Free Republic

In Igros Moshe Even HaEzer 4:113 Rav Moshe Feinstein responded to a question that concerned a husband who, unbeknownst to his wife at the time they married, turned out to be engulfed in homosexual behavior. Could the marriage be annulled due to mekach ta'us (a purchase made under false pretenses), or would the wife require a get (writ of divorce) as is standard? After a Talmudic analysis, Rav Moshe writes as follows (see here for original Hebrew): “Regarding the matter at hand, since we find that a great blemish is in essence a mekach ta'us even regarding a woman [who...

On this date in 1799, Admiral Francesco Caracciolo was hanged by the British commander Horatio Nelson from the yardarm of the Sicilian frigate La Minerve in the Bay of Naples. Poor Caracciolo (English Wikipedia entry | Italian) — and not to be confused with the Italian saint of the same name — got middled by the French Revolution. He was a trusted admiral from a noble family, and indeed had served with the British Navy (Italian link). Caracciolo got tapped for escort duty to help King Ferdinand IV and his wife Maria Carolina* flee from a Naples threatened by French...

@RandPaul The ODNI unclassified report confirms what we’ve known for years, the People’s Liberation Army was doing research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology. What the report doesn’t mention is how American taxpayers were funding some of this research. It’s a disappointment that ODNI chose to release a summary report rather than the actual intelligence and did not address specific requirements of the law. I will keep fighting for transparency and accountability on the origins of COVID.

Last month, Trump had the support of 53% of GOP primary voters. Now, he’s at 56%. And his closest competitor, Ron DeSantis, trails at 22%. Trump’s lead over DeSantis has expanded from 15 percentage points in February to 34 points today. Another example of Trump’s strength is only 13% of GOP primary voters say they would never vote for him, narrowly giving him the best standing among top Republican candidates. That’s down from 18% in October 2015, the last time the question was asked,

Democratic presidential hopeful Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told a NewsNation town hall on Wednesday night he would sign an “assault weapons” ban if it reached his desk. When RFK Jr. was asked about an “assault weapons” ban, the question was framed to reflect strong Democrat support for such a measure. RFK Jr. responded, “If we can get a consensus on it, if Republicans and Democrats agreed and it passed Congress, I would sign it.”

[Catholic Caucus] "The prohibition of the traditional Latin Mass is an abuse of ecclesiastical power and noncompliance with its prohibition does not in fact constitute disobedience"The following statement by Bishop Athanasius Schneider is being published in numerous places today.The prohibition of the traditional Latin Mass is an abuse of ecclesiastical power and noncompliance with its prohibition does not in fact constitute disobedience1. The traditional Roman liturgy of the Mass was the liturgy of our Catholic ancestors. It was the form of the Mass with which most of the European nations (except some Eastern European countries and the Ambrosian and Mozarabic...

Please get your donations in today and let's get 'er done! Way to go FReepers! Thank you all very much! God bless.

Bidenomics? Yes, an economy where inflation crushes the middle class and low wage workers with 2 years of negative wage growth and now 24 or the last 25 months of negative growth rates of Pending Home Sales YoY. After existing home sales were flat and new home sales exploded higher, pending home sales once again are the tie-breaker on May’s housing market (and were expected to decline 0.5% MoM). The actual print was considerably worse than expected, down 2.7% MoM (and April was revised down from unchanged to -0.4% MoM). Pending Home Sales were down -20.8% YoY in May. This...

Section 8The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States; To borrow Money on the credit of the United States; To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes; To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States; To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign...

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled unanimously for a postal worker in Pennsylvania in an important religious liberty dispute, over now far employers should go to accommodate faith-based requests in the workplace. Gerald Groff, a Christian mail carrier, from Pennsylvania, asked the court to decide if U.S. Postal Service could require him to deliver Amazon packages on Sundays, which he observes as the Sabbath. His attorney, Aaron Streett, argued in April that the court should revisit a 50-year-old precedent that established a test to determine when employers should make accommodations for their employees' religious practices. In ruling for the government...

Fire breaks out at Tiffany & Co.'s newly-renovated flagship store in Midtown newyork BY JESSE ZANGER JUNE 29, 2023 / 10:45 AM / CBS NEW YORK

This list only includes destroyed vehicles and equipment of which photo or videographic evidence is available. Therefore, the amount of equipment destroyed is significantly higher than recorded here. Small arms, ATGMs, MANPADS, loitering munitions, drones used as unmanned bait, civilian vehicles, trailers and derelict equipment are not included in this list. All possible effort has gone into avoiding duplicate entries and discerning the status of equipment between captured or abandoned. Many of the entries listed as 'abandoned' will likely end up captured or destroyed. Similarly, some of the captured equipment might be destroyed if it can't be recovered. When the...

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) SENT A LETTER to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Wednesday demanding Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) on the Ukraine energy firm Burisma and several individuals involved with the firm from August 2014 to the present. Comer gave a July 12 deadline. In addition to stating the committee is investigation bribery allegations against Joe Biden, Comer stated the committee has several legislative purposes to its investigation involving whether new laws need to be enacted to require disclosures by relatives of presidents and vice presidents.

The Supreme Court ruled that the affirmative action admission policies of Harvard and the University of North Carolina, which gave weight to a would-be student's race, are unconstitutional.

Supreme Court rules against affirmative action. Chief Justice Roberts writes the majority decision for the six conservative justices: "Harvard’s and UNC’s admissions programs violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Pretty much a 6-3 Supreme Court ruling on ideological lines to nuke affirmative action, with some nuances. Roberts is joined by Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh and Barrett in the decision. Kagan, Sotomayor and Jackson dissent.

The US economy expanded at a much faster pace in the first three months of the year than previously estimated, the Commerce Department reported on Thursday. Gross domestic product, the broadest measure of economic output, rose by an annualized rate of 2% in the first quarter, up from the second estimate of 1.3%. That was also well above economists’ expectations of 1.4% rate, according to Refinitiv. The department’s final estimate of first-quarter GDP reflected an upward revision to exports, consumer spending, state and local government spending, and investment from housing businesses, such as landlords. The new data showed that Americans...

KELLER, Texas — After nearly two hours of public feedback, Keller ISD board members passed two controversial gender-based policies. More than 50 people signed up to speak at the special board meeting on Wednesday night to voice their opinions on the proposed changes. The two policies stated that students must use restrooms and locker rooms based on the biological sex on their birth certificate and that district employees are not required to use pronouns that are inconsistent with a person's biological sex on their birth certificate. The board passed both policies. Prior to the vote, the board heard from people...

At 10:00 a.m. this morning, the Supreme Court will issue opinions of cases remaining undecided for the October 2022 term. The remaining cases and a synopsis of the issues presented can be reviewed here: https://amylhowe.com/2023/06/27/the-seven-remaining-cases/

Pickleball, America’s fastest-growing sport, is taking a toll on players’ wrists, legs and shoulders. And it’s especially popular with injury-prone seniors, which is driving up the cost burden. Pickleball injuries may cost Americans $377 million in health care costs this year, accounting for 5% to 10% of total unexpected medical costs, UBS analysts estimated in a report Monday. “While we generally think of exercise as positively impacting health outcomes, the ‘can-do’ attitude of today’s seniors can pose greater risk in other areas such as sports injuries, leading to a greater number of orthopedic procedures,” the analysts said. Pickleball-related injuries occur...

Mayor Eric Adams did not take kindly to one of his constituents wagging her finger at him and criticizing him for the city’s new rent increase rules Wednesday, likening her behavior to that of a plantation owner. The showdown took place at a community conversation event Adams hosted at Gregorio Luperon High School for Science and Mathematics in Washington Heights. In footage from the meeting, Adams can be heard asking the woman to stand up after she interrupts him to call out that he “raised the rent.” Adams’ administration came under fire last week, when the Rent Guidelines Board voted...