Free Republic

A serious clash may be looming between the Department of Justice and the U.S. Civil Rights Commission about the department's dismissal of a voter-intimidation case against agents of the New Black Panther Party. The commission -- not Justice -- is on the side of the just. Charges had been filed against two Black Panthers, national Panther Chairman Malik Zulu Shabazz, and the party as a whole after the two Panthers were videotaped outside a Philadelphia polling place in paramilitary garb. One of them was brandishing a night stick, while they reportedly made racially inflammatory remarks. The case was already effectively...

A shipwreck apparently containing toxic waste is being investigated by authorities in Italy amid claims that it was deliberately sunk by the mafia.An informant from the Calabrian mafia said the ship was one of a number he blew up as part of an illegal operation to bypass laws on toxic waste disposal.

As if his reputation wasn't sullied enough, former disgrace President Jimmy "(pea)Nuts" Carter, decided to weigh in on Rep. Joe Wilson's now infamous outburst. Taking a play from the Al Sharpton Handbook, Carter states that racism was the cause of the outburst. Carter said the following to ABC News: "I live in the South, and I've seen the South come a long way, and I've seen the rest of the country that shares the South's attitude toward minority groups at that time, particularly African-Americans." "That racism inclination still exists, and I think it's bubbled up to the surface because of...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed an executive order Tuesday moving him closer to vetoing renewable energy regulations that the Legislature approved last week. "It is terrible legislation," he said at a ceremony held at a Sacramento Municipal Utility District solar-energy farm in Rancho Cordova. Schwarzenegger said he's "more than happy to sit down with legislators any time" to continue to talk about California's ambitious plans to cut use of fossil fuels. The governor's order assigns the California State Air Resources Board – rather than legislators – the task of charting how utilities arrive at using at least 33 percent renewable energy...

BLAYLOCK ON OBAMA (SOCIALIZED) CARE [WNHO-Aspartame-Information] National Health Insurance: The Socialist Nightmare by Russell L. Blaylock, M.D., author of Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills, www.russellblaylockmd.com Friday, August 14, 2009 10:10 AM FROM "Dr. Betty Martini,D.Hum." This is absolutely the best paper I've seen on National Health Insurance that Dr. Blaylock has just written. I would suggest that everyone forward it to their lists and their members of Congress. We must stop Obama Care before its too late. Anyone who reads this will understand. Please help to get it forwarded. ------ Dr Betty Martini, D.Hum, Founder, Mission Possible International, www.mpwhi.com, www.dorway.com...

On their way to taping “Washington Unplugged” on the balcony of the Senate Russell building Capitol Hill Correspondent Nancy Cordes and producer Jill Jackson ran into Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., who told them he feels the Democratic leadership, who will issue a resolution of reprimand against him this afternoon, is using his comments has a "distraction" from "real' issues. He also confirmed to CBS News that he will defend himself on the House floor this afternoon.

A 12-year-old Yemeni child-bride died after struggling for three days in labor to give birth, a local human rights organization said. Fawziya Abdullah Youssef died of severe bleeding on Friday while giving birth to a stillborn in the al-Zahra district hospital of Hodeida province, 140 miles west of the capital San'a. Child marriages are widespread in Yemen, the Arab world's poorest country, where tribal customs dominate society. More than a quarter of the country's females marry before age 15, according to a recent report by the Social Affairs Ministry. Youssef was only 11 when her father married her to a...

Ouch ! One week after President Obama’s speech to Congress, opposition to his health care reform plan has reached a new high of 55%. The latest Rasmussen Reports daily tracking poll shows that just 42%now support the plan, matching the low first reached in August. A week ago, 44% supported the proposal and 53% were opposed. Following the speech last Wednesday night intended to relaunch the health care initiative, support for the president’s effort bounced as high as 51% (see day-by-day numbers). But the new numbers suggest that support for health care reform is now about the same as it...

Remember the days when the press ooohed and aaaahed every time Barack Obama and Michelle went out to dinner? The President's jump shot … the First Lady's arms … the adorable kids … the dog search … the vegetable garden … it was Operation Razzle Dazzle run by an image machine working overtime. Team Obama believed that if people saw the First Family as cool and fun, they would be more likely to think Obama's "remaking of America" was cool and fun, too. Of course, it didn't work out this way. Americans, it turns out, are sophisticated enough to separate...

House Minority Leader John Boehner introduced legislation Tuesday that would break all federal government ties with ACORN, and Sen. Mike Johanns, R-Neb., wrote Attorney General Eric Holder requesting an investigation by the Justice Department House Minority Leader John Boehner introduced legislation Tuesday that would break all federal government ties with ACORN -- the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now. And Sen. Mike Johanns, R-Neb., wrote Attorney General Eric Holder requesting an investigation by the Justice Department. He cited reports that ACORN may "have been engaged in illegal activity" by aiding and abetting tax evasion, prostitution, human trafficking, fraud and...

Change may be harder to believe in than extraterrestrial life—at least when it comes to releasing classified records, according to UFOlogists in attendance at Angel Fire’s first Paranormal Symposium. “The only ‘change’ is the change of opinion among UFOlogists who think that we’re going to get something from Obama,” Dee Gragg, who teaches adult education courses on UFOs at New Mexico State University, says. Gragg presented a lecture on crop circles at the symposium, held Sept. 11-13 in the small village 25 miles outside Taos. The event drew more than 150 attendees to listen to 10 lectures covering everything from...

The 2009 FreeRepublic LexiconAKA "The Freepism, Freepology, Lingo, Dictionary, Terminology, Lore Handbook" A revised and condensed version of The Lexicon of FreeRepublic, culled from Lexicon of FreeRepublic - 4th Edition and Freeper Lingo Thread (the history and meening of 'Freepisms' including pictures). Thanks to the many Freepers who contributed, especially Bugbear and Risky Schemer, the originators of the first lexicon! (see also The 2008 FreeRepublic Lexicon) I have attempted to include all definitions and histories provided to me and give credit to those who provided me the information. I apologize, in advance to those I failed to credit, but please...

Cable news ratings, September 14, 2009: Check out the highlights, and see the full ratings below: • Fox News topped all its cable news competitors – CNN, HLN and MSNBC – in prime time last night, in total viewers and the A25-54 demographic. The top program was Bill O’Reilly’s 8pmET FNC hour in both categories. • The #1 non-FNC show was MSNBC’s Countdown with Keith Olbermann in total viewer’s and Nancy Grace’s HLN show in the demo. • The #2 show on cable news was Glenn Beck’s 5pmET hour in total viewers and Sean Hannity at 9pmET in the demo.

A RWJF survey summarized in the September 14, 2009 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine shows that 62.9 percent of physicians nationwide support proposals to expand health care coverage that include both public and private insurance options—where people under the age of 65 would have the choice of enrolling in a new public health insurance plan (like Medicare) or in private plans. The survey shows that just 27.3 percent of physicians support a new program that does not include a public option and instead provides subsidies for low-income people to purchase private insurance. Only 9.6 percent of doctors...

(English-language translation) Havana - The Cuban authorities authorized the celebration of Evangelical services and Catholic Masses in all of the country's prisons. Cuba Council of Churches (CIC) spokesman José Aurelio Paz told AP on Tuesday that they were informed of the decision on September 10. He added that, on that day, CIC leaders met with Religious Affairs officials from the Communist Party, including [Religious Affairs] head Caridad Diego, and with prison officials. "It involved an informative meeting," Paz stated. He explained that, prior to the decision, there was "personal-level religious attention", in other words, when a prisoner or his family...

King gives Conyers an acorn, literally By Jordan Fabian - 09/16/09 10:43 AM ET Well, this is certainly one way to start a conversation. Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) handed House Judiciary Committee chairman John Conyers (D-Mich.) an actual acorn, hoping to discuss the embattled community activist group of the same name. King tweeted Wednesday: Just presented an acorn to chairman j conyers-who-with a smile and a handshake agreed to meet tomorrow to talk about an acorn investigation The Republican, who also sits on the Judiciary panel, has frequently called for investigations into ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now)...

Maybe its time for the president to make another speech, because according to Rasmussen, opposition to the Obamacare plan is now at an all-all time high. Only one week since Obama's speech to a joint session of Congress, 55% of Americans now oppose Obamacare. Last week, before the speech, 53% of voters were opposed.Support bumped up after the speech to the point that 51% of voters supported the plan. But the euphoria is gone and support has returned to the downward slide.

Goodnight, America A Jihad Grows in Brooklyn byPaul L. Williams, Ph.D.thelastcrusade.org Bam! Bam! Bam!It’s 3:30 a.m. in Brooklyn and Mohammad Boota, a Pakistani immigrant, is beating his barrel drum along Coney Island Avenue and Foster AvenueBoota, who immigrated to the U.S. in 1992 from Pakistan, is joined by other drummers, other Pakistani immigrants, as the cries of muezzins ring out from loud speakers throughout the borough.The racket goes on every morning during Ramadan.The pounding of the drums, Boota explains, is necessary to wake believers so they can eat a meal before the day’s fasting must begin.“Everywhere they complain,” Boota...

The White House is collecting and storing comments and videos placed on its social-networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube without notifying or asking the consent of the site users, a failure that appears to run counter to President Obama's promise of a transparent government and his pledge to protect privacy on the Internet.