Free Republic

Gov. Gavin Newsom owes the citizens of California an apology. Telling someone they’re not essential is appalling. Every person and the work they do are essential. Just because a bureaucrat may deem you nonessential, that doesn't mean it's true.Florida, Texas, and other states lifted their lockdowns and allowed businesses to open at 100%. Here’s a novel idea: Provide guidance and education and allow business owners the opportunity to safely operate their businesses. Each day it becomes clearer and clearer that the lockdowns did not work in California. Florida, Texas, and many other states are open and have fewer cases, deaths,...

See the octopus in question – and the damage it caused In a video that has gone viral, the octopus can be seen in shallow waters lashing out at geologist Lance Karlson. The creature came after him again later and struck him on the arm, before whipping his neck and upper back. Later, when he went into the water alone, the octopus found him again and struck him. The former lifeguard told Australian news outlet 7News that his preferred treatment for sea animal stings is vinegar, but he did not have any on him at the time. However, he said...

Welcome to The Bicycle Thread. A monthly PING List for bicycle enthusiasts to share experiences, information and ideas.

U.S. authorities caught more than 171,000 migrants at the U.S. border with Mexico in March, according to preliminary data shared with Reuters, the highest monthly total in two decades and the latest sign of the mounting humanitarian challenge confronting President Joe Biden. It was the highest monthly total since 2006, according to The Washington Post. The massive increase — up from 78,442 in January — has shaken the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency. The total includes about 19,000 unaccompanied migrant children and 53,000 family members traveling together, the preliminary figures show. Single adults made up roughly 99,000 of the...

A top U.S. border official said on Tuesday he expects more than a million migrants will arrive at the U.S.-Mexico border this year, a sign of a growing humanitarian challenge for President Joe Biden on the southwest border.If the figures reach 1 million, it could mirror a similar increase in border crossings in 2019 during Donald Trump’s presidency, when nearly 978,000 migrants were taken into custody.Border Patrol arrested about 100,000 migrants in February, the most in a month since mid-2019. More migrants typically cross between April and June, Raul Ortiz, deputy chief of the U.S. Border Patrol, told reporters.“We’re already...

(President Trump's Operation Warp Speed Update) (Over 100 Million Americans have now received at least a first dose) Total Vaccine Doses Delivered: 204,719,335 (8,318,100 J&J) Administered: 157,606,463 (3,617,377 J&J) People Vaccinated, At Least One Dose: 101,804,762 Fully Vaccinated: 57,984,785

I'm sure this is just another article on the ‘crazy conspiracy theories’ of the anti-vaxxers who refuse to take the current COVID jab, or, it’s a stunning illustration of what these vaccines can do to your body when you have an ‘adverse reaction’ after receiving it. But please take a good look at these photos and you tell me if you want to risk getting jabbed. I suppose it could have been worse, Richard Terrell could be visiting with Marvelous Marvin Hagler and Hank Aaron right now. But don’t worry, vaccine advocates assure us that this “rash” was basically harmless...

China on Wednesday urged the World Health Organization to investigate whether COVID-19 first originated in a U.S. military laboratory after the agency’s director called for a deeper probe into whether the virus had escaped from a Chinese lab. A WHO-led team that visited China earlier this year to investigate the coronavirus pandemic’s origins said in a report on Tuesday that it was “extremely unlikely” that the virus had leaked from a Chinese laboratory and recommended no further exploration of that theory. However, just before the report’s release, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the team’s probe into the potential lab...

When launching a brand, even one as buzzworthy as Rivian, it helps to provide consumers with some peace of mind. The electric automaker is gearing up to launch its first two models—the R1T pickup truck and the mechanically similar R1S SUV—and both will come standard with one of the longest warranty coverage terms in the auto industry at eight years or 175,000 miles. The current industry standard for battery warranties is eight years or 100,000 miles. The long warranty coverage is specific to the trucks' battery pack and drivetrain components. That much coverage should help early adopters of the upstart...

Jill Biden pranked her staff, the Secret Service and reporters traveling with her on her plane, dressing as a flight attendant and serving ice cream bars in a disguise so good no one recognized her. The 69-year-old first lady, famed for her love of pranks and practical jokes, was flying home from California to Washington DC on Thursday. As food was being served to the press pool, a flight attendant with short black hair wearing a black pants suit, black face mask and a name badge reading Jasmine walked through the staff, Secret Service and press cabins passing out Dove...

An unprecedented water receding event took place in Dubrovnik, Croatia on March 29, 2021. Scientists associate this phenomenon with a rare occurrence… And suddenly the water disappeared in Dubrovnik, surprising many beachgoers and residents of the ancient city on the Adriatic Sea in southern Croatia. ‘Where did the water all go?‘, ‘Do we have to fear a tsunami?’ and ‘Is this normal?‘ asked many local eyewitnesses… They probably recalled the 1667 devastating earthquake that destroyed the entire city. Similar low tides were recorded across the Nin lagoon, one of the largest in Croatia. In the area, the low tide was...

If imitation is truly the sincerest form of flattery, some of America’s most popular food establishments have reason to be pleased — or do they? Knockoffs of the most recognizable names in fast food have popped up all over the world, often blatantly copying logos, naming conventions, and even key menu items — changing them just enough to avoid being a direct duplicate. And the results are often bizarre and hilarious. From Sunbucks to Mash Donald’s, here are some of the funniest fast food knockoffs that exist in other countries. Since the 1979 Iranian Revolution, government sanctions have prevented popular...

\ Artist's impression of Llukalkan aliocranianus. (Jorge Blanco and Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology) _________________________________________________________________ A dig in Argentina has unearthed a previously undiscovered species of dinosaur, and the tyrannosaur-like predator has been given a name to suit what we know about it so far: Llukalkan aliocranianus, or 'one who causes fear'. Able to grow as long as an elephant, and with sharp teeth and a powerful bite, L. aliocranianus would undoubtedly have been a fearsome sight for any other creature that happened across it during the Late Cretaceous period, which leads up to the extinction of the dinosaurs 66...

OVID could mutate into a new super variant which could beat vaccines, make people sicker and reinfect victims in a devastating new outbreak, leading experts have warned. Scientists told The Sun Online about the need to vaccinate as many people as possible and stick to the lockdown rules as it is feared the rapidly changing virus could overwhelm our current arsenal of vaccines. The experts hammered home the need to rob Covid of the rapid person-to-person transmission which helps it develop mutations. And they warned possible new variants in the future could make people sicker and re-infect people who had...

Spring rains often bring scores of earthworms to the surface, where they writhe on top of soil and sidewalks. But recently, heavy rainfall in a town near New York City was followed by something a little more unusual: a wormnado. A resident of Hoboken, New Jersey was out for a morning walk in a park near the Hudson River on March 25, when she spotted hundreds of worms spread along the walkway. The woman, who asked not to be identified, told Live Science that after her initial surprise she noticed something even more bizarre — a number of the worms...

CNN host Fareed Zakaria hijacked former President Donald Trump’s slogan “Make America Great Again” and slapped it on President Joe Biden’s gargantuan federal spending. Zakaria fawned in a new op-ed headlined, “How Biden’s New Deal can really make America great again.” He went on to pretend that “Trump claimed he wanted to ‘Make America Great Again,’ President Biden is attempting to actually do it.” Zakaria must have missed economist and The Lindsey Group CEO Lawrence Lindsey’s October 2020 op-ed headlined, “The Trump Boom Is Real.” But according to Zakaria, “Biden’s infrastructure plan is the first major fiscal program in five...

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg prepares for a photo opp, as he pretends to be "green." (video linked)

President Biden on Friday lamented that people are letting their guard down amid the coronavirus pandemic even though the country is not in the clear yet. "Too many Americans are acting as if this fight is over. It is not," he said Friday during remarks about the “promising” jobs report, which showed 916,000 jobs were added in March and the unemployment rate fell to 6 percent. He reiterated his stance that if Americans just complied with all of the government’s health edicts maybe they could have a small barbecue on Independence Day with close friends and family. "I've told people...

As Joe Biden and the Democrats push harder for tighter gun control across the country, many are pushing back on this idea. One America’s John Hines spoke with Dr. John Lott, the president of the Crime Prevention Research Center, to find out more.Gun control measures affect law abiding citizens.Informative five minute video.

An installation by sculptor Péter Szalay, dedicated to the Black Lives Matter movement, was pulled down on Friday morning in Hungary just a day after it was put on display. Standing at just a metre high, the 3D-printed work, which depicts New York's Statue of Liberty in rainbow colours, has already sparked controversy in the country among the government of Viktor Orbán. Erected on Thursday in the capital Budapest, Lady Liberty is portrayed bending the knee, stretching her right fist in the air and holding a plaque that reads: "Black Lives Matter".