Free Republic

Islamist insurgents retreating from the ancient Saharan city of Timbuktu have set fire to a library containing thousands of priceless ancient manuscripts, some dating back to the 13th century, in what the town's mayor described as a "devastating blow" to world heritage. ... The manuscripts survived for centuries in Timbuktu on the edge of the Sahara hidden in wooden trunks, boxes beneath the sand and caves. The majority are written in Arabic, with some in African languages, and one in Hebrew, and cover a diverse range of topics including astronomy, poetry, music, medicine and women's rights. The oldest dated from...

A group of eight Democratic and Republicans senators, including Florida’s Marco Rubio, will officially release a wide-ranging immigration plan Monday that could give a pathway to citizenship, tighten border security and increase guest-worker permits. -snip- Most controversially, the proposal would give a pathway to residency — and even citizenship — to many of the estimated 11 million immigrants unlawfully in the United States.

Listen Live: Sound Off Connecticut with Jim Vicevich 9 a.m. to noon ET (Da ily Thread)Sound Off Connecticut is a popular conservative/libertarian call in talk show hosted by Jim Vicevich weekday mornings from 9 a.m. to noon ET. Although based in Connecticut, the show welcomes callers from all over the United States! This is your chance to sound off America! Call into the show toll free (800) 966-9842! Listen to the LIVE AUDIO STREAM at http://wtic.com - it's free and NO registration is required! If you're in southern New England listen over the air to WTIC 1080 AM, the 50,000...

Back in 2010, I shared a remarkable graph comparing the predictions of economists to what actually happened. Not surprisingly, the two lines don’t exactly overlap, which explains the old joke that economists have correctly predicted nine of the last five recessions.It’s not that economists are totally useless. It’s just that they don’t do a very good job when they venture into the filed of macroeconomics, as Russ Roberts succinctly explained. And they look especially foolish when they try to engage in forecasting.But at least economists sometimes can be entertaining, though usually in the laughing-at-you rather than laughing-with-you way.Consider, for instance,...

Her phony warbling made Chuck Schumer look like a fool — but she hasn’t apologized to him for it. The New York senator angrily admitted yesterday that the pop queen has not called him to say sorry after she turned last week’s inaugural bash into an unexpected Milli Vanilli concert by lip-syncing “The Star-Spangled Banner.” “I have not heard from her before, during or after,” a testy Schumer told The Post after he was asked if Beyoncé had called him to give a musical mea culpa. “She did not talk to me at all. I didn’t say any words to...

Both supporters and critics of the federal background check system for gun buyers say the system is flawed. Supporters argue the system is filled with holes and impeded by a lack of cooperation from state governments, while critics warn that even if the system were perfected it would in no way reduce gun violence. Now politicians and those with a stake in the outcome are looking for ways to improve the vetting process for Americans who want to purchase firearms.

A bipartisan group of senators has agreed on a set of principles for a sweeping overhaul of the immigration system, including a pathway to American citizenship for 11 million illegal immigrants that would hinge on progress in securing the borders and ensuring that foreigners leave the country when their visas expire. -snip- “We on the Democratic side have said that we are flexible and we want to get a bill,” Mr. Schumer told reporters in New York on Sunday. “But there’s a bottom line, and that’s a path to citizenship for the 11 or so million people who qualify. We’ve...

We all know the term "The Bill of Rights" which are the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution although few of us (including me) could name them. Hint: None of them start "Thou shalt not …" Rather they tend to start "The Government (or Congress) shalt not …" Keep that in mind. The First Amendment is a catch-all of rights upon which the Congress may not trample: It protects an individual's freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and freedom of the press, as well as the right to assemble and to petition the government. The American press corps is...

JEFFREY BROWN: All right, the week began with the inauguration. We all talked on Monday. It ends with the White House appointment of a new chief of staff, Mark. What does the new team, what does the language you heard this week tell you about the president that Barack Obama wants to be? MARK SHIELDS: I think, like all re-elected presidents, he sees a mandate, an expanded vision of a mandate from the electoral victory. But he realizes time is short. And I think he is not showing the same level of patience with the Congress that he showed in...

The gun grabber's legislative (National) bill compendium, updated (almost) daily: House Bills: H.R. 21: NRA Members' Gun Safety Act of 2013. Sponsor: Rep Moran, James P., Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, And Investigations. H.R. 34: Blair Holt's Firearm Licensing and Record of Sale Act of 2013. Sponsor: Rep Rush, Bobby L., Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, And Investigations. H.R. 65: Child Gun Safety and Gun Access Prevention Act of 2013 . Sponsor: Rep Jackson Lee, Sheila, Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, And Investigations. H.R. 117: Handgun Licensing and...

Word For The Day, Monday, 1/28/13 In order that we might all raise the level of discourse and expand our language abilities, here is the daily post of "Word for the Day". sub rosa; nounc confidentially; secretly; privately. Etymology: 1920–25; < Latin sub rosā literally, under the rose, from the ancient use of the rose at meetings as a symbol of the sworn confidence of the participants Rules: Everyone must leave a post using the Word for the Day in a sentence. The sentence must, in some way, relate to the news of the day. The Review threads are linked...

So who has cuter dimples? Swoon Journalist Steve Kroft or Mario Lopez? It's a reasonable question to ask because the Extra host's interviews of celebs like Angelina and Brad couldn't have been anymore of a puff piece than Kroft's starry-eyed interview of President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Sunday's 60 Minutes. A half hour of softballs were gently served up by Kroft who acted as if he were overjoyed to just bask in the glow of his interviewees who ate up almost all the time praising each other. Oh, there was the obligatory question that Kroft was...

... Brown, 23, is alleged to have been involved inan “all-out brawl” withcrooner FrankOcean and his crew Sundaynight, according to TMZ. The tworeportedly were at Westlake Studio in Los Angeles when the melee occurred. Reports are still hazy, but witnesses told police the fight was over a parking space, according to the AP. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department says the “altercation allegedlyled to Chris Brown punching the victim,”who remains to be identified. Sheriff’s officials are still investigating the case and said theywill contact Brown later. Brown was exposedto the horrors of domestic violence at a veryyoung age. Following his...

Days after documents surfaced that suggested New Jersey Democratic Senator Bob Menendez paid for sexual favors in the Dominican Republic — including some from girls as young as 16 — few in Washington are offering new clues about what appears to be an ongoing federal investigation. The documents included emails between FBI Special Agent Regino Chavez and a Dominican source. In one email, Chavez told the source that “we have been able to confirm most of” the information he had provided about Menendez and the prostitutes. “We know that you are providing accurate information.” ABC News chief global affairs correspondent...

Imagine you're getting ready to head to church one fine Sunday morning and on your television you hear a man say, "Let's give up on the Constitution." Such actually happened when CBS News Sunday Morning aired a rather inflammatory commentary by a Georgetown University law professor teased by host Charles Osgood asking, "Is the U.S. Constitution truly worthy of the reverence in which most Americans hold it?" (video follows with transcript and commentary): (video) **** CHARLES OSGOOD, HOST: Is the U.S. Constitution truly worthy of the reverence in which most Americans hold it? A view on that from Lewis Michael...

Private landowners are reaping billions of dollars in royalties each year from the boom in natural gas drilling, transforming lives and livelihoods even as the windfall provides only a modest boost to the broader economy. In Pennsylvania alone, royalty payments could top $1.2 billion for 2012, according to an Associated Press analysis that looked at state tax information, production records and estimates from the National Association of Royalty Owners. For some landowners, the unexpected royalties have made a big difference.

On the morning of Obama’s 2nd inauguration, January 21, 2013, Barack and Michelle received a powerful message of TRUTH from Pastor Jonathan Cahn, one that must have infuriated both of them greatly. This courageous pastor delivered a Presidential inaugural message that directly refuted the Black Liberation Theology of hate professed by Obama’s “Reverend” of 20 years, Mr. Jeremiah Wright. Pastor Cahn’s inspired message effectively repudiated Obama’s entire world view, his leadership style and his political priorities. As anyone paying attention knows, almost every word spoken by Obama is a calculated deception, one designed to insult Believers, agitate conservatives, denigrate Americans...

Mid-East Prophecy Update - January 27th, 2013 Pastor JD does an in-depth study of who's involved in a yet future nuclear attack against Israel as prophesied in Ezekiel 38, and why it matters to us.

They're on squad cars and street lights, and they track where you're driving. Across Minnesota, police and sheriffs have been using automated license plate readers for years to find stolen cars and aid investigations. Their spreading use and questions of data security, fueled by recent breaches of statewide databases, has focused attention on the lack of regulation. Until the data was temporarily classified late last year, anyone could ask police for a list of when and where a car had been spotted. Lawmakers will soon consider restrictions on the data stored via the readers, with state Rep. Mary Liz Holberg,...

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