for Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles. Under the new contracts, BAE Systems will build and deliver 1,024 Caiman-based Category I vehicles and 447 RG33 Category I and II vehicles (bringing the total to 3,150 Category 1 and 1,927 Category II vehicles respectively). BAE Systems anticipates that the Caiman award, worth $481.8m, will include spares and increased contractor logistic support. The RG33 order, worth $234m, involves the production of three special forces command vehicles, 51 ambulance variants and 393 RG33 Category II...

The worshipers had gathered to mark the 14 Stations of the Cross, which portray Jesus Christ's final journey from condemnation to burial. Two drummers softly kept a slow beat as six men in violet shirts carried a large white cross over their shoulders. All around them, men and women marched in white shirts that read "Keep Families Together." Other marchers held signs saying "Stop the Raids." Three young people held a large canvas banner with the words "Justice for Immigrants." The Stations of the Cross, an annual ritual enacted on Good Friday, is a solemn contemplation about the death of...

Killer Motorist Tries To Sue Teen Victim Updated:13:07, Wednesday January 30, 2008 A Spanish motorist who killed a teenage cyclist has dropped a lawsuit against the youngster's family after public outrage at the case. Accident victim Enaitz Iriondo Businessman Tomas Delgado had claimed the parents of 17-year-old Enaitz Iriondo were liable for the damage to his car. Hundreds of people had gathered outside the courthouse in the town of Haro in northern Spain where the case was to be heard when Delgado's lawyer announced his client was dropping the lawsuit. Iriondo was cycling to a campsite where his family was on...

Fadi Fadhil -- Freddie to his friends -- is probably marking the fifth anniversary of the Iraq war's launch with closer attention than the average Minnesotan. Fadhil, an Iraqi citizen living in Minneapolis, served as an interpreter for U.S. forces in Baghdad, his hometown. From April 2003 to February 2005, he guided American soldiers through some of their most challenging days. Lt. Col. Michael Baumann, commander of a battalion task force with the 5th Brigade Combat Team of the 1st Cavalry Division, with whom Fadhil worked, calls him a vital "cultural bridge." Baumann, of Lakeville, moved heaven and earth to...

North Carolina voters, usually a nonentity in presidential primaries, could be the deciding factor in the Democratic presidential nomination this year, former President Bill Clinton said Friday. "This whole thing could come down to what you all decide to do in North Carolina,"... North Carolina was once expected to be a victory lap in a nominating process that usually ends during the early contests. But the protracted race has made the state and its 115 delegates a crucial aspect of the race. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois leads Clinton by only 121 delegates... Clinton opened his day in Charlotte, telling...

Bicyclists were twice as likely as drivers to be at fault in the nearly 2,000 collisions that killed or severely injured Bay Area bike riders in the past decade, an analysis by The Chronicle shows. Bicycle and safety advocates say the deaths two weeks ago of two cyclists hit by a Santa Clara sheriff's deputy's cruiser should serve as a call to improve relations between cars and bikes on the roadways.The advocates say large numbers of cyclists fail to follow the rules of the road, running stop signs and red lights, and drivers are becoming more aggressive. "There is a...

I received the information below in an email. The origin of the email is from someone who works for a large fuel delivery company. Some of you may already be aware of these tips. Feel free to pass it along. I hope it helps. Only buy or fill up your car or truck in the early morning when the ground temperature is still cold. Remember that all service stations have their storage tanks buried below ground. The colder the ground the more dense the gasoline, when it gets warmer gasoline expands, so buying in the afternoon or in the evening....your...

BROWNSVILLE - A 23-year-old man was arrested Wednesday on charges of being part of an auto-theft ring that was allegedly stealing tractors. Tirso Alamillo was charged with six counts of theft of a motor vehicle and one count of engaging in organized criminal activity, police Sgt. Jimmy Manrrique said. The auto-theft ring was stealing large machinery from construction sites, according to a police report. "The ring is accused of stealing six back-hoe tractors ... and a motor grader tractor," Manrrique said. "These vehicle are worth (a lot) of money on the black market and are believed to have been routed...

5 Year Anniversary of Success On Tuesday, March 18th, 2008 the Vets For Freedom Heroes came through Tucson, Arizona as part of their tour across America. As a member of Vets For Freedom I attended a lunch meeting held at a local American Legion Hall. The stalwart warriors explained in speeches that things were going well in Iraq but most mainstream news media refuse to report good war news. The speakers, which included retired US Army Lieutenant Colonel Steve Russell and former US Army Staff Sergeant David Bellavia, exhibited an amazing range of knowledge on a variety of subjects...

Bryan DeWinter spent his summer vacation in Israel, speaking with convicted terrorists at a maximum-security prison and venturing to the Syrian and Lebanese borders, where signs of the 2006 war with Hezbollah still remained. In Washington, D.C., he spent winter break meeting with Department of Homeland Security officials, analyzing government tactics to quell terrorist activities. Although young Democrats have dominated the spotlight this presidential election, helping to swell the ranks of new voters, college Republicans like DeWinter are just as impassioned about the 2008 presidential campaign. But instead of demanding a change of course from the Bush administration's policies, young...

Italy's most prominent Muslim commentator is converting to Catholicism by being baptized by the pope at an Easter vigil, the Vatican announced Saturday. Magdi Allam is the deputy editor of the Corriere della Sera newspaper and writes often on Muslim and Arab affairs. Born in Egypt, he has described himself as a non-practicing Muslim. He has long spoken out against extremism and in favor of tolerance. Pope Benedict XVI was baptizing seven adults during the service, which marks the period between Good Friday, which commemorates Jesus' crucifixion, and Easter Sunday, which marks his resurrection. The Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico...

BERKELEY -- Berkeley is hosting a decidedly different kind of protest today. A couple hundred flag-waving leather-clad pro-troop bikers have roared into town to show their support for the often besieged Marines recruiting center in the city. "I'm here because I support my Marines," said Steve Bosshard, a retired San Francisco police officer who came from Santa Rosa. "I don't like what Berkeley's done. They don't realize the effect it has on the troops." The center was criticized by the Berkeley city council and is often the target of protests. Today's demonstrators, most of whom are military veterans, said they...

BEIJING, March 21 (Xinhua) -- Countries around the world have expressed their support to the Chinese government on its handling of the recent riots in Lhasa, capital city of China's Tibet Autonomous Region. A spokesman of the Foreign Ministry of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Thursday strongly denounced the unsavory elements of their moves to seek "the independence of Tibet" and scuttle the upcoming Beijing Olympics. He expressed support to the Chinese government in its efforts to ensure social stability and the rule of law in Tibet and to defend the fundamental interests of the Tibetan people....

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) -- Coast-to-coast trucker Lorraine Dawson says fellow drivers used to call her "Lead Foot Lorraine." But with diesel fuel around $4 a gallon, she and other big-rig drivers have backed off their accelerators to conserve fuel. "I used to be a speed demon, but no more," said Dawson, based at Tacoma, Wash. "Most drivers have cut their speed considerably." Dawson said she's cut her speed by five to 10 miles per hour to save money for her company. Many independent owner-operators have slowed even more, she said. "My fiance is an owner-operator and he's been crying a...

22 March 2008 FOX NEWS JOINS THE "FAKE BUT ACCURATE" SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM by Aaron Weisburd

Question: (excerpted) When does affirmative action end and reverse discrimination begin? Twenty-plus years ago, the fire department I work for was mostly made up of white males. (Now,) our recruitment office is predominantly minorities or women. The training academy also has a high percentage of minorities. I believe this helps get minorities interested in the job and helps them through the academy. This is a good approach. However, are they hiring the best people for the job? The hiring process consists of a series of written and physical tests. Applicants used to be graded on how well they did in...