Free Republic

"The Biden administration has formally determined that Russia has committed crimes against humanity during the war in Ukraine, Vice President Kamala Harris said in her speech at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday. "Driving the news: The Biden administration has already accused Russia of committing war crimes in Ukraine. But it's the first time the U.S. has formally concluded that Russian forces are committing crimes against humanity. Secretary of State Tony Blinken said the U.S. reserves such "determinations for the most egregious crimes." "The U.S. determination comes just days before the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine..."

Artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT recently changed its response to a question asking it to formulate an argument in favor of fossil fuels as a way of increasing human happiness. In December, when prompted by Fox News Digital, the chatbot provided an extensive response explaining ten benefits of fossil fuels for human civilization. Oil, natural gas and coal, it argued, have powered industrialization, transportation and the expansion of modern infrastructure. It also argued fossil fuels are a reliable and stable source of energy that can be easily stored and transported and could lead to further economic growth and development, which could...

Kristy Jiayi Xu got an unwelcome surprise this New Year’s Eve: The roof of her garage was leaking during a severe rainstorm in San Francisco. Delays in getting a contractor to fix the roof have brought unexpected costs to keep things dry, including a dehumidifier. “My husband and I are both from the East Coast, so we always think the rain here lasts for a day,” said Xu, certified financial planner and chief executive of the firm Global Wealth Harbor. In September 2022, she and her husband faced a heat wave — another weather incident they weren’t expecting. “We have...

Scarcely a day goes by that we don't hear in the news of another gun rampage. The latest, on the campus of Michigan State University in East Lansing, caused me to have more than the usual pause about such incidents. It was personal for me. I did my graduate work at MSU, lived on campus and worked in those buildings. To read of shootings, injuries and death to students in those same buildings that I had been in many times, gave me more than the usual chllls I experience when reading of such incidents. The loss of life and the...

For 14 years, yoga instructor Anamargret Sanchez has taught a free community class at Legion Park in Miami's Upper Eastside neighborhood. It started with 20 people and grew over time, to the point where attendance can easily top 100 and regulars have braved hurricane watches and COVID-19 lockdowns to meet under the oak trees on Saturday mornings. Sanchez livestreams the sessions so those who can't make it in person can participate on Instagram. The first Saturday of 2023 drew an especially large crowd — the weather was lovely, and only seven days into the new year, resolutions still glinted with...

Giorgia Meloni became Italy’s first female prime minister over 100 days ago and is now one of the most popular world leaders, surpassing President Joe Biden’s popularity among American citizens, according to a global Morning Consult survey. Meloni has an approval rating of 53%, which makes her the sixth most popular leader, while Biden sits at 41% approval, according to the survey. “The first thing I will say is that the expectations were very low,” said King’s College political science professor Cecilia Emma Sottilotta, who spoke with the DCNF. “There was much alarm, right? Before the election, and right after...

The Bible In Paintings ~ Encouragement for Appreciating and Applying God's Word ~ •Drawings•Engravings•Facades•Frescoes•Illuminations•Miniatures•Mosaics•Photographs•Reliefs•Statues•Tapestries•Windows• JESUS’ TRIAL BEFORE ANNAS ֎ Featuring 20 Paintings, 3 Reliefs and 2 Windows ֎ J O H N «Chapter 18» Then the detachment of soldiers with its commander and the Jewish officials arrested Jesus. They bound him and brought him first to Annas, who was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest that year. Caiaphas was the one who had advised the Jews that it would be good if one man died for the people. The high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and his...

This Sunday’s Readings include some of the best known—and hardest to practice—passages from the Gospel, including Jesus famous command to “turn the other cheek.” Biblical scholarship can only go so far in elucidating some of Jesus’ challenging commands; beyond that, we need the saints. 1. Our Readings start off showing the continuity between Jesus’ teachings and the Old Testament, quoting a section from Leviticus (19:1-2, 17-18):The LORD said to Moses, “Speak to the whole Israelite community and tell them: Be holy, for I, the LORD, your God, am holy.“You shall not bear hatred for your brother or sister in your...

Pray For The Peace of JerusalemMark 4Jesus Calms the Storm35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”39 He got up, rebuked the...

Afederal jury found a Hardin, Montana man guilty of selling eagle feathers in South Dakota Tuesday. The jury found that Harvey Hugs, 59, is guilty of three counts of violating the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act in 2020 after a two-day trial at the federal courthouse in Rapid City. The Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act was enacted in 1940. The act prohibits the possession, use and sale of eagles or their feathers and parts. Exceptions to the act include the use of eagles by Native Americans. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service operates the National Eagle Repository as...

Major Russian advance in sensor technology leaves hohos years behind in artillery duels.

(Daily readings from the USCCB)Jesus took Peter, James, and John and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no fuller on earth could bleach them. Mark 9:2–3The message of the Transfiguration must become, for each of us, a message that inspires the deepest hope throughout life. Through this event, the glory of God was revealed, the teachings of Moses and the prophets were confirmed, and the Father sent forth the only message we need to understand: “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.”...

A recently unsealed court document reveals for the first time that two top officials at a red-light camera company were caught on undercover FBI recordings talking about giving a suburban mayor campaign contributions and other perks at the same time their firm was pressuring the mayor to increase ticket revenue. The 2018 FBI search warrant, which sought court approval to search an email account of then-Crestwood Mayor Louis Presta, was part of the broad, yearslong investigation into corruption surrounding red-light cameras operated by SafeSpeed LLC, a probe that has netted charges against more than half a dozen public officials, businessmen...

On Thursday, a major whistleblower at the FBI announced his resignation from the bureau, with a final warning to Congress that the FBI has created a dangerous “quota” system for cases that incentivizes agents to artificially boost or decrease the number of cases they take on, purely for statistical purposes. As reported by Just The News, special agent and former SWAT team member Steve Friend resigned from the FBI after giving an extensive interview before the House Judiciary Committee earlier this week. Friend had previously been a key whistleblower on the civil rights abuses that many of the peaceful protesters...

A Farsi-language satellite news channel based in London long critical of Iran's theocratic government said Saturday it had moved its broadcasts to Washington “to protect the safety of its journalists” after reportedly being targeted by Tehran. The alleged targeting of Iran International comes as Tehran also has long harassed members of the BBC's Persian service for their work reporting on the country. -excerpt- Reached for comment, Iran International referred to a statement saying that “threats had grown to the point that it was felt it was no longer possible to protect the channel’s staff” or the public around its studio...

EAST PALESTINE, Ohio (WKBN) – East Palestine is known as “The Place to Be.” It’s way ahead of the curve on a program to provide better treatment for anyone in the event of an emergency. We learned how it works and how it could help everyone in East Palestine. “MyID” provides quick medical information for emergency responders. Darlene Chapman is the outreach coordinator for this project and she’s an EMT. If they’re in a situation where they can’t tell us or if they don’t have any family around, this is something that would make my life easier,” she said. MyID...

A Virginia school board is considering revising its policies on after-school clubs following conflict over a new “After School Satan Club.” The Chesapeake Public School Board previously allowed the Satan club to meet on school property, stipulating it pay over $600 for security for each meeting, something the district’s policy allows, local media reports. The likelihood of demonstrations is part of what makes securing the event so expensive, as Satan clubs are frequently protested. Last January, an Ohio superintendent was even reprimanded by the attorney general for discouraging parents from protesting the Satan club. However, Chesapeake’s school board put a...

President Biden admitted Thursday he had no idea what NORAD had detected in North American airspace last weekend when he ordered the military to use an estimated $1.6 million worth of Sidewinder missiles to down three UFOs now believed to have been harmless. “We don’t yet know exactly what these three objects were,” the president added. “But nothing, nothing right now suggests they were related to China’s spy balloon program, or that they were surveillance vehicles from any other country.” However, the White House had been warned two years earlier in a Congressionally-mandated report by the Office of the Director...

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Sen. Rand Paul is leading the charge to hold taxpayer-funded health institutions accountable for denying unvaccinated people critical care, including organ transplants. Legislation introduced Tuesday from Paul, R-Ky., would bar federal funds from going to health care facilities that have denied patients care based on their COVID-19 vaccination status. It would also protect the rights of patients to make decisions about their health without being penalized. "No American should be denied access to critical care based on a personal medical decision, yet tragically, many hospitals and other medical facilities continue to discriminate against those unvaccinated for COVID-19," Paul told Fox...