Free Republic

Comedian Jethro has lost a battle against COVID-19 and sadly passed away on Tuesday, his management have confirmed. The 72-year-old was unwell after contracting the virus in recent weeks, with a statement on Wednesday revealing that he has passed. Jethro rose to fame with his presence on Generation Game, as well as stand-up performances in a host of shows, such as the 2001 Royal Variety Performance.

Human remains found in a trash bag nearly 40 years ago have been identified as those of Frank “Frankie” Little Jr., a guitarist and songwriter for the R&B group The O’Jays, police said. The partial remains - first discovered in February 1982 in a garbage bag behind a now-shuttered business in Twinsburg, Ohio - were identified as Little’s using DNA provided by a close relative, police said in a statement Tuesday. “In October 2021, the DNA Doe Project provided the names of potential living relatives, who were able to provide Frank’s name,” Twinsburg police said, adding that Little’s identity was...

[Catholic Caucus] Archbishop Roche and Cardinal Braz de Aviz Refuse to Be Drawn on ‘Traditionis Custodes’ Application Document o try to get authoritative confirmation on the rumoured instruction about the application of Pope Francis’ motu proprio Traditionis Custodes, today I contacted the heads of two dicasteries most likely involved in issuing the document — Archbishop Arthur Roche, prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, and Cardinal Joao Braz de Aviz, prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.As they both had declined to respond to questions I had...

...A blinding dust storm moving at hurricane force winds of 90mph has blanketed half of Kansas and knocked out power to nearly 120,000 residents Wednesday night. Footage of the powerful storm posted to social media show the winds whipping red dust at such high speeds that nearly nothing in front of the camera could be seen, as drivers were forced to pull over... ...The Kansas Department of Transportation reports that highways throughout the state are closed, and staff had to be evacuated from the air traffic control center of the Kansas City International Airport.... ...The National Weather Service in Wichita...

A Michigan-based company has vastly expanded its recall of meat that may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. Alexander & Hornung is now recalling 2,320,774 pounds of meat products, with an expanded list of cooked ham and pepperoni products, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service said in a news release. The first recall, announced Dec. 5, was for 234,391 pounds of cooked ham and pepperoni products. The meat being recalled can be identified by looking at the circular USDA mark of inspection on the label. All the recalled products carry the establishment number “EST. M10125,” the FSIS...

This guy has the nuclear codes. Joe Biden this week said the deaths of our 13 servicemembers in Afghanistan were inevitable and falsely claimed no one advised him on how to withdraw the troops safely. “Everybody says, ‘you could’ve gotten out without anybody being hurt.’ No ones come up with a way to indicate to me how that happens,” Biden said. Joe Biden also falsely claimed he was against the war in Afghanistan from the beginning. FACT CHECK: “Biden did not oppose the US invasion of Afghanistan. As a US senator from Delaware, he joined his Senate colleagues in a...

Colombian cops have pictured a 10-strong people trafficking gang called 'Without Borders' who charged migrants to help them on their journey to the US. Investigators there dismantled a people trafficking ring that helped migrant cross from Ecuador into Colombia and then ferried them north to Panama, where they made their way into Mexico before reaching the United States border. At least 10 members of the migrant smuggling network, know as ‘Without Borders,’ were taken into custody during a series of raid in the western department of Nariño, the Attorney General’s Office said Saturday... ...Depending on their place of origin, the...

Subtitle this: how not to be a victim Leaving the grocery store a little while ago - went through self checkout. There was a couple of young men, maybe early 20s, loitering around speaking in a foreign language. I didn't even recognize the language, let alone understand what they said. A little odd, given that it was just after five, most people were in a hurry picking up something on their way home from work. As I pushed my cart across the front of the store towards the exit, I heard them about 15 or 20 feet behind me, still...

During a debate on a bill to combat Islamaphobia internationally, Rep. Scott Perry alleged that Rep. Ilhan Omar - the bill’s author - is antisemitic and affiliated with terrorist groups. The House parliamentarian found that Perry’s remarks were inappropriate and “not in order” with the House Rules and Manual, Yahoo reports. “Let’s face it: Aside from the attempts to placate an anti-Semitic member of this chamber, all that’s really happening here is that House Democrats are deflecting from the real issue confronting the House of Representatives, and that is that the maker of this bill has no business sitting on...

...The first real-world study in South Africa analysed 78,000 Omicron cases over the past month and estimated the risk of hospitalisation was a fifth lower than with Delta and 29 per cent lower than the original virus. As a crude rate, Omicron is currently leading to a third fewer hospital admissions than Delta did during its entire wave — 38 admissions per 1,000 Omicron cases compared to 101 per 1,000 for Delta.... The findings lend weight to the theory that the ultra-infectious variant is weaker than previous strains, something which doctors on the ground in South Africa have been claiming...

A push by Senate Democrats to pass a roughly $2 trillion tax-and-spending measure before Christmas appeared in dire political peril Wednesday, as talks soured between President Biden and Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.) over the size and scope of the economic package. Despite days of negotiations, the gaps between the two sides seemed newly immense. Biden sought to safeguard his economic agenda from significant cuts, while Manchin continued to insist on steep spending reductions. The private wrangling offered a marked contrast with the public proclamations of progress coming from both powerful Democrats in recent weeks. The impasse left party lawmakers...

Continuing his administration’s campaign against critical race theory, Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday teased legislation that he said would, in part, allow parents to sue schools that teach the theory. Flanked by Republican lawmakers, parents and Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran, the governor held an event in Wildwood to announce what he called the “Stop Wrongs Against Our Kids and Employees Act,” or Stop W.O.K.E. Act. The legislation, which as of Wednesday had not been filed, would be considered during the 2022 session, which will start Jan. 11. DeSantis decried critical race theory, which is centered on the premise that racism...

Mayor London Breed launched an emergency police intervention in San Francisco’s crime-ridden Tenderloin neighborhood Tuesday, targeting a pipeline of illegal drugs that has been fueling a surge in gun violence and deadly fentanyl overdoses. Breed’s anger and frustration over the crime surge in the city were on full display at her noon news conference.

Never Forget. The fake news media is so in the tank for Joe Biden that they will allow him to grope a little boy LIVE AND ON CAMERA in front of your eyes and SAY NOTHING because he is a Democrat.

Abortion pill decision could reshape reproductive health war Regulators are due to decide Thursday whether to uphold, revise or scrap longstanding restrictions on the abortion drug mifepristone. By ALICE MIRANDA OLLSTEIN and DARIUS TAHIR 12/15/2021 12:13 PM EST As the Supreme Court weighs the fate of Roe v. Wade, the Food and Drug Administration is set to open a new phase in the abortion wars this week, when it issues a key decision on how doctors can dispense pills to end an early pregnancy. Regulators are due to decide Thursday whether to uphold, revise or scrap longstanding restrictions on the...

Joe Biden on Tuesday gave an interview to a local news station in Dayton, Ohio. When asked about federal judges halting his vaccine mandates, Biden dismissed Americans’ concerns about losing their freedom and said he will continue fighting in court.

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. Explanation: What does Comet Leonard look like from space? Today's featured image from Origin.Space's Yangwang-1 space telescope shows not only the currently bright comet -- but several other space delights as well. Taken in optical and ultraviolet light, C/2021 A1 (Leonard) is visible with an extended tail near the image center as it appeared five days ago. The Earth is visible on the lower right, while layers of the Earth's atmosphere glow diagonally from...

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi Wednesday decried recent crime waves, including organized retail theft, in San Francisco and elsewhere in the U.S. as "outrageous" and decried "an attitude of lawlessness" she said is behind it. Pelosi, D-Calif., made the comments when asked about recent comments from San Francisco Mayor London Breed, who is pushing a renewed effort to "change course on how we public safety" and crack down on crime. "It's absolutely outrageous. Obviously it cannot continue," Pelosi said. "But the fact is that there is an attitude of lawlessness in our country that springs from I don't know where… and...

WASHINGTON — President Biden smirked and walked away Wednesday when The Post asked why he hasn’t done more to push China to be transparent on the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic. Biden was stone-faced when asked about his own responsibility for the US crossing 800,000 pandemic deaths — before breaking into a broad grin when asked about China. “On 800,000 coronavirus deaths, do you have a statement on your responsibility, and why haven’t you asked China to do more to be transparent on the [virus] origins?” The Post asked the president on the White House lawn. Biden, departing to tour...

Over a year into the completion of San Diego State University’s racial healing garden, few students, scholars and staff appear to be spending time within its circumference. The $250,000 Native and Indigenous Healing Garden at the public university was built amid tensions regarding the Aztec warrior mascot, accused of racism, cultural appropriation and toxic masculinity. The healing garden is meant to honor Native Americans and the Aztec culture “at a time when we need to ‘heal’ over the issue of indigenous identities,” according to a 2018 Aztec Identity Task Force report. The garden was completed in March 2020. A grand...