Free Republic

Let’s face it: Water is boring. Sure, it’s essential to your health and few beverages can be more crisp or refreshing, but most bottled water brands are fairly bland and uninspiring — featuring the same interchangeable references to mountains, springs or both. Over a decade ago, Mike Cessario started wondering if he could change that. What if he could actually make water cool? That’s the relatively simple origin story behind Liquid Death, the ironically named canned water brand that Cessario trademarked in 2017 and officially launched two years later. It might sound like a joke at first — and it...

Another data glitch in Virginia’s election system caused 10,558 felons to remain on the voter rolls after they committed new crimes that should’ve made them ineligible to vote, state officials announced Friday.

Ex-FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried says he will testify remotely before House committeeFormer crypto exchange leader says he has no plans to appear before the Senate this week "Sam Bankman-Fried says he will appear before a House Financial Services Committee hearing set for Tuesday, but the former FTX CEO will not be attending in person.""I'm quite overbooked and was not planning to be testifying until, like, very recently," Bankman-Fried explained, adding that he did not want to leave the Bahamas "from a security standpoint" because currently "the paparazzi effect is quite large" when he tries to venture out. When asked whether...

As conservatives increasingly turn to secular culture war outrages to fire up their base, it would seem that God is no longer their co-pilot.If a single image could encapsulate the Trump era, perhaps it is the infamous photo of the former president standing alone on a sidewalk in front of a boarded-up church with a stern expression and a Bible in his hand. The shot was captured in June 2020, shortly after police had used tear gas to clear Black Lives Matter protestors from Lafayette Park outside the White House, where they had gathered to voice their anger about the...

Explanation: Is there a monster in IC 1396? Known to some as the Elephant's Trunk Nebula, parts of gas and dust clouds of this star formation region may appear to take on foreboding forms, some nearly human. The only real monster here, however, is a bright young star too far from Earth to hurt us. Energetic light from this star is eating away the dust of the dark cometary globule near the top of the featured image. Jets and winds of particles emitted from this star are also pushing away ambient gas and dust. Nearly 3,000 light-years distant, the relatively...

TMZ (live TV, today 12.12.22, PM) showed results of a poll, if Brittney Griner swap with Viktor Bout was worth it. 71% responded, it was NOT.

Chilly weather and common respiratory infections often go hand in hand. Now, a new study details a previously unknown way that the immune system attacks viral intruders inside the nose—and finds it works better when it's warm. The starting point was previous research which found that nasal cells released "extracellular vesicles" (EVs)—a spray of tiny sacs that swarmed and destroyed bacteria upon inhalation. "The best analogy that we have is a hornet's nest," said Amiji. Like hornets defending a nest from attack, EVs swarm, bind to, and kill invaders. For the new research, the team set out to answer two...

Russian forces have been attempting to seize Bakhmut in Ukraine’s Donetsk region for at least seven months. But in recent weeks, the battle in and around the city has become one of the fiercest of the nine-month war in Ukraine. Bakhmut, which sits above a vast salt mine and is famed for its Soviet-era winery, has been badly damaged — and in parts totally destroyed — by constant shelling. Russia’s determination to take Bakhmut has puzzled many observers, who question Moscow’s huge commitment of resources to the fight despite the city’s relative lack of strategic significance. The Moscow Times considers...

by Jason DeWitt | RNNThe blonde varsity cheerleader repeatedly told this bully she did not want to fight, but the big bully didn’t listen. That was a big mistake, and every painful moment was captured on video.Savannah Sprague from California warned a bully that she did not want to fight. Varsity cheerleader Savannah Sprague repeatedly told a bully that she did not want to fight. Apparently, she was left with no choice but to defend herself, fight back, and come out on top. “No, nobody wants to fight. You guys want to fight us. Nobody speaks on you guys, nobody...

KEY POINTS * Journalists are exposing Twitter's politically biased and capricious content-moderation protocols—but self-harm content continues unabated. * Twitter stifled criticism of the platform for not enforcing its prohibition on self-harm—while ignoring self-harm posts. * Nearly 25% of girls 12 to 16 are intentionally injuring themselves, mostly with knives and razor blades. They need help, not a platform. While Twitter personnel are censoring ideas and deplatforming people it doesn’t like—and journalists are exposing Twitter's politically biased and capricious content-moderation policies—the platform is paying virtually no attention to the self-harm its younger users were posting and encouraging. Twitter was busy interfering...

YES, I know, I know. It’s happening at the wrong time of year in the wrong kind of place and we’ll doubtless end up with the wrong result. But once it gets going, all that will be forgotten.

It was close, but the mandatory recount in Colorado’s Third Congressional District election between incumbent Lauren Boebert and Democratic challenger Adam Frisch has reinforced what was already known. Boebert won, but not by a lot — less than 600 votes. In response, Boebert posted a lo-fi thank you video to her Twitter account. The video shows an unusually subdued Boebert exhibiting a quieter, let’s-get-to-work tone.Hey, everyone! I am happy to report all the counties in Colorado’s Third District have completed their recount. We’ve won this election as expected, and I’m headed back to represent you in Washington D.C.I can’t thank...

NATO's head said earlier this month that Russia may want the fighting to slow, seeking a "freeze" in the fighting so it can better prepare for a bigger assault next year. "What we see now is Russia is actually trying to have some kind of 'freeze' of this war at least for a short period of time so they can regroup, repair, recover," NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said. "And then try to launch a bigger offensive next spring." The UK Ministry of Defence predicted on Monday that Russian forces will not see any big gains over the winter, even...

The U.S. Senate is set to vote on the Yemen War Powers Resolution Tuesday, December 13! Call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and demand your Senators support it today!Right now there is a huge opportunity for the Congress to force President Joe Biden to force the Saudis and United Arab Emirates to end their war against Yemen. This intervention has been totally unauthorized by Congress and does not serve American interests. The only enemies of the American people in Yemen are the members of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). They are real bin Ladenite, anti-American terrorists. They...

The “men are trash” mentality is promoted on social media and in feminist circles and is often seen as a harmless joke, but I can testify that it’s not as harmless as it seems.“Men are trash” is often marketed to survivors of abuse to cope with their trauma in a humorous way, but it only keeps women from facing their trauma, making it impossible to overcome it. In turning women into victims instead of survivors, the “men are trash” mentality turns them into bitter and man-hating narcissists. What Is the “Men Are Trash” Mentality? We’ve probably all heard the phrase...

The Orion spacecraft has been secured in the well deck of the USS Portland. The ship will soon begin its trip back to U.S. Naval Base San Diego, where engineers will remove Orion from the ship in preparation for transport back to Kennedy Space Center in Florida for post-flight analysis. Upon Orion’s successful splashdown in the Pacific Ocean west of Baja California at 9:40 PST/12:40 EST Dec. 11, flight controllers in mission control at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston spent about two hours performing tests in open water to gather additional data about the spacecraft, including on its thermal...

OTTAWA — As Canada's MAID (Medical Assistance In Dying) system continues to alleviate the pain of patients and the financial strain on the nation's healthcare system, a recent innovation is expected to further improve results: Parliament just announced a punch card that allows patients to receive a free suicide after 10 doctor visits. "From a small-scale maple syrup overdose to a full-blown moose attack, you receive a punch on your card every time you are admitted for an injury or sickness." The Canadian Healthcare website published a blog this week outlining the new program. "Filling out your punch card is...

The FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 has achieved the unity of the Arab people, and proved that it is their meeting place," Qatar Press Center president Saad Mohamed al-Rumaihi said. He was speaking on the sidelines of a panel discussion on the 'Western campaigns against Qatar and the Arab countries, organised by Qatar Press Center (QPC) in co-operation with Qatar News Agency (QNA) on Sunday. "Today, the entire Arab world, east and west, north and south, stands behind the Moroccan national team. They all support the Lions of the Atlantic and hope that the Moroccan national team will reach the...

For three years running, Universal animated movies for families have trounced Disney movies targeting the same demographic. In fact, Universal has grossed double what Disney has. Here's a breakdown of the numbers from the Wrap: From Pixar's "Onward," which opened to a disappointing $39 million in March 2020 to Walt Disney Animation's "Strange World," which barely cracked $25.5 million in its first 12 days of domestic release, Disney's theatrically released animated films have grossed just over $1 billion worldwide. Meanwhile, in that same period, with the same burdens of COVID and on much lower production budgets, Universal's combined theatrical output...

@scotthortonshow YEMEN YEMEN YEMEN. I know I'm trying yall's patience with this, BUT The Senate is supposed to vote on the War Powers Act resolution SJ Res 56 TOMORROW TUESDAY. Sanders says he has the votes. We have to make sure. Please please please call your senators today. (202) 224-3121 We have a chance -- you and me, regular people -- have a chance to end a war. A terrible, disgusting, no-good, very-bad war. Genocide and Treason. And that's not hyperbole.* Please do what you can to drum up support today and tomorrow. Get you partner and co-workers to call....