Free Republic

Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. I hate to say it, but I was wrong about when the farcical House's January 6 Committee would call it a day. Previously, I had written that the laughably lauded lefty lumpenausschuss would wrap things up in September to give a desperately needed defibrillator jolt to the Democrats before the November vote. After Hurricane Ian delayed the last week in September wrap-up(ish) meetings, that "September surprise" option evaporated, leaving the ThumpBumpDump Trump-ists on the committee desperately searching for some sort of pre-midterm relevance. And whaddayaknow? They found something to grab a headline and...

Even the solutions turn into problems for Vladimir Putin in Ukraine — big problems. Less than a month after announcing a “partial” mobilization, Russian conscripts have entered into combat in Luhansk. And it appears that they are exiting almost as quickly, provoking even more backlash from nationalist milbloggers who are increasingly balking at Putin’s propaganda. The Ukrainians reported their arrival in combat areas yesterday. Serhii Haidai, the top military official in Luhansk Oblast, claimed that the first conscript wave consisted mainly of ex-convicts: (snip) The Russian milbloggers didn’t take long to confirm the arrival of conscripts — and to complain...

Residents in San Francisco and Seattle are more likely to move to a different city as they experience high crime rate and homelessness, according to a new survey. For the first time ever, the American Housing Survey asked residents in the nation's 15 major cities if they planned on moving, with many Dem-led cities leading the way in the looming exodus. About 7.6 percent of those in San Francisco said they wanted to move to a different city, with Seattle coming in second at 7.2 percent. Following them was Washington D.C and Detroit, who both reported that 6.8 percent of...

Overview of What Would Occur if the United States Returned to a Draft: 1. Draft Authorization: Congress and the President A national emergency, exceeding the Department of Defense’s capability to recruit and retain its total force strength, requires Congress to amend the Military Selective Service Act to authorize the President to induct personnel into the Armed Forces. 2. Activation of Selective Service System Selective Service activates and orders all personnel to report for duty. Reserve Force Officers, along with selected military retirees, begin to open Area Offices to accept registrant claims. Local, District Appeal, and National Board members are notified...

The Chinese Party Congress set to open on Sunday already has Xi Jinping on edge. These gatherings happen only every five years, and this time it is expected to ratify his plan to void term limits and make him in effect dictator-for-life. While it is impossible for outsiders to know the extent of opposition to Xi, almost certainly there are factions that are dead set against this move, based on personal and regional loyalties if not on opposition to his policies and intention to make himself another Mao Zedong. Thus, a demonstration attacking Xi that broke out in an affluent...

As Russia bombarded Ukraine this week, military observers were left wondering about how many and what types of missiles Russia still has in its arsenal. In other words, how long can the Kremlin keep up the barrage? (snip)It remains unclear if Russia has enough weapons to continue the strikes against Ukraine with the same intensity that began following the Oct. 8 explosion on the Kerch Bridge to the Moscow-annexed Crimean Peninsula. (snip) When the Russian military unleashed missile attacks across Ukraine starting Monday, it used the entire range of its long-range precision weapons: the Kh-55 and Kh-101 cruise missiles fired...

After a seven-day ban for offending leftists by revealing to the world their plans for children, Libs of TikTok is back. Today’s entries were a powerful reminder both that public schools are deliberately grooming children to identify with the LGBTQ+ spectrum, and that parents are finally pushing back. Under New York State law, “Disseminating indecent material to minors in the second degree is a class E felony.” Penal Law § 235.21. Class E felonies are punishable by up to four years in jail. When it comes to written material, A person is guilty of disseminating indecent material to minors in...

NATO defense ministers will gather this week for a ministerial meeting, but one topic of discussion will be anything but routine: the risk that Russian President Vladimir Putin might use nuclear weapons in Europe. The recent massive, disproportionate missile attacks launched against Ukraine in response to the truck bombing of the Kerch Bridge reinforce the notion that the Kremlin remains unpredictable. Although Russian use of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) against non-nuclear Ukraine seems unlikely for several reasons, including the fact that it may frustrate Russia’s broader goals, Western military officials can and must think through their potential responses. Doing...

BALTIMORE, Monday, Oct. 13. The American has the following special dispatch from Frederick: "The escape of the rebels across the Potomac is fully confirmed. After they were driven from Nolan's Ford they divided, and crossed the river in small bodies at different points. Two farmers, taken prisoner by them at Mercersburg, were paroled at the river, and arrived here to-day. The farmers report that Gen. STUART and Gen. WADE HAMPTON were both with the expedition. The cavalry force was a detachment from Virginia and South Carolina regiments. They seized not only horses in Maryland, but swept the parts of Pennsylvania...

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Josep Borrell suggests Putin ‘cannot afford bluffing’ and says those backing Ukraine — including NATO and the US — ‘are not bluffing neither’ BRUSSELS — EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell warned Moscow on Thursday that its forces would be “annihilated” by the West’s military response if Russian President Vladimir Putin uses nuclear weapons against Ukraine. “Putin is saying he is not bluffing. Well, he cannot afford bluffing, and it has to be clear that the people supporting Ukraine and the European Union and the Member States, and the United States and NATO are not bluffing neither,” Borrell said at...

In a first mission of its kind, the European Union plans to train Ukrainian soldiers on E.U. soil, the bloc’s top diplomat said on Thursday, a significant move that highlights the bloc’s increased security cooperation since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The mission is set for final approval on Monday during a meeting of E.U. foreign ministers in Luxembourg, the diplomat, Josep Borrell Fontelles, said. “At the moment when Putin is increasing escalation, we have in turn to continue to support Ukraine as much as needed and for how long is needed,” he said during a meeting of NATO defense ministers...

14 October 2022Friday of week 28 in Ordinary Time St. Callixtus Catacombs Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: Green. Year: C(II).First readingEphesians 1:11-14 ©You have been stamped with the seal of the Holy SpiritIt is in Christ that we were claimed as God’s own,chosen from the beginning,under the predetermined plan of the one who guides all thingsas he decides by his own will;chosen to be,for his greater glory,the people who would put their hopes in Christ before he came.Now you too, in him,have heard the message of the truth and the good news of your salvation,and have believed it;and you too have...

Virginia parents with differing viewpoints sounded off on school policies they say harmed children at Tuesday's Loudoun County Public Schools board meeting. One year ago, LCPS passed Policy 8040 to follow Virginia Department of Education guidelines put forth by the previous Democratic administration to protect transgender students. It requires employees to address students by their chosen "name and gender pronouns" and gives students access to the bathrooms, locker rooms and sports teams that match their gender identity. The decision sparked a backlash among parents, particularly because it did not require parents to be notified or approve of changes made to...

On Monday, Russia fired 84 missiles, many at Ukrainian civilian infrastructure targets, causing power outages in many cities. On Tuesday, Russia launched another 28 cruise missiles. And on Thursday, the Ukrainian Armed Forced General Staff said Russia had hit more than 40 settlements since the day before. In all, more than three dozen people were killed. But no matter how many times Russia fires at Ukraine, pro-war Russian nationalists want more, even though targeting civilian infrastructure is potentially a war crime. “It has to be done constantly, not just once but for two to five weeks to totally disable all...

Join with fellow FREEPERS to pray for AMERICA: For those in Authority in Government, Family, Military, Business, Healthcare, Education, Churches, and the Media. I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone: for kings and all those in authority that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. ~ 1 Timothy 2:1-2 Religion Forum Threads labeled [Prayer] are closed to debate of any kind. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 1 JOHN 5:14

(JNS) In Britain, it’s diplomatic Groundhog Day all over again. Prime Minister Liz Truss has said she wants to move the British embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. When former U.S. President Donald Trump similarly proposed moving the American embassy, liberals grabbed for the smelling salts. The outcome of such a move, they predicted, would be Armageddon. The entire Arab world would rise up in fury. The relocation of the embassy would utterly destroy the cause of peace. None of this occurred. Instead, the precise opposite took place. The embassy was moved in May 2018. In Sept. 2020, the historic...

Ukrainian officials have urged the Red Cross to conduct a mission to a notorious prison camp in the Russia-occupied east of the country. The Ukrainian president's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, demanded that the Red Cross (ICRC) visit the Olenivka prison in Donetsk within three days. "We just can't waste more time. Human lives are at stake," he tweeted. Last month, the Red Cross tried to secure access to the camp, but said it was denied by Russian authorities. In a statement on Friday, the ICRC said: "We want to stress that our teams are ready on the ground -...

New footage from January 6, 2021, shows a candid moment where House Speaker Nancy Pelosi threatened to physically strike then-President Trump, should he have joined those protesting at the Capitol. In the video, which was publicly shared Thursday, Pelosi admits the actions could have resulted in her going to prison — a consequence she said she would "be happy" to accept. "I hope he comes, I’m going to punch him out," Pelosi tells her Chief of Staff Terri McCullough, who discourages her boss from making the comments. "I’ve been waiting for this, for trespassing on the Capitol grounds. I’m going...

Ukrainian defenders shoot down more and more Iranian kamikaze drones. This was stated by the Secretary of the National Security Council, Oleksii Danilov, in an interview with NT, Censor.NET. "Regarding the "martyrs". Unfortunately, yes, sometimes they break through. Our anti-aircraft forces, and other units that are involved in this process already reaches 85-90%, depending on the day. They launch a lot of them," he explained. Danilov also called on Ukrainians to go to shelter during an air raid.