Free Republic

On the second anniversary of her daughter’s brutal death, Evelyn Rodriguez returned to the Long Island, New York, spot where she was killed. The sun shone brightly as she lay candles, balloons and a large floral wreath next to a grinning photograph of 16-year-old Kayla Cuevas. Hours later, 50-year-old Rodriguez learned that the vigil she’d left in honor of Kayla had gone. She returned to the scene and – after a brief altercation – Rodriguez was run over by the woman who had dismantled her daughter’s memorial.

First, there was 5-Hour Energy BBQ sauce. Now, there's another caffeinated meal on the block: Caffeinated Noodles. In late July, Nippon launched Boost Noodles, a ramen created by a young developer who wanted to solve the age-old problem of how you can eat ramen while also simultaneously participating in an online gaming battle all night. Each serving of the ramen contains 35mg of caffeine, roughly a third of a cup of coffee, so while it might keep you going, it's not likely to keep you up past bedtime (unless you're having a few packets at once). It will, however, give...

Recent statistics have unveiled a growing health crisis in Costa Rica, with an alarming 31.5% of children and adolescents aged 5-19 being overweight and 12.3% classified as obese. This troubling trend has sparked significant concern among health professionals across the country, prompting calls for immediate action. Dr. Nydia Amador, a public health specialist and founder of the Healthy Costa Rica Association, emphasizes the gravity of the situation. “We are witnessing our children on a path to chronic illness, and we must act swiftly to prevent this dire outcome,” she warns. Dr. Amador’s concerns are echoed by nutritionists and other health...

A 20-year-old college student from Bartlesville is back in the United States after her family says she got sick and started having seizures while vacationing at a resort in Cancun, Mexico.A 20-year-old college student from Bartlesville is back in the United States after her family says she got sick and started having seizures while vacationing at a resort in Cancun, Mexico. Her family says they’ve paid more than $60,000, between getting her home and for her treatments in Mexico and the U.S. Zara Hull was only in Mexico for a full day before she says she’d been drinking by...

It is my understanding that the origin is military. As a tactic to get a quick shot that is reasonably accurate but you are giving up points in accuracy for expediency reasons. The best my internet searching has found is that it was popularized by Hollywood, then the gang culture, but there is no real and definitive origin given It's origin is not gang, because there have been movies in the 1960's that made use of the side grip when firing off a revolver or semi-automatic pistols. It may not have been taught as an approved military tactic, but lots...

With the presidential campaign heating up, both former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are making a play for service and hospitality workers’ votes by promising to eliminate taxes on tips. But the move likely wouldn’t help many tipped workers, largely because a sizable share don’t earn enough to pay federal income taxes, experts say. Neither Trump, who announced the idea at a Las Vegas rally in June, nor Harris, who voiced her support for the policy in Las Vegas on Saturday, have released detailed proposals, which would have to go through Congress. Among the questions are...

Kamala Harris's honeymoon bounce in the polls has Democrats excited for the first time in a long time in this election. Even with that surge of enthusiasm, she's still only managing to take a small lead within the margin of error in the RealClearPolitics average. Nevertheless, her position appears to be much stronger than Joe Biden's but, CNN's Harry Enten is warning them that Harris doesn't have the election in the bag — not by a long shot. To explain why, he looked at battleground state polling in the previous two election cycles to see how far off they were...

When the DNC delegates come to Chicago, they’ll be visiting the city that for more than a decade has experienced the most murders in the country. Chicago suffered 617 total homicides in 2023, marking the 12th year in a row it has led the country.And it will be 13 years in a row if Chicago’s 2024’s homicide numbers continue at their current pace. The below chart shows how the top five cities nationally for total homicides may change from year to year, but what always remains true is Chicago’s position at the very top – often the extreme outlier.That’s just...

SUMY, Ukraine—Russia is withdrawing some of its military forces from Ukraine to respond to a Ukrainian offensive into Russian territory, U.S. officials said, the first sign that Kyiv’s incursion is forcing Moscow to rejigger its invasion force. The officials said the U.S. is still seeking to determine the significance of Russia’s move and didn’t say how many troops the U.S. assesses Russia is shifting. But the new U.S. assessment bolsters claims by Ukrainian officials who said last week’s surprise invasion of Kursk province had drawn Russian forces away from Ukraine, where Moscow’s advantage in manpower and equipment is allowing them...

The Kamala Harris campaign has been editing press headlines and putting the fake versions in ads as a way to spread disinformation. That's according to a new report that found multiple instances of Google ads being manipulated without the consent of the various news organizations linked to the false headlines.🚨🚨 The Harris campaign has been editing news headlines and descriptions within Google search ads that make it appear as if the Guardian, Reuters, CBS News and other major publishers are on her side, Axios has found.https://t.co/uW3VlgoXLK— Jim VandeHei (@JimVandeHei) August 13, 2024The Harris campaign has been editing news headlines and...

She had the incumbent advantage and was predicted to retain her seat based on recent polling. Now, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) has won her primary in Minnesota's 5th Congressional District. Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) has won the primary for the Democratic nomination for her seat representing Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District, almost certainly giving her two more years in the House, Decision Desk HQ projects. Omar fended off a challenge from former Minneapolis City Council member Don Samuels, who nearly upset her two years ago in a primary. In 2022, she won by less than 2,500 votes in a race where...

Hunter Biden is a corrupt con artist who used his father’s position to leverage the government and make himself millions. Now that Joe Biden has been successfully pushed aside, officials are allowed to admit this, and The New York Times is allowed to report it. It’s rotten, unscrupulous, cynical hypocrisy. Emails reveal that Hunter, while his father was vice president, wrote a letter to the US ambassador to Italy, asking for introductions to help the Ukraine gas company Burisma land a lucrative contract with Italy. That’s why Burisma was paying Hunter $1 million a year to sit on its board.

First son Hunter Biden, acting on behalf of a Ukrainian energy company, requested help from the US Embassy in Rome to land a lucrative business deal, while his father, Joe Biden, was vice president, according to a report. Hunter’s big ask and apparent attempt to use his father’s position of power to land the deal for Bursima — the Ukrainian gas giant that he sat on the board for — came to light only after State Department records were released to the New York Times after Joe Biden ended his 2024 re-election bid last month. “I want to be careful...

A person's fitness levels could provide greater insight into the progression of atrial fibrillation, according to a new study by researchers. About 100 patients with atrial fibrillation underwent cycle fitness tests followed by invasive and non-invasive testing to assess cardiac structure and function. "Our findings suggest that people with atrial fibrillation who are less fit demonstrate significant functional and electrical changes in the heart linked to disease," said Dr. Jonathan Ariyaratnam. "This indicates that cardiorespiratory fitness is another important independent risk factor for the development and progression of atrial fibrillation." The study found participants with reduced fitness had increased left...

Hundreds of girls aged 12 and under have had 'top surgery' to remove their breasts in the US since 2017, data suggests. And more than 6,000 girls aged 13 to 18 had the 'gender-affirming' surgeries in that time, according to an analysis seen by DailyMail.com. High profile Democrats, including Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, had previously claimed sex change surgeries 'don't happen' on children. Researchers at the conservative Manhattan Institute think-tank carried out what they call the biggest ever analysis of transgender care for minors, reviewing more than 4 billion insurance claims from 155 million people between 2017 and 2023. Overall,...

People with higher levels of metals found in their blood and urine may be more likely to be diagnosed with—and die from—amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, a study suggests. Researchers have known that ALS, a rare but fatal neurodegenerative condition, is influenced by genetic and environmental factors, including exposure to pesticides and metals. This latest study examined the levels of metals in the blood and urine of people with and without ALS, finding that exposure to individual metals and mixtures of metals is associated with a greater risk for ALS and shorter survival. Goutman's team measured metal levels in plasma...

The last remaining Denny’s in San Francisco closed its doors this month because customers would frequently leave without paying their bill in the crime-plagued city, according to the restaurant’s owner. Chris Haque shuttered the 24-hour diner at 816 Mission St. near the Union Square section on Aug. 1 after 25 years. “We’re the only store left, and we operated until the last day that we could,” Haque told SFGATE. “The cost of doing business is tremendous. There’s vandalism, and people come and eat and walk away, and there’s no one to stop them.” Haque also lamented the fact that a...

Former President Trump said there should be a one-year jail sentence for anyone who desecrates the American flag in the wake of anti-Israel protests over the war in Gaza outside Union Station in Washington, D.C., that included a group burning an American flag.Trump, who has previously called for criminalizing burning the flag, scoffed at those who point out it’s not illegal to do so.“You should get a one-year jail sentence if you do anything to desecrate the American flag,” Trump said Wednesday on “Fox & Friends” when asked about the protests. “Now, people will say, ‘Oh, it’s unconstitutional.’ Those are...

After nearly three months of silence, the U.S. Government has now appealed the June 13, 2024, pistol brace decision to the U.S Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. The appeal was announced on August 12, 2024. The case is Mock v. Garland, and it was brought by the Firearms Policy Coalition. The ATF pistol brace rule targets stabilizer braces attached to AR pistols, claiming the braces turn AR pistols into short barrel rifles (SBRs). And since SBRs are regulated under the National Firearms Act (1934), the ATF issued its rule on AR-pistol braces to stop what it saw as...

Dr Anthony Fauci is again recommending that people don face masks as Covid cases rise. The number of infections is increasing as part of another summer surge - even though hospitalizations and deaths from the virus remain at historic lows. On Monday, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease said: 'The message is that if you are in a risk category you have got to take this seriously.' The 83-year-old told people with comorbidities and seniors 'you should be wearing a mask' in crowded places. He also revealed he had contracted Covid about two weeks...