Free Republic

Once again, as always, we see in stories like this one that investigators are focused narrowly upon the individual accused. What about the community in which Hinda Osman Dhirane lived? She must have friends, associates, contacts at the local mosque — any number of people may hold to the same views as she does, and some may even be involved in active jihad funding activity, as she apparently was. But perhaps to follow up on such matters would be “Islamophobic.” “Police: Washington woman suspected of funding terrorists calls Boston Marathon bombing ‘blessing,’” KIROTV.com, July 30, 2014

On more than one occasion, international media reporters working in Gaza have stood before the cameras showing the devastation from an Israeli strike only to have a rocket unexpectedly fired nearby toward Israel as they speak. This tends to prove the Israeli case that Hamas is using Gazans as human shields, and puts the onus of violating the rules of war on Hamas. Some reporters, such Finnish TV’s Aishi Zidan, have become furious when their disclosures of Hamas firing rockets from amidst civilians are picked up and used to support Israel. Others however, seem to learn from their experience. Consider...

In Saudi Arabia, a man suspected of contracting Ebola during a recent business trip to Sierra Leone also died early on Wednesday in Jeddah, the Health Ministry said. Saudi Arabia has already suspended pilgrimage visas from West African countries, which could prevent those hoping to visit Mecca for the Haj in early October. Liberia, where the death toll is rising fastest, is struggling to cope. Many residents are panicking, in some cases casting out the bodies of family members onto the streets of Monrovia to avoid quarantine measures. Beneath heavy rain, ambulance sirens wailed through the otherwise quiet streets of...

A Masters of the Universe drawing hangs in a frame above the desk in the Capitol Hill office of Alabama senator Jeff Sessions. It stands out among dozens of pictures of his three children and seven grandchildren. The protagonist of the comic-book series, He-Man, is depicted mounted atop his heroic lion, Battle Cat. His muscles are bulging; his sword is thrust into the air. Battle Cat’s mouth is open, his fangs exposed. They are a formidable pair. A small gold plaque sits below the drawing in the same frame. Etched on it are a portion of the remarks Sessions delivered...

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has been traveling to New York in the past month to quietly meet with high-flying business leaders to ramp up interest in a potential presidential bid, sources tell Page Six. “He’s been meeting with groups of up to 15 people at private homes to tell them about some of his moderate points of view,” a source said.

It is starting to feel like Groundhog Day in this country. In the past couple of years, some of the best and brightest students in America have boldly shared their stories of personal faith from the stage at their high school graduation. But instead of standing ovations, these young men and women have been met with shut off microphones, black markers, and threats of jail time. Why? Because decades of threats and attacks have left schools cringing at the thought of student religious liberty. SORRY, GRADUATE, YOU CAN’T TALK ABOUT GOD Rebekah Izzo presents the newest case of schools’ attempts...

An Indian journalist appears to have captured the lifecycle of a Hamas rocket on camera, from clandestine construction to launch in a crowded area. In a video report posted to YouTube Tuesday, Indian news outlet NDTV shows what appears to be a portable rocket construction site.

It’s not just fat cat hedge funds, banks or Wall Street investment companies that benefit when U.S. companies cut their tax bills by moving their headquarters overseas via mergers with foreign concerns. More than a dozen state government pension funds that run retirement accounts for government workers like teachers, cops and firemen own big chunks in these “corporate deserters,” too. Five U.S. companies merging with overseas concerns have big state government pension investments amounting to nearly $2 billion, based on data provided by Richard Peterson, senior director at S&P Capital IQ. But you don’t hear about government pension investments in...

Gov. Chris Christie trails former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton among New Jersey voters surveyed in a poll about the 2016 presidential race. The Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday shows Clinton leading the Republican governor 50 to 42 percent. Both are considering 2016 runs but haven't committed.

Siberia is 73.6% of the Russian territory. The population is not too dense, but rural and urban villages are distributed all over the area. If the planned March for Federation goes well, in the forest, Eastern and Western Siberia may appear with a dozen new breakaway States. It is because of this crazy world record and Kremlin clock filters the information throughout the CIS. The Kremlin understands that to crush the rebellion would be simply impossible. Analyst site ELISE.COM.UA Valentin Ivanov. "The organizers have planned federation very clearly. Shares initially will be in small towns of the Siberian Federal District...

When he’s in trouble, President Obama changes the subject to the economy. And in speech after speech, he utters some version of this line: “We know from our history, our economy does not grow from the top down, it grows from the middle up.” This is a puzzling statement. I don’t know what it means, much less whether it’s true. I asked a number of economists and they were no help. “I have no idea what it means,” Douglas Holtz-Eakin, the former director of the Congressional Budget Office, says. “I am unaware of any literature supporting the proposition,” Kevin Hassett,...

Shooting and discussing the inexpensive Canik 55 TP9, a copy of the Walther P99.

ORANGEBURG COUNTY, SC — Orangeburg County Sheriff’s deputies have arrested a man in connection with a fatal shooting that happened Monday morning. Police say Marquis Diondre Stevenson, 20, has been charged with murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime. Officers were flagged down by a woman around 11:30 a.m. Monday because she heard gunshots while traveling along Stilton Road, Sheriff Leroy Ravenell said. Officers discovered a shattered back window of a vehicle parked near a house and a man laying in the front yard at a Stilton Road address, Ravenell said. “Our investigation indicates 20-year-old Marquis Diondre...

Intolerance that fosters pogroms abroad is taking root in U.S. communities. Sobering and unforgettable images are projected across our television and computer screens. They should elicit the most basic instincts of both fear and compassion. I'm referring to images of showing the persecution of hundreds of thousands, perhaps even millions, of our fellow brothers and sisters by incomprehensible religious zealots. Their intolerance of Christianity is beyond horrible. People are beheaded for their faith. Women and young girls are sexually violated, and whole families are wantonly slaughtered in cold blood. Perhaps just as abhorrent is the profound silence of the...

A red alert signaled a rocket attack from the Gaza Strip on Shear Hanegev at two minutes past 2 p.m. Wednesday, after the 72-hour Gaza ceasefire had held for 30 hours. Officials said it was a false alarm. Hamas violated all five truces declared in the month-long Gaza operation. Its envoys are in Cairo for indirect talks with Israel after committing to uphold the current ceasefire initiated by Egypt.

In a remarkable video from 1978, 28 year old MIT grad Benjamin Netanyahu debates whether there should be a Palestinian state created on the West Bank and Gaza. Netanyahu argues that such a state would...

Lisa Mason had taken out close to $100,000 in student loans in order to pay for nursing school, and was making payments on the debt when she died. Steve Mason said he and his wife, who had co-signed the loans, were contacted immediately after his daughter’s death and were told they must start making payments. “We knew if she didn’t pay her debt we would be responsible by co-signing, but we didn’t know that if she died the debt would fall to us,” he said. Mason said his daughter’s debt has ballooned to $200,000 and the payments exceed $2,000 a...

For those puzzled by the recent thrusts and feints on our border crisis, here is a helpful primer: Related Stories Democrats blame the “urgent humanitarian crisis” at our border on an obscure 2008 sex trafficking bill. But, they refuse to change the bill. President Obama’s DACA order in 2012, protecting young people here illegally against deportation, summoned tens of thousands of migrant children from Central America. To solve the problem, the White House wants to open the door even wider by offering asylum to people from that region. House Republicans passed a bill giving President Obama funds to manage the...

The design bureau and Russian Helicopters offer to help the Indian Navy meet its shortage of helicopters by supplying Ka-52Ks. Ka-52k is the navalised derivative of the Ka-52 (photo). Source: www.russianhelicopters.aero Russia’s Kamov helicopter design bureau and Russian Helicopters are ready to jointly supply modern seaborne helicopters for the Indian Navy on request, Kamov Chief Designer Sergei Mikheyev said on Tuesday. “Upon request from the Indian Navy, we are ready to supply jointly with Russian Helicopters the necessary number of seaborne helicopters and offer the latest developments to the Indian side, including the Ka-52K helicopters,” Mikheyev said. Helicopters operational in...

Navi Pillay, U.N. high commissioner for human rights, has accused both Israel and Hamas militants of committing war crimes in the Gaza conflict. Her harshest criticism, as well as that of most nations, has been reserved for the Israeli government, charging that it has committed war crimes in direct violation of the Geneva Conventions. In the wake of the huge difference in casualties and property destruction, many in the West have accused the Israeli government of making a grossly disproportionate response to terrorist rocket attacks. A New York Times (July 23, 2014) article titled "As Much of the World Frowns...