Free Republic

San Francisco politicians will gather at the Noe Valley Town Square Wednesday afternoon to congratulate themselves for securing state money for a long-desired toilet in the northeast corner of the charming plaza. Another public toilet in a city with far too few of them is excellent. But the details of this particular commode? They’re mind-boggling, maddening and encapsulate so much of what’s wrong with our city government. The toilet — just one loo in 150 square feet of space — is projected to cost $1.7 million, about the same as a single-family home in this wildly overpriced city. And it...

President Joe Biden said Wednesday that he has not implemented policies to halt domestic oil production; however, the Biden administration has enacted policies that are hampering the nation’s energy output. “Biden’s green policies have created a hostile environment for investment in oil and gas, which has hurt production,” Phil Flynn, an energy market analyst with the PRICE Futures Group, told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “If the president wants to debunk some myths, let’s start with the fact that he’s leased fewer acres of federal and offshore land than any other president since the end of WWII,” Republican Rep. Bruce...

A recent interview on Israeli radio featured prominent rabbis explaining that the Messiah is just about to reveal himself. Rabbi Yaakov Zisholtz told religious broadcaster Radio 2000 that Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky (who passed away earlier this year) had told him that he (Kanievsky) was already in direct contact with the Messiah. To understand why religious Jews are taking this seriously, it’s important to know that Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky was considered one of the two or three top rabbis of the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community in Israel. And Rabbi Zisholtz says that Kanievsky and others of the mystical “concealed” rabbis had tasked...

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said that central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) could potentially allow a government to control what people spend their hard-earned cash on. Speaking at the IMF-World Bank annual meeting on Oct. 15, Deputy Managing Director Bo Li said that a CBDC could improve “financial inclusion” through programmability. “A CBDC can allow government agencies and private sector players to program, to create smart contracts, to allow targeted policy functions,” Li explained. “For example, welfare payments, for example, consumption coupons, for example, food stamps.” “By programming CBDC, that money can be precisely targeted for what kind of...

"More than half of all registered voters see the mainstream media as a threat to American democracy, according to a new poll. A New York Times-Siena College poll published Tuesday found 59 percent of voters view the media as a “major threat to democracy,” while 25 percent said the press is a “minor threat” and only 15 percent said it poses no threat....."

The long-simmering idea that the US government should stand ready to buy back Treasury securities from investors to improve market functioning is moving closer to reality. While the Treasury Department has carried out buybacks in the past -- most recently between 2000 and 2002 -- and while its industry advisers since then have urged it to consider establishing a program, steps taken in that direction last week were more than experts anticipated. Liquidity metrics for the US government debt market are approaching crisis levels after a year of steep losses for bonds caused by rising inflation and Federal Reserve interest-rate...

TOKYO -- Once submerged, a nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine typically remains under water for 70 days. Virtually undetectable, the Ohio-class SSBN is the stealthiest submarine in the U.S. Navy fleet. Unlike the Los Angeles-class or Virginia-class nuclear-powered fast attack submarines that carry conventional weapons and can make port visits around the world, nuclear-missile equipped SSBNs typically do not make public appearances. In the rare case that they do, it is either in U.S. waters or in the ports of America's top ally, the U.K. But on Thursday morning, Asia time, the U.S. Central Command tweeted that its commander, Gen. Michael...

XEP PKFO PYEOB NY HKFVLYU VKL NP PKFO EQY NFL NP ZKD PKF BSYVU PKFO UEPB. —HELZYOJVY SFCBJIYO

@mariatad A second audio from Berlusconi has leaked in which he is heard saying «Ukraine violated the Minsk deal, Zelenskiy tripled attacks on Donbas and pushed Putin to a special operation» that was supposed to last a week but escalated after the West sent money and weapons to Kyiv. 1/ Berlusconi says he’d rather not say out loud what he thinks about Zelenskiy. Then continues: «I don’t see how Putin and Zelensky can talk. Unless there’s an intervention, the war won’t end» worth noting this is a private conversation where Berlusconi asks for maximum discretion. Berlusconi - personally - and...

Click on link

Tom Nelson can hardly believe it. In just a matter of two months, Democrats went from expecting to knock off the unpopular GOP incumbent, US Sen. Ron Johnson, to seeing their party’s nominee, Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, scrambling to catch up. Already, the finger pointing has begun. “The national party did him a grave disservice by not closing the gap, by not being a stopgap measure in August and September to hit Johnson hard on good, effective negative ads, at the same time building up Mandela,” Nelson, a local county executive from central Wisconsin and former Senate Democratic candidate,...

Kazakhstan is home to 18 religious’ denominations, making it one of the most ethnically diverse countries in the world. In September, it opened its doors for a global interfaith dialogue. Its capital Astana hosted the 7th edition of the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions. Delegates from more than 50 countries came together, urging peace and consolidation around the world. “The efforts of world leaders, the efforts of international organizations are not enough to overcome the challenges that humanity is facing. And the voice of spiritual leaders who have great authority among the world's population, calls for the...

Veteran staffer and campaign manager Austin Durrer is leaving Charlie Crist’s gubernatorial campaign with less than three weeks left before Election Day...

Israel’s two chief rabbis, Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef and Rabbi David Lau, Egypt’s Grand Imam Sheikh Ahmad Al-Tayyeb and Pope Francis were just some of the top clergy who gathered last month at the VII Congress of Leaders of World And Traditional Religions in Astana, Kazakhstan’s capital city, to discuss ways in which the world’s religious leaders could work together to overcome extremism, conflict and disunity around the world. “It was an extremely well-organized event and obviously the centerpiece was the participation of the pope,” Malcolm Hoenlein, vice chair of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, who was...

A crunch Commons vote on the future of fracking has descended into mayhem after more than 40 Conservative MPs failed to back Liz Truss’s government, with MPs alleging ministers physically pulled some wavering Tories into the voting lobbies. Shortly after the vote, there were reports that the chief whip, Wendy Morton, and her deputy, Craig Whittaker, had lost their jobs. However, Downing Street later cleared up the rumours by saying the pair “remain in post”. The government victory, by 326 votes opposing the Labour motion to 230 backing it, was marred by claims of intimidation and bullying on a turbulent...

The fact that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) conveniently had a documentary crew run by her daughter Alexandra to film her as the Capitol was breached on Jan. 6, 2021 may have been accepted at face value by some, but for those expressing even the tamest of scrutinies, the Democratic lawmaker elected to use her grandson as her scapegoat. Perhaps the left has grown so accustomed to corporate media’s cheerleading of whatever they do instead of fact-based reporting that they’ve stopped coming up with credible excuses for their actions. Such would seem to be the case after Fox News’ senior...

In then-President Donald Trump's second impeachment, 10 Republicans voted for impeachment articles, and it didn't turn out well for their political future. By the time the trial took place in the Senate, Trump had already left office and Biden had been inaugurated. Of those 10, only two made it out of their primary, including Rep. David Valadao (R-CA). As a Wednesday morning report from Mychael Schnell and Caroline Vakil warned for The Hill, he's "facing a tough battle." California has a jungle primary and Rep. Valadao didn't even come in first in the June primary, though his second place finish...

Russia is considering withdrawing troops and equipment over the Dnipro river despite all permanent bridges being damaged, said the UK Ministry of Defence.Following a rare admission by Russia's new General of the difficulties his forces are facing in Kherson, the MoD said Moscow appears to be considering a "major withdrawal" west of the Dnipro river.[ Excerpted per posting Rules ]

Federal officials working on the government response to Covid-19 made well-timed financial trades when the pandemic began—both as the markets plunged and as they rallied—a Wall Street Journal investigation found. In January 2020, the U.S. public was largely unaware of the threat posed by the virus spreading in China, but health officials were on high alert and girding for a crisis. A deputy to top health official Anthony Fauci reported 10 sales of mutual funds and stocks totaling between $157,000 and $480,000 that month. Collectively, officials at another health agency, Health and Human Services, reported 60% more sales of stocks...

Saudi Arabia is considering introducing alcohol sales in duty free areas of selected airports, Arabian Business understands. airports, Arabian Business understands. The plans would see limited sales of alcohol, initially for international transit passengers, in specific airports. It is believed that strict requirements would have to be met, and the sales only available to passengers travelling on designated routes. No final decision has been made, but a consultation process is underway with key stakeholders, sources said. The sale or consumption of alcohol is currently banned in the kingdom. Last month the Wall Street Journal reported that Saudi Arabia is planning...