Free Republic

Columbia University has become the first Ivy League school to officially eliminate SAT and ACT scores as a required part of its undergraduate admissions process. This effectively changes their focus from academic excellence to diversity. The university, whose typical accepted student has achieved a near-perfect score on their standardized testing and has an average high school GPA of 4.12, announced this change last week. Columbia’s website stated that this decision was “rooted in the belief that students are dynamic, multi-faceted individuals who cannot be defined by any single factor.” “Our review is purposeful and nuanced – respecting varied backgrounds, voices...

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant Thursday afternoon. During their meeting Secretary Austin delivered a message from the Biden Administration on controversy surrounding the issue of judicial reform in Israel... He also noted that US President Joe Biden expects compromises between the coalition on the judicial reform issue....

Politico's updated style guide includes a list of banned words and phrases that are off-limits for their writers to use.

The coming artificial intelligence economic revolution will be a major shock to the world. There is a serious possibility that the next decade will bring about a series of social and economic changes akin to the Industrial Revolution and the advent of the internet combined. Many writers, human resource officers, lawyers, writers, artists, and even coders increasingly will be replaced by AI as the “laptop class” of workers is decimated. At the same time, blue-collar workers who work with their hands will enjoy job security; their services cannot be replaced by technology. Unfortunately for waves of young people, the media’s...

San Francisco policymakers said they will not be bullied by federal homeland security officials into weakening their sanctuary city policies. After two suspects accused of murder and rape in San Francisco were found abroad, homeland security officials told the District Attorney's Office in February that they would only extradite the suspects if the city made an exception to its sanctuary city policies. The suspects, located in Mexico, are wanted in two separate cases -- one for a domestic violence murder, and the other for the sexual abuse of minors. City officials said they do not have to comply with this...

A row has erupted online after First Lady Jill Biden gave a transgender woman from Argentina a 'Women of Courage' award during an International Women's Day ceremony. Biden yesterday presented awards to 11 recipients at the White House, one of whom was Alba Rueda, an Argentinian politician who became the first openly transgender lawmaker in Argentina to hold a senior political position in the country. Rueda, the Special Representative on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity of Argentina's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has spent her political career fighting to end the discrimination of LGBTQ people in Argentina. But in response to...

Double murderer Alex Murdaugh is reportedly being kept alone in maximum security because prison officials fear the notorious, once-powerful legal scion will be a target for other inmates. Online records show that the newly shaven-headed convict is being held in Kirkland Correctional Institution in Columbia, South Carolina, where he smirked in his latest mugshot. Sources told TMZ that the lying, pill-popping murderer is being kept away from other inmates over fears they “might wanna take him down a few notches due to his notoriety.” He is also being kept in the most secure area, the sources said of the prison...

A US military veteran who allegedly told an undercover FBI agent he wanted to “wipe out” the American Jewish community was found guilty on Tuesday of obstruction for participating in the storming of the US Capitol on January 6, 2021. The trial of Hatchet Speed, a former US Naval reservist who was assigned to a spy satellite agency, was adjudicated as a non-jury trial by US District Judge Trevor McFadden, who will sentence Speed on May 8, the Associated Press reported. Speed was found guilty of all five charges in the case. The felony obstruction charge stemmed from his role...

DETROIT (AP) — General Motors is offering buyouts to most of its U.S. salaried workforce and some global executives in an effort to trim costs as it makes the transition to electric vehicles. The Detroit automaker wouldn’t say how many workers it is targeting, but confirmed that the move is aimed at accelerating attrition to meet a previously announced goal of $2 billion in cost cuts by the end of next year. GM has about 58,000 salaried workers in the U.S. The company says the offers also are designed to avoid any possible firings at a later date. Offers will...

Someone must take the microphone away from her forever. The tragedy of Kamala Harris is that she thinks she’s smart and doing her country proud. The reality is that this woman has been a trainwreck ever since she decided to run for president. Her 2020 campaign has next to no shelf life; Pete Buttigieg was in the 2020 hunt longer than her. Allegations of a toxic work environment have marred Harris’ campaign and her office. That stench carried into the office of the vice presidency, and there have been multiple reports of office dysfunction. She doesn’t prepare, refuses to read...

Former President Trump is releasing a new book that will include a star-studded batch of private letters penned to him by “some of the biggest names in history.” “Letters to Trump” will feature “oftentimes private correspondence” between the former New York real estate developer and famous names including Princess Diana, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, former President Nixon and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, its publisher, Winning Team Publishing, announced Thursday. Each letter in the book was “handpicked” by Trump, Winning Team said, and is “accompanied by his original commentary!” The $99 book — or $399 for an...

The capitol insurrection tour. LOL! https://twitter.com/i/status/1633218199981375489

Authorities say 12 people have been found dead so far following the historic storms that buried the San Bernardino Mountains under several feet of snow, covering homes and paralyzing travel. “So far, we can only confirm (one), a traffic accident, as weather-related,” San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department spokesperson Mara Rodriguez said Wednesday. “The preliminary information in the other deaths does not indicate they are weather-related, but those investigations are ongoing.” “There’s going to be a lot more,” said Megan Vazquez, a volunteer. “It’s been very cold here. It’s been below freezing, so if somebody didn’t have electricity or gas to...

@RandPaul It’s absolutely outrageous that I’ve sent over 25 letters to more than 8 federal agencies requesting documents related to COVID and received virtually nothing. I’ve also asked 4 Senate Democrat Committee Chairs to sign letters requesting these documents and so far none have.

Former President Donald Trump has a towering 41-point lead over the rest of the potential GOP primary field in New Hampshire, per a poll.The Emerson College Polling survey released Tuesday shows that 58 percent of Republican primary voters in New Hampshire, the first GOP primary state in the nation, support Trump in his reelection bid. Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) is his closest competitor, securing 17 percent of the response.Gov. Chris Sununu (R-NH) sits in third place with seven percent, followed by former Gov. Nikki Haley (R-SC) at six percent, and former Vice President Mike Pence at four percent. Two percent...

WASHINGTON — In a cheerfully decorated common room at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, with floral paintings adorning violet walls, Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania begins most days meeting with his chief of staff, who arrives around 10 a.m. carrying a briefcase full of newspaper clips, statements for him to approve, legislation to review and other business of the day. The contents of that briefcase encompass the majority of Fetterman’s connection to the outside world these days, as the first-term Democrat from Pennsylvania finishes his third week in the hospital being treated for severe clinical depression. Doctors caring...

About Scott Adams, the white male creator of the (once) popular "Dilbert" comic strip, The Washington Post wrote: "On his Feb. 22 episode of 'Real Coffee With Scott Adams,' the creator of the comic strip 'Dilbert' decided to riff on a much-criticized Rasmussen poll and promote a type of segregation. He declared that Black Americans are part of a 'hate group' and urged White people to 'get the hell away from Black people.'" National Public Radio condemned Adams' "racist rant." His distributor dropped him after several outlets, including the Los Angeles Times and The Washington Post, stopped carrying the strip....

One of the stars of ABC’s General Hospital has compared Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) to Adolf Hitler, claiming the governor’s effort to remove pornographic books from public school libraries qualifies him as a “sadist.” Actress Nancy Lee Grahn , who has repeatedly used her large social media following to smear conservatives, tweeted Monday that DeSantis “will end up making Hitler seem nice.” Her tweet was in response to a video showing examples of the sexually explicit books found in Florida public school libraries.

Highlighting the absurdity of the notion that biological men can simply declare themselves to be women, British media personality Piers Morgan, a white man, asked why he can't identify as a black lesbian. He made the comment while sparring with Angelica Malin, a television commentator and author, on "Piers Morgan Uncensored." Malin argued that those who would like to be a woman may self-identify as a woman. "Why can't I identify as a black lesbian?" Morgan asked. Malin seemed to indicate that Morgan's suggestion would take the issue to an "absurd status." But Morgan argued that the door to the...

Unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP) appearing to exhibit “highly maneuverable” capabilities should produce luminosity and other observable features, including radio frequency signatures, according to calculations presented in a new study that calls for the better application of known physics in efforts to evaluate the phenomena. The paper was co-authored by Avi Loeb, Harvard University astronomer and head of the Galileo Project, and Dr. Sean Kirkpatrick, director of the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, the office currently leading the Pentagon’s efforts to study unidentified objects detected in U.S. airspace. ... “We have to respect the laws of physics as we know them,” Loeb...