Free Republic

<p>MCLEAN, Virginia - The federal government's most secure prison has determined that two books written by President Barack Obama contain material "potentially detrimental to national security" and rejected an inmate's request to read them.</p> <p>Ahmed Omar Abu Ali is serving a 30-year sentence at the federal supermax prison in Florence, Colorado, for joining al-Qaida and plotting to assassinate then-President George W. Bush. Last year, Abu Ali requested two books written by Obama: "Dreams from My Father" and "The Audacity of Hope."</p>

Republicans facing tough elections in 2010 don’t want Sarah Palin campaigning with them. Though the soon-to-be-former Alaska governor is seen as popular with the conservative grass roots, several Republicans said she’d help them by staying home in Wasilla. Several of these Republicans hail from districts or states carried in 2008 by President Obama, a frequent target of Palin’s criticism. Republicans must keep these districts and win others where Obama is popular if they are to gain seats next year. GOP Rep. Lee Terry (Neb.), who squeaked out a victory despite his district’s overwhelming turnout for Obama, said he’d rather have...

KIRKUK — Since the withdrawal of U.S. combat forces from Iraqi cities, and in accordance with the Security Agreement, the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, has begun adding signs reading “Iraqi partnership provincial approved convoy. Thank you for your patience and support” to the sides of their vehicles. U.S. Forces serving in an advisory and assistance role continue to travel within the city to meet with their Iraqi counterparts or government officials. “These signs show that we are working with our partners and that we’re abiding by the Security Agreement,” explained Maj. Frazier Epperson, an Information Operations officer...

Ananova: 'Pool got my daughter pregnant' A Polish mum is suing an Egyptian hotel after claiming her daughter got pregnant using their mixed swimming pool. The bizarre claim surfaced as Magdalena Kwiatkowska demanded compensation after her 13-year-old daughter came back from the family holiday expecting a baby. Tourist authorities in Warsaw confirmed they had received the complaint which states that the girl conceived because of stray sperm in the pool. "The mother is adamant that her daughter didn't meet any boys while she was there and is determined to go ahead with the case," said one travel industry source.

The Iraqi National Police take the lead and escort a U.S convoy through Baghdad, July 6. Photo by Capt. Tommy Avilucea. Multi-National Security Transition Command – Iraq. BAGHDAD — The Iraqi National Police (NP) and Multi-National Security Transition Command - Iraq (MNSTC-I) joined forces for convoy operations July 5 - 6, to comply with U.S./Iraq Security Agreement articles. The NP led a convoy through the streets of the Iraqi capital, supporting a U.S. Army mission to transport Americans to various locations. The well-coordinated movement took the convoy through city streets and on highways. The convoy aggressively moved through the traffic...

COLUMBUS, OH—Ian Kimmel, 31, of Dublin pleaded guilty in United States District Court here to one count of possession of child pornography for having between 150 and 300 images on his personal computer depicting children under the age of 18 engaged in sexually explicit conduct. He faces a possible maximum sentence of ten years imprisonment and will be required to be under court supervision for at least five years after he serves any prison time. Federal law will also require him to register as a sex offender. Gregory G. Lockhart, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio and...

I have often thought that a basic problem with health care is insurance. That insurance, promising full coverage for those with the right employer, motivates bad behavior from customers and doctors. Why be a savvy shopper when all health care is free? This is often referred to as moral hazard, one abuses a resource if there are no repercussions. Conversely, the need to mitigate health care cost (counter moral hazard) has been regulating price, not paying more than $X for a given procedure. Now in most other markets this combination of moral hazard and cost constraint, constrains innovation. Why innovate...

7/8/2009 AL ASAD AIR BASE, Iraq — After serving in Iraq for approximately three months, a detachment of Marines from Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 169 will soon join the remainder of their squadron serving in Afghanistan. “This is an amazing opportunity for every Marine within the squadron, because there aren’t a whole lot who get to serve in two operational theaters within one deployment,” said Maj. Gerry Kearney, detachment officer-in-charge for HMLA-169. More than half of the squadron is already in Afghanistan and the remaining Marines will be joining their counterparts. “We have been operating with about a third...

.S. lawmakers rang alarm bells about the troubled commercial real estate industry, which has been walloped by the credit crunch and an implosion of property values. "The commercial real estate time bomb is ticking," Joint Economic Committee Chairman Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., said in opening remarks to a hearing before her panel Thursday. U.S. Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kansas, said he was distressed about the situation the industry is facing. Banks have yanked back on lending to developers of shopping malls, apartment complexes, hotels and office parks. Meanwhile, the securitization market - a key source of funding for the commercial real...

The Obama Doctrine is finally coming into focus. It’s been hard to glean its form because for so long it seemed the president’s most obvious guiding principle was “not Bush,” particularly when it came to the Iraq War. Indeed, his anti-Bush stance has led him to stubbornly refuse to say the war has been won or to admit that he was wrong to oppose the surge. In the past, this unthinking reflex has caused Obama to take some truly repugnant positions. In July 2007, Obama said that he would order U.S. forces out of Iraq as quickly as possible, even...

There is still time to stop the legislative monstrosity known as the Waxman-Markey cap-and-trade bill before the Senate approves it. But for that to happen, Americans must learn how bad it is. Let's briefly review the basics: The bill is ostensibly designed to curb man-caused carbon emissions (presumably without outlawing breathing) to retard global warming. Even if we accept, for purposes of argument, the assumptions of radical, hysterical leftist environmentalists that man-caused global warming will destroy the planet if evil, rich capitalists don't radically curtail their own contributions to the catastrophe, Waxman-Markey would not prevent this Armageddon. Climate scientist Chip...

These are confirmed by Snopes! "The contagious people of Washington have stood firm against diversity during this long period of increment weather." -- M. Barry, Mayor of Washington, DC "I promise you a police car on every sidewalk." -- M. Barry, Mayor of Washington, DC "If you take out the killings, Washington actually has a very very low crime rate." -- M. Barry, Mayor of Washington, DC "First, it was not a strip bar, it was an erotic club. And second, what can I say? I'm a night owl." -- M. Barry, Mayor of Washington, DC "Bitch set me up."...

Britain is ready to cut its number of nuclear warheads as part of global deal to persuade Iran and North Korea to give up the arms race, PM Gordon Brown has said. The Prime Minister said US-brokered talks next year could pave the way for the UK to reduce its 160-warhead arsenal in return for proof from would-be nuclear states they had stopped their weapons programmes. Speaking at a G8 summit in Italy, Mr Brown insisted there was no question of abandoning plans to replace the Trident weapons system. UK Trident Missile But he signalled the number of British warheads...

Most economists believe the U.S. doesn't need another round of stimulus now despite expectations of continued severe job losses. Just eight of 51 economists in The Wall Street Journal's latest forecasting survey said more stimulus is necessary, suggesting an average of about $600 billion in additional spending. On average, the economists forecast an unemployment rate of at least 10% through next June, with a decline to 9.5% by December 2010. "The mother of all jobless recoveries is coming down the pike," said Allen Sinai of Decision Economics. But he doesn't favor more stimulus now, saying "lags in monetary and fiscal...

WASHINGTON, July 9, 2009 – A key measurement of success in Afghanistan will be the attitude of Afghans affected by U.S.-led operations, the military’s second-ranking military officer said today. Marine Corps Gen. James E. Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that the counterinsurgency mission in Afghanistan elevates the civilian population as a main determinant of success or failure, much as it did in Iraq. “I believe personally that one of our key metrics for success will be over the next few months to see whether or not there is a shift...

U.S. swine flu vaccinations could begin in October with children among the first in line — at their local schools — the Obama administration said Thursday as the president and his Cabinet urged states to figure out now how they'll tackle the virus' all-but-certain resurgence. "We may end up averting a crisis. That's our hope," said President Barack Obama, who took time away from the G-8 summit in Italy to telephone another summit back home — the 500 state and local health officials meeting to prepare for swine flu's fall threat. No final decision has been made on whether to...

WASHINGTON—A 35-year-old Minneapolis man was sentenced today in federal court on one count of conspiring to provide material support and resources to al Qaeda. David Kris, Assistant Attorney General for National Security, and Frank J. Magill, U.S. Attorney for the District of Minnesota announced that on July 9 in Minneapolis, U.S. District Court Judge John Tunheim sentenced Mohammed Abdullah Warsame to 92 months in prison and three years of supervised release. Warsame, a naturalized Canadian citizen of Somali descent, was charged with one count of conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization—al Qaeda—in a Jan. 20, 2004,...

WASHINGTON, July 9, 2009 – The military is sending thousands of mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles to Afghanistan, even while a new version is being built, to protect troops against their biggest threat: improvised explosive devices. Because IEDs pose the biggest threat to troops in Afghanistan, the nation’s top military officer said yesterday, the military will keep the MRAPs flowing there until new versions built specifically for the Afghan terrain are ready for shipment. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen told a National Press Club audience that IEDs have become “more and more sophisticated over time.” Combined with increasingly sophisticated Taliban attacks, they pose...

Federal and state authorities this morning arrested 20 defendants accused of being part of ring that defrauded Medi-Cal out of nearly $4.6 million by using unlicensed individuals to provide in-home care to scores of disabled patients, many of them children with cerebral palsy or developmental disabilities. The 20 defendants arrested this morning are among 42 defendants named in a 41-count indictment that was returned by a federal grand jury on June 25. The indictment is part of an investigation called Operation License Integrity, a two-year investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Department of Health and Human...