Free Republic

**SNIP** Some in North Carolina are ready for the state to reopen. A protest group, “Reopen Meck,” has nearly 1,000 members on Facebook as of Monday morning. “This group is intended to be an offshoot of the overarching ReopenNC movement,” the group’s description states. “With classes and work for many of us, it is difficult to drive up to Raleigh and protest. As a result, I felt that those of us living in and around Meck would find this group more accessible.” “Let’s restore our liberties and freedoms no later than April 29th, 2020.” The group was created April 15....

Profits at China’s big industrial firms collapsed in the first quarter of the year, during the country’s unprecedented coronavirus lockdown. Industrial firms saw profits fell by 36.7 per cent over the first three months, led by a massive 187.9 per cent collapse in the profitability of firms in the oil and gas industries. These firms saw a 28.5 billion yuan (US$4 billion) profit over the same period of 2019 fall to a 24.7 billion yuan loss. Big companies in metal products, machinery and equipment sectors saw profits fall by 84.3 per cent. The automotive industry saw a 80.2 per cent...

Attorney General William Barr on Monday directed federal prosecutors to “be on the lookout” for public health measures put in place amid the coronavirus pandemic that might be running afoul of constitutional rights. In a two-page memorandum to the 93 U.S. attorneys, Barr cautioned that some state and local directives could be infringing on protected religious, speech and economic rights. “If a state or local ordinance crosses the line from an appropriate exercise of authority to stop the spread of COVID-19 into an overbearing infringement of constitutional and statutory protections, the Department of Justice may have an obligation to address...

With cries of "reopen Michigan," two dozen people gathered outside of the Calhoun County Building in Marshall and marched toward the Brooks Memorial Fountain to protest Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's stay-at-home order on Friday. Many carried "Don't tread on me" flags, American flags and signs with slogans such as "liberty is essential," and "Mayday is payday." Some protesters wore "Make America Great Again" hats or "Trump 2020" hats in support of the president. No one wore a cloth mask, and social distancing, while encouraged, was generally lax. The protest was one of ten "Freedom Friday" events taking place around the state...

HARTFORD, CT (WFSB) - More people are calling for Governor Ned Lamont to reopen Connecticut In Hartford, a stay-at-home protest took place on Monday as the state continues to look at how to carefully get people back to work. State leaders, meanwhile, said they're eyeing June as the month to start to get things back up and running. Monday's protest is not the first the first demonstration of its kind. Another took place last week. They're being put on by a group calling itself the CT Liberty Rally. Until the economy gets moving again, in its words, the protests will...

Abstract: The electromagnetic radiation (EMR) emitted out of wireless communication modules in various IoT devices (especially used for healthcare applications due to their close proximity to the body) have been identified by researchers as biologically hazardous to humans as well as other living beings. Different countries have different regulations to limit the radiation density levels caused by these devices. The radiation absorbed by an individual depends on various factors such as the device they use, the proximity of use, the type of antenna, the relative orientation of the antenna on the device, and many more. Several standards exist which have...

BREAKING - Judge rules in Bailey's favor; Illinois State Rep. Files Lawsuit Against Gov Pritzker Stay at Home orders More details to come ... Illinois State Rep. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia) filed a lawsuit Thursday against Governor J.B. Pritzker for a violation of civil rights. “My lawsuit asks the court to find that Gov. Pritzker overextended his power by issuing additional ‘stay at home’ orders after his original disaster proclamation, which expired on April 9th, 2020,” said Rep. Bailey. "While special emergency powers were granted to the governor through the Emergency Management Act in the late 1980’s by the Illinois General...

Ethiopia was invaded by the Italian troops during a military campaign that lasted from 1935 to 1936. After Italy declared war on the United Kingdom in 1940, British forces invaded and took Ethiopia in 1941. At the time, Ullendorff was a British army officer who was also a young scholar with extensive knowledge of Ethiopian history and languages, Parfitt told Live Science. "He went to the Church of Mary of Zion with a couple of soldiers," Parfitt said. He spoke to the monks in the church in Amharic, a language widely spoken in Ethiopia, asking to see the ark. His...

New York's second round of antibody testing found 14.9 percent of samples to be positive, a full percentage point higher than the first round, Cuomo said Monday. That indicates even more than the 2.7 million New Yorkers identified in the first testing round may have been infected at some point. Many likely never even knew they had the virus -- and were spreading it. New York state has reported nearly 300,000 confirmed cases to date. That number seems staggering -- until you realize the actual total could be 10 times higher at minimum. Again, there were glaring variations by region,...

U.S. hospitals receive more funds if patients are coded for coronavirus even if those patients haven’t been tested for the virus, fact-checkers at USA Today, Politifact, and Snopes have confirmed. A hospital that admits a likely coronavirus patient can get up to $13,000 in aid and three times as much if that patient is placed on a ventilator, according to Minnesota state senator and physician Scott Jensen.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (KDKA) – Gov. Tom Wolf announced restrictions on businesses related to some outdoor activities, including golfing, will be lifted on May 1. The Wolf administration is allowing golf courses, marinas, guided fishing trips and privately owned campgrounds to reopen statewide May 1. They’ll be required to follow guidelines for “prioritizing public health and safety.”

Cuomo has come under increasing criticism for a March 25 directive requiring nursing homes to accept coronavirus patients. The directive read, in part (original emphasis): “No resident shall be denied re-admission or admission to the NH [nursing home] solely based on a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of COVID-19. NHs are prohibited from requiring a hospitalized resident who is determined medically stable to be tested for COVID-19 prior to admission or readmission.” The policy is being scrutinized more closely as some 25% of the state’s fatalities from coronavirus have occurred in nursing homes. Critics argue that the state should not have...

majority say it's time to re-open the economy for all who are not sick or vulnerable, according to the new Just the News Daily Poll with Scott Rasmussen. Fifty-one percent (51%) of American voters favor a proposal that would allow all who are not sick or vulnerable in their area to return to work. Thirty-eight percent (38%) are opposed, and 10% are not sure. "It’s important to note that we specifically asked about the question in the context of the area that the respondents lived in," Rasmussen said. "This is not a call for a national rule, but a recognition...

EVERS’ SHOCKING RESPONSE TO SENATE REPUBLICANS Safer at Home through Summer and Doesn’t Prevent Spike to Overwhelm Hospitals; 35% of Employers may Permanently Close; 750,000 Out of Work; No Regionalization MADISON – On Friday afternoon, Governor Tony Evers responded to a letter to Senator Van Wanggaard (R-Racine) and other State Senate Republicans seeking information into the decision-making process behind the Stay-at-Home extension. In his response to Republicans, Evers twice hints at extending Safer-At-Home through the summer. Evers answer also states that 35% of all Wisconsin employers may close forcing over 725,000 people to permanently lose their jobs. After reviewing the...

NY Governor Andrew Cuomo said his state had been "bailing out" other states for years and attacked Trump's relief measures as not enough. Earlier in the day, the President asked why the federal government should be bailing out democrat-run states asking for help while many others were not making similar pleas ...

April 24, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – Abortion defenders routinely insist that late-term abortions are unheard of for anything but the most heart-rending medical emergencies, but a notorious late-term abortionist admits otherwise in a recently-unearthed video. This week, the group Abortion on Trial published a video of an October 2019 deposition given by New Mexico abortionist Curtis Boyd in the wrongful death suit filed by the family of one of his “patients,” Keisha Marie Atkins. In it, Boyd says it’s his “calling” to provide “full-range, first, second, and third-trimester” abortion services. “There’s no set period” in terms of the gestational age at...

The Ministry of Health on Monday evening published updated data showing that 15,555 cases of coronavirus have been diagnosed in Israel. 204 people have died from the virus so far. 126 are hospitalized in serious condition, 96 of whom are on respirators. 7,200 Israelis have recovered from the virus. Earlier, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu instructed that preparations begin for a gradual reopening of educational institutions and kindergartens as of Sunday, May 3, provided that the morbidity data before Sunday do not indicate a worsening trend. An assessment of the situation will take place on Friday, during which a gradual opening...

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said on Monday that the Senate will return to the Capitol next week — and he outlined GOP priorities for a fifth coronavirus relief bill. “Senators will return to Washington D.C. one week from today. We will modify routines in ways that are smart and safe, but we will honor our constitutional duty to the American people and conduct critical business in person," McConnell said in a statement. "If it is essential for doctors, nurses, healthcare workers, truck drivers, grocery-store workers, and many other brave Americans to keep carefully manning their own duty stations,...

After being criticized for two weeks as he allowed other state governors to get in front of him in opening their economies, Texas Governor Greg Abbott finally announced at a Monday press conference that he will allow major new business reopenings in his state beginning May 1. Here are the Highlights: – Abbott said he would allow the “stay-at-home” order issued on April 1 to expire as scheduled at midnight, April 30. – What the Governor refers to as “Phase 1” reopenings will include businesses such as restaurants, theaters, salons, retailers and shopping malls being able to open their doors...

Felix sat down with Robert Zubrin - Scientist, Engineer, Inventor & President of the Mars Society - to have a talk about Elon Musk, SpaceX and the future of humanity. Robert Zubrin was able to provide me with most interesting answers and gave insights into what he learned while working and talking with SpaceX's Elon Musk