Free Republic

We've been played. It's time for a new direction!

Within hours of taking office on Saturday, Gov. Glenn Youngkin ended the state’s mask requirement in schools – part of a flurry of executive orders signaling a new era in Virginia politics and continuing the emphasis on education issues that appears to have ushered the first-time candidate into office. Youngkin’s executive order stipulates that “parents, not the government” would determine whether students would wear a mask in schools. But the move drew immediate defiance from Northern Virginia school districts, several of which say they plan to continue requiring masks despite the order from Richmond. School officials in Arlington, Alexandria, and...

Less than 20% of the world’s population has managed to stockpile more than half of the globe’s maize and other grains, leading to steep price increases across the planet and dropping more countries into famine. The hoarding is taking place in China. COFCO Group, a major Chinese state-owned food processor, runs one of China’s largest food stockpiling bases, at the port of Dalian, in the northeastern part of the country. It stores beans and grains gathered from home and abroad in 310 huge silos. From there, the calories make their way throughout China via rail and sea. China is maintaining...

Scientists are struggling to monitor an active volcano that erupted off the South Pacific island of Tonga at the weekend, after the explosion destroyed its sea-level crater and drowned its mass, obscuring it from satellites. The eruption of Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha’apai volcano, which sits on the seismically active Pacific Ring of Fire, sent tsunami waves across the Pacific Ocean and was heard some 2,300 kms (1,430 miles) away in New Zealand. “The concern at the moment is how little information we have and that’s scary,” said Janine Krippner, a New Zealand-based volcanologist with the Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program. “When the vent is...

Video shows female Trump supporter's desperate pleas to prevent rioters from breaking windows: "Stop! No! Don’t! Wait!" Ashli Babbitt desperately tried to prevent rioters from vandalizing the doors leading to the Speaker’s Lobby at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, even stepping between one troublemaker and police officers guarding the doors, a video analysis shows. Frame-by-frame video evidence analyzed by The Epoch Times paints a vastly different picture of Babbitt’s actions than that portrayed in media accounts over the past year. News media regularly painted Babbitt as “violent,” a “rioter,” or an “insurrectionist” who was angrily trying to breach...

The commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. David Berger, has tested positive for the coronavirus, his spokesperson said in a statement on Monday afternoon.“The Commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. David Berger, has tested positive for COVID-19. the performance of his duties will remain unaffected,” Marine Maj. Eric Flanagan said in the statement.Berger’s status was announced shortly after a spokesman for Army Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, announced that Milley had tested positive for the coronavirus on Sunday.Berger and Milley are the second top Pentagon leaders to come down with coronavirus over the past several...

Travelers to Hawaii will now have to show proof of having received the coronavirus booster shot in order to be considered fully vaccinated. Under the state’s current “Safe Travels” program, visitors to the state must quarantine for five days or test negative for the coronavirus within one day of travel if they are not fully vaccinated, which previously meant two doses of the Pfizer/Moderna vaccines or one dose of Johnson & Johnson vaccine. The new guidelines will now include booster shots in order for people to skip quarantine.

The French Sports Ministry said on Monday there would be no exemption from a new vaccine pass law approved on Sunday, which requires people to have vaccination certificates to enter public places such as restaurants, cafes and cinemas."This will apply to everyone who is a spectator or a professional sportsperson. And this until further notice," the ministry said."As far as Roland Garros is concerned, it's in May. The situation may change between now and then and we hope it'll be more favourable. So we'll see but clearly there's no exemption."The ministry's stance was welcomed by Germany's world number three Alexander...

A 42-year-old woman is in serious condition after falling 100 feet off Olomana Trail Monday morning. It happened around 10:30 a.m. Paramedics say she was at the third peak of the trail when she fell. Two bystanders saw the fall and were able to traverse down to her and provide assistance until they were able to get in touch with first responders. One of the Good Samaritans says when he got down to her -- her leg had gotten caught in a rock and was keeping her from falling any further. “The lady that ended up falling started out on...

Former Wisconsin Supreme Court Judge Michael Gableman has been investigating the 2020 presidential election results in Wisconsin since he was appointed last year. Gableman was given the task of looking into the 2020 election in Wisconsin. In October he announced he was focusing on five locations where irregularities were noted related to interference from foreign players like Facebook. Former Wisconsin Supreme Court Judge Michael Gableman has been investigating the 2020 presidential election results in Wisconsin since he was appointed last year. Gableman was given the task of looking into the 2020 election in Wisconsin. In October he announced he was...

Why was Malik Faisal Akram even in this country? That’s only one of many questions surrounding the Brit’s attack on a Texas synagogue, but it’s one of the biggest. As Avram’s brother told Sky News, “He’s known to police. Got a criminal record.” Nor did he have any visible means of support; Gulbar Akram also says he “was suffering from mental health issues.” Yet the feds say he somehow got a visa and flew into JFK around New Year’s, listing a hotel on Queens Boulevard as his destination. He then made his way to Dallas, where he stayed at a...

Gov. David Ige said the new rule will not go into effect for at least two weeks.Hawaii will require visitors to the state to have received a COVID-19 vaccine booster if they want to skip quarantine. Currently, under the rules of the state's "Safe Travels" program, travelers who don't want to quarantine for five days must either be fully vaccinated -- meaning two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine or one shot of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine -- or have a negative COVID-19 test within one day of travel. However, the program is changing the definition of "fully...

Beaches along the Oregon coastline warned tourists and residents of the danger, including “strong currents and dangerous waves.” With the threat of water potentially rising 1-3 feet higher than normal, the National Weather Service advised people to stay out of the water and away from the shore. However, people who live and work in the coastal town tell KOIN 6 News after they heard the siren and got the emergency alert on their phones — they saw people doing the exact opposite. “The next thing you know, we hear people outside and they’re running to the beach – which I...

CAIR-TX Panel on Aafia Siddiqui – Siddiqui’s Attorney Marwa Elbially: U.S. Government Lies on "Large Scale" Like with Jessica Lynch; Activist Linda Sarsour: Siddiqui "Embodies" a Political Prisoner In a November 11, 2021 panel that was streamed live on YouTube by CAIR-TX and that was titled “Injustice: Dr. Aafia [Siddiqui] and the 20-Year Legacy of America’s Wars,” Aafia Siddiqui’s attorney Marwa Elbially said that the U.S. government lies on a large scale. She gave the example of the "fabricated" rescue of American soldier, who was taken hostage by Iraqi forces in 2003.

A woman has questioned whether she was wrong to uninvite her stepfather from her upcoming wedding – which he paid for – after her brothers said they would not attend if he was there. SNIP The bride-to-be, 25, said her mother is upset that she chose to uninvite her stepfather from her wedding after receiving an ultimatum from her older brothers. She explained that the siblings went through a “rough time” at the time of their parent’s divorce and that her mother had since remarried. While the OP (original poster) has a “somewhat stable relationship” with her stepfather due to...

MSNBC host Al Sharpton said Monday on “Deadline” that former President Donald Trump having said that white people were at the “back of the line” for COVID-19 treatments at an Arizona rally while black people were in the bleachers behind him was “optics” to “sell racism.” Former Sen. Claire McCaskill said, “I have just got ask the Rev, I mean, I looked at that rally, and I listened to what he said, that white people were being denied the vaccine, the clear message that black people were being prioritized for the vaccine over white people. Everyone knows what he was...

A British woman who went missing after a huge undersea volcanic eruption rocked Tonga has been found dead, her family said, in the first reported fatality in the Pacific island nation. The brother of Angela Glover, who ran an animal rescue center, said the 50-year-old died after being swept away by a wave. Nick Eleini said his sister's body had been found and that her husband James survived, the BBC reported. "I understand that this terrible accident came about as they tried to rescue their dogs," Eleini said in a video statement posted by Sky News.

Former Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) said Monday on MSNBC’s “Deadline” that forty Republican Senators do not support former President Donald Trump because they know it would not be suitable for the United States if he retook the presidency in 2024.

A viewer, who's girlfriend threatened to dump him, if he didn't get the jab, asks what he should do...

SAN FRANCISCO, CA—In response to record levels of unprosecuted shoplifting, Walgreens stores in San Francisco have introduced a new "Frequent Looter Rewards Card." "If you can't beat 'em, I guess all you can do is join 'em," said Sandra Lopez, regional manager in charge of 8 locations in the Bay Area. "We don't even have regular shoppers anymore—just looters." The new punch cards will help looters keep track of their visits and allow store owners to better track their shink levels so they can more easily make insurance claims. "Yes, I realize this makes no sense. Some might even call...