Free Republic

Urban Shield has grown into a comprehensive, full-scale regional preparedness exercise assessing the overall Bay Area UASI Region's response capabilities related to multi-discipline planning, policies, procedures, organization, equipment and training. Urban Shield continues to test regional integrated systems for prevention, protection, response and recovery in our high-threat, high-density urban area. The exercise evaluates our existing level of preparedness and capabilities, identifying not only what we do well, but areas in need of improvement. The previous years' After Action Reports are referenced and used to assist in prioritizing upcoming expenditures possible for the region so we may become more prepared for...

Out of love for the truth and the desire to bring it to light, the following propositions will be discussed at Wittenberg, under the presidency of the Reverend Father Martin Luther, Master of Arts and of Sacred Theology, and Lecturer in Ordinary on the same at that place. Wherefore he requests that those who are unable to be present and debate orally with us, may do so by letter. In the Name our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. 1. Our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, when He said Poenitentiam agite, willed that the whole life of believers should be repentance. 2....

Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) says if Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) won the Republican nomination for president, it would destroy the GOP. In an interview on MSNBC’s “The Rachel Maddow Show” Wednesday night, Reid discussed fallout from the 16-day government shutdown, which ended two weeks ago. He said he’s sure the debacle will help Cruz raise more money. “If I didn`t care so much about our country, I would hope he will get the Republican nomination for president, because that would be the end of the Republican Party,” Reid said. “Ted Cruz, he`s someone else.” Cruz, a freshman Tea...

A new NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey shows that a mere 42 percent of Americans approve of Obama’s job performance, down five points from a poll conducted in early October.

Happy Reformation Day.

California's lawmakers have ensured the state will remain a major oil and gas producer by approving new legislation allowing hydraulic fracturing and acid treatments to rejuvenate its ageing wells in exchange for strict controls and tougher enforcement. Senate Bill No 4 (SB 4), which Governor Jerry Brown signed into law on Sept. 20, directs the state Department of Conservation and other agencies to adopt new rules and regulations covering well construction, fracturing and other well stimulation treatments by the start of 2015. The chemicals used will have to be disclosed to regulators and published, subject to special treatment for trade...

When the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan is completed next year what will happen to Afghan women? Will a resurgent Taliban return them to wearing burqas, withdraw them from schools and force them to live behind painted glass in their homes, permitting them to leave the house only when accompanied by a blood relative? The Afghan constitution contains language that supposedly protects women's rights and Afghanistan has signed several international human rights treaties that guarantee protection for women. Article 22 of the Afghan constitution reads, "Any kind of discrimination and privilege between the citizens of Afghanistan are prohibited....

... There are allegations that the Marines' top officer, Gen. James Amos, illegally interfered with the judicial proceedings in an effort to ensure harsher penalties. Amos spoke about the video and other incidents last year during a worldwide tour of Marine bases. And in a written statement after the video came to light, he said the Marine Corps would not rest until the allegations were resolved. He appointed a senior officer, Lt. Gen. Thomas Waldhauser, to investigate. Waldhauser said Amos told him he wanted those involved "crushed" and kicked out of the Marine Corps. ... A Marine lawyer, Maj. James...

While the great crew change plagues the energy industry and poaching is at an all-time high, mid-size companies can compete against the giants when searching for the best and brightest, said Rodney Smoczyk, global director of talent acquisition at EDG, at the People in Energy Summit conference in Houston. “In the war for talent, there are the haves and have nots,” he said. “Which of these you are is based more on how you package it then on what you actively have in comparison to others. The package is your employee value package (EVP) or overall employee experience.” When companies...

Vice President Joe Biden joined the president and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius in apologizing for the Obamacare enrollment site, saying he and President Barack Obama are not “technology geeks.” “Neither he and I are technology geeks, and we assumed that it was up and ready to run,” Biden said in an interview with HLN on Wednesday. …

If Gwinnett voters approve a renewal of the county’s one cent special purpose local option sales tax next month, some of that money will be used to improve emergency response times at the county’s 132 schools and the four schools in the city of Buford. Commissioners have voted to spend up to $5 million on the emergency notification system that would be linked directly to the county’s 911 operations center. Gwinnett Police Chief Charles Walters says it would include a panic button as well as video cameras. “The camera feeds will enable the 911 call takers to provide real-time information...

The Justice and State departments are now citing a year-old FBI investigation and a future criminal prosecution to block access to survivors of last year’s Benghazi terror attack. In an Oct. 28 letter to Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.,the State Department’s Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs, Julia Frifield, refers to "significant risks" and "serious concerns about having the survivors of the attack submit to additional interviews." Graham has been asking since last year for the FBI’s transcripts of interviews with State Department and CIA survivors who were evacuated to Germany after the Sep.11 attack on the U.S. consulate. He and other...

Deception: In the face of millions of cancellation notices, Democrats want to downplay the president's "keep your health plan" pledge as standard political hyperbole. It was, in fact, a calculated lie that got ObamaCare enacted. To understand why, let's freshen up on a little health care reform history. Back in 1994, when Bill Clinton was pushing his own version of "comprehensive health reform," the insurance industry launched its infamous "Harry and Louise" ads to deliver a simple message: The Clinton plan would force families to give up their own health plans. In one of these, the middle-class couple pours over...

Very shallow and on land. Depth = 5.8 miles.

CBS News has learned the website failed with a small test pool of 200 to 300 people that included employees from the government and insurance companies. CMS employees were provided fake personal information to enter into HealthCare.gov rather than their own data and were given a date that testing would begin. However, on that date, the employees were told it was being postponed. When the testing finally took place in late September, the testers started trying to create an application. Just a couple of pages into the process, everything "ground to a stop," said one source. "It froze. It couldn't...

He Increases Your Strength Today's Scripture “He gives power to the faint and weary, and to him who has no might He increases strength [causing it to multiply and making it to abound].” (Isaiah 40:29, AMP) Today's Word from Joel and Victoria In the Bible, Joseph went through seasons of difficulty. He was rejected by his family, sold into slavery, lied about, mistreated, abandoned, falsely accused and thrown in jail. But through it all, Joseph never gave up. He kept pressing through and doing the right thing even though the wrong thing kept happening. The Bible says in Psalm...

Westminster Reformed Presbyterian (RPCNA) church and Reformation Orthodox Presbyterian church will be celebrating the birth of Protestantism this weekend. Instead of Halloween, they celebrate Reformation Day. The RPCNA church has invited local area churches to their Friday night celebration of food and fun, especially for the children. Reformation OPC, in Castle Rock, will celebrate Saturday afternoon with a longer program. Both churches request an RSVP. [SNIP] Although there are many Protestant churches in Denver, only a handful still remember or celebrate the start of the Reformation, usually smaller Presbyterian churches like the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. In fact, this same handful...

The Trial of Faith "If you have faith as a mustard seed . . . nothing will be impossible for you" —Matthew 17:20 We have the idea that God rewards us for our faith, and it may be so in the initial stages. But we do not earn anything through faith— faith brings us into the right relationship with God and gives Him His opportunity to work. Yet God frequently has to knock the bottom out of your experience as His saint to get you in direct contact with Himself. God wants you to understand that it is a...

You Tube Transcript Rep John Boehner- Winston Spencer Churchill was the best friend the US ever had. By the time President Kennedy named him an honorary citizen in the Spring of 1963, we already considered the man one of our own. continued.

Look, I know the Statue of Liberty is actually French, and therefore possibly a Euro-socialist, but even she’s probably a bit irritated at the redistributive rhetoric in New York City’s mayoral race. The Far Left liberal candidate for Mayor (No. . . Mike Bloomberg is not running again) is now talking about raiding the funds that keep Central Park safe, beautiful and iconic. Leave it to Bill de Blasio, the Democrat Mayoral candidate and likely future Mayor, to insist on experiencing his own “Joe the Plumber” moment. “I think we have to share the wealth a little bit here,” de...