Free Republic

Growing numbers of children and adolescents are being prescribed multiple psychiatric drugs to take simultaneously, according to a new study in the state of Maryland. The phenomenon is increasing despite warnings that psychotropic drug combinations in young people have not been tested for safety or studied for their impact on the developing brain. The study, published Friday in JAMA Open Network, looked at the prescribing patterns among patients 17 or younger enrolled in Medicaid in Maryland from 2015 to 2020. In this group, there was a 9.5 percent increase in the prevalence of “polypharmacy,” which the study defined as taking...

Psychosis is a symptom that people with various mental health disorders can experience, including those with bipolar disorder. Psychosis exists on a spectrum and can include paranoia, delusions, as well as hallucinations of a visual or auditory nature. A little more than half of people with bipolar disorder will experience psychosis symptoms at some point in their life.1 This article will discuss psychosis features in bipolar disorder and how to receive a diagnosis and treatment. Psychosis Features in Bipolar Disorder Psychosis in bipolar disorder is characterized by delusions, hallucinations, and/or paranoia.2 The person may have lost some or all contact...

They were able to delay the U.S. economy’s day of reckoning, but they were not able to put it off indefinitely. During the pandemic, the Federal Reserve pumped trillions of dollars into the financial system and our politicians borrowed and spent trillions of dollars that we did not have. All of that money caused quite a bit of inflation, but it also created a “sugar rush” for the economy. In other words, economic conditions were substantially better than they would have been otherwise. Unfortunately, there will be a great price to be paid for such short-term thinking. From the federal...

We are continuously sold promises of health breakthroughs that are just around the corner, but we forget they have been just around the corner for decades. We are told technology, and especially biotechnology, will enable us to live longer, healthier lives in greater comfort, yet publicly available statistics show we are now living shorter lives with greater stress, greater wealth divides, and ever-growing rates of chronic and serious illness, including cancers. I was forcibly reminded this week that it is heresy to deny the imagined march of progress. The burgeoning class of highly paid government technocrats, regulators, and consultants, along...

An Imam at the Belgian parliament last week began reciting a verse from the Quran that explicitly calls on Muslims to kill and take Jews captive. The Quran excerpt is verse 33:26 from the Al-Ahzab Surah (chapter). It translates to, “ And He brought down those from the People of the Book who supported the enemy alliance from their own strongholds, and cast horror into their hearts. You ‘believers’ killed some, and took others captive.” Within the Quran, Jews are referred to as the “People of the Book.” The event on Tuesday was not organized by the parliament, but rather...

I have written about the disastrous policies of Mayor Brandon Johnson for Chicago. As a native son, it is hard to watch this wonderful city undermined by Johnson and radical allies in the city council. Some initiatives like reparations and state-funded grocery stores will cost money but will not impose nearly the costs of Johnson’s dismal record on crime and taxes. However, this week saw a particularly confusing moment when, after calling the anti-crime program ShotSpotter “racist,” Johnson asked the company to extend its contract beyond the upcoming Democratic National Convention. So Johnson will put an end to this supposedly...

Greece on Thursday became the first Orthodox Christian country to legalize same-sex “marriage” and adoption of children. In a move signaling the widespread departure of the country from its Orthodox Christian roots, Greece’s Parliament approved the landmark legislation with 176 voting in favor and 76 against. Two legislators abstained from the vote, and 46 were not present in the house. The legislation was drafted by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who pledged his support for legal same-sex “marriage” days into his second term. Mitsotakis, who belongs to the New Democracy party’s moderate faction, celebrated the law’s passage in a post on...

Dauphin County Magisterial District Judge Sonya M. McKnight, 57, is facing a case of modus operandi this week. However, the suspect showing the alleged pattern of criminal conduct is herself. McKnight is accused of shooting her ex-boyfriend in the head while he slept. The shooting took place five years after McKnight was cleared in the shooting of her former husband in the groin. Michael McCoy, 54, was left blind in one eye and, according to the New York Post, McKnight tried to convince him that he had shot himself while he was sleeping. The two were living together and McCoy...

Everyone thinks they’re too smart to fall for a scam until it happens to them. Today, you might be making fun of the financial-advice writer who went viral for putting $50,000 in cash in a box and handing it to a stranger. Tomorrow, you or someone you love could be falling for a less dramatic scam. In her article for New York Magazine’s the Cut, journalist Charlotte Cowles describes in detail how she fell for an elaborate scam that used fear, technology and her data to convince her it was real. A caller posed as someone from Amazon, then transferred...

Is there a Margaret Thatcher in the house who can help stiffen Joe Biden’s spine? The late British prime minister, in a 1990 phone call during the early days of the first Gulf war, famously told a hesitant President George H. W. Bush that it “was no time to go wobbly.” As Thatcher recounts in her first memoir, “The Downing Street Years,” Bush appeared reluctant to act decisively following Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait. Although the United Nations Security Council approved a trade embargo of Iraq, it was left largely to the US and UK to enforce it.

Hold the pepperoni and red pepper, this pie is spicy enough — and comes with topped with extra beef. As Detroit-style pizza gains popularity across the country hardened New Yorkers are balking at the incursion on their thin-crusted foldable slices – even as one local pie-slinger told The Post the thick-crusted Detroit style is “very trendy right now” even in the Big Apple. “Who was a part of that? Not real New Yorkers!” Brooklynite Roberto, 36, said of declaring Detroit-style new king. “Who wants to bite down on a pile of dough? No way,” he railed The Post outside of...

St. Patrick’s Cathedral says it was duped into hosting a “sacrilegious” funeral for a transgender activist on Thursday, which left church brass outraged after she was eulogized as “St. Cecilia, mother of all whores.” More than 1,000 mourners, many of whom were transgender or clad in flashy outfits, packed into the iconic cathedral to celebrate the life of Cecilia Gentili — a high-profile activist who advocated for the trans community, sex workers and HIV/AIDS patients, the New York Times reported. Many of the attendees donned miniskirts and fishnet stockings while others wore halter tops and high-heel shoes during a sometimes...

Beyoncé fans are pissed at John Schneider The actor known for his role in the 1979 TV show “Dukes of Hazzard” is being labeled a racist after comparing Beyoncé to a dog marking its territory when she put out two country-themed tracks this month. “They’ve got to make their mark, just like a dog in a dog walk park. You know, every dog has to mark every tree, right? So that’s what’s going on here,” Schneider, 63, said while appearing on conservative media outlet One American News. The comment came after the anchor asked Schneider his thoughts on fans pressuring...

— My doctor's refusal to prescribe "just-in-case" Paxlovid speaks volumesSimborg is a retired physician and a medical informatics expert. I'm an 83-year-old retired physician. I let my medical license expire over a decade ago and have put my medical care into the hands of very capable people paid for by Medicare -- just like most people my age. Generally, I have been happy with this arrangement and enjoy good health. From this perspective, I can observe our healthcare system just like any other U.S. citizen. I would like to share one important observation at this time: we are now sleep-walking...

As The Gateway Pundit previously reported, the sister-in-law of Senator Mitch McConnell, Angela Chao, died last week in a tragic “accident.” Angela Chao, who is the sister of former U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, served as the CEO of the dry bulk company The Foremost Group, a company with deep connections to the Chinese Communist Party. In an initial statement, the Foremost Group stated Angela Chao died in a “tragic car accident” but gave no further details on how the accident occurred. Now, a week later, the Blanco County Sheriff’s Office has revealed Chao died after her car went into...

Two New York City governmental departments are using the photo of Kansas City Chief star Travis Kelce screaming in coach Andy Reid’s face during the Super Bowl to front their public warning campaigns. NFL fans will recall that early in Super Bowl 58, Kelce was seen on the sideline getting in coach Reid’s face and bashing into the elderly man in frustration. Kelce has since apologized for his ignorant actions. Now, the New York City Department of Transportation has used the image to push its anti-car agenda, the New York Post reported.

I’m finding it hard to single out an event or a piece of news that stands out as the most important of the week. Of course, people who move in different circles may be able to point to something. The horrors continue in Gaza - so much so that I can’t read about them for the moment - need a rest. The Houthis are still not vanquished and the risk of escalation in the Middle East is about the same as last week, in my humble opinion. The Scary Narrative has probably been less successful than the West hoped for...

Aclose ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened the use of nuclear weapons on the U.S. if it fails in its invasion of Ukraine.In a Telegram post on Sunday, Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia, has claimed the Moscow would use nuclear weapons in the event that "Ukraine with its allies" managed to push Russia out of the war-torn country. make nuclear threats against key U.S. and European capital cities. "Against Kyiv, Berlin, London, Washington. Against all other beautiful historical places that have been long ago included in the flight targets of our nuclear triad,"...

BILLINGS — A Montana Army National Guard recruitment poster is being taken down statewide after an editing mistake was pointed out on social media. The poster reads: "It’s more than college money….It’s the spirit of tradition." But in the background, images of German Nazi World War II soldiers are prominent, which sparked outrage online. "I’m sure that somewhere, the (Public Affairs) office for the National Guard is squirming, to say the least,” said Randy Stiles, a district commander for the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Billings, on Friday. Last fall, the poster was distributed across Montana. "I can see their...

During pro-Palestinian rally attended by few hundred protesters, 2 activists assault bystander passing through the area and filming event; police yet to detain attackers. Hod Bass, Tobias Siegal | 02.18.24, 12:42. Two men wearing keffiyehs attacked the man; while local police were on scene to help him, they apparently have not apprehended the attackers.