Free Republic

The federal government owns multiple trillions of dollars of federal assets -- from land, to buildings, to patent rights, to mineral rights, to immigrant visas, to oil fields to trucks and trains and unused office furniture equipment. The government could earn well over $1 trillion and perhaps as much as $10 trillion by selling off these assets that are simply hoarded (figuratively) in the dark and dusty basement of government buildings. These assets could then generate added annual tax receipts once they are utilized for productive purposes. I'm not talking about selling the Washington Monument or Yellowstone National Park. The...

Collagen is the most abundant protein in our body. All our musculoskeletal tissues are built on a foundation of collagen. Collagen makes up our tendons, ligaments and bones. For this musculoskeletal system to work well, we need to have a good collagen turnover that replaces older collagen with new ones. Collagen is a meat-based protein. Animal tissues are the only natural source of collagen. Our studies have shown that when taking a collagen supplement, there is an increase in a circulating marker (known as procollagen N-Terminal peptide) of collagen synthesis. So, we know that hydrolyzed collagen supplements can be good....

Everything seems to be more expensive in California - even the politicians. But housing is getting to be - nay, scratch that - has been a real problem for some time. Young families are surrendering their dreams of owning a spacious California house in the suburbs as Mike and Carol Brady did, and that's because housing has grown prohibitively expensive in California - and in plenty of other places, too. For the moment, though, California makes a good cautionary tale.The Petersen family’s two-bedroom apartment in northern California is starting to feel small. Four-year-old Jerrik’s toy monster trucks are everywhere in...

DOGE: David Lebryk controlled the computerized payment system responsible for $6 trillion in Treasury payments before he refused to give Trump's DOGE team access to the system. His manager was a Nigerian immigrant appointed by Biden. He quit two weeks ago. ... Obama hired him ... Adeyemo was an Obama insider. He was Director of the National Economic Council under Obama AND he was a Sr Advisor at BlackRock - Very Convenient for them. We’re going to find out how MUCH the Treasury Department stole from the American taxpayers now. People are going to prison. ... Biden really did try...

Is DeepSeek inaccurate? … claims of plagiarism … how DeepSeek’s technology works … the risks it represents … a roundtable discussion with our expertsThe DeepSeek story continues to evolve as new information comes to light.Let’s begin with Reuters:Chinese AI startup DeepSeek’s chatbot achieved only 17% accuracy in delivering news and information in a NewsGuard audit that ranked it tenth out of eleven in a comparison with its Western competitors including OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google Gemini.The chatbot repeated false claims 30% of the time and gave vague or not useful answers 53% of the time in response to news-related prompts, resulting...

The U.S. Joint Committee on Taxation estimates Hyde-Smith's legislation could save nearly $28 billion over ten years. Immigrants residing illegally within the U.S. could no longer receive child tax credits or tax breaks for low income earners if the Safeguarding American Workers’ Benefits Act becomes law. Reintroduced by Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., the legislation would require both parents and children to have Social Security numbers that are valid for employment in order to claim the Child Tax Credit or the Earned Income Tax Credit. Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., has introduced a companion bill in the House. The U.S. Joint Committee...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twtOnKlfMnQ 58 min Is everything we've been told about the Las Vegas mass shooting a lie? Are they covering up something big? Xander Arena does a great presentation

The world has entered the third nuclear age, and nuclear weapons are increasingly seen as valuable—and even usable—weapons by a growing number of states. Russia’s threats to use nuclear weapons, China’s rapid nuclear buildup, the United States’s unprecedentedly expensive nuclear modernization, and ongoing nuclear work in North Korea, India, Pakistan, and Iran all make clear the 21st century will be defined by nuclear risks.The re-election of President Trump is likely to accelerate many of these trends as US allies increasingly question whether the United States will defend their security in a crisis, all while it doubles down on its nuclear...

President Donald Trump on Thursday directed the Federal Aviation Administration to assess safety standards, including evaluating hiring practices, in the wake of the midair collision over Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Wednesday night. The presidential memorandum comes after Trump suggested the military helicopter that crashed into an American Airlines regional jet may have been due in part to the FAA’s diversity, equity and inclusion policies. All 67 people aboard the two aircraft were killed. “President Trump swiftly signed a memorandum directing an immediate assessment of the Federal Aviation Administration to ensure the federal government is maintaining the highest personnel...

A new fungus that infects cave spiders and turns them into "zombies" was discovered in a Victorian gunpowder store at Castle Espie in Northern Ireland during filming for a TV show. The zombie-spider fungus (Gibellula attenboroughii) infects spiders while they're still alive. (Image credit: Tim Fogg) Scientists have discovered a never-before-seen mind-controlling fungus that creates spider "zombies" after it was stumbled upon in a Victorian gunpowder store on the grounds of a destroyed Irish castle. The fluffy white fungus, similar to the zombie-ant fungus that inspired the "The Last of Us" video game and TV series, likely uses chemical signals...

There are advantages to shooting prairie dogs from a vehicle, and apparently it’s common practice in Wyoming — although technically illegal. Casper-area resident Rob Ward said that he and a friend were shocked this past summer when, as they were shooting prairie dogs from the bed of a pickup, a game warden came by and told them they were breaking the law. “This whole situation we found ourselves in, my buddy and I, is kind of ridiculous,” he said. Avid hunter and gun dealer Scott Weber of Cody told Cowboy State Daily that like many Wyomingites, he also enjoys prairie...

Letters of Marque would allow private organizations to operate in the “dead space” in between government bureaucracies where the Mexican drug cartels operate, Erik Prince, an American veteran and the founder of Unplugged Technologies explained during an interview with Breitbart News Saturday. Prince spoke with Breitbart News Washington Bureau Chief Matthew Boyle about a recent post from Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), discussing what Letters of Marque and Reprisal were and how they could be used to weaken the drug cartels. Prince admitted that he had “helped put this idea in Senator Lee’s head.” “Letters of marque and reprisal are government-issued...

Plenty of “I AM A PROUD BLACK WOMAN” candidates (most of them very stout), spewing out the usual racist nonsense. Funny enough they ended up voting for a straight white man (pal of Tim Waltz) as DNC Chair. Nice laugh for a Saturday night.

National Transportation Safety Board officials brief press on the midair crash from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

Fresh doubts were raised about the conviction of 'killer' nurse Lucy Letby last night, with the bombshell revelation of police notes suggesting the jury was misled over key evidence. The documents raise serious questions over the courtroom claim that Letby was the common link between all the suspicious incidents involving babies at the Chester hospital where she worked. And the dramatic development comes as an expert cited by the prosecution prepares to go public to say his research was misrepresented in court. A growing number of experts have voiced fears about the evidence against the nurse, who is serving 15...

Beijing 2 Feb-RIA Novosti. China is dissatisfied with the tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump on goods from China, Mexico and Canada. Beijing will file a lawsuit with the World Trade Organization (WTO) and take appropriate countermeasures, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said...

A highly streamlined hull, x-shaped stern, pumpjet propulsion, and conformal missile carriage are all features of the Royal Navy’s forthcoming Dreadnought class SSBN. Adetailed model has provided what’s likely our best idea of how the U.K. Royal Navy’s new Dreadnought class nuclear ballistic submarine, or SSBN will appear. The four Dreadnought boats represent one of the most important U.K. defense programs in many years and it’s notable to see how many advanced features the design includes, as the Royal Navy seeks to find the optimum balance between speed, stealth, and incredibly destructive firepower. The four new SSBNs (known as ‘bombers’...

This is Abe Greenwald, in the Commentary magazine email. I don’t think there is a link, so I will quote extensively: Here’s a current-events quiz aimed at regular news consumers: Why did Los Angeles officials ignore dozens of warnings about the county’s failing water system in the run-up to this year’s wildfires? What caused the Dali cargo ship to crash into the Francis Scott Key Bridge almost a year ago? Who was the captain of that ship? Why were security bollards not in place on Bourbon Street when a terrorist attacked New Orleans on New Year’s Day? What was the...

This week French President Emmanuel Macron announcing major renovations to the world-renowned Louvre museum in Paris... Plenty of excitement about the notion of French troops going to Greenland. France's Foreign Minister Jean Noel-Barrot broaching the idea... Interviewed by the "LCI' news channel this week Marine Le Pen, leader of the National Rally (RN) in the National Assembly and leading presidential candidate for 2027, urging dissolution of the assembly. Le Pen pushing for the notion that President Macron should dissolve the assembly so new elections can be held with proportional representation in the mix...' In Brittany on Friday morning police discovered...

Why is Canada targeting Republican-led states? President Trump officially imposed tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China on Saturday after they had ignored his threats. Trump slapped the tariffs on the three countries under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. 25% tariffs on all Mexico imports 25% tariffs on nearly all Canadian imports — 10% on Canadian energy resources 10% tariffs on all China imports “Today, I have implemented a 25% Tariff on Imports from Mexico and Canada (10% on Canadian Energy), and a 10% additional Tariff on China. This was done through the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) because...