Free Republic

The President of the European Parliament has hailed the "miracle" of Jewish life reemerging in Germany once more, while warning that "the demons of the past" were making a return to the shores of Europe in the form of rising anti-Semitism. Speaking in Brussels on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Martin Schulz told the assembled Jewish and European leaders that the fact that "more than 100,000 Jewish people live again in my home country, in Germany, for me it is a miracle." But he warned that "miracle" was under threat, with increasing numbers of Jews leaving Europe as anti-Semitism continues to...

Megyn Kelly is getting support from an unlikely source: Michael Moore. "I feel bad for you," the liberal moviemaker told her on Fox News's "The Kelly File" Tuesday night. "You're being attacked. I'm here for you. You're OK, aren't you?

... "In my experience the Cruz organizational effort here in Iowa is unrivaled,"...

Considered to be the most important meeting of the world's Orthodox Christian bishops in over a thousand years, the Great and Holy Synod which was to convene at the headquarter city of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople in Istanbul, Turkey, is being relocated to Crete, citing geopolitical concerns. The announcement came via the Athens News Agency, covering meetings of various Orthodox Church delegations meeting this week in Switzerland to formulate the agenda item and preparations for the June 2016 event. The decision comes after "exceptional objective circumstances" (i.e. the inability of the Russian delegation to travel to Turkey because of...

One of Mitsubishi's legendary Zero fighter planes took to the skies over Japan on Wednesday for the first time since World War II. The restored plane made a brief flight to and from a naval base in southern Japan. Decorated former U.S. Air Force pilot Skip Holm flew the aircraft. Zero fighters were considered one of the most capable fighter planes in World War II, rivaling the British Spitfire. Their long range allowed them to play a prominent role in the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. Only a few are still in operating condition. ...

The Pope spoke at a prayer service concluding the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity After walking across the threshold of the Holy Door of the Basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls with an Orthodox metropolitan and an Anglican archbishop, Pope Francis invoked God's mercy upon divided Christians and apologised for times that Catholics may have hurt members of other denominations. "As bishop of Rome and pastor of the Catholic Church, I want to beg for mercy and forgiveness for un-Gospel-like behaviour on the part of Catholics against Christians of other churches," the Pope said on Monday at a...

A labor union campaign against making West Virginia a right-to-work state is centered on scare tactics voters in Michigan would recognize. With help from International Union of Operating Engineers Local 132, the West Virginia AFL-CIO is warning of lower wages, reduced benefits, and more dangerous working conditions if the state adopts right-to-work. IUOE Local 132’s Stop WV Paycuts website asks visitors to contact their state legislators with those three reasons for opposing right-to-work. Unions made the same arguments before Michigan enacted right-to-work several years ago. “In states with RTW laws on the books, wages are lower, benefits are fewer, and...

January/25/2016 Russia seeks alleged killer of Turkey-downed jet pilot after Rabia recapture Nerdun Hacıoğlu – MOSCOW Russian soldiers are searching for the alleged killer of a Russian pilot who was shot after the downing of a Russian jet by Turkey near the Syrian border on Nov. 24, according to reports by Russian media. Alparslan Çelik, a Turkish citizen who claimed to have shot Russian pilot Oleg Peshkov, and his group were in the rebel-held Rabia town in the western coastal province of Latakia, which was recently recaptured by Syrian pro-government forces, where soldiers were looking to “take revenge,” Russian DNI...

Donald Trump says he won't appear at the upcoming debate on FOX if Megyn Kelly is a moderator, and as of this writing, it appears she will be. Some of you asked me how this move by Trump could possibly be a smart thing. http://blog.dilbert.com/post/138125409321/trump-fox-news-and-megyn-kelly-explained-master

Iran's semi-official FARS news agency says that the country's navy has warned a U.S. warship to leave an area in the sea of Oman where Iran has been conducting a naval drill. [...] Iran on Wednesday began a naval drill near the Strait of Hormuz, through which one fifth of the world oil supply passes. The warning was the first such incident since 10 U.S. sailors were briefly captured by Iran on Jan. 13 after drifting into Iranian territorial waters. ...

Israel believes Russia's intervention decreases chance of Israel-Hezbollah conflict By YAAKOV LAPPIN 01/26/2016 17:01 Russia’s intervention in Syria and close interaction with Hezbollah may actually decrease the likelihood of an Israel-Hezbollah conflict erupting in the near future, according to IDF assessments. For example, dialogue between Russia and Hezbollah could provide an opportunity to rein in Hezbollah responses to reported Israeli air strikes on weapons-trafficking runs in Syria. The assessments are part of a broader look at Israel’s strategic environment. Russian President Vladimir Putin is seeking the survival of a pro-Moscow regime in Syria where he also has an economic interest....

The split over LGBT rights between social conservatives and the business wing of the Republican Party will likely be on full display Wednesday, when a GOP-controlled committee in the Indiana Senate takes up measures that could establish statewide protections based on sexual orientation and possibly gender identity. The measures come in response to the bitter debate last March over a religious objections law that drew swift and largely negative attention to the state after critics contended that it would sanction discrimination against gay people on religious grounds. GOP lawmakers and Republican Gov. Mike Pence, who supported the law, hastily made...

Cars run on fuel. Politicians run on votes, and they'll do almost anything to get them. That includes supporting mandates that force us to use ethanol, a fuel made from corn that Iowa farmers grow. They support ethanol because Iowa is the first state to vote on presidential candidates. Candidates want to look strong at the start of the race, so every four years they become enthusiastic ethanol supporters. Even those who claim they believe in markets pander to Iowa's special interests. Donald Trump, who doesn't seem to have a consistent political philosophy aside from bashing critics and foreigners, now...

In Italy, family is considered so sacred that marriage is lauded in the Constitution. But what kind of family? That has become a bitterly divisive question in a nation where the Vatican packs considerable political weight and where gays have grown impatient as other traditionally Catholic European countries have either allowed same-sex couples to marry or legally recognized their civil unions. On Thursday, Italy's Senate will plunge into a debate on proposed legislation to grant legal recognition to "civil unions," including those of homosexual couples, without equating the partnerships to marriage. ...

The Michigan State Police Department said Tuesday that a man died after rolling his car on the ramp from the Lodge to I-75 was watching pornography while driving. The accident happened early Sunday morning just after 3:30. Michigan State Police troopers were called to the ramp from the Lodge to southbound I-75 on a one-car accident. The preliminary investigation revealed the driver of the car was watching a movie while behind the wheel, police said on Monday. The driver was not wearing a seat belt when he lost control and rolled the car. He was partially ejected through the sunroof...

Until Tuesday, Canada-based Trican Well Services was the tenth largest pressure pumping company in the US by frac horsepower. On Tuesday, the company announced a deal had been reached to sell their US frac fleet to Keane Group, a privately-held, U.S. based well completion services company. The deal marks Trican's exit from the US market. Under the agreement, Keane will acquire the majority of Trican’s U.S. assets, including equipment, key employees and its engineering capabilities. The deal has been expected, and we previously reported that it was coming, but the price had not been known until today's announcement. The total...

Muslim communities are not like others in Britain and the country should accept they will never integrate, the former head of the equalities watchdog has claimed. Trevor Phillips, the former chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said it was disrespectful to assume that Muslim communities would change.

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a day of remembrance Tuesday for Mario Woods, the stabbing suspect shot to death last month by several police officers, in a vote that ratcheted up tensions between the supervisors and the police union. Several supervisors railed against what they described as bullying behavior by the Police Officers Association, and said they would not be intimidated. The union called the resolution “completely inappropriate.”

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem Character Studies From The Bible Paul (Paul's First Letter to The Corinthians) 4 This, then, is how you ought to regard us: as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed. 2 Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. 3 I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. 4 My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges...

Tulsa Police Chief Chuck Jordan announced seven promotions from within the ranks Tuesday, including that of an officer who unsuccessfully sued him and others over a dispute involving an event at a local mosque. Paul Fields was promoted from captain to major in charge of Special Operations. Fields was disciplined in 2011 after he disobeyed an order to find volunteers or assign other officers to represent the department at a mosque-sponsored Law Enforcement Appreciation Day.