Free Republic

The five senior Taliban Commanders released from Guantanamo (GITMO) in exchange for the return of Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl are set to be freed from their “luxurious” confinement in Qatar effective June 1. These five hard-core terrorists are Mullah Norullah Noori, Abdul Haq Wasiq, Mullah Mohammad Fazl, Khairullah Khairkhwa and Mohammend Nabi Omari. They were classified as some of the most dangerous Taliban commanders held at GITMO, according to Thomas Joscelyn of The Long War Journal. There is little doubt that these five Taliban commanders will return to the Afghanistan battlefield. The real issue that should not be overlooked is...

Damage is estimated at $9 million for the destruction of hundreds of businesses and two homes during the recent unrest in Baltimore — with at least 30 sustaining major damage, according to information released Wednesday. The Small Business Administration estimated the damaged at about $8.9 million to 284 business and $60,000 to two houses, officials told The Baltimore Sun. U.S. Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski, along with other Maryland Democrats, called for Small Business Administration to assist with the creation of disaster centers in the city and a plan to inform business owners who are eligible for benefits about how to...

Louisiana's state senators chose anti-discrimination arguments over concerns about frivolous lawsuits Tuesday, narrowly backing an equal pay proposal in what has become an annual fight in the Legislature. With a 21-16 vote, senators sent the measure by Sen. Ed Murray, D-New Orleans, to the House for consideration. But it is expected to run into problems there. The House labor committee killed two similar equal pay bills last month. Murray's bill describes the state's policy as "all employees shall be compensated equally for work that is the same in kind and quality," with no distinction made because of a person's gender....

Google probably knows more about you than your mother, your partner, your boss... but chances are that you have no idea of just how much it knows. Fortunately, there's an easy way to open your eyes to the scale of just what the world's most popular search engine knows about you, your interests and your peccadillos. You may find yourself squirming when you realise Google never forgets what you've been typing into its search engine over the years, but, at least afterwards, you'll be able to do something about it. First things first, take a deep breath and visit: https://history.google.com/history/...

Athens hasn’t seen this many Republicans roll into town since Reconstruction. For the second time in a row, the Georgia Republican Party will hold its biannual convention in our bastion of socialism—specifically, at that taxpayer-funded monument to big government meddling with the private sector, The Classic Center. Seeing as how we’re merely 18 months away from a presidential election, a number of GOP contenders will be on hand (after feting big donors in Atlanta, of course). So far, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is scheduled to speak at an 8:30 a.m. breakfast Friday; Florida Sen. Marco Rubio’s speaking slot is...

The trade deal was back on track Wednesday afternoon, just a day after hitting the skids in a Democratic filibuster, after leaders struck a bipartisan agreement to move forward. Democratic senators lost their bid to have four trade-related bills combined into a single measure, but did secure the chance to have votes related to all four bills, giving them the platform they wanted.

I am organizing the first annual "Prepper Fest & Survival Expo" in Grand Junction (Western Colorado), July 25th and am in need of some assistance. Specifically, I am seeking presenters who can present on a variety of Prepping, Homesteading, Sustainable Living, and general Survival topics. The presentations will be done in a classroom setting @ the venue, complete with A/V setup and PC/Projector. We will have the equipment necessary to do remote presentations, so this is not necessarily limited to those available to be @ the show. Each presentation should last approximately 45 minutes, and include an additional 15 minute...

The Stillwater Concert Choir breaks out into song at a hotel pool. The acoustics were perfect for them to sing F. Melius Christiansen's "O Day Full of Grace."

I’ve been a florist in Richmond, Wash., for more than 30 years. In that time, I’ve developed close relationships with many of my clients. One of my favorites was Rob Ingersoll. Ingersoll came in often and we’d talk. Like me, he had an artistic eye. I’d try to create really special arrangements for him. I knew he was gay, but it didn’t matter — I enjoyed his company and his creativity. Then he asked me to create the floral arrangements for his wedding. I love Rob, and I’d always been happy to design for his special days. But there’s something...

Some possible good news on the Second Amendment front is emerging from New Jersey. One of the most intrusive (and frankly, unworkable) gun control laws in the country may be heading for the scrapyard as legislators in the Garden State slowly come to the realization that they just can’t force everyone to have “smart guns” instead of conventional firearms. Leading Democratic state lawmakers are seriously considering scrapping New Jersey’s longstanding but never-implemented law requiring all handguns sold in the state feature “smart gun” technology that allows only the weapon’s owners to fire them, NJ Advance Media has learned. There are...

HOOKSETT, N.H. – The New Hampshire Union Leader published a guest op/ed from a teacher who identifies herself as a liberal.  Diane Sekula is a teacher in Hooksett, NH and she was responding to a published article that said Common Core is a conservative flashpoint. Sekula writes:I come from a staunch Democrat family. By most people’s standards, I would be considered liberal. I am also, however, very much against Common Core. Public dissatisfaction with Common Core is not a partisan issue. It is a matter of importance for anyone interested in doing what’s best for the children of New Hampshire.She points...

After Tuesday night’s catastrophic Amtrak derailment, resulting in the deaths of at least six people and injuries to more than 140 others, the political class has weighed in: we must spend more money on infrastructure.

"This is cultural and human genocide," Sister Diana Momeka of the Dominican Sisters of Saint Catherine of Siena, who used to live in Mosul, Iraq, told lawmakers on the House Foreign Affairs Committee Wednesday morning. "Christians of Iraq are the first people of the land. You read about us in the Old Testament of the Bible. Christianity came to Iraq from the very earliest days through the preaching and witness of St Thomas and others of the Apostles and Church Elders. While our ancestors experienced all kinds of persecution, they stayed in their land, building a culture that has served...

All-time home run king Barry Bonds is going ahead with a case against MLB regarding his claim of collusion by teams that prevented him from obtaining a playing job following the 2007 season, people with knowledge of the case said. Bonds has long contended that a collusion of MLB owners effectively ended his career following the '07 season, when he set the career home run record with 762 homers. Sources say Bonds is working now on a grievance against MLB regarding the way his career ended. He could potentially file a lawsuit, as well, but he appears to be working...

In a roundup of media encounters with the wide-open field of 2016 Republican presidential hopefuls, Jon Stewart last night took a shot or two at Bloomberg Politics’ Mark Halperin, who earlier this week apologized for his April 30 interview of Sen. Ted Cruz. Introducing the interview, Stewart said, “The candidates aren’t the only ones being vetted. See if you can spot which member of this interview also deserves to get primaried out of 2016,” said Stewart. With that, “The Daily Show” inventoried all the identity-obsessed questions that Halperin posed to Cruz, such as: “It seems to me your last name...

“That’s not acceptable,” Majority Whip John Cornyn (R-Texas) said. The Senate Republican leadership has rejected a compromise bill floated by Senate Democrats, leaving a key trade bill at the center of the Obama administration’s political priorities at a standstill. Senate Democrats had proposed a compromise on a trade bill earlier on Wednesday after blocking debate on fast-track authority for the president on Tuesday, which included a proposal to vote on a provision related to currency manipulation that would be included in a final bill, rather than all four bills the Democrats wanted included. Republicans quickly rejected that offer, and instead...

In reacting to Russia’s annexation of Crimea and support for pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine in early 2014, the US government did not call the Sixth Fleet into action; it did not ban all exports to Russia; it did not stop all cultural and educational exchanges. Rather, key elites close to “a senior Russian government official”—President Vladimir Putin—were targeted with asset seizures and visa bans. Probably the most serious international crisis since the end of the Cold War, and the White House targets individuals? It seemed an odd response to some observers. But it made sense. At last, after 14 years...

She might be married to the most powerful man in the free world, but it’s a tough gig to be Michelle Obama. While speaking to graduates at Tuskegee University in Alabama, Obama described times she has been the recipient of racist and sexist remarks and the media has been super-mean to her and really hurt her feelings. Politically, it was tough to be a Democrat, married to a guy with the middle name Hussein, and, you know, winning elections like a boss. Like the time she and Barack Obama had a “on-stage celebratory fist bump” after a primary win and...

The problem of gender. People are nowadays more than ever exposed to unhealthy sexual pressure. Sexual problems have always tormented the human race. And now they are tormenting it with an even more indomitable power. That is why it is important to help Christians understand this sphere so as to avoid a spiritual catastrophe. There is only one way to master the play of our subconscious powers — that is, to illumine them in calmness and sobriety, in order to understand their hidden dynamics in the light of Christianity. First of all it is necessary to establish the fact that...

The Department of Homeland Security does not maintain data on how many illegal immigrants it allows to stay in the U.S. through prosecutorial discretion — a failure that could have national security implications — the agency’s inspector general reported Wednesday. “The Department’s ability to accurately assess the results of policy decisions and make needed changes is important given its modified approach to immigration enforcement,” wrote inspector general John Roth. Though the Obama administration has implemented new policies that rolled back immigration enforcement through executive action and expanded the use of prosecutorial discretion, “the policies did not include a requirement to...