Free Republic

Someone might want to look into whether an impostor took President Obama's place during his trip to Russia In a release touting an agreement between Obama and President Dmitry Medvedev over how to craft a follow-up to the START arms reduction treaty, the White House claimed the document had been signed by one "Barak Obama." Whoops:

Many American presidents have kept prized possessions within reach during their White House years. Franklin D. Roosevelt cherished a 19th century ship model of the U.S.S. Constitution. One of Dwight D. Eisenhower’s favorite gifts was an engraved Steuben glass bowl from his cabinet. And sitting on John F. Kennedy’s desk in the Oval Office was a paperweight made from a coconut shell he had carved with a distress message after his PT-109 was sunk during World War II.

Scientists discovered that being able to pull off dance floor moves with the ease of John Travolta indicates strength and ability to produce healthy offspring Researchers found that the men who women said looked attractive on the dance floor are actually physically stronger than those who are considered to have two left feet. This in turn indicates an ability to have strong children. Researchers recorded video clips of 40 heterosexual male students dancing to the drum track of the Robbie Williams song Let Me Entertain You. They found those whose moves were rated attractive and assertive by members of the...

For the past several days newsrooms all across America have been faced with the decision of which story to make their lead, or as is the case for 24 hour cable television news, which story would dominate all coverage 24/7 around the clock. The choices made say something about the state of journalism today and about who we are as a people. The national media has chosen to dedicate the overwhelming majority of coverage since last week to focus on both Sarah Palin’s abrupt resignation as Governor of Alaska, and on the untimely death of Michael Jackson. However, the coverage...

Why aren't the Sheila Jackson-Lee's and the Al Sharpton's of this world trying to commemorate these people with postage stamps?

Royal Dutch Shell has reportedly told its UK-based IT contractors they will be asked to quit if they fail to accept a 12 per cent pay cut. According to Contractor UK, the multinational company wrote to its IT contractors last month, informing them of its plan to slash rates as part of a cost-cutting exercise. It warned IT contractors who were unwilling to accept the cut that their job role at Shell could be axed. ----- at the bottom of the article. By April 2008, Shell had set adrift most of its IT staff after it inked three outsourcing deals...

If, somehow, by the grace of God...or in this case...by the grace of NOW...these two were...just...maybe...able to combine their DNA (again to the well of mad science, he goes!), the results would be astounding.

The pending Body Mutilation ("Transgender Rights") Bill declares it unlawful to discriminate on the basis of "gender identity or expression" yet fails to define either "gender identity" or "gender expression" in any meaningful way. (Likewise, the phrase "sexual orientation" remains undefined in the law.) The inclusion of "expression" is heavy with implications on how this bill will play out. Whereas "orientation" and "identity" are states of mind, "expression" connotes ACTION, and guarantees that perversions will be protected when played out in the public sphere.

In this epsiode of the Conscience of Kansas radio show I interview Matt Bruce from the "Captain's America" radio program. I also talk to Chris Pendarvis, conservative political cartoonist of "Insanity Island". Next I speak to NY Times bestselling author Jerome Corsi. I also address angry letters from PETA members on my new column "Of Flies and Men". We invite you to listen and comment on the show!

The German great, Waldo von Erich, died suddenly last night at Grand River Hospital in Kitchener. He was 75.

From Homeroom to Eternity by: Malcolm A. Kline, July 08, 2009 A new study by a trio of professors from the University of Minnesota found that 15 percent of teens surveyed expected to die young. Given what schools are teaching, that may not be too surprising. Iris Wagman Borowsky, Marjorie Ireland and Michael D. Resnick looked at data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health from 1995, 1996 and 2001-2002. They found that “At time 1, 14.7 % of 20,594 respondents reported at least a 50/50 chance that they would not live to age 35.” “In adjusted models, illicit...

ROME – World leaders attending the Group of Eight summit opening Wednesday in Italy will each be presented with a gift from the past and one for the future. Handmade books portraying works by Neoclassical sculptor Antonio Canova, as well as gold coins representing an imaginary future world currency will be given to the participants at the opening of the three-day summit...

A government report that found federal buildings were vulnerable to terrorist attacks because of poor security that included guards asleep on duty or distracted by erotic Web sites drew outrage from lawmakers Wednesday. "As we approach the eighth anniversary of 9/11 ... it is outrageously unacceptable that the federal employees working in our federal buildings are still so utterly exposed to attacks by terrorists or other violent people," said Sen. Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., in a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing. A new Government Accountability Office report said investigators smuggled bomb components past Federal Protective Service guards into 10 government buildings,...

miraculous 'fountain of youth' drug that could extend people's life spans by more than a decade has been developed by scientists. The anti-ageing pill was created from a chemical found in the soil of Easter Island - one of the most remote and mysterious places on the planet. In tests, the chemical increased the life expectancy of animals by a staggering 38 per cent. Although it is not yet suitable for use on people, researchers say it opens the door to the first generation of longevity pills that actually work. While the breakthrough sounds like something out of science fiction,...

The only thing worse than being issued an i.o.u. rather than a check from the State of California may be not getting the i.o.u. at all — at least in time to meet the deadline of your bank. But across California on Tuesday, many vendors who had been told they would receive the i.o.u.’s instead of actual money said they had not yet received them. And if they do not arrive soon, they may be hard to turn into cash. Last week, the state began issuing the warrants for the second time since the Great Depression. It ran out of...

Really, how hard is it to find a job? Was June's horrid numbers, in which 467,000 people lost their jobs compared to 345,000 in May, a one-time fluke? Or does it mean that all those Wall Street economists who believe the economic recovery is starting are dead wrong? Not to scare you, but the situation is actually worse than it seems. Over the years, the government has changed the way it counts the unemployed. An example of this is the criticized Birth-Death Model which was added in 2000. The model is designed to account for the birth and death of...

I first heard about the Community Reinvestment Act sometime in late 2008. When I first heard commentators come on major networks like Fox News and assign it as the most significant blame for the mortgage crisis I was stunned. I have spent the last nearly seven years in the mortgage business. If the CRA was such a factor, why hadn't I heard of it before? As I learned more about it, I started to understand why it became such a popular cause celebre.

Barack Obama's approval rating hit a new low of 56% in the most recent survey (7/5-7/7), according to Gallup. His "Disapprove" number also hit a new high of 36%.

Iran’s biggest group of clerics has declared President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s re-election to be illegitimate and condemned the subsequent crackdown. The statement by the Association of Researchers and Teachers of Qom is an act of defiance against the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has made clear he will tolerate no further challenges to Mr Ahmadinejad’s “victory” over Mir Hossein Mousavi. “It’s a clerical mutiny,” said one Iranian analyst. “This is the first time ever you have all these big clerics openly challenging the leader’s decision.” Another, in Tehran, said: “We are seeing the birth of a new political front.”

The beloved vintage car from the 1968 movie "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" can't appear in a British parade because it's not roadworthy, local officials say. The car, with its red and yellow wings, flew children away from danger in the film, but now presents a danger to the public in this weekend's Norwich, England, Street Procession, because it lacks a proper Ministry of Transport inspection certificate, the Daily Telegraph reported Wednesday. "The Chitty Chitty Bang Bang car does not have a valid MoT certificate and therefore breaches regulations," said Harry Mitchell of the Norfolk Police told the newspaper, adding that...