Free Republic

Some accused congresswoman of antisemitism while others denounced ‘ugly attacks’ on her When the Democratic congresswoman Ilhan Omar claimed pro-Israel lobby money influenced American politics, in the way other powerful lobbying groups do, she ignited allegations of antisemitism and sparked a furious debate in her own party. But a look at House Democrats and 2020 presidential candidates’ responses to the resulting row seems to validate her claim. House Democratic leaders who drafted a resolution initially aimed at condemning Omar’s remarks received millions from the pro-Israel lobby throughout their congressional careers. Congressman Eliot Engel, who accused Omar of using “a vile...

“In this enlightened age, there are few I believe, but what will acknowledge, that slavery as an institution is a moral and political evil in any country.” — Robert E. Lee 1856 Could Gen. Robert E.l Lee’s sentiments deter the “tear down those monuments” crowd? Probably not. Given their current success in removing monuments to Confederate generals, ignorant politicians and those whose hobby is going through life seeking to be offended, soon will run out of things to be offended by. Why not broaden the list of "offensive" symbols to include slave owners George Washington and Thomas Jefferson and a...

(VIDEO AT SOURCE) Saturday at the South by Southwest Conference & Festivals in Austin, TX, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) said former President Ronald Reagan used “racist,” caricatures to pit “white working-class Americans against brown and black working-class Americans.” Ocasio-Cortez said, “One perfect example, I think a perfect example of how special interests and the powerful have pitted white working-class Americans against brown and black working-class Americans in order to just screw over all working-class Americans, is Reaganism in the ’80s when he started talking about welfare queens.” She added, “So you think about this image; welfare queens and what he...

In a letter released to the public for the first time, former Attorney General Jeff Sessions has been found ordering U.S. Attorney for Utah John Huber to investigate Hillary Clinton, according to watchdog group American Oversight. The watchdog got hold of the letter after filing a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) litigation. The letter’s existence, which was written in November 2017, was denied a year later in response to American Oversight’s litigation. The Justice Department maintained that Sessions didn’t direct Huber in writing and that any order was passed verbally. In a letter released to the public for the first...

An Ethiopian Airlines flight crashed shortly after takeoff from Ethiopia's capital on Sunday morning, killing all 157 on board, authorities said, as grieving families rushed to airports in Addis Ababa and the destination, Nairobi. More than 30 nationalities are among the dead. It was not immediately clear what caused the crash of the Boeing 737-8 MAX plane, which was new and had been delivered to the airline in November. The pilot sent out a distress call and was given clearance to return, the airline's CEO told reporters. The state-owned Ethiopian Airlines, widely considered the best-managed airline in Africa, calls itself...

A bus has exploded in central Stockholm, leaving the driver seriously injured. The explosion occurred at Klaratunneln in the middle of Stockholm city. Huge plumes of black smoke were seen hovering above the Swedish capital. The driver was seriously injured and has been taken to hospital. The bus is believed to have struck the roof of the Klaratunneln and the gas tank exploded on impact. The bus was not in service and did not carry a passenger.

Tribal conflicts, steadily diminishing in the West under capitalism, will rise again to threaten the peace and prosperity of humanity. In 1975, when the Khmer Rouge took over, they quickly emptied the capital of Cambodia, Phnom Penh. This was to be year Zero; a rebirth of Cambodia as an engineered egalitarian, classless rural society with “the corruption and parasitism of city life” eliminated. Several million had to leave at once, including hospital patients. Those who refused were summarily executed. Those who left were forced to work in fields, where many died while being fed starvation rations.Dehumanizing those you murder is...

Our gospel tune today is Let My Life Be A Light and is from the brand new album by Balsam Range. THE WESTERNER https://thewesterner.blogspot.com/

Jewish-Americans have a long history of finding role models who broke barriers, accomplished great things, or engaged in more mundane acts of heroism. Jewish religious schools are full of discussions of athletes like Hank Greenberg and Sandy Koufax, or the legions of Jewish entertainers and scholars, as ways to demonstrate the accomplishments of American Jews. But in all those stories many of us heard growing up, one set of brave heroes was never mentioned: the Schechter brothers of New York City. The Schechters were kosher butchers operating in the 1930s who stood fast to their commitment to the dietary laws...

GEORGETOWN — Texas attracted another corporate expansion this year, one that could have an impact on a major institution in this state, and one that flew under the radar of state leaders in Austin. The Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist are growing so rapidly, they had to build a second convent for the nuns. And they chose the Hill Country town of Georgetown. The sisters, who founded their order in Ann Arbor, Mich., might seem like ordinary Catholic nuns, if the word ordinary could ever be applied to someone who takes such extraordinary vows. They wear long,...

There may only be 18 million Eastern Rite Catholics, but they make an astonishing contribution to the global ChurchThe coal country of north-eastern Pennsylvania is full of depressed small towns which have been losing population for decades. Today, if the region makes the news, it is for the social problems associated with the American Rust Belt. But at the end of the 19th century, this was a boom area, with immigrants from Europe – Poles, Germans, Italians – flocking there to work the mines. It was and still is a strongly Catholic area, and reflecting the diversity of its inhabitants,...

New York City could be one recession away from bankruptcy, financial analysts are warning. Experts say that the city’s high tax burden, its net out-migration, and skyrocketing public spending could result in New York’s first bankruptcy in more than 40 years. ‘The city is running a deficit and could be in a real difficult spot if we had a recession, or a further flight of individuals because of tax reform,’ economist Milton Ezrati told the New York Post. ‘New York is already in a difficult financial spot, but it would be in an impossible situation if we had any kind...

Like many Catholic faithful, some parishioners at Immaculate Conception Parish in Clarksville, Tennessee, have simply had enough. Their parish pastor, Fr. Stephen Wolf, is openly “gay.” He just got his fifteen minutes of fame as one of the subjects presented in the recent New York Times piece on “gay” priests. And Wolf is using his position in his parish and the larger community to undermine the Church’s teaching on homosexuality. Several parishioners tried to take appropriate action—they met with their pastor to dissuade him from this pathway. He was not dissuaded. So, they went to their bishop, Bishop J. Mark...

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem (Old Testament) 1 Samuel 12 Samuel Rebukes Saul 13 Saul was thirty[a] years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel forty-[b] two years. 2 Saul chose three thousand men from Israel; two thousand were with him at Mikmash and in the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan at Gibeah in Benjamin. The rest of the men he sent back to their homes. 3 Jonathan attacked the Philistine outpost at Geba, and the Philistines heard about it. Then Saul had the trumpet blown throughout the land and said, “Let the...

“The LORD will not suffer the soul of the righteous to famish: but he casteth away the substance of the wicked” (Proverbs 10:3 KJV).

Harry Truman said, “If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.” Many were surprised that President Bill Clinton emerged from his embarrassing impeachment ordeal stronger than when it began. We scratched our heads and asked, how that could happen? Only much later did we begin to figure out that there was an important factor at play that we simply did not understand. It is now painfully apparent that the Democrats who control today’s House don’t understand this factor either. You see, the American people want leaders, especially presidents, who are strong. They want someone who can...

Edinburgh, Scotland, Mar 6, 2019 / 02:05 pm (CNA).- The Scottish Parliament hosted a Blessing and Distribution of Ashes for the first time this year, with Archbishop Leo Cushley of St. Andrews and Edinburgh presiding. Archbishop Cushley reflected during the March 6 service on the gesture of receiving ashes, which he said reminds us “that we are dust.” “[A]nd, yes, it is about sinfulness, it is about acknowledging that we need God’s help, that we are fragile, that we are mortal, that we have been disobedient and that we want to regain our relationship with Almighty God,” he continued. The...

Share 4 Tweet Pocket 4 Shares Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D., Ill.) defended Rep. Ilhan Omar (D., Minn.) from charges of anti-Semitism by arguing she should receive some leeway because of her upbringing in Somalia. Her family moved to the United States in 1995 when she was 14 years old. This means that she has been in this country for nearly 25 years. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told CNN that Rep. Omar’s controversial remarks about Israel were “just part of a learning process.” How long does it take her to learn? She got elected because of her views. Her Minnesota district is...

Unless you have been imitating Rip Van Winkle, you are aware that a member of Congress together with a member of the U.S. Senate proposed a comprehensive alteration to our economy based around changing our energy sources to minimize harm to our planet. One author, Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez, stated that if you don’t like her plan then come up with your own. Well, here you go. This is mine. The Green New Deal delves into many areas other than energy sources, but the heart of it is confronting what is commonly referred to as Climate Change. Some believe if we do...

What did the picture editor of Look see in the Bronx teenager's photograph? A weeping city news vendor surrounded by front pages announcing the death of President Roosevelt — and the small, tenderly caught moment that humanizes great events. It got its sixteen-year-old snapper, Stanley Kubrick, a staff job at the magazine, and he never did anything like it again — unless you count the scene in 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) in which the computer HAL, the picture's only really human character, gets dismantled in what's easily the most moving death scene in the director's oeuvre. Stanley Kubrick died...