Free Republic

What were the benefits and costs of the COVID-19 restrictions implemented over the last two years? It's a good time to ask that question, especially now that the masks are coming off and the lockdowns are canceled. One useful scorecard comes from the prestigious National Bureau of Economic Research, in the form of a paper by three market-friendly economists, Casey Mulligan (University of Chicago), Stephen Moore (Heritage Foundation) and Phil Kerpen (Committee to Unleash Prosperity). They evidently disagree with the nation's most prominent advocate of massive restrictions, Dr. Anthony Fauci, who recently argued, "I don't think we're ever going to...

Ukrainian officials have run more than 8,600 facial recognition searches on dead or captured Russian soldiers in the 50 days since Moscow’s invasion began, using the scans to identify bodies and contact hundreds of their families in what may be one of the most gruesome applications of the technology to date. The country’s IT Army, a volunteer force of hackers and activists that takes its direction from the Ukrainian government, says it has used those identifications to inform the families of the deaths of 582 Russians, including by sending them photos of the abandoned corpses. The Ukrainians champion the use...

Kevin Berling took his former employee to court after claiming to suffer a panic attack and arguing that his stress caused him to lose his job, WLKY-TV reported. Jurors in Kenton County Circuit Court agreed this week and awarded Berling $450,000, the television station reported. According to Berling, he asked the office manager of his employer, Covington-based Gravity Diagnostics, not to hold a birthday celebration for him, the Courier-Journal reported. Being the center of attention causes him immense stress, Berling said On Berling’s birthday, Aug. 7, 2021, his office arranged for a lunchtime party, WLKY reported. Berling said he suffered...

Welcome to Money Diaries where we are tackling the ever-present taboo that is money. We're asking real people how they spend their hard-earned money during a seven-day period — and we're tracking every last dollar.COVID-19 has caused many of us to rethink and reprioritize our personal finances. What has changed for you? What questions do you have about money right now? Is there something you've been wondering for a long time but have been too embarrassed to ask? Send us your pressing money question at moneyquestions@refinery29.com.Today: an employer brand director who has a joint income of $330,000 per year and...

The Biden Border Rush continues and looks to get even worse with the scheduled termination of Title 42 on May 23 (as if it’s not bad enough already). The administration of Texas Governor Greg Abbott is fighting back with Operation Lone Star and is creating Texas’ own border policy. Drastic times call for drastic measures. Let’s look at six parts of the policy.

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear two cases that challenge the legality of racial preferences in college admissions, one involving Harvard and the other the University of North Carolina. It might rule that preferences for particular racial groups violate the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and/or the 14th Amendment. Such a decision would be applauded by many Americans who believe that racial preferences are neither legal nor good policy. If the Court strikes down racial preferences, should colleges and universities turn instead to preferences for students who come from poor families and distressed circumstances? Going back decades, a number...

ATLANTA (CBS46) -- The race for Georgia’s governorship begins with the GOP Primary in just six weeks. Former President Donald Trump has endorsed David Perdue, but his attempt to unseat Brian Kemp isn’t showing up in the polls. CBS46 obtained a Landmark Communications survey of nearly 700 people which shows Kemp at the top of the poll with 52% support, David Perdue at 28%, and Kandiss Taylor with 10%. In the race for Georgia’s Secretary of State, Congressman Jody Hice has a commanding lead at 35%, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger is at 18% and David Belle Isle has 10%...

Long-term U.S. mortgage rates continued to climb this week as the key 30-year loan rate reached 5% for the first time in more than a decade amid persistent high inflation. The average 5% rate on the 30-year mortgage was up from 4.72% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac reported Thursday. The average rates in recent months have been showing the fastest pace of increases since 1994. By contrast, a year ago the 30-year rate stood at 3.04%. The average rate on 15-year, fixed-rate mortgages, popular among those refinancing their homes, jumped to 4.17% from 3.91% last week. Yet The Federal...

Pastor Yohan Maria murdered in Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh IndiaSome will take this as an anti-pretribulation rapture post, but it's not. My opinion on ones view of the end times is that it has no bearing upon one's salvation, so why waste your time thinking about it? My point for this post is about those who think they will not be persecuted. Which in and of itself goes against the teachings of the One we put our faith in, Jesus Christ.What has become one of my biggest pet peeves in Christianity these days, is how so many of my...

Twitter adopted a limited duration shareholder rights plan, often called a “poison pill,” a day after billionaire Elon Musk offered to buy the company for $43 billion, the company announced Friday. The board voted unanimously to adopt the plan. Under the new structure, if any person or group acquires beneficial ownership of at least 15% of Twitter’s outstanding common stock without the board’s approval, other shareholders will be allowed to purchase additional shares at a discount. The plan is set to expire on April 14, 2023.

Mandy is absolutely triggered by Twitter's possible takeover by Elon Musk. She attends a Twitter-sponsored therapy session to help her cope. The Babylon Bee is doing video now. Is this a new trend? Quick, post it on Twitter. Oh, wait. .

China said that its military staged exercises on Friday in response to U.S. lawmakers' official visit to Taiwan. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said that the drills conducted by the People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command in areas opposite Taiwan were "a countermeasure to the recent negative actions of the U.S., including the visit of a delegation of lawmakers to Taiwan." "Taiwan is a sacred and inalienable part of Chinese territory. There is no room for any foreign interference on the Taiwan issue," its statement said.

Having suddenly and ultra-aggressively turned on it people with the most draconian restrictions of any nation in the world so far since COVID arrived on the scene in some Wuhan bat-soup, this week has seen the proletariat starting to fight back as food shortages hit and life inside their apartment prison cells becomes unbearable. The CCP demanded “Control your soul’s desire for freedom. Do not open your window or sing,” after Shanghaians began to scream for help. 🇨🇳 Chinese authorities sending drones over to Shanghai and sounding messages: “Please comply w covid restrictions. Control your soul’s desire for freedom. Do...

Elon Musk hit a nerve in Washington DC as the Biden-Harris regime scrambles to intimidate him following his announced plans to acquire Twitter and make it a private company. Reports are coming in that they’ve suddenly launched several investigations into his dealings, none of which seem to have anything to do with Twitter. BREAKING: As @elonmusk offers to buy the rest of @Twitter a legal source tells @FoxBusiness @SECGov and @TheJusticeDept have launched what he described as a "joint investigation" into a myriad of Musk regulatory issues primarily involving @Tesla https://t.co/TDFLED1XuI — Charles Gasparino (@CGasparino) April 14, 2022 Among the...

CINCINNATI (WXIX) - On Thursday, the Cincinnati Police Department released body camera video from the officer-involving shooting that resulted in the death of 20-year-old Ali Coulter. On Thursday, the Cincinnati Police Department released body camera video from the officer-involving shooting that resulted in the death of 20-year-old Ali Coulter. The shooting took place around 9:15 a.m. Monday during a combined investigation between CPD’s Fugitive Apprehension Squad and Covington Police Department, according to CPD Interim Police Chief Teresa Theetge.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told CNN Friday that "all of the countries of the world" should be prepared for the possibility that Russian President Vladimir Putin could use tactical nuclear weapons in his war on Ukraine. Zelensky told CNN's Jake Tapper in an exclusive interview from the office of the president in Kyiv on Friday that Putin could turn to either nuclear or chemical weapons because he does not value the lives of the people of Ukraine. "Not only me -- all of the world, all of the countries have to be worried because it can be not real information,...

The world — along with the Biden administration — SHOULD be outraged about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the destruction caused by President Putin. But there’s another ongoing crisis that deserves just as much furor from around the world — yet President Biden remains silent. Glenn details what’s currently happening in Shanghai, China, where millions of residents have been forced into their homes — without food — due to strict COVID lockdown measures. Shanghai residents are suffering immeasurably, and many of them already have succumbed over the last week to the Chinese government’s brutality. We must DEMAND our President speak...

Pope Francis says not taking care of the ‘climate’ is a ‘form of paganism’In his wide-ranging discussion with fellow Jesuits while in Malta, Pope Francis revealed his commitment to promoting ‘climate change’ policies as a form of ‘evangelization'. VATICAN CITY (LifeSiteNews) – Pope Francis has condemned the “sin” of “not taking care of climate” as a “form of paganism.”He has also added that “there is no going back” on the current “process of synodality.”During his recent brief trip to Malta, Pope Francis met with 38 of his fellow Jesuits in the Nunciature on April 3. The informal 40 minute discussion...

Angela Phillips grew up in Ohio and has run a family-owned manufacturing business there since 2009. In 2018 she was looking to expand the firm and, given her years of experience with labor unions, believed it made sense to grow in a right-to-work state. So in 2020 she opened a Phillips Tube Group plant right across the border in Richmond, Ind., which now employs more than 25 people. Phillips Tube isn’t alone in crossing state lines to benefit from a right-to-work law, which frees employees from being forced to belong or pay dues to a union. We recently published a...

A left-wing outlet funded by liberal billionaire George Soros whined that the world’s richest man’s plan to purchase Twitter was a threat to democracy. Free Press released a statement April 14 headlined, “Musk's Attempted Takeover of Twitter Would Be Toxic for Its 330 Million Users and Our Democracy.” This follows Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s recently announced $43 billion bid for a hostile takeover of one of the most censorship-obsessed platforms in the country. Free Press castigated Musk for being a critic of “efforts by companies like Twitter and Meta to moderate platform content and restrict the spread of hateful and...