Free Republic

New Trump rule on military families riles LGBT community BY REBECCA KHEEL AND RAFAEL BERNAL - 08/30/19 06:00 AM New Trump rule on military families riles LGBT community A new rule changing how Americans serving in the military and other postings abroad pass U.S. citizenship to their children could disproportionately affect LGBTQ families, advocates are warning. United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced the change Wednesday, which sowed confusion and threw immigration law analysts into overdrive. At its core, the rule tightens of the definition of "residency" that USCIS takes into account when deciding whether Americans overseas can transmit...

Video of an unusual/experimental method of launching the Lockheed F-104 Starfighter. Click HereRunway? RUNWAY??? We don't need no stinkin' runway!

Yes, ISIS doesn’t hold large swaths of territory. Yes, we’ve pummeled them into the ground under the Trump administration. We can take a victory lap over that, but this war is far from over. This is the long war, our long war against radical Islamic terrorism. It’s fought on many fronts. It’s fought in the streets, on the Internet, and even in our backyard. In New York City, a nineteen-year-old suspect has been arrested for plotting a terror attack for ISIS. He was caught after texting undercover federal agents (via NBC News):  FBI agents on Thursday arrested a 19-year-old New...

Two Chinese Catholic bishops have been ordained with the blessing of both Pope Francis and the Chinese government under a controversial new deal between Beijing and the Vatican. On Monday, Monsignor Antonio Yao Shun, 54, received the papal mandate and was consecrated as the bishop of Jining, in Inner Mongolia, Vatican News reports. His ordination, which took place at Our Lady of Rosary Cathedral, marks the first since the Vatican and Beijing signed a "Provisional Agreement" in September over bishop nominations. “I can confirm that H.E. Mgr. Antonio Yao Shun, who has been consecrated Bishop of Jining/Wulanchabu, Inner Mongolia (China),...

Questions are swirling around statements Kevin O’Leary made after his boat crashed into another vessel in Canada, killing two people. The “Shark Tank” star alleged that the other boat, a larger, 13-person vessel, had no lights on at the time and that it fled the scene following the collision Saturday night on Lake Joseph in Ontario. But police had a different account. “Both vessels had left the scene and when they reached the location, both vessels were in touch with ambulance for emergency services,” said Joe Scali, spokesman for the West Parry Sound Ontario Provincial Police, according to Global News....

Today's Quotefall Puzzle features a quote by Kim Campbell. Click puzzle (or click here) for full size rendition, then use your browser's print command to print puzzle. Note: While I post quotes from current and contemporary constitutionalst-minded individuals, sometimes I post notable quotes from total idiots, as I'm a firm believer in Rush's tactic, "illustrating absurdity by being absurd." Enjoy! Kim Campbell was Canada's Prime Minister for just a little over four months in the early nineties. In that time period, she completely revamped the ministerial levels to allow progressive (communist) inroads into the federal system. Puzzle note: Some words indicate a place...

Christian authors who once identified as gay or lesbian are highlighting the double standard Amazon is applying by removing their books from the platform while continuing to sell titles that promote pedophilia. Restored Hope Network Executive Director Anne Paulk and pastoral counselor Joe Dallas both saw their books removed from the retail giant. Amazon told some authors that their books, which detail how Jesus transformed their lives and sexual identities, were in "violation of our content guidelines." Paulk, the author of Restoring Sexual Identity: Hope for Women Who Struggle with Same-Sex Attraction, said in a statement to The Christian Post...

[snip] But the actress also reminisced about her stint on the Cannes Film Festival jury in 2018, which was led by jury president Cate Blanchett. “t was such a good year for me to be there. I’ve attended the festival a couple times with films and, oh man, I don’t know, it digs up feelings that I hold in such reverence and ones that not everybody does, quite rightfully, because that would be strange — the world is a lot more than just movies,” Stewart said, referring to her instrumental role as a female jury member in bringing gender parity...

Ziva surprises Gibbs with a cryptic warning, prompting him to question why she remained underground for years while being presumed dead by family and friends, and what led to her return, on the 17th season premiere of NCIS, Tuesday, September 24th on CBS. Video Here

The light show, forecast for Saturday and Sunday, is a result of geomagnetic storm activity, NOAA says. The best time to see the aurora is a couple hours before or after midnight with a clear, dark sky creating the best conditions. A similar phenomena occurred in March, when a geostorm gave those in southern Canada and the northern US a look at the northern lights.

The initial IG report clearly found that “Comey's retention, handling, and dissemination of certain Memos violated Department and FBI policies, and his FBI Employment Agreement.”  In olden days that would have produced an indictment but in our postmodern, postjustice era we find that  once again that “Although there is evidence of potential violations of the statutes regarding the handling of classified information, our judgment is that no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case.” – James Comey, July 5, 2016 Thus we have a new standard of justice; even if you’re eviscerated by the DOJ’s IG for illegal actions, as...

Aug. 29 (UPI) -- Researchers shared a photo of an unusual discovery on a South Carolina beach -- a sea turtle hatchling with two heads. The Sea Turtle Patrol on Hilton Head Island posted a photo to Facebook showing the tiny turtle with two heads, a condition known as being bicephalic. "This mutation is more common in reptiles than in other animals, but it is still very rare," the post said. Patrol member Jayme Davidson Lopko made the discovery while conducting a nest inventory. The turtle -- dubbed Squirt and Crush after sea turtles from Disney and Pixar's Finding Nemo...

Are House Democrats feeling pressure to speed up their attempts to find dirt on Donald Trump? If so, the federal court most certainly is not. Judge Trevor McFadden shot down attempts by the House Ways and Means Committee in its lawsuit over Trump’s tax returns to both get a summary judgment against the president and to expedite the case yesterday: A federal judge in Washington, D.C., on Thursday rejected House Democrats’ effort to speed up their lawsuit over their request for President Trump’s federal tax returns. …McFadden gave several reasons for denying the committee’s motion to expedite, as well...

Unfortunately, their behavior is as American as apple pie. Parisian shrug at the dalliances of the rich and powerful marks one as sophisticated. An affair carried out with the insouciance of Ilhan Omar and her lover Tim Mynett demonstrates the shameless embrace of not only the protagonists of their minuet à deux but also the nonchalance forced upon the secondary actors, the spouses, and, even more forgettable, the children. Everyone must play along. Adults have needs, many unmet, and what’s wrong with finding amore where one can? Whose business is it? The media coverage of this very European vacation from...

In any White House, discretion is a prized value in staffers, and perhaps even more so in the Donald Trump era. As Trump’s personal assistant in the Oval Office, Madeleine Westerhout should have known that better than most. Yet Westerhout has been shown the door, as multiple news organizations reported overnight, for sharing personal information about the First Family with reporters: President Trump’s personal assistant Madeleine Westerhout resigned from her job abruptly, a White House official and another person familiar with the situation told NBC News late Thursday night.One of the sources said that Westerhout left the job because...

This ebook is the entirety of the National Firearms Act and Hearings, in a digitized 166 pages, from the House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee, starting on Monday, 16 April, 1934. It is available from Google at no charge as an ebook. The Hearings of the National Firearms Act of 1934 provide an immensely valuable resource in understanding the intentions of the law.  It provides a good look at how the intricacies and provisions of the first really significant Federal Firearms law concerning individuals, came to be. The book is the official record of the hearings in the...

CARY, N.C. (WNCN) — A Wake County mom is trying to keep other parents from experiencing what she did when her child suffered severe burns on playground equipment. “It was a struggle,” said Danielle Zillioux. Zillioux said her daughter was only 14-months-old when she got 2nd-degree burns on her hands. “Every time we had to change [the bandages], she would cry, especially when the blisters broke. It was just painful,” she said. It happened two years ago at Kids ‘R’ Kids Learning Academy of West Cary. Zillioux worked there at the time. “The teacher that was with my daughter at...

Chinese Troop Rotation in Hong Kong Raises Fears of Beijing Intervention Sputnik News 22:00 29.08.2019 The movement of thousands of People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops from mainland China to Hong Kong sparked concerns for anti-extradition demonstrators after the annual military rotation was mistaken for Beijing intervention. Many Hong Kongers were put on high alert Thursday morning as over 6,000 PLA troops arrived in the semi-autonomous city, which has been the site of protests and police clashes over opposition to the city government's proposed extradition bill. However, while many feared that Beijing had begun deploying troops in response to the political...

I feel sorry for my nine-year-old niece, who is about to start fourth grade in the Chicago Public School System. According to the Chicago Tribune, Illinois has passed a law requiring that "the history curriculum in public schools include lessons on [sic] the contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Illinois and the United States. The lessons must be taught to students before they complete the eighth grade." The law is set to go into effect in 2020. Question 1: Why is someone's sexuality important to history? That's the same question Illinois state representative Tom Morrison (R) asked....

Su-57 has finer craftsmanship; weapons bay needs improvement Global Times By Liu Xuanzun in Moscow Source:Global Times Published: 2019/8/29 17:03:40 The craftsmanship of the Su-57, believed to be Russia's best fighter jet, is finer than expected but small details, such as the weapons bay door, appear to require improvement, a Global Times reporter observed. The aircraft was exhibited for the first time on the ground on Tuesday, the opening day of 2019 International Aviation and Space Salon (MAKS) in Zhukovsky, near Moscow, just behind the rostrum where Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan held the...