Free Republic

[Catholic Caucus] Who is really in schism with the Catholic Church today?This is the fifth part of our series on membership of the Church. It examines who the members of the Church are, and who they are not. Part I can be read here; Part II can be read here; Part III can be read here; and Part IV can be read here.IntroductionThe crisis engulfing the Church today divides Catholics from each other.Men and women who want to remain faithful to the teaching of Christ, and obedient to the hierarchy which He established, often find themselves perplexed at obligations that...

Author and journalist Michael Shellenberger has said that “U.S. and U.K. military contractors” have used “sophisticated psychological operations and disinformation tactics… against the American people” in sworn testimony in the U.S. House of Representatives. In a hearing of the Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government chaired by Jim Jordan (R-OH) on suppression of free speech by the government, Shellenberger presented the information he received from a whistleblower about the origins of the so-called “Censorship Industrial complex.” Shellenberger, one of the “Twitter Files” authors, coined the phrase “Censorship Industrial Complex” to describe the network of government and private entities...

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Some friendships are destined to last a lifetime, defying all odds and capturing the hearts of those fortunate enough to witness their unbreakable bond. In the case of Caitlin Doran, a California native, her friendship with Tiptoe, the African tortoise she received as a Christmas gift 22 years ago, has not only endured the test of time but has also become an online sensation. Their heartwarming and enchanting relationship has resonated with millions of people on social media, making them feel part of something truly extraordinary.

We hear it so often that it sounds routine. “I am not an anti-Semite. I am an anti-Zionist,” the occasional anti-Semite confesses with astonishing candor. Such openness reveals the speaker’s ignorance about their own racism, a prejudice lodged in their unconscious though quite close to the surface. Or they do know it, and the discursive alibi is meant to hide it. It is not coincidental. Jihadist fundamentalists use the term “Zionist” as a disqualification towards Israelis and Jews in general. It is always the Zionist aggressor, the Zionist invader, the Zionist occupier. Zionists or not, since, in the strict sense...

New data from the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) provides further evidence that the COVID-19 shots carry significant health risks, including multiple heart issues.Lieutenant Ted Macie is an active-duty officer with the U.S. Navy Medical Service Corps who serves as a health administrator and medical recruiter. His wife Mara Macie is running for Congress in Florida’s Fifth District. Both have been speaking out against the Pentagon’s COVID jab mandate and its treatment of service members who objected.In a video uploaded to social media, Lt. Macie cited a July letter from U.S. Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel & Readiness Gilbert Cisneros...

RIGA, Latvia — When a Hamas delegation visited Moscow in late October, Russian diplomats handed them a list of eight Russian-Israeli citizens being held hostage in Gaza — captives Russia wanted the Palestinian militant group to set free. Hamas immediately signaled that the list would get special attention, state-run media reported. SNIP The special treatment for the abducted Russians is a new manifestation of the growing alignment between the Kremlin and Hamas, a relationship in which President Vladimir Putin is seeking to present himself as a leader and champion of a new “multipolar world order” and the Palestinian militant group...

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said Israel risks a “strategic defeat” if it does not work to protect Palestinian civilians in Gaza amid its war on militant group Hamas in the region. “The center of gravity is the civilian population and if you drive them into the arms of the enemy, you replace a tactical victory with a strategic defeat,” Austin said in a speech at the Reagan National Defense Forum in Simi Valley, Calif., on Saturday.

Bodega owners in New York City are arming themselves for self-defense and store defense as crime continues to surge in the City. The New York Post pointed to the National Supermarket Association, which indicated upwards of 25 percent of NYC bodega owners are armed as compared with roughly ten percent prior to coronavirus shutdowns.

Billionaire George Soros and his son, Alex Soros, have apparently donated mountains of cash to President Joe Biden’s (D) 2024 reelection campaign. Reports say Soros and his son, Alex, initially donated modest amounts to the campaign in the second quarter of 2023. Each gave $6,600, the maximum figure allowed, according to a Western Journal article published Saturday.

Mothers and wives of mobilized men in Russia have called Vladimir Putin a liar and launched a campaign to get their sons and husbands back from the front line in Ukraine. A group calling itself The Way Home has built support in 29 cities across Russia since it was established three months ago and has now published a manifesto, accusing the Kremlin of betrayal.

Some of you folks might find this interesting. It is most a discussion of the current state of development of AI and the pace of development. The person being interviewed is the co-founder of an AI company, is immersed in the industry, and seems to have a pretty good grasp on what is going on behind the scenes. Bio of Mitch Randall from source:Mitch Randall is the CEO of Ascendant AI and innovator behind the SkyWatch Passive Radar UAP tracking system. Skywatch was developed through the Galileo Project and hopes to detect UAP using reflected signals from existing transmitters as...

Leave it to New York to come up with a new plan for governmental overreach. A bill introduced in October and currently in the committee stage in the New York State Assembly would require "criminal history background checks for the purchase of three-dimensional printers capable of creating firearms." Sponsored by Democratic Assembly Member Jenifer Rajkumar, the bill is rooted in growing fears about the inability to track unlicensed "ghost guns" created by 3-D printers. According to Rajkumar's memorandum on her proposal, 3-D printers "allow people to buy, make, and sell untraceable guns without any background checks." The new legislation will...

[Catholic Caucus] Milwaukee response to clergy complaint raises questionsWhile Pope Francis has urged diocesan bishops to take more seriously the canonical discipline of clerics, the outgoing chairman of the U.S. bishops’ canonical affairs committee has not taken steps to address canonically reports of public cohabitation by a senior-ranking official in his archdiocese. A spokesperson for Archbishop Jerome Listecki of Milwaukee told The Pillar that the archdiocese has “spoken with” judicial vicar Fr. Mark Payne, who hired as a parish schoolteacher last year a layperson with whom he had maintained a public romantic relationship, and with whom he has shared a...

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — A Paraguayan government official was replaced after it was revealed that he signed a memorandum of understanding with representatives of a fugitive Indian guru’s fictional country, who also appear to have duped several local officials in the South American country. The revelation sparked a scandal — and lots of social media mockery — in Paraguay but it’s hardly the first time self-described representatives of the United States of Kailasa duped international leaders. Earlier this year, they managed to participate in a United Nations committee meeting in Geneva and also signed agreements with local leaders in...

Shock. Horror. And then acceptance. “Today, millions of Americans mourned and prayed, and tomorrow we go back to work,” President George W. Bush began his address days after 9/11. “Tomorrow the good people of America go back to their shops, their fields, American factories, and go back to work.” “We cannot let the terrorists achieve the objective of frightening our nation to the point where we don’t — where we don’t conduct business, where people don’t shop,” he urged in a later press conference. Defeating the terrorists meant going on with business as usual. And we did. Life changed. Flying...

The Ohio Republican Party formally endorsed former President Donald Trump on Friday, concluding that he is “the right choice in this moment.” In a press release, Ohio Republican Party Chairman Alex M. Triantafilou said Trump has “proven time and again that despite the unhinged and relentless attacks from the radical left, he will never give up on fighting for Ohio’s workers, business and families.” “His unapologetic leadership and commitment to putting America First is exactly what we need to reverse course from the failed policies of Joe Biden and Sherrod Brown,” he continued, providing examples of the leadership they crave...

Kamala Harris attacked Israel over its conduct of the war with Hamas in Gaza in remarks made Saturday at the COP28 climate summit in Dubai, saying, “too many innocent Palestinians have been killed.” The criticism comes as the Biden administration is facing enormous political pressure by the Hamas wing of the Democratic Party with reports of Arab Muslims and progressives in swing states including Michigan saying they will not vote for Biden-Harris in the 2024 election because of the administration’s support for Israel. Biden went through a struggle session with Arab Muslims at the White House on October 26 in...

In October of this year, a video emerged online, capturing a kangaroo's attempt to drown a dog in a river in Australia. However, this incident is not an isolated occurrence, as it turns out that marsupials have employed this peculiar tactic before. Mick Moloney, while strolling along the banks of the Murray River in northwestern Victoria, Australia, suddenly realized that his loyal companion, Hutchy, was nowhere to be found. His gaze shifted towards the water, where he witnessed a kangaroo standing waist-deep, with its arms submerged. To his astonishment, Hutchy emerged from the water gasping for air, expelling water from...

The Rufini family’s peaceful life was shattered when a late-night FBI operation saw them hauled at gunpoint from their home and detained in a van while agents combed their house for evidence of what was presumed to be a potential violent plot by their 15-year-old son, who was a volunteer firefighter and an altar boy, American Greatness reported. Jeremiah Rufini, the father, detailed their plight in a now-unavailable GiveSendGo fundraising page, illustrating the profound impact of this investigation on their family life and finances. According to the unpublished fundraising page, the Rufinis had been grappling with unexpected legal fees resulting...