Free Republic

Just on 15 million people have lost their lives in the two years the Chinese coronavirus pandemic has stalked the globe, statistics released Thursday by the World Health Organization (W.H.O.) detail. That grim figure is some 13 percent higher than might normally be expected for the corresponding 24-month period. More men (57 percent) have died directly or indirectly as a result of coronavirus than women (43 percent) worldwide, the W.H.O. data shows.

Consumer prices in Turkey soared nearly 70% in April from a year ago, hitting a two-decade high, official figures show. Transport, food prices and household furnishings recorded the sharpest rise in annual inflation, with transport costs more than doubling over the year. Countries around the world are dealing with a growing cost of living crisis. But Turkey's problems have been made worse by its president's reluctance to raise interest rates - a commonly used tool to help cool inflation. The cost of food and non-alcoholic drinks saw an annual increase of 89.1%, while furnishings and household equipment were up 77.64%....

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Clinics in California are preparing for a possible surge of patients if abortion is banned in many other states in the country in the event that Roe v. Wade is overturned. With more than two dozen states expected to ban or restrict abortion access, Gov. Gavin Newsom has said California will serve as a sanctuary.

Here’s some simple Medusa math for you: negative growth + payroll gains = negative productivity. Negative productivity + high labor costs = very high unit labor costs. That’s not a pretty picture for the economy or for companies, and the Q1 figures were even worse than expected — productivity fell by 7.5%, pushing unit labor costs up by 11.6%. Nasty. In fact, labor productivity fell to the lowest level since 1947 and President Harry Truman. Of course, Biden’s green energy policies have led to crushing inflation. Biden’s policies are a Medusa-touch on the economy. The new logo for the Biden...

As Disney grapples with the aftermath of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis revoking the company's special tax district, business leaders around the globe are contemplating their own company values as political issues take center stage. "I don't think [Disney CEO Bob Chapek] did his homework," Bill George, a Harvard Business School professor, said. "We're in a different world today — he was acting like he was back in the 1990s. In this world of 2022, you have all kinds of stakeholders who expect you to take a position, especially your employees," adding that workers today have found their voice "particularly in...

President Joe Biden and his administration appear perilously close to an irreversible severing of public confidence in his capacity to deliver prosperity and financial security as stiff economic challenges balloon into huge political liabilities. A CNN poll released Wednesday shows that the President's repeated efforts to highlight undeniably strong aspects of the economy's post-pandemic rebound and to offset blame for its bad spots aren't working. The main culprit is inflation, a corrosive force that the White House initially underestimated and has failed to tame. It's been decades since Americans have experienced this demoralizing cycle of spiraling costs for basic goods...

The far-left’s hysterical reactions to Justice Samuel Alito's leaked draft opinion in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization indicate that its radical, woke agenda is crashing down. Violence has erupted as abortion activists rage over the potential demise of Roe v. Wade. The leak of Justice Alito’s draft opinion, which overturns Roe, appears to be the handwriting on the wall. This may be an indication that America has rejected the destructive agenda of the abortion industry. The apparent downfall of Roe opens the door for the rebirth of a culture of life. Central to achieving this goal...

Republican Senate candidate Kathy Barnette called out Dr. Mehmet Oz during a tense exchange about abortion, revealing she was the byproduct of rape. On Wednesday, candidates for Pennsylvania GOP Senate primary gathered for a debate as they attempt to sway voters before the May 17 primary election. Candidates were asked about their stance on abortion days after Justice Samuel Alito's draft opinion to overturn Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court ruling that legalized abortion nationwide, was leaked. It was then that candidate Kathy Barnette, a conservative political commentator, explained her personal connection to the pro-life movement, revealing she was the...

Belarus’ authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko defended Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in an interview Thursday with The Associated Press, but he said he didn’t expect the 10-week-old conflict to “drag on this way.” -snip- “But I am not immersed in this problem enough to say whether it goes according to plan, like the Russians say, or like I feel it,” he said in the nearly 90-minute interview at Independence Palace in Minsk. “I want to stress one more time: I feel like this operation has dragged on.”

Kyle Rittenhouse attended a party at Mar-a-largo and this picture of him and Lara Logan is making the rounds.....

"Where most of the non-kinetic work is being done is in restoring and normalizing smaller towns and cities that the Russians liberate. What is being reported is that Russian managers are now routinely being brought on site of these towns and cities to establish order and normal civilian function. They restore Russian Television, and Internet, get cleaning up done, start rebuilding, demine, and provide emergency food stocks for normal life to continue. There are rumors all over the netisphere that the status of Donesk and Lugansk will soon more formally change to Russian influence. We cannot speculate and will have...

This Sunday is Mother's Day, and as I did last week in my column, I will write again about my mother, Jackie Battley Gingrich, who died in 2013 yet remains a living inspiration to me. This week, I am writing about a different aspect to this remarkable woman. Even before she was diagnosed with cancer for the second time in 2004, she knew that life is short, and that laughter brings us together. My advice last week was to find someone you disagree with and share a laugh with them. This week, I am urging you to put that advice...

This is the moment Ukrainian troops destroy one of Russia's most advanced tanks which are protected by special reactive armour. The armour on the T-90M is designed to explode when hit reducing the penetrative power of an incoming round. The tank is also protected with a automated defence system which fires smoke grenades when it is 'painted' by a laser beam used by an incoming missile. However, the Ukrainian military released drone footage on a Russian armoured unit which resulted in the destruction of the £4million tank as well as a thermobaric multiple rocket system.

The news of Elon Musk’s deal to acquire Twitter has made it around the world and back again a few times. Social media somehow still has the ability to share information. Not bad for a dying product. While many celebrate the Twitter takeover and promises of a makeover, there is a glaring omission from the discussion – why would anyone want to buy Twitter, especially now? Mr. Musk surely is making the purchase for numerous reasons, but can he save a dying Twitter? Mr. Musk certainly can save Twitter if he really is able to bring back the free speech...

The Bible In Paintings 2 ENCOURAGEMENT FOR APPRECIATING AND APPLYING GOD'S MESSAGE 1st SAMUEL CHAPTER 3 The boy Samuel ministered before the LORD under Eli. In those days the word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions. One night the LORD called Samuel. Samuel answered, “Here I am.” And he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” But Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.” So he went and lay down. Again the LORD called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I...

BREAKING NEWS: Internet sleuths say the first suspect in the still very preliminary investigation into the Supreme Court Leak is Justice Sonia Sotomayor's clerk: Amit Jain. A photo with additional content is available on Facebook, and perhaps elsewhere, but I don't know how to post it here.

"Military planners are likely getting nervous," according to Mark Cancian, a security analyst for the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The United States has delivered so many Javelin tank-buster missiles to Ukraine that the Pentagon's own stocks have dwindled perilously, according to defense insiders. The U.S. has sent more than 5,000 Javelins to Ukraine, the Pentagon said, with analysts estimating that some 20,000-25,000 of the missiles remain in the Defense Department's inventory — an amount that may not be sufficient for potential U.S.-involved conflicts. "Military planners are likely getting nervous," according to Mark Cancian, a security analyst for the...

Lara Logan — the former 60 Minutes star reporter, turned Fox Nation host, turned far-right screedster — has spoken out in the most explicit terms yet about her break up with Rupert Murdoch’s company in the wake of her comments comparing Dr. Anthony Fauci to a genocidal Nazi psysician.But in an appearance Monday on the “The Stand Up America US Show” [sic], Logan described her separation from Fox as a definitive breakup, describing the network’s apparent decision to “dump” her as a gift from the heavens. “God has intervened in my life in very significant ways to spare me from...

Rivian Automotive, the electric vehicle (EV) company that beat the legacy automakers to market with the 2022 R1T electric pickup, just received $1.5 billion in incentives to build a new plant in Georgia. The package will include job training support, tax credits and subsidies, according to a statement by the Georgia Department of Economic Development. Rivian will get $467 million in tax credits if it creates 7,500 jobs by 2028, as the automaker promised. But Pat Wilson, Georgia's commissioner noted that if Rivian doesn't produce that many jobs there are protections for the taxpayer. Almost $300 million will go into...

5 May 2022Thursday of the 3rd week of Eastertide The Church of the Dormition of the All-holy Mother of GodBuchach, Ukraine Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: White.First readingActs 8:26-40 ©Philip baptizes a eunuchThe angel of the Lord spoke to Philip saying, ‘Be ready to set out at noon along the road that goes from Jerusalem down to Gaza, the desert road.’ So he set off on his journey. Now it happened that an Ethiopian had been on pilgrimage to Jerusalem; he was a eunuch and an officer at the court of the kandake, or queen, of Ethiopia, and was in fact...