Free Republic

A new class of potentially deadly synthetic opioids is suddenly appearing around the globe, including in the US, and scientists are rushing to figure out how to detect it in the drug supply. Within the last month, nitazenes were implicated in four overdose deaths in Manchester, England; they were detected in over 2,500 counterfeit oxycodone pills in Hamilton, Canada; and they were found for the first time in the Netherlands. The US Drug Enforcement Administration has warned about their appearance in Washington DC.

Just over a year before United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson was murdered this week in Midtown Manhattan, a lawsuit filed against the insurance giant he helmed revealed just how draconian its claims-denying process had become. Last November, the estates of two former UHC patients filed suit in Minnesota alleging that the insurer used an AI algorithm to deny and override claims to elderly patients that had been approved by their doctors. The algorithm in question, known as nH Predict, allegedly had a 90 percent error rate — and according to the families of the two deceased men who filed the...

(KRON) — A Novato cyclist was killed last month after swallowing a bee while cycling. Phil Heiman was a 69-year-old former superintendent of water treatment in Marin County, according to his online obituary. An avid cyclist, Heiman raced in road, crit and cyclocross events and would often ride his bike the 25 miles to work. After his retirement, he managed a local cycling club and was “involved for years with the close-knit cycling community,” his obituary states.

The epicenter was about 42 miles west-southwest of Ferndale and 54 miles west-southwest of Eureka. The National Weather Service has issued a tsunami warning as a result of the quake. The Tsunami Warning is in effect for coastal regions from California to Oregon. Anyone near coastal waters is advised to move to high ground immediately, according to the San Jose Fire Department. Bay Area Rapid Transit announced that BART service in the Transbay Tube was halted in all directions in response to the quake.

At a time when America was rapidly industrializing, when famers who had done everything themeselves were being forced into factories, students who like Abe Lincoln studying by firelight had to be fitted for factory work, Woodrow Wilson said: "We want one class of persons to have a liberal education, and we want another class of persons, a very much larger class, of necessity, in every society, to forego the privileges of a liberal education and fit themselves to perform specific difficult manual tasks." But now students are being cast adrift by a feckless educational establishment which can't even educate or...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbXZoMocpM8

Transgender activists broadcast their intrusive takeover of at least one women’s bathroom on Capitol Hill on December 5. The transgender takeover marked an escalation by the mostly male movement in their campaign to demand access to spaces that are used by women to guard their sexual privacy and career opportunities in a diverse society. The activists were later constrained by the U.S. Capitol policy, according to a tweet shared by Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC). She has recently pressured GOP leaders to recognize that incoming House Democratic Rep. Sarah McBride is a man, despite establishment media support for his claim of...

NATIONAL SACHER TORTE DAY If you like chocolate and you like cake, then National Sacher Torte Day on December 5th is a perfect day for you! The layered ingredients make this dessert a delicious torte! #NationalSacherTorteDay Sacher Torte, also known as Sachertorte, is a unique type of chocolate cake. Austrian Franz Sacher invented it in 1832. Vienna considers the Sachertorte one of their most famous culinary specialties. At the age of 16, Franz Sacher was only an apprentice to the chef when Prince Wenzel Von Metternich ordered a special dessert from the kitchen for his guests. With the chef ill,...

I believe there was a post regarding this topic/drug on FR a few weeks/months back, but I wondered if anyone has heard of research to determine the effectiveness of using Baricitinib to treat Long Covid? There were a few articles regarding this topic that I had bookmarked but now the webpages are gone. Convenient huh? I'm interesting in finding out if anyone here has any information on this. Thank you all for your time.

Could DNA findings answer long-held questions regarding a possible link between ancient Egyptians and the Emerald Isle? Legends, myths, and intriguing archaeological finds suggest ancient Egyptians once visited Ireland. Could DNA findings answer long-held questions regarding a possible link between ancient Egyptians and the Emerald Isle? To begin with, there is the legend of Scota, an Egyptian princess who fled from Egypt with a large group of followers, arriving in Ireland in 1700 BC. It is believed Scota, whose descendants are said to have become high kings of Ireland, was killed in battle by the Tuatha De Danann (the tribe...

Even before November, the once trendy concepts of DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) and ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) were already sinking. Now the election of Donald Trump all but guarantees their accelerated decline. The DEI push gained momentum during the 2020 George Floyd riots, after being nurtured for years on most college campuses. Many companies, including Walmart, adopted its associated practices. But new research from The Conference Board indicates that over half of executives anticipate continuing the pushback of DEI initiatives. Among the firms stepping back from DEI include Boeing, John Deere, Harley-Davidson, and Black & Decker, and...

Former Washington Post reporter Taylor Lorenz wrote several social media posts appearing to celebrate UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s murder while suggesting other executives should also be targeted.Thompson was shot and killed at close range in midtown Manhattan Wednesday morning, outside the Hilton Hotel. The suspect remains at large."And people wonder why we want these executives dead," Lorenz wrote hours later, referencing Thompson’s death in a Bluesky post with a report about Blue Cross Blue Shield no longer covering anesthesia for the full length of some surgeries.Taylor Lorenz's post criticizing insurance CEOs shortly after Brian Thompson's murder: "And people wonder why...

Rep. Jonathan Jackson (D-IL) went on MSNBC's "Way Too Early" show to say "Trump's emphasis on making government more efficient is a heartless attack on people who depend on government generosity to live. America is a rich country. The surplus of wealth produced by those who are capable should be redistributed to those who have needs. This was the crux of former President Lyndon Johnson's idea of the 'Great Society.' Three generations of Americans have adapted to this process and cannot survive on their own. This includes both the folks receiving the handouts and the government employees who administer the...

Pete Hegseth, defense secretary nominee, has "serious baggage" and is not the right pick, while Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is the "perfect fit" that President-elect Donald Trump needs, Newsmax's Greg Kelly said. "No one's perfect, but it's a perfect fit," Kelly said Wednesday on his program, "Greg Kelly Reports," about Florida's Republican governor. "Administrating the Pentagon, the biggest federal bureaucracy, and making it lethal again and not woke and all those things. I think it's a perfect fit." Kelly said he did not support DeSantis' run for the presidency this year, "but he's been a very good governor of Florida."...

A federal district court, finding that the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) is likely unconstitutional, issued an order Tuesday prohibiting the enforcement of the CTA and the beneficial ownership information (BOI) reporting rule in the CTA's accompanying regulations. The injunction, which applies nationally, was issued in Texas Top Cop Shop, Inc. vs. Garland, No. 4:24-CV-478 (E.D. Texas 12/3/24). Under the injunction, the CTA and the BOI reporting rule cannot be enforced, and reporting companies need not comply with the CTA's Jan. 1, 2025, BOI reporting deadline pending a further order of the court. Constitutional issues The court, calling the CTA "quasi-Orwellian,"...

The leading bid for the first-of-its-kind facility in Gypsum that converted forest slash into electricity is from an Illinois real estate company.. The Eagle Valley Clean Energy biomass plant in Gypsum closed last month after its owners filed for bankruptcy protection. There are 7,000 tons of shredded forest slash at the facility. The leading bid for the biomass operation is a real estate company. The pioneering biomass plant in Gypsum — the first in the state to begin converting shredded beetle-kill trees into electricity — has shut down and its owner has filed for bankruptcy protection citing more than $40...

Brand-new photos have been released showing the face of a suspect who police say was lying in wait before the brazen targeted killing of the CEO of one of the nation's largest healthcare companies in midtown Manhattan. The NYPD released the images late Thursday morning, Dec. 5, just over 24 hours after the homicide. They are the first photos showing the suspect's face. Earlier images the department released were of the man wearing a mask. The new images were taken inside a hostel on Manhattan's Upper West Side, where authorities believe the suspect may have been staying. "This does not...

The jury in the high-profile trial of Daniel Penny continues to weigh the ex-Marine’s justification for placing Jordan Neely in a chokehold for several minutes on a New York City subway, but may wind up deadlocked. The jury has sent five different notes to the judge requesting key pieces of evidence since it began deliberations on Tuesday. The central issue facing the seven women and five men is whether Penny was justified in placing Neely in the chokehold after witnesses said Neely was threatening passengers on the train

Elon Musk, the co-head of President-elect Trump’s new Department of Government Efficiency, met with incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) Thursday morning ahead of meetings later in the day with Senate and House Republicans. Musk walked into Thune’s office with one of his children perched atop his shoulders. “I think we should be spending the public’s money wisely,” he told reporters while walking through the Capitol’s hallways. Musk has said he wants to cut at least $2 trillion from the federal budget, which now exceeds $6 trillion a year. But any proposed cuts would likely face substantial opposition in...

Political analyst Mark Halperin said Thursday that his “best sources” suggest that President-elect Donald Trump will probably replace his defense secretary pick Pete Hegseth with Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the coming days. CNN senior data reporter Harry Enten asserted Wednesday that a small “miracle” would be required for Hegseth to secure Senate confirmation, noting the betting odds for his confirmation have dropped below those of Republican Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz when he withdrew from consideration to be attorney general. Halperin, on “Wake Up America,” also acknowledged the challenges Hegseth faces in getting confirmed, suggesting Trump may announce DeSantis...