Free Republic

In children with amblyopia or "lazy eye," one eye is weaker than the other. As a result, the brain starts to favor input from the stronger eye, causing the weaker eye to lose vision. If amblyopia is caught early enough, putting a patch over the dominant eye teaches the brain to pay attention to the weaker eye, strengthening its vision. Unfortunately, this strategy works best until about age 5 or 6. After that, the "critical period" when the brain can rewire its visual circuits begins to close, and vision loss is hard to reverse. But it turns out certain drugs...

Join with fellow FREEPERS to pray for AMERICA: For those in Authority in Government, Family, Military, Business, Agri-Business; End to Sex Slavery; Healthcare, Education, Churches, and the Media. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. (1 John 5:14) I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone: for kings and all those in authority that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. ~ 1 Timothy 2:1-2 Religion Forum Threads labeled [Prayer] are closed to...

A F-35 jet could have crashed on Sunday due to poor weather in South Carolina, new audio suggests - as questions mount as to why the disastrous training exercise was allowed to proceed. The F-35B Lightning II which the unnamed Marine pilot was flying is believed to be at risk of malfunctions if it flies in thunderstorms, according to a Forbes investigation in November. Its sister jet, the F-35A, is more severely affected and cannot fly within 25 miles of lightning he issue lies within the F-35's OBIGGS (Onboard Inert Gas Generation) system, which pumps nitrogen-enriched air into its fuel...

What a golden age we live in, where even those who lay claim to the name of Christ, pretending to uphold the pillars of the Christian faith toss those very pillars aside like yesterday’s trash. Clearly, or queerly, I should say, the future of the world is, well, queer. A new poll by Ryan Burge, a social researcher and pastor at American Baptist has unmasked the illusion, revealing that only—brace yourself—a whopping 84% of professing Protestants identify as straight. Now, doesn’t that set the heavenly choirs singing? Clearly, the Bible must be a complex puzzle if so many are getting...

First, Rep. Victoria Spartz’s interaction with Attorney General Merrick Garland is a must-watch for every American citizen. She highlights concerns about the Department of Justice (DOJ) and its alleged corruption. Spartz’s assessment is strong and she raises valid points about the state of the DOJ. She doesn’t mince words when she accuses Merrick Garland of being the most corrupt Attorney General in U.S. history. She also labels him as a despicable liar who, in her view, has eroded the rule of law in our country. This sharp criticism reflects the growing unease regarding Garland’s leadership within the DOJ. On another...

What happens when "cancel culture" infects the Church? Promise Keepers, an Evangelical organization founded in 1990 that holds men's rallies in stadiums nationwide, has seen several scheduled events at churches and other venues canceled in recent months. As recently as June, Belmont University, a private Christian university in Nashville, canceled a Promise Keepers event after the national Christian men's ministry posted a blog criticizing LGBT pride month. The university accused the organization of "unnecessarily fan[ning] the flames of culture wars." The event, which was part of the group's “Daring Faith” tour, is one of several events that were later canceled...

Al Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and arguably one of the most influential theologians in the Southern Baptist Convention has been repeatedly criticized for his failure to lead in a timely manner by conservative Christians. As a matter of fact, most of the time Mohler ends up landing on the right side of theological issues, from Ed Litton’s plagiarism to homosexuality in the Church—but his voice is always too little too late. The term coined to describe his leadership is “leading from behind.” If you’ve been following the Andy Stanley saga on social media and the blogosphere,...

Apparently, it was a proud moment for Queer Kid Stuff writer Lindz Amer when Nickelodeon’s “Rubble & Crew” episode featuring its first “nonbinary” character aired. On Instagram, Amer enthusiastically declared: “I got to write an episode of Rubble & Crew… They brought me on to consult on the first nonbinary character—meet River!!” In an overt display of LGBTQ propaganda targeting children, Amer further cheered: “I wanted to write a nonbinary character that was aspirational and incredibly cool, someone for the pups (and kids at home) to look up to.” “Non-binary” Paw Patrol character wearing “trans flag” colored shoes and socks....

Adults aged 60 and older who spend more time engaging in sedentary behaviors like sitting while watching TV or driving may be at increased risk of developing dementia, according to a new study. Their study showed the risk of dementia significantly increases among adults who spend over 10 hours a day engaging in sedentary behaviors like sitting—a notable finding considering the average American is sedentary for about 9.5 hours each day. The study also revealed the way sedentary behavior is accumulated over the course of the day didn't matter as much as the total time spent sedentary each day. As...

Elections are the answer to Trumpism, which aims to undermine the Constitution that protects our freedoms. Yesterday, we saw the antidote at work once again, and in battleground states, in special elections for state House seats in New Hampshire and Pennsylvania. Both victories were consistent with a 2023 national trend, with abortion-rights Democrats overperforming in the wake of the 2022 Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision that legalized abortion nationally.

Tennis legend Martina Navratilova has taken aim at Republican primary candidate Vivek Ramaswamy's tennis skills, with the swipe dividing social media users. "I especially like the small stutter steps that take Vivek nowhere.:)," the tennis champion wrote. "I wonder if that could be an analogy for his politics." Navratilova's comment split opinion on the platform, with the post receiving 329,000 views. Some users applauded her criticism of Ramaswamy, with @evamacalpi writing: "Just hit the ball macho man." "Is he swatting flies? Maybe wasps? Such an angry swatter," said Jack Be Nimble. Tennis legend Martina Navratilova has taken aim at Republican...

Merrick Garland got emotional for a second time during a Judiciary hearing on Wednesday when talking about his family's Jewish ancestry. The Attorney General got into a heated exchange with Republican Rep. Jeff Van Drew when asked whether Garland, who is Jewish, believes traditional Catholics are violent extremists. Van Drew was pointing to the creation by two Pacific Coast FBI field offices that wrote a memo claiming traditional Catholics are domestic terrorists. 'The idea that someone with my family background would discriminate against any religion is so outrageous! So absurd!' Garland shot at Rep. Van Drew during a tense back-and-forth....

Hopes were always high for Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer.” The studio knew the film was great, and commercial. But no one in the industry expected that a long, talky, R-rated drama released at the height of the summer movie season would earn over $900 million at the box office. After an early screening, “ Dune” filmmaker Denis Villeneuve said he knew he’d just seen “a masterpiece.” He even remembered saying that it would be a big success. “But where it is right now has blown the roof off of my projection,” Villeneuve told The Associated Press. “It’s a three-hour movie about...

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley said at a press conference from Germany on Tuesday that the Ukraine War could be sustained because the United States and its allies are “rich.” Milley was asked: “President Zelenskyy said this weekend that U.S. military aid to Ukraine is arriving far too late. Do Ukraine’s military partners have the industrial capacity to enable Ukraine to make major gains in another fighting season?” Milley responded: “…you asked about the capacity. Can we continue to do this? The short answer is yes, we can continue to do this, and the United...

Russia downing 19 Ukrainian drones tonight... Poland says it won't send weapons to Ukraine any more... "Russia-Iran cooperation is reaching new highs" Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu speaking in Iran today... A federal judge in the US ordering Hunter Biden to appear in person for his hearing... French intelligence service agents questioning journalist Ariane Lavrilleux. Lavrilleux arrested yesterday accused of compromising national security... "You may have just perjured yourself" US Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky confronting US Attorney General Merrick Garland... The US Federal Reserve Board deciding to keep interest rates steady... Russia says its annual inflation rate is now...

A two-story display of a blood-stained Satan holding the severed head of Jesus accompanied by a tombstone reading 'Hillary's emails' has sparked outrage in the Bucktown neighborhood of New Orleans. Vic Miorana has spent months and thousands of dollars on the tombstones and bloodied body organs, but some nearby residents said he crossed the line. 'We have a little religious theme here. We wanted to make people scared, to make them a little uncomfortable,' Miorana said in WWL-TV's interview. He said he would not remove the display, despite threats and complaints from neighbors. 'It's horrible to our religion, it's blasphemy,...

Two teenagers face murder charges for targeting a bicyclist in Las Vegas and capturing on video the moment they drove into the man as he pedaled along the side of a road, authorities said Tuesday. Las Vegas police said they have tied the teens to at least three hit-and-run incidents on the morning of Aug. 14. They believe the death of 64-year-old Andreas Rene Probst, a former police chief in Bell, California, was the final one. Video shot from the front passenger seat shows the vehicle approaching Probst from behind while he was riding near the curb on an otherwise...

Former President Donald Trump floated a new plan Wednesday to solve the border crisis: Feed migrants to alligators. The ex-president shared a meme to his Truth Social website Wednesday afternoon, which showed an image of six alligators with the words 'new border security' and 'will work for food' superimposed over it. 'Problem solved!!' the post also said. Trump's commentary comes as border crossings returned to the levels from before Title 42 was dropped, with apprehensions hitting 8,000 on Monday. It also comes after The New York Times reported in October 2019 that the then-president floated fortifying his border wall with...

Work together. Go it alone. The apocalypse is at hand. But the future can be bright. The squabbles never cease, yet here are human beings from all across the world — hashing out conflicts with words and processes, convening under one roof, trying to write the next chapter of a common dream. At the United Nations, “multilateralism” is always the goal. Yet so is the quest for a coherent storyline that unites all 193 member states and their ideas. Those two holy grails often find themselves at odds when leaders gather each September at the United Nations — a construct...

Update from Ukraine | Kaboom day for Ruzzia. They lost military base, jets and fuel facility https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iB_KEQEvXjQ The summary of the situation of Russian re-invasion to Ukraine covering the recent developments on the battlefield, as of 20th September 2023 – 22:00 (Kyiv time). [NOTE: two summaries per week, released on Wednesday and Sunday] https://militaryland.net/news/invasion-day-574-summary/ *** Great interactive maps with viewer controlled Map magnification tool to use for each Front! https://militaryland.net/maps/