Free Republic

"After the first dose, we were surprised to find the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine elicits an unexpected memorylike response in the immune system, recognizing the vaccine as if it's something it's seen before," says Professor Lynn, from the College of Medicine and Public Health at Flinders University. "This response is targeted against the adenovirus vector in the vaccine, not the Spike protein and the intensity of this response correlates with the expression of proteins that act as a pre-cursor to thrombosis, or blood clotting.

Meehan claims a key finding of his investigation is that the “country club” GOP leadership checks the power of the party’s noisy MAGA wing, in part, by keeping an estimated 100 to 200 committee seats empty, of some 600 seats available. Without those seats filled, the required two-thirds quorum can’t be attained, and the by-laws the party has used since 1972 stay in place. The empty positions, Meehan said, are disproportionately located in Falls and Bristol townships. That’s crucial, he said, since Lower Bucks, while heavily Democratic, is Ground Zero for the middle- and working-class men who voted for former...

A Hunter Biden business associate received a records request with a Wednesday deadline to give the House Oversight Committee business records. The records sought by Oversight members pertain to business dealings that allegedly generated millions of dollars for the Biden family. The Daily Caller further reported: The House Oversight Committee will “soon” receive documents from top Hunter Biden associate Eric Schwerin, a committee spokesperson told the Daily Caller News Foundation. Schwerin is a close friend and business associate of Hunter Biden, the New York Post reported. The committee, led by Chairman James Comer, requested Schwerin provide any records, documents or...

President Biden and members of his administration are knowingly making false statements about the rampant illegal immigration taking place along the U.S.-Mexico border as the problem continues to get much worse. Take, for example, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas who told a Congressional panel last year that he still believes that America’s southern border is secure, saying in response to a question about his confidence, “Yes, and we are working day in and day out to enhance security,” Fox News reported. Then there is Vice President Kamala Harris, the White House’s anointed ‘Border Czar,’ who told NBC News’...

A new report reveals that Bill Gates purchased 3.76% stake in Dutch drinks giant Heineken Holding NV last week in spite of the billionaire Microsoft founder’s previous admission that he was “not a big beer drinker.” A filing by the Netherlands’ Financial Markets Authority said the shares were purchased on Feb. 17. Heineken Holding owns a controlling stake in brewer Heineken NV. Gates purchased the shares from Mexico’s FEMSA, which is selling out of the brewing company. A separate filing from the same day showed that FEMSA sold all 18 million shares it held in Heineken Holding. Shortly after, Gates...

"To the glory and praise of God" (Phil. 1:11). To glorify God is to reflect His character in your words and deeds. Paul's prayer in Philippians 1:9-11 closes with a reminder that love, excellence, integrity, and righteousness bring glory and praise to God. God's glory is a recurring theme in Paul's writings, and rightly so because that is the Christian's highest priority. But what is God's glory and what does it mean to bring Him glory? After all, He is infinitely glorious in nature, so we can't add anything to Him. His glory is never diminished, so it doesn't have...

“Jesus said to him, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’” (John 5:8 NKJV). The crippled man at the Pool of Bethesda had likely heard some of the stories about a man named Jesus healing people throughout the region. What he didn’t know was that Jesus knew about him too. He came to this poor man, lying by the pool in his misery and sorrow, and was moved with compassion. All Jesus asked was that the man believe his words and act on them. “Rise! Take up your bed. Walk away from this scene.” Now this man, helpless and in...

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Federal wildlife officials on Wednesday announced a proposal to classify one of two dwindling California spotted owl populations as endangered after a lawsuit by conservation groups required the government to reassess a Trump administration decision not to protect the brown and white birds. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed that California spotted owls that have their habitats in coastal and Southern California be protected under the Endangered Species Act. The other California spotted owl population, which lives in Sierra Nevada forests in California and western Nevada, would be classified as threatened, the agency said. The...

(Last Updated On: February 21, 2023) NATIONAL CHILI DAY National Chili Day on the fourth Thursday in February honors one of America’s favorite winter dishes–chili. It’s also known as chili con carne (chili with meat). #NationalChiliDay In Spanish, chili refers to “chili pepper” and carne means “meat”. Chili is most commonly made up of tomatoes, beans, chili peppers, meat, garlic, onions, and cumin. However, cooks offer up so many variations to the basic chili recipe. And, with so many varieties, chili cook-off competitions love to feature chili as a favored entry. American frontier settlers used a “chili” recipe of dried...

Sam Brinton was one of the Biden regime’s showcase appointments. When he became deputy assistant secretary of the Office of Spent Fuel and Waste Disposition in the U.S. Department of Energy, Brinton himself told us about how history was being made, as he was “one of if not the very first openly genderfluid individuals in federal government leadership.” He loved to prance around in women’s clothes, and even noted proudly that he “has worn stilettos to Congress to advise legislators about nuclear policy” and even to the White House to talk to Barack and Michelle about the gay life. But...

KEY TAKEAWAYS * The Biden administration seems bent on forcing defense contractors to comply with new climate pledges instead of protecting Americans from our enemies. * The FAR Rule doesn’t just put America’s defense in second place, it actively takes money away from defense priorities. * With one rulemaking, the rule could establish new priorities for about half the department’s budget by conscripting major contractors into a war on fossil fuels. ... At issue is a new rulemaking called the “FAR Rule” that uses a change to the Federal Acquisition Regulations to bulldoze federal contractors—including defense contractors—into compliance with the...

Technically speaking, guns don’t kill people — bullets do. Yet we rarely hear about “bullet control.” Ammunition regulation hasn’t been a top priority for gun reformers and lawmakers, and public opinion polls and surveys rarely include questions about it. But a reader recently asked The Trace: “Why aren’t bullets regulated like pharmaceuticals, with a database and license to purchase that will tip off law enforcement when large quantities are purchased?” First, a quick fact-check: While the reader’s question presupposes that police are notified if a patient is prescribed a lot of pills in a short time period, that’s not actually...

Pray For The Peace of JerusalemMark 6John the Baptist Beheaded14 King Herod heard about this, for Jesus’ name had become well known. Some were saying,[b] “John the Baptist has been raised from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him.”15 Others said, “He is Elijah.”And still others claimed, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of long ago.”16 But when Herod heard this, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised from the dead!”17 For Herod himself had given orders to have John arrested, and he had him bound and put in...

In 2023, many of the accidents that have been happening deserve far more scrutiny than they’re receiving. From food processing plants going up in flames to the recent rash of train derailments that seem to have surged beyond the realm of coincidence, it behooves us to examine the circumstances surrounding these often tragic events. Case-in-Point: The plane crash that killed five people in Arkansas. The plane took off from the Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport on Wednesday. Even the namesake of the airport draws a conspiratorial doubletake, but it’s just a name so it’s not a huge deal. The...

The longer this preview war goes on, the sooner will follow the nightmarish main attraction. The Ukraine mess is daily looking more like the Spanish Civil War of 1936 to 1939, a meat grinder that took 500,000 lives. That three-year conflict became a savage proxy war and prelude for the belligerents of World War II. The Ukraine battlefield is proving a similar laboratory of death. New lethal weaponry and tactics are introduced, modified—and always improved—from drones to guided missiles to internet-fed artillery. Likewise, a similar pre-global war lineup of the eventual adversaries is emerging in preview of a much larger,...

(Daily readings from the USCCB)Jesus said to his disciples: “The Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised.” Luke 9:22Jesus knew He would suffer greatly, be rejected and killed. How would you deal with that knowledge if you somehow knew this about your own future? Most people would be filled with fear and become obsessed with trying to avoid it. But not our Lord. This passage above shows just how intent He was on embracing His Cross with unwavering confidence...

Once, Boris Bondarev was a Russian diplomat - now he is making startling claims about his former president. ussian President Vladimir Putin has already strategically lost the war, according to former Russian diplomat to the UN institutions in Geneva Boris Bondarev. Bondarev was a diplomat in the Russian mission to the UN institutions in Geneva - the only one to resign in public protest because of Putin's war in Ukraine. He said at the time of his resignation in an open letter that the war "is not only a crime against the Ukrainian people, but also a serious crime against...

On a cold, sunny morning at an ice rink along the Delaware River in Philadelphia, a live band plays a ballad. A Zamboni clears the rink, and Sam Rise, a performance artist in a big blue penguin mascot costume, skates out on the ice — hyping the audience up for a show unlike anything they’ve seen before. “Are you ready, Philadelphia? Are you excited about drag? Are you excited about climate change?” they shout. “I mean, fighting climate change with drag!” The show is a camp comedy about climate change by the Bearded Ladies Cabaret, a queer arts organization in...

Should America disappear from the map, it will be because decades of government corruption and abuse were never addressed until it was simply too late. Over at The Conservative Treehouse, Sundance has again managed to generate a treasure trove of anecdotal history, evidence, and analysis from those who visit his site. Last month, he asked readers: if "[y]ou did not take the COVID-19 shot, why not?" The thousands of personal responses were illuminating and created a kind of timeline showing how irreconcilable conflicts pitting available scientific knowledge and common sense against the government's own actions, orders, statements, and censorship heightened...

Got my power bill this morning from Alabama Power. They charged 15.7239¢/kWh, including riders and 4% state tax, but after subtracted flat monthly fees. That's up 20.8% percent from the February 2022 bill. If you like cheap power for charging your EV, you can keep it. Under my plan electricity prices will necessarily skyrocket. End of quote. End of line. How I calculated it: From the bill: kWh pulled from grid: 594 total bill: $109.00 From researching how fees are done: base charge: $14.50 natural disaster rider: $0.50 (added to base) state tax: 4% total base: $15.60 ($14.50 + 0.50...