Free Republic

It’s Burning Man week again. The “Man” will burn this Saturday, as it does every Saturday before Labor Day.I used to be a devoted “Burner,” having attended faithfully every year from 2014 through 2022 (minus one year due to COVID). “Is Burning Man demonic?” is a question I see floating around several Christian circles, and as a newly baptized Christian, I’ve been asking myself the same question.To even begin unpacking that question, several prerequisites for theological understanding are necessary. And, please excuse me as I am a new Christian, currently devouring large amounts of Christian literature and trying to educate...

Dept of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem appears on CBS Face the Nation to discuss ongoing efforts to remove illegal aliens from our nation. The conversation starts with CBS Ed O’Keefe asking about upcoming ICE efforts scheduled to take place in Chicago. When Ed O’Keefe begins discussing FEMA and the Noem initiative to control costs, he makes the mistake of asking Secretary Noem if she could give him an example of cost cutting. O’Keefe immediately regrets the question as Secretary Noem begins outlining examples of waste fraud and abuse in FEMA spending. The video and transcript are below. WATCH:[Transcript] –...

It was a tragedy that struck the hearts of Americans across the country: Young children, praying in pews, became the victims of a mass shooting in Minneapolis. Two, aged 8 and 10, are dead, with 18 others injured. The shooter, who took his own life, has been identified as Robin Westman, but was born Robert Paul Westman. The monster who premeditatively shot at children in a church was a biological male. But don’t tell that to CNN’s Jake Tapper and contributor Juliette Kayyem, who bent over backward not to offend the transgender late murderer (emphasis mine).“The Minneapolis Star Tribune says,...

Throughout the war, the IDF said that Obeida had taken the lead for Hamas on publishing "victories" by the terror group both on October 7, 2023, and anytime after. The Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) and the IDF on Sunday evening confirmed that Hamas military wing spokesperson Abu Obeida was killed in an IDF strike in Gaza City. Defense Minister Israel Katz had already confirmed on X/Twitter earlier on Sunday, but the military always provides the final confirmation, and there have been a few instances where political officials have jumped the gun on such predictions. Sometimes, the IDF simply drops...

Most Democrats agree that they need to fight Trump more vigorously, while also focusing on economic issues. A sharper debate has opened over social and cultural issues: Should Democrats break with identity politics? WASHINGTON — The Democratic Party’s standing in public opinion polls has sunk to its lowest point in more than 30 years. Many of the party’s own voters think their leaders aren’t fighting hard enough against President Trump. In one survey, the words they used most often were “weak” and “tepid.”“The party is in shambles,” said James Carville, the political strategist who helped Bill Clinton win the White...

“Thanks to President Trump fully unleashing American energy dominance, gas prices this summer are at five-year lows and families are saving significant money at the pump. President Trump ended Joe Biden’s Green New Scam policies and is making America affordable again.”— White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, reported exclusively in Fox News.“President Trump campaigned on lowering costs and this Labor Day Weekend, the American people will see the results firsthand at the gas pump — with the lowest gas prices in years. His approach is simple and commonsense: more American energy means lower costs, more jobs, and more prosperity.” —...

[Catholic Caucus] Archbishop Cordileone: "Church Has Lost Sense of Continuity in Liturgy"Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco, USA, spoke with Rev. Javier Olivera Ravasi on YouTube about the crisis of the Church and liturgy. Main points.- A sin is a sin because it goes against our human good, not because God or clergymen have made a list of acts.- The problem with the 'new Mass' is that if it is new today, it will be old tomorrow, and thus become a thing of the past.- Young people today see how the Novus Ordo is celebrated in many parishes and view...

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani was seriously injured in a freak car accident in New Hampshire on Saturday night, a rep said. Giuliani, 81, was hospitalized with a fractured vertebrae and multiple cuts and bruises, including injuries specifically to his left arm and lower leg, after his rent-a-car was hit from behind, spokesman Michael Ragusa said Sunday. “Mayor Giuliani was flagged down by a woman who was a victim of domestic violence prior to the accident. He rendered assistance and contacted 911, remaining on scene until responding officers arrived to ensure her safety,” said Ragusa, Giuliani’s head of...

When Senator Susan Collins of Maine appeared at a ribbon-cutting in the small town of Searsport this week, protesters awaited her. A now-viral video of the event shows Collins, a moderate Republican, at something of a loss. “Shame! Shame! Shame!” protesters shouted at her, until she said, “I have a suggestion. Would you listen to the suggestion?” One protester had an idea of their own. “Vote Graham Platner!” they replied. Platner was national news by the time Collins arrived in Searsport. On August 19, he announced that would run as a Democrat to unseat Collins, who has been in the...

Writing elsewhere last month, I suggested that Donald Trump end the National Endowment for Democracy once and for all. Like most so-called “non-governmental organizations,” the NED is in fact an all-governmental organization. It depends absolutely on a subsidy from the state department, i.e., from the federal government, i.e., from the taxpayer, i.e., from you. The NED began life in the Cold War as a way of projecting “soft power” against our Communist adversaries. But as James Piereson noted in February of this year, the NED has undergone a familiar process of mission creep and moral and political entropy. “With the...

Chicago's far-left leadership just made its priorities crystal clear—criminal illegal aliens first, federal law second. Mayor Brandon Johnson (D) has signed an executive order aimed at blocking federal immigration authorities from doing their jobs in the city, even as Chicago grapples with out-of-control crime, an illegal immigration crisis, and mounting public frustration. The order openly declares that city police will not assist federal agents in arresting or removing illegal immigrants, even those with criminal records. Instead, the city’s law department has been instructed to use “any and every legal mechanism” to target the federal government for trying to enforce immigration...

[Catholic Caucus] Italian Bishop: Every Homosexual Has Right To Receive EucharistBishop Francesco Savino of Cassano all’Jonio, the vice president of the Italian Bishops' Conference, will preside over the Eucharist in the Jesuits’ church Il Gesù in Rome for the homosexual pilgrimage to St Peter’s basilica on September 6.Saint Ignatius of Loyola is buried in this church. When asked about this event, Savino told Gionata.org on August 15 that no one is excluded from the Eucharist: "The bread broken on the altar knows no barriers of birth, language, social condition, or life path."And: "The Eucharist is a welcoming womb, not a...

VIDEOThe DNC should demand a refund back from its PAID shill, Harry J Sisson. Why? Because not only is he making himself a FOOL yet again with his absurd conspiracy theories because of President Trump's "disappearance" for a few days (Hey, it's called Labor Day Weekend) but he is not eveh the least bit original. You can seen scores of similar videos of TDS TikTokkers going full Hopium that their sick "When It Happens" fantasy has finally happened because, SHOCKER, Trump announced he would be out of the public view for Labor Day Weekend. The funny thing is that when...

Notice how all of the people attacking Steve are on background? That means it's two or three deep staters who are angry that Witkoff has succeeded where they've failed. You know what this "reporter" left out to make room for anonymous quotes? The full quote from the sitting vice president, on the record. A quote from the secretary of the state, on the record. A quote from Jared Kushner, on the record. The full quote from the UK's Jonathan Powell, one of the most respected national security people in the Western World, who defended Steve vigorously from these malicious...

A decade ago today, on 31 August 2015, Angela Merkel made the unilateral decision to open Europe’s borders. The rallying cry of the German Chancellor has gone down in history: ‘Wir schaffen das’ – ‘We can do this’. If we can’t, she added, ‘if Europe fails on the question of refugees, then it won’t be the Europe we wished for’. Merkel was motivated by conflict in the Middle East, notably in Syria and Iraq, but her invitation to seek refuge in Europe was seized on by many others. Of the estimated 1.3 million people who flooded into Europe in 2015,...

In the wake of the horrific mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis on August 27, 2025, where 23-year-old Robin Westman (formerly Robert) murdered two innocent children—an 8-year-old and a 10-year-old—and wounded 17 others before taking his own life, a vile wave of misinformation has surged online. Far-right extremists, white supremacists, and self-proclaimed "Christian nationalists" have peddled the baseless lie that Westman was Jewish, attempting to twist this tragedy into fuel for their antisemitic agendas. This claim is not just false—it's a deliberate distortion designed to deflect from Westman's own rabid hatred of Jews and to perpetuate Nazi-inspired tropes...

Surge in immigration and weak economic growth spark voter backlash in France, the U.K. and GermanyLONDON—For the first time, populist or far-right parties are leading the polls in the U.K., France and Germany, the latest sign of growing voter discontent in much of the continent following years of high immigration and inflation. Far-right and anti-immigration parties have already entered government in countries such as Italy, Finland and the Netherlands. But this year marks the first time that they have been ahead in Europe’s biggest economies at the same time. That could provoke a period of political turbulence in all three...

Researchers from the Department of Clinical Neuroscience at Brighton and Sussex Medical School investigated how fast, deep breathing performed rhythmically to music can affect both subjective experiences and brain physiology. The Study The study included 42 participants across three categories: 15 who practiced breathwork remotely, 8 in a laboratory setting, and 19 inside an MRI scanner. Each participant completed a 20- to 30-minute session of cyclic breathing with no pauses while listening to music. Afterward, they completed questionnaires about their emotional and psychological state. Results showed that HVB consistently induced ASCs, often described as “oceanic boundlessness” (OBN)—a term referring to...

If you grew up in the '70s and '80s, there's a good chance that you had at least one Fisher-Price toy sitting on the living room floor, waiting to trip your dad. But these weren't just toys. Fisher-Price had a knack for shrinking the world down to kid size. A ringing doorbell on the Play Family House, an incredibly realistic "mooo" from the toy barn doors, or the oddly loud bell on the parking garage elevator, these sounds all played an important part in the soundtrack of our childhoods. FISHER-PRICE FARM Part of what made Fisher-Price toys so special (and...

President Donald Trump’s recent focus on urban crime presents a classic dilemma for Democrats. If they point out that his lurid portrait of a violent epidemic is inaccurate, they risk turning off voters who agree with him on an emotional level. But if they go along with it, they risk legitimizing his power grab. Trump and his Republican allies clearly hope to ride this issue all the way into next year’s midterms, so Democrats need to come up with a counteroffensive soon. Fortunately for them, there is a group of Democrats who know exactly how to run — and win...