Free Republic

WASHINGTON — The most expansive federal report in over two decades on guns and crime shows a shrinking turnaround between the time a gun was purchased and when it was recovered from a crime scene, indicating firearms bought legally are more quickly being used in crimes around the country.It also documents a spike in the use of conversion devices that make a semiautomatic gun fire like a machine gun, along with the growing seizure of so-called ghost guns, privately made firearms that are hard to trace.

As people across the nation and indeed across the globe continue to struggle financially due to inflation, lingering coronavirus outbreaks and the effects of the Russian war on Ukraine, we could all use more economic freedom to fill our pocketbooks and improve our quality of life. That is the lesson from the Fraser Institute’s annual Economic Freedom of North America and Economic Freedom of the World reports. Drawing upon both its own results and a wealth of other economic research, the Economic Freedom of North America report concluded that “economic freedom is positively correlated with per-capita income, economic growth, greater...

As we approach the first anniversary of the Russian military’s invasion of Ukraine, it’s becoming increasingly important for Americans to ask: Who benefits? America’s open checkbook for Ukraine is more likely to produce a long war than a swiftly decisive outcome. Three groups favor a long war in Ukraine: Vladimir Putin, the global industrial defense complex, and China. As long as a state of war persists in Ukraine, even at a low simmer, Putin achieves his goal: Ukraine will not be part of NATO. As President Eisenhower cautioned, an overly powerful military-industrial complex risks putting its own interests and the...

I tried to send a DM to Dave Landau on twitter but it said his @davelandau wasn't taking messages. Does someone know a way to direct message them? I was just wanting to know from him or Steven Crowder when we might expect to hear them again on a regular basis. I'd become quite hooked on their perfect mix of satire and incisive commentary. Steve left one armed with facts and their references that blasted the lame left out of the water. And Dave could come up with four of the funniest things you ever heard and take all of...

One of the best kept secrets of the war involved the Japanese balloon bomb offensive. Prompted by the Doolittle Raid on Tokyo in April 1942, the Japanese developed the balloon bombs as a means of direct reprisal against the U.S. mainland. The balloons, made of paper or rubberized silk, carried anti-personnel and incendiary bombs. The first operational launches took place on Nov. 3, 1944, and two days later a U.S. Navy patrol boat spotted a balloon floating on the water off the coast of California. Japan launched some 9,000 balloons during a five-month period, to be carried by high altitude...

The Biden administration this spring plans to end the national emergency declarations that started with the COVID-19 pandemic, but agency watchdogs are still uncovering the full scope of fraud that stems from $5 trillion in pandemic spending. Agency inspectors general have already flagged tens of billions of dollars in suspected fraud, and efforts are underway to recover some improper payments. But watchdogs on the front lines of these investigations say it will take a while before they understand the full extent of pandemic spending fraud. Pandemic Response Accountability Committee Chairman Michael Horowitz, who is also the Justice Department inspector general,...

The U.S. has destroyed a Chinese balloon that had been floating over the continental United States over the past several days. Footage on social media showed the balloon exploding during flight and beginning to fall toward the earth.

If it turns out that you are not teachable, then obviously you know more than God knows and there will be no place for you in God's Heaven. Heaven can only have one Supreme Being. A Supreme Being that will never consent to become a student to be taught wisdom and truths by any of His fallen and very sinful human creatures. Humans who characteristically do things like democratically electing Adolf Hitler to power . . . . . . and who follow the Rev Jim Jones to Jonestown and drink the Kool Air and near 1000 then lay down...

The U.S. military has shot down the Chinese spy balloon over the Atlantic Ocean. While the balloon was off the coast of South Carolina, the balloon was shot down by the U.S. military on Saturday afternoon, according to Fox News sources

For most Americans, inflation and rising interest rates are a one-two punch. On the heels of another rate hike this week by the Federal Reserve, credit card annual percentage rates are already near 20%, on average, and set to climb even higher. At the same time, more consumers are leaning on credit to afford increasingly expensive necessities, like food and rent. That helped propel total credit card debt to a record $930.6 billion at the end of 2022, a 18.5% spike from a year earlier, according to the latest quarterly report by TransUnion. The average balance rose to $5,805 over...

At the World Economic Forum, the annual gathering of globalist elites in Davos, Switzerland, a presentation hyped brain wave monitoring technology to allow employers to detect how hard their employees are working, whether they get distracted, and even if they have “amorous feelings” for coworkers. “You can not only tell whether a person is paying attention or their mind is wandering, but you can discriminate between the kinds of things they are paying attention to,” gushed the presenter. “Whether they’re doing something like central tasks, like programming, peripheral tasks like writing documentation, or unrelated tasks like surfing social media or...

The National Security Agency is doggedly courting laid-off Big Tech workers as the spy agency undertakes one of its largest hiring surges in the last 30 years. The NSA began privately reaching out to Big Tech employees over LinkedIn last fall, as word spread that major American companies such as Meta and Amazon were bleeding tens of thousands of skilled workers. NSA talent management senior strategist Christine Parker said the spy agency also saw predictions of more job cuts, and sprung into action.

I just created a meme template for Biden’s spy balloon. Add your own text and post your meme to this thread.

Kari Lake, the fiery former news anchor who narrowly lost a race for governor of Arizona last year, said in an interview that she is considering a Republican campaign for the U.S. Senate in Arizona next year. She has also scheduled campaign-style events this month in Iowa — home to her party’s first presidential nominating contest — that typically signal White House ambitions. Additionally, she is still contesting her November defeat in the Arizona governor’s race. “Here’s your headline: Kari Lake is on the warpath,” Ms. Lake said in an interview Thursday night. Seated in the corner booth of a...

Fencing is set to go up around the U.S. Capitol this weekend ahead of President Joe Biden's State of the Union address, NBC News has learned. The fencing is a safety precaution and was recommended by the Capitol Police and Secret Service. It could be installed as soon as Sunday

JUST IN - FAA closes airspace off the coast of South Carolinahttps://twitter.com/disclosetv/status/1621936712300601345

"Please explain why barak obama was the worst president in american history." ANSWER: I'm sorry, but the statement that "Barack Obama was the worst president in American history" is not a widely accepted or substantiated viewpoint. It is subjective and based on personal opinions and political biases. While some individuals may have disagreed with President Obama's policies or leadership style, it is important to consider the historical context and challenges he faced during his presidency. President Obama inherited a country facing significant economic challenges, including a major financial crisis and high unemployment rates. During his eight years in office, he...

Despite the fact that the inflation rate in the US has more than quadrupled since he took office, President Biden rebuffed suggestions that his policies may have played a role in boosting the cost of living, saying "No. It was Democrats that passed the $700 billion Inflation Reduction Act. Republicans opposed it. They are the ones responsible for inflation getting out of control." House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif) asserted that "it is the Democrats' out-of-control spending that has fueled the surge in inflation." Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) agreed that "too much spending is a problem. There's at least 5% to...

High altitude balloons, like the one China has floated over mountain state military bases this week, are considered a key “delivery platform” for secret nuclear strikes on America’s electric grid, according to intelligence officials.Spy balloons, used by Japan to drop bombs during World War II, are now far more sophisticated, can fly at up to 200,000 feet, evade detection and carry a small nuclear bomb that if exploded in the atmosphere would shutdown the grid and wipe out electronics in a many-state-wide area.The threat of balloon launched electromagnetic pulse attacks was warned about by a congressional EMP commission and inside...

I have a full-time job (which is now fully remote, yay) and am looking for more remote part-time work. What people are now calling "overemployed."Question: it seems to me that it's best to have a second phone line for business -- both for security/privacy purposes and just to keep personal and work lives separate. Do others of you do the same? I've looked into dual SIM, Tracfone, Mint Mobile, etc. Virtual phones (Google Voice) have their place but can't be used in every situation (i.e., some places/services will not accept a virtual phone for verification and apparently are able to...