Free Republic

Even as China has sent in a medical team to North Korea to advise the leader, a Beijing-backed satellite TV channel's vice director, who is also a niece of a Chinese foreign minister, has claimed that Kim Jong Un is dead. Vice director of HKSTV Hong Kong Satellite Television told her 15 million followers on Weibo that her Kim Jong Un death claim was backed by a "very solid source." Her post on Weibo since then has been shared widely on social media. There is also a viral image that is being shared that claims to show Kim Jong Un...

With the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, the Cold War virtually disappeared. In the 1990s, the People's Republic of China (PRC) was admitted to the World Trade Organization (WTO). Under Deng Xiaoping (premier of China, 1978–1992), the PRC had begun to set up empowerment zones and allowed capitalist multinational corporations to operate within their borders. McDonald's has some nice fast food outlets in China, and many of our medicines as well as our Barbie dolls are manufactured there. Chinese restrictions on child-bearing won the hearts of Western liberals, who are convinced that over-population combined with climate change (formerly "global...

Ran across this on Twitter, I thought I'd share it. Click on image to see whole thing, it's twitter and safe. Don't eat when you check out old slow Joe. The gif is shareable.

Illinois (ECWd) – We are of the opinion the Memorandum we obtained today is a game-changer for Illinois and a clear shot across the bow of Governor Pritzker’s Executive Order. From day one we have questioned the overreach and legality of elements of the Executive Orders and now it appears all of our positions have been validated by the Chief Deputy Director of the Illinois Appellate Prosecutor’s Office, David J. Robinson in his memorandum to the Director of that office. We greatly appreciate that finally a legal analysis is provided with clear language, case law, and supporting footnotes to support...

COLLEYVILLE, Texas - The city of Colleyville has moved forward with relaxing restrictions on businesses and churches before Tarrant County and the state of Texas do the same. “You know what, I’m just glad to be out here. All I had was queso, hot sauce, and chips,“ Hugh Hunt said. The food, however impressive, was not the biggest incentive for folks flocking to this patio spot for lunch in Colleyville.

It’s just the flu, bro. The left is using Wuhan Flu as a pretext for socialism. The mantra this time is “we must save people’s lives”. The most recent pretext for socialism before this one is global warming. With global warming the pretext is that “we must save the planet”. In either case, the validity of the pretext is irrelevant. What matters is the effectiveness at tugging at people‘s heartstrings. With both Global warming and Wuhan flu the call is for massive government expenditures and increased control over people’s lives. The disaster with Wuhan flu is that people believe they...

What are we doing, America? We've destroyed a booming economy, turned a record number of jobs into record unemployment numbers, and given up our basic tenets of liberty — all so we won't get sick? We're allowing governors to restrict people's movement; prevent citizens from assembling; and order mandatory masks, testing, and vaccines. These governors now claim the right to track our every move, to surveil every American in order to ensure compliance. This shutdown is not just a slippery slope to socialism and communism; it's a downhill slalom. How did we get here? Americans aren't cowards who would eagerly...

On Fox News Friday night, Michigan State Representative Karen Whitsett told Tucker Carlson that text messages she's been receiving from Governor Whitmer have not been pleasant ever since the Democratic state lawmaker credited President Trump for her personal recovery from the Wuhan coronavirus. The lawmaker now faces a censure from her Democratic colleagues for crediting the president for her recovery. Tucker Carlson asked Whitsett if the governor ever called the representative to simply say, "I'm so glad you didn't die?" "Actually, it was not as pleasant as that," Rep. Whitsett began, "and the text messages that we have had since...

The Postal Service is a joke because they’re handing out packages for Amazon and other internet companies, and every time they put out a package, they lose money on it,” Trump said. The president commented on the postal service after reporters asked him at the White House about a possible bailout. He argued that the postal service should raise their prices to help get them out of debt. “The Post Office – if they raise the price of the package by approximately four times – it’d be a whole new ballgame,” Trump said. “But they don’t want to raise because...

Jacob Eason seemed to slump lower and lower on the family couch on Friday night as the second and third rounds of the NFL draft were conducted without anyone choosing him. Once projected as a first-rounder before he was given a mid-second-round grade, the former University of Washington quarterback watched as 74 names were called out on the draft's second day -- and none were his. ESPN had a camera trained on the Eason family at regular intervals of the four-hour draft proceedings. Jacob, casually dressed in a light blue T-shirt and black shorts, looked stunned, disappointed or angry, or...

LAKEWOOD, NJ – Friday was the third day of an ongoing FBI investigation in Lakewood Township related to medical equipment, but officials are still not even confirming the existence of the action. It started Wednesday when over one dozen agents showed up at Lakewood Industrial Park warehouse. WEDNESDAY Agents showed up at a warehouse at approximately 4:30 pm located at 1980 Swarthmore Avenue. The warehouse of Deco-Tile was where the agents were entering and exiting, later some were seen bringing out boxes of medical supplies. No visible arrests were made. We contact the FBI Newark office who declined to comment...

“Joe Biden isn’t sheltering in place in his basement bunker because of the pandemic, he’s hiding from Tara Reade.” – Don Trump, Jr. tweeted that particular bit of truth Friday night after a new video and accompanying media reports had surfaced providing additional contemporaneous substantiation for the allegation by Tara Reade, a staffer for then-Senator Joe Biden in the early 1990s, that China Joe not only sexually harassed her repeatedly, but at one point also penetrated her with one of his long, spindly fingers. Corrupt media outlets like the Washington Post and the New York Times have done their best...

Recently, Brit Hume, the sober and understated Fox News commentator, voiced the thoughts of millions when he said, “I think its time to consider the possibility… that this lockdown, as opposed to the more moderate mitigation efforts… is a colossal public policy calamity.” The financial extent of the calamity was quantified by economist Scott Grannis when he observed that “almost overnight, we have wiped out all the net job gains of the past 14 years.” He made that comment on April 12 and the losses aren’t over yet. Grannis bluntly concluded that, “The shutdown of the U.S. economy will prove...

Edna St. Vincent-Millay is reported to have once said that “History isn’t one damn thing after another—it’s the same damn thing over and over again.” That certainly describes the day-to-day news cycle right now, and the challenge of doing the weekly picture gallery. Have you heard? There’s a pandemic! And Orange Man Bad. Unfortunately it doesn’t look like the pandemic of predatory politicians and the mindless media is going away soon. But cheer up. We can start the weekend with this:

SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. - The limited reopening of San Diego beaches is expected to begin on Monday, but protests against the stay-at-home order are still planned for this weekend. Organizers for weekend rallies said their "freedoms are under attack, and it's unfair businesses are still closed." "There isn't a reason anymore to keep people locked down and locked out of these public spaces. This is our beach. These are our rights, and we are going to exercise those rights,” said Crista Curtis, the former organizer of last Sunday’s Encinitas protest calls the lockdown restrictions unreasonable. Last weekend's protest drew...

I don't know what daily life is like during our Great National Shutdown in states like Pennsylvania, where I hear golfing is verboten, all liquor stores are closed and masks must be worn into retail stores. But out here in sprawling Los Angeles, where half of the state's 1,512 COVID-19 deaths have occurred, things are getting goofier and scarier all the time. It's not the coronavirus I'm sacred of. It's power-mad politicians like Gov. Gavin Newsom and L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti, both of whom have been making it sound like we're going to be in strict lockdown mode until Thanksgiving....

PING LIST - Please contact me as needed... COVID-19 Update As of 04/24/2020 23:59 PDST Thank you for stopping by to check out the COVID-19 Update. Here you'll find... Section: 01     Commentary, Special Reports, COVID-19 Update InfoSection: 02     the Mortality ReportSection: 03     the United States SituationSection: 04     the Global Community Situation Outside ChinaSection: 05     the Global Community Situation Including China with reservationsSection: 06     Miscelanious Reports of InterestSection: 07     the United States, Counties (alphabetical / case no descending)Section: 08     the United States, States Ranked with...

“The north wind driveth away rain: so doth an angry countenance a backbiting tongue” (Proverbs 25:23).

On Thursday, Congress approved another wave of small business relief. An additional $310 billion has been appropriated to replenish the popular Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)—which provides forgivable loans to America’s small business community. These entrepreneurs have been on the frontlines of the pandemic and keeping them primed will be the key to restarting the economy as the country begins to reopen. The initial $349 billion allocated for the PPP under the CARES Act was a blockbuster hit among the country’s entrepreneurs. Within 14 days of launching, the funding limit was reached and over 1.6 million businesses were approved for loans—which...

Some highlights of rescue kittens being bottle-fed. Video, 3 minutes, 55 seconds