Free Republic

NASA's first female launch director, called her team to their stations in Firing Room 1 at the Kennedy Space Center and began the carefully-scripted 46-hour, 10-minute countdown at 10:23 a.m. EDT. Shortly after the briefing, lightning struck two of the three 600-foot-tall protective towers around the SLS rocket at launch pad 39B. The strike prompted a review of data to make sure no sensitive electrical systems were affected, but initial checks indicated the strikes were "low magnitude." SPACEFLIGHTNOW.COM One question mark going into the countdown is the status of a 4-inch liquid hydrogen quick-disconnect fitting that leaked during a practice...

Three Tennessee school boards denied the application of the American Classical Academy, a K-12 charter school system affiliated with Hillsdale College that provides students with a classic liberal arts education. The American Classical Academy alleges that these decisions are politically motivated and based on its ties to Hillsdale, which is Christian and conservative, as well as comments made by Hillsdale’s president, Larry Arnn.The American Classical Academy filed appeals with the Tennessee Public Charter School Commission, a group appointed by the governor. In two statements of intent, the American Classical Academy said that the Rutherford and Madison school boards did not...

Joe Biden finally held a public rally after hiding for months from the American people. This comes after weeks of COVID infections and vacations. Joe traveled to nearby Maryland to hold a rally in a high school gym. During his outrageous speech where he labeled half of the country “fascists” one brave soul interrupted poor old Joe. The protester started screaming at Joe about stealing the election. Then he called out Joe Biden for being a pedophile. Buy that man a drink! This comes after news broke recently that Joe Biden was showering with his little girl naked at an...

In a divisive speech where he derided “MAGA Republicans” as “extreme” — full of “anger, violence, hatred and division” — President Joe Biden, the “unity” guy, laid out two starkly different views of where this country is heading. “Those of you who love this country, Democrats, independents, mainstream Republicans, we must be stronger, more determined and more committed to saving America than the MAGA Republics are to destroying America,” Biden said. “Look, every election is a choice,” Biden said. “Well, the alternative to the Democrats are the MAGA Republicans.” Biden drew a distinction between MAGA Republicans and “real Republicans.” ”What’s...

A Catholic school in Austria is the first in that country to offer a unique, classically-based approach to education for young students. EWTN News In-Depth Correspondent Colm Flynn recently visited St. Thomas More School in Austria, where students and faculty members spoke about the values that run the culture at the school and the benefits that come from a classical approach to education. One of the immediately noticeable things about the school is the sense of joy that seems to radiate from the students, which was reaffirmed by many of the students’ comments. “I’ve had a great relationship between teachers...

The order's fourth monastery in the country stands three and a half hours away from the seat of the diocese of Ketapang. The ceremony, presided over by Bishop Pius Riana Prapdi, was celebrated according to Dayak cultural traditions. Jakarta (AsiaNews) - The Cistercians of the strict observance, or Trappists, yesterday inaugurated their fourth monastery in the country, located in the village of Penggadungan, in the district of Sungai Melayu, West Kalimantan. The village where the new monastery is located is a remote area in the middle of the Indonesian forest (see photo), a three and a half hour drive from...

In a solemn ceremony held at the RF Northern Fleet submarine base in Gadzhievo, Murmansk region, two portable iconostases were consecrated and handed over to crews of two nuclear submarine strategic missile cruisers: Knyaz Oleg and Novosibirsk, the fleet's press service reported. An iconostasis is a wall of icons, used to divide the Altar from the rest of the church space. Portable iconostases for sailing warships are made of wood, but for submarines, they use fabric. Such icons do not take up much space in the very limited space. On church feast days, canvases with icons are unpacked and mounted...

Imports of Russian goods by Mexico saw a substantial annual increase of more than 20% during the first six months of the current year, according to the latest figures released by the Bank of Mexico. In monetary terms, Mexican imports from Russia amounted to $1.193 billion. In June alone, purchases of Russian goods by the North American nation exceeded $275 million – the second-highest figure in Mexico’s history. In May 2021, the country bought Russian goods worth $283.9 million, reports RT. In 2021, trade turnover between the two countries reached a record high, exceeding $4.5 billion. The US remains Mexico’s...

The season starts Sept. 1 with the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation and closes with the feast of St. Francis of Assisi on Oct. 4 Sister Kathleen Storms hopes a calendar of prayers and suggestions for action during the upcoming worldwide Season of Creation will help people "understand that simple options can make an important difference in our care for creation." Meatless Mondays and shopping at farmer's markets are among actions proposed by the Care for Creation Team of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis to observe the season. Sister Kathleen, a School Sister of...

ICU stays may be associated with a higher risk of developing dementia, according to a study. Researchers found that hospitalization in intensive care units was associated with double the risk of dementia compared with those who did not experience ICU hospitalization. Epidemiologist Bryan James, Ph.D. said that while ICU hospitalization due to critical illness has been linked to subsequent cognitive impairment in older patients, fewer studies have demonstrated a relationship between ICU hospitalization and a long-term risk of developing Alzheimer's or other age-related dementias. "Given the high rate of ICU hospitalization in older persons, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, it...

COMMENTARY: This diplomatic policy means that Catholics under persecution by repressive regimes such as Nicaragua, China and Venezuela should not expect rhetorical support from the Vatican.In response to the persecution of the Church in Nicaragua, the Holy See is strictly observing the Gallagher Protocol. But the Gallagher Protocol is not being observed elsewhere, not even in Italy. As cardinals from around the world head to Rome this week, will Archbishop Gallagher himself be able to persuade them to stifle their protests over a brother bishop taken away by Daniel Ortega’s regime? In June 2021, Archbishop Paul Gallagher, the Holy See’s...

Former U.S. Army General Don Bolduc, a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in New Hampshire, blasted Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-NH) in an interview with Breitbart News and said New Hampshire voters should support him because he is “an outsider who’s not bought and paid for.”***Stopping excessive government spending is a priority to Bolduc, who started the “hell no to spending caucus.”He criticized Hassan for being a part of the establishment that has made life unbearable for most Americans.“Maggie Hassan for the last 40 years in politics as a state senator, a governor, and now five and a half miserable years...

France is at a "tipping point" and the "age of abundance" is over. The end of summer message from President Emmanuel Macron at a cabinet meeting last Wednesday clearing the way trying to brace France for energy related problems in the months ahead. Much said being said about Ukraine less being said about any "climate" policies which could impact energy in the months and years ahead... Finding new sources of natural gas other than Russia driving President Macron's visit to Algeria late this week. Macron says it's time to lay the "painful history" behind during his visit a reference to...

California Democrats just passed a bill to fund healthcare clinics in the state’s K-12 public schools, against Republicans’ and the California Department of Finance’s objections. Included in the primary health care services are mental health services, “reproductive health services” (abortions, birth control), vaccinations, and drug abuse treatment. The clincher is that parental consent is not needed for any of these health services. In fact, according to bill analysis, “The Right to Life League said that this bill will ensure that state-funded chemical or surgical abortions can secretly and conveniently take place on school campuses, public or private, without parental involvement...

A Florida judge filed an order Saturday noting that the court plans to appoint a special master to oversee judicial interactions with plaintiff former President Trump. “The Court hereby provides notice of its preliminary intent to appoint a special master in this case,” wrote District Judge Aileen Cannon, who was nominated by Trump during his time as president. The order fulfills earlier requests by Trump for the court to appoint a special master to review Mar-a-Lago documents before the FBI is able to review them. Trump filed a lawsuit on Monday to block the FBI from reviewing the documents that...

People’s militia officers in the Donetsk People’s Republic killed a US national, Alan Joshua, who had been fighting for Ukraine, in combat on August 23, the DPR’s ombudsperson Darya Morozova said on Telegram on Saturday. The DPR has notified US officials and the head of the UN monitoring mission in Ukraine, Matilda Bogner, of his death, she added. "In combat near Yegorovka on August 23, DPR people’s militia officers killed another foreign mercenary who had been fighting for Ukraine. Fleeing Ukrainian militants left his body on the battlefield. Documents identifying the killed person as US national Alan Joshua, born in...

A three-drug medication known as a "polypill" is effective in preventing secondary adverse cardiovascular events in people who have previously had a heart attack, reducing cardiovascular mortality by 33 percent in this patient population. "The results of the SECURE study show that the polypill, which contains aspirin, ramipril, and atorvastatin, achieves clinically relevant reductions in the recurrent cardiovascular events among people who have recovered from a previous heart attack because of better adherence to this simplified approach with a simple polypill, rather than taking them separately as conventional," says Dr. Fuster. Patients recovering from a heart attack—also known as myocardial...

Special Presidential Envoy for Climate (SPEC) John Kerry's office participated in multiple discussions with left-wing environmental groups that appeared to inform policymaking decisions, according to emails shared with Fox News Digital. Officials in the SPEC office sought to discuss key agenda items as recently as December with non-governmental organizations like the Sierra Club and the United Nations Foundation, according to documents obtained by government watchdog Protect the Public’s Trust (PPT) and shared with Fox News Digital. The documents, which were obtained via information request, did not show any similar conversations or meetings with fossil fuel energy groups or companies. "You'll...

Glaucoma is an irreversible blinding eye disease characterized by progressive ganglion cell death. To date, IOP control has been almost the only clinical option for the treatment of POAG. However, visual field damage continues to progress after lowering IOP in most patients, suggesting the existence of more complex pathogenic mechanisms in glaucoma. Recently, a collaboration between Academician Yang Zhenglin and Professor Zhang Houbin of Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital affiliated with the University of Electronic Science and Technology revealed the important role of cholesterol metabolic homeostasis in the pathogenesis of glaucoma and rescued the ganglion cells of ABCA1 knockout mice after...

Mossad Director Dedi Barnea countered optimistic remarks by the officials, back from Washington last week after making an urgent bid to ward off the damage contained in the nuclear accord with Iran before the US signs. It is a “bad deal,” they said, but the Biden administration may still be amenable to some adjustments. Barnea, however, harshly denigrated the deal on the table as “a strategic disaster” when he met a small group of reporters after briefing the Prime Minister and other high officials on the true state of play. Israel’s spy chief, who leads the national intelligence effort, did...