Free Republic

Iranian newspaper says opposition figure should stand trial The state-owned paper says Mir-Hossein Mousavi is a foreign agent on 'a mission directed from abroad.' Meanwhile, a military commander says Iran may take over the British Embassy residence. By Borzou Daragahi July 4, 2009 Reporting from Beirut -- A right-wing newspaper close to Iran's supreme leader today accused the country's main opposition figure of being a dupe for Iran's foreign enemies who should face trial, as an military official said the "ground has been set" for a takeover of the British Embassy residence in north Tehran. A crackdown continues against supporters...

If you're a teen in California, want to know about your "right to privacy" and "reproductive health care"? Do you need your parents' permission to get birth control pills? Can you get a pregnancy test without your parents knowing? These are the messages the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California is giving teens on its Web site - assuring them of their "right" to unbridled sexual "freedom." Yet the consequences of this libertine philosophy are never mentioned. Sexually transmitted diseases are now so rampant, especially among 15- to 24-year-olds, that Los Angeles County just launched a textmessaging program to...

Microsoft's new search engine has made some gains, but not nearly as dramatic as the buzz might indicate, PC World reports, citing new researchHave you heard the news? Microsoft's Bing is taking a bite out of Google, boasting first-month market share gains while the competition's stronghold slips away! At least, that's what some headlines around the Web might lead you to believe this week. The truth, though, is that the change is not nearly as dramatic as it appears at a glance. While Bing has, according to certain data, minimally increased Microsoft's search market share, Google's position has not significantly...

9 women, 4 children injured by rampage Muslims apparently angered because a Christian man driving a tractor reportedly tried to pass a Muslim on a motorcycle have rampaged in one village in Pakistan, destroying Christians' homes and throwing acid on women and children as they fled, according to a new report from Barnabas Aid. The ministry reported that the violence this week happened in the village of Bahmani Walla in Punjab state in Pakistan, which is dominated by Islamic influences.

Link only due to copyright. Our Foreign Policy Expert Veep dictates policy to the Iraqis.

It is easy to find a clip of the speech on YouTube, consisting of just a few short lines captured on a long ago day by the television cameras. The Lou Gehrig we see in black and white at Yankee Stadium on July 4, 1939 is movie-star handsome: tall, seemingly strong, a New York Yankee through and through. Joe McCarthy, the Yankees manager, takes Gehrig by the elbow and leads him to a bank of microphones behind home plate. The crowd of 61,000 gets to its feet. The emotion in the moment is obvious. Gehrig - native New Yorker, two-time...

Despite a number of differences I have with Ayn Rand on issues of religion and philosophy, her 1957 magnum opus, "Atlas Shrugged," definitely steered me away from the leftist upbringing I had, and introduced me to the world of conservative ideas and authors: Ludwig von Mises, Henry Hazlitt, Milton Friedman, Isabel Paterson, and many others. Universally panned by literary critics of the day, "Atlas" was, nevertheless, a bestseller in 1957, and continued to sell about 100,000 copies a year for 51 consecutive years. 52 years later -- just after the inauguration of zerobama -- "Atlas" has apparently tripled its sales...

Nothing! No news about Cobb Tea Party with 5000+ people.

Michelle Obama bringing glamour to Moscow Despite global acclaim, first lady may face challenge winning Russian public Michel Euler / AP Perhaps in deference to Russia's uneasiness about a political wife with popular support of her own, U.S. White House officials have suggested Michelle Obama will avoid the limelight during the visit. Michelle Obama bringing glamour to Moscow Despite global acclaim, first lady may face challenge winning Russian public Michelle Obama brings her superstar glamor to Moscow this weekend as she accompanies her husband on his summit with the Russian president. But the American first lady, who has wowed publics...

Core measurements and satellite data show that the polar ice caps (arctic and antarctic) are expanding, not shrinking. The Australian recently published an article on the fact that the antarctic ice cap is growing: ICE is expanding in much of Antarctica, contrary to the widespread public belief that global warming is melting the continental ice cap. . . . Ice core drilling in the fast ice off Australia’s Davis Station in East Antarctica by the Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Co-Operative Research Centre shows that last year, the ice had a maximum thickness of 1.89m, its densest in 10 years. The...

Planned Parenthood is facing criticism for alleged false advertising. The organization has been running ads in Washington, DC, claiming that 90 percent of its services are preventive and primary care, just like going to a doctor's office. Jim Sedlak of American Life League disagrees. With Obama's healthcare program, Sedlak contends Planned Parenthood is just trying to position itself to be in the mainstream of healthcare. "The problem is that according to its last annual report, Planned Parenthood...primary care patients account for only seven-tenths of one percent of its total number of customers," he says. Sedlak was asked if Planned Parenthood's recent report was...

I have prediction on what Sarah Pallin is about to do and why. I think David Letterman was the straw that broke the camels back. It was bad enough what the Drive by media did to her during the campaign, not to mention the liberal groups with frivolous charges on ethics, then they turned up the heat after the election, why? Easy they know if they don't keep tearing her apart two things will happen; Her criticism with Obama will get aired and she could run in the next presidential election and win. So the left thinks it is their...

A man was arrested just before Friday night’s fireworks display after attempting to bring a sawed-off shotgun into the Taste of Chicago, less than a week after a northwest Indiana man was arrested for carrying a loaded handgun near a Grant Park security checkpoint, police said. The latest arrest was made about 7:30 p.m. Friday at 300 E. Jackson Dr., according to police News Affairs Officer Gabrielle Lesniak, who said the man was arrested for attempting to bring a sawed-off shotgun into the Taste.

An Iraqi city worker prepares to unload new trash containers to be distributed to local citizens of Basrah, July 1. Approximately 12,000 trash containers were delivered that day, with a total of 350,000 to be delivered in the near future. Photo by Sgt. Rodney Foliente, 4th Infantry Division. BASRAH — U.S. Soldiers and members of the Basrah Provincial Reconstruction Team joined Governor Sheltag Aboud al-Mayah here as he distributed the first trash can to a city family, July 1. The 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, coordinated with the local government to provide trash cans to residents here as...

Well, we've had a day to digest the Sarah Palin resignation and her reasons why. Looking through the blogosphere it runs the gamet from her being run from office, to a impending scandal, to preparing for a 2012 run. Mark Steyn believes she was run from office: So Occam’s Razor leaves us with: Who needs this? In states far from the national spotlight, politics still attracts normal people. You’re a mayor or a state senator or even the governor, but you lead a normal life. The local media are tough on you, but they know you, they live where you...

A conservative black pastor and former NFL linebacker says he's highly offended that President Obama would compare the plight of homosexuals to that of blacks during the Civil Rights Era.On Monday, President Obama told a gathering of homosexuals at the White House that he is aware that many of them "don't believe progress has come fast enough," and compared their struggles to those of blacks during the Civil Rights Movement. Ken Hutcherson, the senior pastor of Antioch Bible Church in Kirkland, Washington, says the comments are especially disturbing from an individual who is supposed to be familiar with "the black experience." "But I...

Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska — daughter of Frank Murkowski, who was defeated by Sarah Palin in the 2006 Republican gubernatorial primary — released a statement Friday after the governor announced her decision to leave office by the end of the month. Full text: “I am deeply disappointed that the Governor has decided to abandon the State and her constituents before her term has concluded.” Her office added that the senator was traveling "in interior Alaska and communicating via satellite phone and is unavailable for follow up questions" for the rest of the weekend. Last year, shortly after the GOP...

KIRKUK — "If terrorists knew this explosion would have unified Arabs, Turks, and Christians, they wouldn't have done it," said Mayor Talib of Taza, referring to a truck bomb attack here in June. "It has united us!" Representatives from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, and Kirkuk's Provincial Reconstruction Team traveled to Taza, June 27, to assist in the recovery. Capt. Nathan Jennings, a company commander with 2nd BCT, met with Talib. According to Jennings, the purpose of the visit was to assess the security situation in the city, deliver much needed water, and examine a tent city...

A hilltop view of the ancient city of Babylon, where King Nebuchadnezzar II, whose life spanned 630-562 B.C., built his hanging gardens, one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Photo by Maj. Mike Feeney, 172nd Infantry Brigade. HILLAH — Soldiers of the 172nd Infantry Brigade are enabling documentarians, historians and preservationists as they work to ensure ancient Iraqi history is preserved and documented in Babil province. The Soldiers provide these experts transportation and security as they conduct site surveys of Babylon, an ancient city near the modern city of HillahThe Babil Provincial Reconstruction Team hosted the World Monuments Fund...

We were so poor growing up On the fourth of July Mom told us to rub our eyes real hard to see them