Free Republic

George Orwell’s dystopian vision written in his book “Nineteen Eighty-Four” could become a reality by 2024 as artificial intelligence technology becomes the all-seeing eye, a top Microsoft executive warned Thursday. Microsoft President Brad Smith told BBC’s Panorama George Orwell’s 1984 “could come to pass in 2024” if government regulation doesn’t protect the public against intrusive artificial intelligence surveillance. “I’m constantly reminded of George Orwell’s lessons in his book ‘1984.’ You know the fundamental story … was about a government who could see everything that everyone did and hear everything that everyone said all the time,” Smith said on BBC while...

An explosive new study claims that Chinese scientists created COVID-19 in a Wuhan lab, then tried to cover their tracks by reverse-engineering versions of the virus to make it look like it evolved naturally from bats. The paper's authors, British Professor Angus Dalgleish and Norwegian scientist Dr. Birger Sørensen, wrote that they have had 'prima facie evidence of retro-engineering in China' for a year - but were ignored by academics and major journals. Dalgleish is a professor of oncology at St George's University, London, and is best known for his breakthrough creating the first working 'HIV vaccine', to treat diagnosed...

Memorial Day is the day after tomorrow, but I tend to start early. "God Bless the USA" was released almost 40 years ago, and has become Our Nation's unofficial Second National Anthem. This version was released about a year ago, and I can't stop listening to it. This post is for all the young men and women who never had the chance to enjoy the freedom they purchased with their lives. We will never forget your sacrifice.

“For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison” (2 Corinthians 4:17). Believers are far more blessed when they concentrate on the spiritual rather than physical aspects of life. Concerning endurance, Paul is again our role model. One reason he was able to endure pain and trials was that he knew the physical was far less important and lasting than the spiritual. He realized that our physical bodies are naturally aging and therefore not permanent. He was probably aware of this more than most people because his rigorous ministry with its travel...

Last summer, when a heat wave rolled across the western United States, California residents experienced energy blackouts as a result of a difficult-to-manage power grid. Even after that experience, which put residents’ health at risk due to excessive heat exposure, California continued its push to ban fracking, shut down nuclear power plants, and rely solely on renewable energy. Now, anew report from the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) states that “California is at risk of energy emergencies during periods of normal peak summer demand and high risk when above-normal demand is widespread in the west.” The report says that...

I was led to read and study Revelation 9:1-12, the chapter on the locusts. As I read verse 4 about God’s command to the locusts not to destroy anything green, a thought leaped out at me. I realized that the key to remaining safe in any time of terror was to “stay green.” David wrote, “I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever” (Psalm 52:8, NKJV). The “green” that David refers to here signifies spiritual health. It means to flourish, grow, be fruitful. David is telling...

100 million non-Communists slaughtered? No problem! Believe in limited government and the existence of two sexes? Off to the Gulags you sick, Trump-supporting, cis-gendered, patriotic freaks! A Columbia University student group recently launched the “Columbia Communism Club,” an organization utilizing the school’s well-known crown as a symbol, albeit enhanced with the Communist hammer and sickle. The Ivy League bastion of higher learning’s newly formed club recently held its first meeting. The club even has an Instagram page, a post on which read: “Do you want to be a part of leftist discussion, engage in mutual aid, and better understand leftist...

Friday marked one year after continuous protests in Portland began during the wake of Floyd’s death. On the anniversary of George Floyd’s death this week, tensions between Portland police and anti-police activists erupted Tuesday evening, ensuing in a riot, property damage, and five arrests. Three days later, on Friday, activists gathered at Terry Schrunk Plaza on Southwest Madison Street in downtown Portland, to commemorate when Portland protests began in the wake of Floyd’s death. In a Friday release, PPB said, “Portland Police will have extra resources assigned to monitor this event.” PPB said officers will respond if any violence or...

Employers are allowed to require the COVID-19 vaccine, and can also legally provide incentives, including cash, to workers who get jabbed, according to updated guidance from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Companies must still provide reasonable accommodation for employees who are exempt from mandatory immunization under the Americans with Disabilities Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The commission also stated that employer incentives must not be "coercive," but stopped short of providing examples of illegal offers. Some experts say there's enough legal gray area that a flurry of lawsuits could arise as companies start to bring their...

Who has any details, voting records on specific topics, etc. for the most FAKE republicans? Also broken election promises, etc. including exactly opposite what they said?

The COVID-19 pandemic has, among other things, highlighted the need for global cooperation during a public health crisis. Recognizing this need, 100 developing countries, led by South Africa and India, requested the World Trade Organization (WTO) waive provisions of the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement to resolve vaccine inequality. In the context of COVID-19, waiving the TRIPS Agreement could theoretically provide governments in developing countries the ability to “expedite the development, manufacturing and marketing of tests, treatments and vaccines.” Specifically, India and South Africa raised a concern that “intellectual property rights such as patents, industrial designs, copyright...

It was as close to a sleepless night as it gets outside of Seattle. So all I’ve got are these covert photos of an assassin plying his trade in the dead of night:Is it any reason we’re losing the war? The enemy has infiltrated our inner defense system and exposed our white fragility.*Alternate Title: “Ah Cain’t Breathe!”Quick Raj update: the surgery team has determined him to be fit for his second knee replacement and it is scheduled for June 9th, assuming his own Doc concurs following his appointment next Wednesday. I still have some underlying concerns but at this point...

India has been suffering horrendously from COVID of late, and the complete death toll may never be known. But in the capital city of Delhi, mass distribution of ivermectin began and the results have been stunning. India has been suffering horrendously from COVID of late, and the complete death toll may never be known. But in the capital city of Delhi, mass distribution of ivermectin began and the results have been stunning. Stephen McIntyre of Climate Audit posted a Twitter thread that includes this remarkable graph: This result is consistent with the results of mass distribution of ivermectin in Mexico...

At the end of the Second World War, America was the world’s sole superpower: we alone had the atom bomb. Although America lost more than 400,000 military personnel in the Big One, her civilian population had remained unscathed, unlike other nations whose civilians had suffered about as much as their military. Upon returning, surviving military formed families with those stateside civilians, and produced the Baby Boom. These returning soldiers also contributed to what has been called “The Golden Age of American Capitalism.” Unlike other powers, America’s cities and factories hadn’t been destroyed. And we used those intact factories to manufacture...

Critical Race Theory is currently getting a ton of attention on the national and international stage, which is long overdue, but there are also many misconceptions about it. Here are five questions that many people are asking about Critical Race Theory along with straight answers, explanations, and a raft of proofs from the Critical Race Theory literature itself. My hope is that people will be able to use these proofs to show people that Critical Race Theory is every bit as bad as its critics contend. Since these proofs run rather long in some cases, here are the questions and...

House Republicans sent a letter Friday to Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., demanding she permit an investigation into whether a Chinese lab released COVID-19 as they began their own inquiry into the National Institutes of Health’s funding for the scandal-ridden Wuhan Institute of Virology. “There is mounting evidence the COVID-19 pandemic started in the Wuhan Institute of Virology and the Chinese Communist Party covered it up," GOP lawmakers wrote, demanding accountability “if U.S. taxpayer money was used to develop COVID-19, conduct gain of function research, or assist in any sort of cover-up. “It is incumbent upon grant recipients to ensure their...

Sweeping social transformations occur during times of crisis. We are in such a predicament now, and transformative change may be coming to America whether we want it or not. It could define who we are as a nation for the remainder of the 21st Century. Whether America reaffirms itself as a beacon for freedom for the world or whether we become just another plot of ground in the new world order remains to be seen. The consequences for all Americans could be enormous, and especially so for Millennials. What crisis are we in, you ask? Well, consider the staggering debt...

I get the New York Times' daily free newsletter in my email. You can save your rotten tomatoes. I refuse to pay for anything they print. But sometimes it's useful to stay in contact with the other side. The NYT May 27 letter discusses the history of the COVID lab leak theory and declares that "the best mitigation strategies — travel restrictions, testing, contact tracing, social distancing, ventilation and masking — are still the best mitigation strategies." My parsimony has once again been proven well founded. Let's break it down. Mitigation is "the process or result of making something less...

My social media has been full of proud parents posting pictures of their high school, college, and graduate school graduates, which no doubt comes with extra meaning on the heels of a pandemic that’s interrupted so many of our lives. As happy as I am for my friends and their children, I can’t help but look at each of these pictures through a prism of current events in Israel. I am proud of my daughter and son-in-law who are also graduating this year. However, in Israel, ceremonies marking their accomplishments are more toned down than they otherwise would be. In...

If Gov. Doug Ducey believed shooting down 22 legislative bills would shame the 47 Republicans in the Arizona Legislature into passing his budget bills, the reaction of some lawmakers suggests there is now even less support after his vetoes were announced Friday. “The decision to employ strong arm tactics by vetoing over 20 Republican bills, presumably driven by some of his staff and advisors, reflects a fundamental miscalculation regarding the status and progress of the budget negotiations,” Rep. Jake Hoffman (R-LD12). “It is deeply concerning that they did not foresee how detrimental indiscriminately vetoing nearly two dozen bills would be...