Free Republic

Good turnout for Clearwater Florida Tea Party at the Perkins Restaurant corner of US19 and Gulf-to-Bay. Estimate at 300+ (unofficial) and good spirits for all participants on a hot day. I know that there are/were other Tea Parties in the Tampa Bay area so 300+ is probably a good turnout. Lots of horn honking and thumbs-up signs.

An elderly couple was in a Toledo hospital Friday after being beaten by two or more men who broke into their rural Gibsonburg residence the day before and robbed them of 31 guns, authorities said. James Kohler, 74, was listed in serious condition and Mary Kohler, 76, was listed in good condition at St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center early Friday, a hospital spokesman said.

President Obama, strategizing yesterday with congressional leaders about health-care reform, complained that liberal advocacy groups ought to drop their attacks on Democratic lawmakers and devote their energy to promoting passage of comprehensive legislation. In a pre-holiday call with half a dozen top House and Senate Democrats, Obama expressed his concern over advertisements and online campaigns targeting moderate Democrats, whom they criticize for not being fully devoted to "true" health-care reform. "We shouldn't be focusing resources on each other," Obama opined in the call, according to three sources who participated in or listened to the conversation. "We ought to be focused...

Woke up to a cryptic e-mail this morning from Gov. Sarah Palin's office. All it says is she "will make an announcement at her Wasilla home this morning" at 11. On Fourth of July weekend? From her home? Hmm. My question: why did it have to be so cryptic? She's staying another month on guard -- so just wait until after the holiday, why don'tcha? Maybe she thought that if she waited to make the announcement, she'd reconsider. Or maybe she wanted her July 4 weekend to relax without having to worry about throwing such a curve ball on Monday...

Los Angeles is a city in mourning. And by that we mean Los Angeles is a city with dollar-signs spinning in its neon eyeballs, thanking its lucky stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for the Celebrity Death of the Century. What with the housing market and the Dow Jones and the unemployment figures, it couldn’t have come at a better time. With only three days to go before the Funeral To End All Funerals — or the Memorial To End All Memorials, as it might more accurately be called — this city has suddenly found itself the direct recipient...

Moonwalkers Defy Gore's Claim That Climate Skeptics Are Akin To Those Who Believe Moon Landing was 'Staged' Friday, July 03, 2009By Marc Morano – Climate Depot Washington, DC – At a House global warming hearing on Capitol Hill on April 24, 2009, former Vice President Al Gore once again compared skeptics of man-made climate fears to “people who still believe that the moon landing was staged on a movie lot in Arizona." Gore appears ignorant that his several years old analogy has been refuted by two of NASA's moonwalkers themselves -- Moonwalker and Award-Winning NASA Astronaut/Geologist Jack Schmitt – who...

Conventional wisdom suggests that short-term the Palin decision was unwise — e.g., "quitter," unpredictable, sulking, etc. But what else are her critics really going to say? It's not like a Letterman can trump laughing at her on late-night television as he puns that a Yankees star had sex in a dugout with her 14-year old daughter. Can Andrew Sullivan at the Atlantic website go beyond his slurs that she did not deliver her own child? How much more cleverly can N.Y. feminist pundits tsk-tsk her that she's a Wasilla trailer-park retread? In other words, it doesn't matter that much what...

PALOMINAS — It isn’t along a highway, but Glenn Spencer’s billboard along the American-Mexican border carries a special message to those responsible for the nation’s security: Finish the Job. The day before the Fourth of July, Spencer, who heads the private nonprofit American Border Patrol (which should not be confused with the federal U.S. Border Patrol), and a number of helpers placed 3,000 small American flags and messages on part of the 18-foot high border fence, changing a 60-foot stretch of rusty metal into colorful patches of red, white and blue. This is the second year during the national independence...

Just like here in America, rigged elections mean nothing to President Obama, nor does the silencing of opposition supporters. Obama's actions in regards to Iran clearly show that he supports the Islamic maniac Mullahs.

With a fattened GI Bill covering full tuition and more, the number of veterans attending college this fall is expected to jump 30 percent from last year to nearly half a million. That's left many universities looking for ways to ease the transition from combat to the classroom.

Is There No Help For The Widow's Son? By Dr. Reed C. Durham, Jr.There are two concepts I need at this point to reiterate. Firstly, I said that Joseph Smith had no qualms about using Masonry. This letter, I think, is evidence of that. One historian has described this use of Masonry as the "grabbing on" principle employed by Joseph Smith. This was explained to me that whatever was in his surroundings, being preached, professed, or practiced, he sometimes borrowed it and incorporated it into his ideological theology and system.The second concept I wish to reiterate is that the...

Hi, A MUST SEE And Listen To VIDEO For This 4th of July 2009: GREAT VIDEO TO WATCH FOR THIS 4th OF July 2009 Peace! Dan Iraqs Inconvenient Truth :: Iraq War News Updates9

Here is video of former Democratic Vice-Presidential candidate Geraldine Ferraro saying she believes Gov. Sarah Palin has "made a bad move" in resigning as Governor of Alaska. Ferraro makes the point that as a sitting governor, Palin has a seat at the policy table on matters such as energy, etc. But after resigning, she will not have the access or the platform that she did as Governor. . . . . (Watch Video)

Is There No Help For The Widow's Son? By Dr. Reed C. Durham, Jr.Someone has said that a historical convention like this - all of these papers that we have heard - are like a pair of steer horns, with a point here and a point there and a lot of bull in between; and in my case, a lot of "Bull Durham."One thing we won't have to put up with though is the wind blowing - just hot air. And I know the disadvantage that we are placed in, with the dimness of the room, the delightful meal...

Today we celebrate that stirring day in history, July 4, 1812, when the first president of the United States, Benjamin Franklin, emerged from the old State House in Boston, held up the new Constitution freshly penned by Thomas Jefferson of New York, and announced to the cheers of the gathered throng that, "These United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent of the crown of Spain!" Who would not wish to have been there, joining in the joyous tumult, as the commander of the Continental Army, Ulysses S. Grant, promptly ordered his men to board the...

We are seeing even those small marks of personal pride and independence — the freedom to rev up the engine on a Friday night — taken away. The muscle cars, under the diktat of the president and head of General Motors, are simply being eliminated and replaced by Yugo-style cars. The common retort to my lament is that such a boost to the male ego is silly in light of global warming and the greater good. What I find alarming, though, is that today’s generation submits to such authority. And what about those from the upper-middle classes who had dreams...

The glee on Anderson Cooper's face was unmistakable. Charlie Gibson, Katie Couric, and that fathead from NBC are probably still up partying. A hearty fourth of July celebration? No, much better than that for the liberal left and their attack dog media: Sarah Palin has resigned. Chris Matthew's arms must be sore to the bone from patting himself on the back. Keith Olbermann has probably passed out from a sudden unexpected, and heretofore, never experienced sensation of happiness. N.O.W. and all the other so-called "women's groups" are giddy beyond their wildest belief. They've managed to beat down a woman. A...

Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken. My salvation and my honor depend on God; he is my mighty rock, my refuge. (Psalm 62:5-7)

In yesterday's threads, I was clearly overzealous in my criticisms of Ms. Palin After spending the morning with a bunch of lefty's here in DC, I realize that someone like myself is just playing their game. While I do not think Ms. Palin should be our nominee in 2012, I will support her from these vicious leftist attacks, which are over the line and unethical. I do understand why she is stepping down, in particular with the costs of the ethic cases, even though I wish she would not step down. And even though I don't see her as a...

There have been a number of seminal queries which our elders used to define game-changing moments in America’s cultural evolution. Where were you when JFK was shot? Where were you when Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon? For me, although it will likely wind up as a Trivial Pursuit bonus round question, one of the treasured turning points may well be: Where were you when Sarah Palin decided to commit political suicide? The odd thing is that I was up in the mountains, forcing myself into a period of decompression from the political theater. I likely wouldn’t have even...