Free Republic

China’s problems are many and varied, but now we can add a possible famine to them.Like Mao during the Cultural Revolution, Xi is pushing a new program of “agricultural management.” In practice, this means hundreds of thousands of party bureaucrats or simply average job seekers turned into state-sanctioned “agriculture managers” (effectively rural “enforcers” for the CCP) descending on villages and small towns – a nightmare scenario for farmers.These enforcers have already sowed resentment and chaos in rural communities. In one instance from earlier this year that went viral on Chinese social media, agricultural managers threatened to uproot backyard fruit and...

One birth of the bikini on Frenchwoman Micheline Bernardini‘s body in a photo shoot on July 5th, 1946, owes its then new name to the island where, four days earlier, America tested one of the first of the atomic weapons which still both terrify and (hopefully) stabilise the modern world. Robbie Robertson, one of my favourite guitarists, who was born on July 5, but in 1943, said: “You don’t stumble upon your heritage. It’s there, just waiting to be explored.” God Bless Beauty And The Fearsome Freedom To Enjoy It

Happy Fourth of July. In honor of the occasion and to pay tribute to those who came before us, I’d like to start this essay with a land acknowledgment statement. My home sets on land first explored by English and Scots-Irish freemen who had migrated from their homeland in search of freedom and opportunity or sometimes on the run from the law. The land was settled primarily by Germans from the Palatinate , who, through their industry, created farms, pastures, and orchards where only unproductive, fallow wilderness had existed. These men and women held savage tribes at bay and together...

Vladimir Putin sought to project an image of strength in front of a virtual gathering of Moscow-friendly leaders on Tuesday, in what was the Russian leader’s first appearance on the world stage since he faced an armed insurrection late last month. The comments, made during an address to leaders attending the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) hosted by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, came days after Putin diffused the rebellion launched by the Wagner mercenary group. The events were widely seen as the most significant threat to power the autocrat had faced, and left Putin’s partners and rivals alike wondering how...

A leading Russian investigative journalist has been brutally attacked on a working trip to Chechnya - a republic of Russia governed by close Vladimir Putin ally Ramzan Kadyrov who had previously described the reporter as a 'terrorist'. Elena Milashina, 45, and lawyer Alexander Nemov - who was also savagely beaten - were stopped by armed and masked men as they arrived in the regional capital Grozny to attend a court case linked to human right abuses. The pair received death threats and had guns pointed at their heads, according to reports, while Milashina's head was shaved and her fingers broken...

The proposal might be the biggest attempted power grab in the history of the United Nations. If approved, the United States as we know it could cease to exist.In September 2024, less than two months before the next U.S. presidential election, the United Nations will host a landmark “Summit of the Future,” where member nations will adopt a Pact for the Future. The agreement will solidify numerous policy reforms offered by the U.N. over the past two years as part of its sweeping Our Common Agenda platform. Although there are numerous radical proposals included in the agenda, perhaps none are...

Israeli air defenses shooting down five rockets incoming from Gaza early Wednesday morning... A federal district judge in Louisiana with a July 4th order regarding censorship of social media posts by the Biden Administration... Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov says that Russia and the US are talking about a prisoner exchange... Nuclear incident talk as Ukraine reinforces its military positions on the border with Belarus... An emergency evacuation of the White House Sunday night over a white powder that turned out to be cocaine... US politics and Joe Biden's approval ratings moving downwards... In Tunisia a local resident killed during fighting...

Every country should pay its sovereign debt. Default, we are told, is not an option. But has anyone told China? The United States pays interest on approximately $850 billion in debt held by the People’s Republic of China. China, however, is currently in default on its sovereign debt held by American bondholders. Successive U.S. administrations have chosen to sidestep this fact, allowing business and trade with China to proceed as normal. Now that the relationship with China has soured and the People’s Republic of China has become the greatest adversarial threat to the U.S. and Western security, policymakers should revisit...

Debt doesn't care about elections. The U.S. government must continue to pay its bills, and as long as current spending trends continue, it must keep borrowing money to do so. But politicians care very much about elections. When it recently became apparent that the government was about to smash its head on the $31.4 trillion debt ceiling established by Congress, thus potentially triggering a catastrophic cash crunch and default on American debt obligations, the political leadership of both parties got right to work figuring out the best way to avoid losing their next election. In the end, the bipartisan deal...

(RNS) — Whitworth University, a Christian school affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), has revised its policies to allow for the hiring of faculty who identify as LGBTQ and to add sexual orientation to its non-discrimination statement. In so doing, it joins a sliver of Christian colleges and universities that are hiring faculty in same-sex marriages. Last year, Eastern University, a Christian school affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA, made a similar change to its hiring policy. Whitworth, which is located in Spokane, Washington, and last academic year had an enrollment of 2,500 students, announced the change on Thursday...

North Carolina megachurch Elevation—known for its popular music and charismatic pastor—is withdrawing its affiliation with the Southern Baptist Convention effective immediately, according to a letter sent to the SBC’s Executive Committee and the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina. “We would like to thank the Southern Baptists for the privilege of partnering with you, especially through the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina for nearly two decades,” says the letter, which was published by the official SBC publication Baptist Press. It goes on to thank the Conference for “the privilege of having been affiliated with the SBC all these years”...

"This July 4th, we must remember that we stand on stolen land toiled by enslaved Africans and recommit ourselves to the fight for freedom, equality, & justice so that these ideals are accessible to everyone, not just a privileged few. We are not free until everyone is truly free."

Early Sunday evening, controversial pastor (see endnotes) and noted plagiarizer Mark Driscoll took to Twitter to complain that his new book “New Days, Old Demons: Ancient Paganism Masquerading as Progressive Christianity” got him suspended from Amazon. He claimed the online retail giant was trying to “silence the word of God and faithful Bible teachers” and urged followers to purchase it from his website instead. While it’s true that his book wasn’t available on Amazon at the time of his tweet, it’s also true that it wasn’t available anywhere. Not at Barnes and Noble, Books a Million, Thriftbooks, or Powells. Driscoll’s...

The United Church of Christ elected its first female general minister and president on Monday at its 34th General Synod in Indianapolis. The Rev. Karen Georgia Thompson’s election also makes her the first woman of African descent to lead the mainline denomination. “Today, United Church of Christ, we created a first together. It won’t be the last first,” Thompson, dressed in white, told delegates afterward. Those delegates overwhelmingly approved Thompson’s nomination to a four-year term as general minister and president of the UCC on Monday morning, breaking into song and applause as the results of the vote — 626 yeses...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A white powder found inside the White House late on Sunday was identified by Washington's fire department and emergency services as cocaine, a source familiar with the matter said on Tuesday. The source said the powder was found in the West Wing, but gave no further details. The West Wing is attached to the executive mansion where President Joe Biden lives. It houses the Oval Office, the cabinet room and press area, and offices and workspace for the president's staff.

MUMBAI – In the latest escalation in what was already the Catholic world’s nastiest liturgical dispute, the papally appointed administrator of the largest jurisdiction in the Syro-Malabar Church has issued a decree accusing priests and laity of “sedition and hatred against ecclesiastical authorities” and giving them until July 2 to comply with a new format for celebrating Mass before facing sanctions. The seven-page decree from Archbishop Andrews Thazhath was dated June 22, and is addressed to the vicar of St. Mary’s Cathedral Basilica in Ernakulam in southwestern India, part of the Archeparchy of Ernakulam-Angamaly. The Syro-Malabar Church, based in India,...

In the country known as the ‘Eldest Daughter of the Church,’ Islam and evangelical Protestantism could reach hegemonic positions over the next few decades, while Catholicism would become anchored with a more orthodox momentum.Today’s announcement of the resignations of two French bishops suffering from episcopal burnout, and the impending release of a potentially devastating report about sexual abuse allegations at France’s Community of St. John, have directed renewed attention towards the fragile state of the Church in France. Is Catholicism now on the verge of extinction in France, “Eldest Daughter of the Church” and homeland of St. Louis and St....

ACI Prensa Staff, Jun 27, 2023 / 16:20 pm The dictatorship of President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, in Nicaragua has set up the red and black flags of the Sandinista National Liberation Front, the regime’s political party, in front of the cathedral in Matagalpa. The bishop of Matagalpa, Rolando Álvarez, was sentenced Feb. 10 to 26 years and four months prison, charged with treason to the homeland. Ortega has been in power since 2007. The Sandinistas are a socialist political party. In a statement to EWTN News, Martha Patricia Molina, a researcher and the author...

According to reports, anyone 'repeatedly protesting' outside an Irish abortion facility could face a €2,500 fine or six months in prison.(LifeSiteNews) — A proposed anti-Catholic law designed to criminalize prayer in the vicinity of abortion sites is expected to pass in Ireland today. With typical Orwellian doublespeak, the bill is described as providing “safe access zones,” designating the presence of prayer and the reminder of God as a danger. The new law carries severe penalties including fines and the loss of liberty. As Breaking News.ie reported: Anyone repeatedly protesting outside medical centers that provide abortions could face a €2,500 fine...