Free Republic

GERMAN breweries have been told to halt beer production amid fears Oktoberfest will be canceled after Russia cut off gas supplies.

Veteran Cook County state's attorney James Murphy retired on Friday, July 29, after a career in which he played an important role in some of Cook County's most conspicuous cases. Beginning his service to Cook County under Richard Devine, Murphy continued to work in the office under Devine's successor, Anita Alvarez, and finally under Kim Foxx. In a career spanning two-and-a-half decades, Murphy became one of the most visible prosecutors in the county, playing a leading role in the prosecution of Jussie Smollett and the investigation of the Chicago police shooting death of an armed gang member, Adam Toledo. A...

Who says the end of the world won’t be all fun and games? Two weeks after releasing a bizarre public service announcement about what to do if a nuke falls on Gotham — offered little advice beyond “get inside” and “stay inside” — New York City’s Emergency Management agency tweeted about what to pack in a “go bag” in the event of a mass evacuation. The tweet featured a cartoon of children’s backpacks filled with homework, toys and Nintendo Switch and Game Boy consoles. A puzzle, a teddy bear, a rubber duck, video game controllers, rulers and a scarf were...

OSHKOSH - While an estimated 8,000 planes flew in to the Experimental Aircraft Association's annual AirVenture convention this week in Oshkosh, across the nation it appears that the only infallible way to fly somewhere is to be your own pilot. In 2020, 20% of U.S. pilots were unemployed due to the crash in air travel during the pandemic, according to The 2021 Pilot Survey. Airlines operated 4.7 million domestic passenger flights in the full year 2020, a 41% drop from flights in 2019, according to the Bureau of Transportation. As a result, airlines weren't making enough money to cover their...

Alex Jones’ media company Free Speech Systems, which operates the rightwing conspiratorial outlet Infowars, has filed for bankruptcy in the latest in a string of financial maneuvers by the prominent rightwing conspiracy theorist. The move came at the end of the first week of testimony at a trial in Texas set to determine how much he will have to pay the families of two Sandy Hook elementary school mass shooting victims who sued for defamation and won a default $150m judgment against him. Jones’ attorney Andino Reynal said the bankruptcy protection filing should not disrupt the trial. The company, he...

A former National Security Agency contractor jailed for leaking a document about Russian hacking in the 2016 election has spoken out about her experiences, insisting that she is "not a traitor." Reality Winner, now 30, was arrested in 2017 and admitted to taking classified intelligence documents that same year. She was accused of mailing top-secret NSA information to the media outlet The Intercept. The classified document detailed Russian government efforts to hack a Florida-based US voting software supplier. In 2018, Winner was sentenced to more than five years in prison. She was released in June 2021 for good behavior. Speaking...

Dozens of Minnesota barbers and hairstylists received training this week to be mental health advocates in the Black community. On Monday, the participants gathered at the Sabathani Community Center in Minneapolis for training with The Confess Project, a nationwide initiative, and community partners. The project is dedicated to building a better mental health culture for Black boys and men through barber shops. Partners in Minnesota are expanding the focus to include hairstylists and their clients. “You get some of those clients that are like ‘Hey, give me a haircut and get me out of here,’ but most of the time...

COCONINO COUNTY, Ariz. - A 74-year-old New York woman reportedly evaded authorities from several law enforcement agencies after Sedona Police got many reports of a driver's "erratic" and "disorderly" behavior on July 9. "It was during these contacts that Sedona Officers learned this person had a revoked driver’s license where she was not allowed to drive a motor vehicle," a news release read from the Cottonwood Police Department.

President Joe Biden has tested positive again for Covid-19, the White House said Saturday. His physician said he's not experiencing any symptoms, but that he will isolate at the White House. This is a breaking story and will be updated.

The carmaker is implementing an “asset-light” strategy in the country because of concerns that rising political tensions could lead to sanctions in a conflict between China and the rest of the world... The CEO’s candid comments offer an explanation for Stellantis’s announcement last week it’s leaving a 12-year manufacturing partnership with state-owned Guangzhou Automobile Group. The exit raises uncomfortable questions about what the future may hold for foreign manufacturers in China. The war in Ukraine has disrupted supply chains in Europe, and the lengthening list of sanctions targeting Russia is a grim reminder of what could happen if China were...

Joe tested positive this morning

An Austrian doctor who was targeted by anti-vaxxers for her public advocacy in favor of the Covid-19 vaccines has committed suicide. The body of Lisa-Maria Kellermayr, who was often quoted in the media about the pandemic and the importance of vaccines, was found at her office in rural northern Austria on Friday, according to Austrian media reports. Officials said she left a suicide note but did not reveal its contents. Kelllmayr had been the target of death threats from anti-vaccination activists. Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen praised the doctor as a great healer and called out those who had...

James Lindsay explains the parallel between China’s Maoist brainwashing tactics and America’s diversity, equity & inclusion initiatives (DEI)—and it’s absolutely frightening.

The New York Times reported Friday that Fox News has not had Donald Trump on its network in over 100 days, which the paper said was part of a larger strategy to eliminate the former president as a major GOP player. Trump's last appearance on Fox News came April 13 on "Hannity." But, The Times noted, even Trump has complained his longtime friend "doesn't seem to be paying him much attention anymore." The paper said Trump believes Fox's strategy of shunning him is an effort in "effectively displacing him" from the news cycle and as de facto leader of the...

This piece has been updated to reflect the announcement of a Friday vote in the House on legislation to ban so-called assault weapons. Last week, David Hogg engaged in a publicity stunt where he interrupted a markup committee hearing meeting in the House Judiciary Committee, over legislation that would banned so-called assault weapons. Although he was dragged out of the hearing, he's still speaking up about the issue, as evidenced by his tweets throughout Thursday, highlighted by our friends at Twitchy. On Thursday it was unclear whether or not the U.S. House of Representatives was going to vote on the...

massive Chinese booster rocket fell uncontrolled to Earth on Saturday and landed over the Indian Ocean, according to U.S. Space Command. The booster is part of the 23-ton Long March 5B-Y3 rocket — China’s most powerful — that carried the Wentian module to China’s orbiting space station, aboard which three astronauts currently reside. China decided not to guide the booster back through the atmosphere. Aerospace Corporation, a nonprofit space research organization, predicted the booster would hit earth around 1:08 p.m. Eastern time, give or take an hour. According to The New York Times, you have a better chance of winning...

The Indian Navy on Thursday (July 28) took delivery of IAC-1, the nation’s first indigenously built aircraft carrier from its manufacturer, Cochin Shipyard Ltd. The carrier, which after commissioning will be called ‘Vikrant’, has been handed over to the Navy ahead of schedule. The commissioning is likely to take place on Independence Day. The aircraft carrier, which successfully completed its fourth and final phase of sea trials three weeks ago, puts India in an elite club of nations that have the capability to design and build these giant, powerful warships. “A momentous day in the Indian Maritime History & indigenous...

Deventer, The Netherlands Hay bales in flames, manure dumped on highways, blockades at supermarket distribution centres and demonstrations on politicians' doorsteps. Dutch farmers have been generating global headlines with protests described by Prime Minister Mark Rutte as "wilfully endangering others, damaging our infrastructure and threatening people who help with the clean-up". This proud farming nation is under immense pressure to make radical changes to cut harmful emissions, and some farmers fear their livelihoods will be obliterated. "It's in our blood, I want to do this, and if we have to adapt to new situations, I want to, but we have...

The normal procedure for Congressional hearings is for both Parties to choose their own representatives on the committee conducting the hearings. Both Parties would be empowered to call whatever witnesses they deem appropriate. Both Parties would have the right to cross-examine each other's witnesses. None of these normal procedures have been observed in the January 6 Committee. As a result, key evidence has been ignored. While the Democrats running the Committee contend that Trump desired and instigated the violence at the Capitol, evidence from the Pentagon shows that he was concerned enough about preventing violence that on January 3 he...

China said it was conducting military exercises Saturday off its coast opposite Taiwan after warning Speaker Nancy Pelosi of the U.S. House of Representatives to scrap possible plans to visit the island democracy, which Beijing claims as part of its territory. The ruling Communist Party’s military wing, the People’s Liberation Army, was conducting “live-fire exercises” near the Pingtan islands off Fujian province from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., the official Xinhua News Agency said. The Maritime Safety Administration warned ships to avoid the area. Such exercises usually involve artillery. The one-sentence announcement gave no indication whether Saturday’s exercise also might...