Free Republic

Colombia is hoping to expedite its mission to recover a three-century-old sunken treasure worth as much as $20 billion as the ownership of the fortune lies in legal limbo amid an ongoing court battle. President Gustavo Petro ordered his administration to exhume the “Holy Grail of shipwrecks” — the Spanish galleon San José — from the floor of the Caribbean Sea as soon as possible, the country’s minister of culture told Bloomberg last week. Petro wants to bring the 62-gun, three-masted ship to the surface before his term is up in 2026 and has requested a public-private partnership be formed...

This should not come as a big surprise, after all, President Donald Trump has an actual record of accomplishment on the two metrics that CBS/YouGov are polling, peace and prosperity.According to the CBS/YouGov Poll, American voters view President Donald Trump as the better presidential candidate to create peace globally and specifically make their financial future more positive. Both of these points are exceptionally important.CBS – With views of things in America continuing to be bad and now hitting their most negative marks of the year, one might expect an incumbent president to trail in a pre-election poll — as Joe...

Sure, Hunter Biden sold himself to foreign companies in exchange for access to his father, the vice president of the United States. Yes, he made millions from a Ukrainian gas company while his dad’s government portfolio included Ukraine, a flagrantly unethical arrangement that is still under investigation. As an unregistered foreign agent, he shook down the Chinese for cash while threatening that “I’m sitting here with my father.” Despite having no expertise, despite “My dog is smarter than Hunter,” as one executive said, oligarchs were happy to pay him for the opportunity to get Joe on the phone, or to...

Members of First Baptist Church of Phenix City gathered on Sunday to announce funeral details for their former Pastor ‘Bubba’ Copeland- who shot and killed himself after being discovered to have been living a secret life as a sexual pervert and creepy hypocrite– as well as sing some hymns and offer prayers. One speaker shared: “Despite what may have been implied in the media, members of this church have been steadfast in their love and concern for our pastor. I cannot tell you that I fully understand or can explain the scope of this tragedy. There are some things though...

On Thursday, Sam Bankman-Fried was properly convicted for stealing $8 billion from customers. I wonder why brokers haven’t been punished for promoting FTX since they don’t appear to have properly researched the company? For decades, the media, politicians, bureaucrats, the United Nations, scientists, educators, entertainers, and others have been running con games that dwarf the FTX scheme; so where’s their trial and conviction? Most notably, they’ve indoctrinated the public with the lie that the science is settled that humans and our use of natural resources cause temperatures and sea levels to rise, which in turn cause storms to be more...

I assume that given the title, you as the reader understand that the story covered herein is terribly distressing, but I want to iterate the point for the sake of propriety; I also want to stress that the people boxed in by the “progressive” left as the “religious right” deserve a huge and groveling apology. We told them so, and to be frank, I’m really sick of this dance with the “progressive” left. We take on the mantle of the long-sufferer, speaking softly and using little words as we try to coax them into being halfway decent (or at the...

A diver who spotted something metallic not far from Sardinia's coast has led to the discovery of tens of thousands of ancient bronze coins.Italy's culture ministry said Saturday that the diver alerted authorities, who sent divers assigned to an art protection squad along with others from the ministry's undersea archaeology department. The ministry posted images and video of the stunning discovery.The coins dating from the first half of the fourth century were found in sea grass, not far from the northeast shore of the Mediterranean island. The ministry didn't say exactly when the first diver caught a glimpse of something...

For the first time ever, Israel was pushed to the ends of the Earth last week. Last Tuesday, it was announced that the Arrow missile defense system shot down a ballistic missile for the first time, in this instance fired at Israel by Houthi rebels in Yemen. The IDF stated that air force systems tracked the missile’s trajectory and intercepted it “at the most appropriate operational time and location.” According to a report in the UK's Daily Telegraph, the missile was intercepted outside of the Earth's atmosphere.

ASHINGTON—Zackey Rahimi pulled a gun on his ex-girlfriend in a parking lot and shot at a witness who saw them arguing, prompting a Texas family court to issue a protective order in 2020 temporarily forbidding him from possessing firearms. Rahimi ignored the order, authorities say, going on to threaten another woman with a gun, fire an AR-15 into the house of one of his narcotics customers, and shoot into the air at a Whataburger drive-through after his friend’s credit card was declined. That led to his conviction under a 1994 federal law prohibiting people under domestic-violence orders from possessing guns—and...

Head of Chinese Communist gov’t-run church accepts invitation to visit Diocese of Hong KongArchbishop Li Shan's visit to the Diocese of Hong Kong comes after a year of Beijing's continued violation of the secretive Sino-Vatican deal.HONG KONG (LifeSiteNews) — The communist state-approved Archbishop of Beijing has accepted an invitation to visit Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong, marking the increasing links between Hong Kong and the Chinese Communist Party authorities. In a very brief statement issued November 3, the Diocese of Hong Kong announced that “Bishop Joseph Li Shan of Beijing” would begin a five day visit to the diocese on...

Author Dawn Kellum wrote a short memoir about her abortion called My Abortion and What NOBODY Told Me. The book is free on Kindle, and you can read it via the Kindle app, on any phone or device. A Grieving Woman’s Warning Kellum writes to other abortion-minded pregnant people, warning them about what might happen after their abortions. Here are some of her warnings: You will need counseling after an abortion because it will affect you in every way imaginable. You will regret your decision for the rest of your life. You will miss that child you aborted for the...

Top U.S. Senators said over the weekend that they are introducing a bipartisan resolution calling for military strikes against Iran if its terror proxies in the Middle East kill any U.S. soldiers or if Hezbollah opens up a second front against Israel. Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) made the remarks during a CNN interview Sunday morning with Dana Bash on “State of the Union.” The segment comes after Hamas murdered 1,400 Israelis in an unprecedented terrorist attack last month and Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed terrorist group in Lebanon, has conducted small scale attacks against Israel as it weighs...

Former President Donald Trump was told not to make “speeches” soon after taking the stand Monday to testify during his New York civil fraud trial. Judge Arthur Engoron reminded the former president to stay on topic and told his lawyer “this is not a political rally,” according to The Hill. His sons and co-defendants, Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., testified in the trial last week. “I’m sure the judge will rule against me because he always rules against me,” Trump said in response to a question about his role in preparing financial statements, according to CNN. “You can attack...

It can’t be stated any more clearly. Saving the lives of unborn children depends on what we do in the next few days. Early voting ends at 5pm on Saturday Nov 4th. Election Day is November 7th and it is the last chance this year to help Virginia change course on abortion and finally begin to pass some pro-life protections. News outlets are all running stories about how these elections may change the debate on abortion throughout America, not just in Virginia, depending on who holds the Senate and House of Delegates on November 7th. Pro-abortion Democrats continue to spread...

[Catholic Caucus] Zen threatens boycott of HK cardinal’s Mass if Beijing bishop attendsThe Hong Kong diocese is facing a diplomatic controversy ahead of a Mass celebrating the diocese’s newest cardinal, over the invitation of a bishop close to the Chinese Communist Party and Beijing government. Cardinal Stephen Chow, SJ, of Hong Kong will celebrate on Saturday a Mass of thanksgiving for his elevation to the College of Cardinals. But sources close to the diocese have told The Pillar that preparations for the event are being overshadowed by concerns about whether Bishop Joseph Li Shan of Beijing will be allowed to...

Older adults who don’t smoke tobacco but do use marijuana were at higher risk of both heart attack and stroke when hospitalized, while people who use marijuana daily were 34% more likely to develop heart failure, according to two new non-published studies presented Monday at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions in Philadelphia. “Observational data are strongly pointing to the fact that … cannabis use at any point in time, be it recreational or medicinal, may lead to the development of cardiovascular disease,” Robert Page II, chair of the volunteer writing group for the 2020 American Heart Association Scientific Statement:...

Conservative social media personality Steven Crowder teased the release of a manifesto written by the accused school shooter in Nashville, Tennessee, who left six victims dead earlier this year. In a video posted to YouTube on Monday, Crowder said the manifesto was leaked and shared screenshots of portions of the document, which is believed to be written by Audrey Hale, 28, whom authorities identified as the shooter. They also said Hale, who died at the scene, once attended the school.

The US House of Representatives under the leadership of Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La) passed a stand-alone $14.3 billion bill to aid Israel in its fight against Hamas terror. The 226-196 tally in favor included 12 Democrats. President Biden has said he will veto the bill "because it doesn't included the $61 billion we want for the war in Ukraine or any aid for Gaza. Further, the funding is from money previously earmarked for enhanced IRS enforcement of tax collections." Johnson argued that "it is unnecessary to complicate the issue by attaching it to a much bigger amount desired for continuing...

[Catholic Caucus] Pope Francis Attempts to Rig the Next Papal ElectionOne of the lies of Liberalism and Marxism is a prideful faith in man’s power of central planning. The idea that if we just create a system, a huge bureaucracy, we can pull all the strings to make that planned utopia come about. His Holiness, “the Dictator Pope” and his Vatican regime of Iconoclasm have been attempting to make Cardinal Martini’s dream a reality with all their central planning to bring about the reign of the “[Anti-]Church of Synodal Synodality.”Or whatever.They think if they just set up everything just right,...

The countdown is now at five days. Five days until Ohioans will vote on “Issue 1,” a sweeping pro-abortion initiative that Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights are said to already have raised almost $40 million since February. As NRL News Today has done for weeks and weeks, today we are posting original copy and reposting some of the best criticisms of “The Right to Reproductive Freedom with Protections for Health and Safety.” Along with their cohorts in the legacy media, the pro-abortion coalition behind Issue 1 denies the lessons of Roe and Doe, now thankfully in the trash bin of...