Free Republic

Hello Freepers! Moments ago another track and its accompanying video off my upcoming fourth album, "Commandment," which is a concept album based on the Ten Commandments, was released. The track is a remake of the Pet Shop Boys hit single, "It's a Sin." I did the vocals on it and also played bass, drums and keys. The guitars were done by Mighty Mike Fitzgerald and some background vocals were done by the very talented Giovanna Saverino. Mixed and mastered at Palace Soundworks, Italy. I hope you enjoy it! Cosmic Order Band - It's a Sin

There are many sources to reference, but China has cut off energy imports form the US since Trump's Trade Wars. Many in the diplomatic community could see Blinken/Biden dropped the ball on Brics but Trump also recognized the damage to USD dominated trade posed by Brics. In June 2025, China imported zero crude oil, zero liquefied natural gas (LNG), and virtually zero coal from the United States. Both oil and coal ended completely; however, China continued to honor LNG Contracs but rerouted all the LNG at a profit to Europe. One year eariler, China had been a major importer of...

Bill Pulte, President Donald Trump's housing finance chief, repeatedly declined to offer any details about where he got the "tip" that led him to accuse Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook of mortgage fraud..."I'm not going to explain our sources and methods, where we get tips from, who are whistleblowers," Pulte said on CNBC's "Squawk Box."

The lights are off, the house is quiet and nothing seems to be running. But electricity is silently flowing through the plugs in your home. This hidden drain is known as phantom energy. Also called vampire energy, the wasted electricity comes from leaving devices plugged in when they’re not in use.

These are the latest polls of the New York City mayoral election. Use the dropdown below to see polls about hypothetical matchups in the race. Polls from “select pollsters” meet certain criteria for reliability and are shown with a diamond.

Australia and Nauru signed an agreement on Friday to allow the Australian government to deport formerly detained people without valid visas to the tiny island nation, the Australian Associated Press reported. Under the memorandum of understanding, Australia will pay Nauru 408 million Australian dollars ($267 million) up front once the first people arrive, followed by 70 million Australian dollars ($46 million) annually for the resettlement. The move is being slammed by refugee advocates, some of whom say the deal could open the door to mass deportations without notice. Human rights organizations have protested deportations to Nauru since a report by...

A former Kentucky sheriff charged with killing a county judge remained in an “active state of psychosis” days after the shooting and battled with jail staff, who had to use pepper spray on him, according to recently filed court documents. Former Letcher County Sheriff Shawn “Mickey” Stines is charged with killing District Judge Kevin Mullins in his chambers nearly a year ago, shocking the small eastern Kentucky community that twice elected Stines as sheriff. Widely viewed security camera footage from Mullins’ chambers shows a man police identified as Stines pointing a gun and firing at Mullins. The ex-sheriff has pleaded...

To call last week’s mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, Minnesota, a “tragedy” would ignore the culpability of the shooter, Robert Westman—a man who identified as “Robin,” a woman. Victor Davis Hanson explains why this was not simply a tragedy, but an act of evil, and why the media and political leaders refuse to have an honest discussion about the factors behind it on today’s episode of “Victor Davis Hanson: In His Own Words.” “They won't have any discussion over transgenderism. This falls in the broader category of exempt DEI woke topics, but I think we should talk...

Mount Fuji is the tallest peak in Japan, with a height of 3,776 meters (12,388 feet). Image credit: Tomáš Malík/Shutterstock.com The Tokyo Metropolitan Government has released a video containing AI-generated imagery to warn what would happen if Mount Fuji erupted in the 21st century. While there’s no suggestion the volcano is set to blow any time soon, an eruption within the next century would not be totally unexpected – and the impact on Tokyo would be significant. The video (below) was released by Japanese local authorities on August 22, 2025, as part of the newly designated Volcano Disaster Preparedness Day,...

Facetotectans (aka y-larvae) have been a mystery since their discovery in the 1800s. Scientists are unsure of what they grow up to become, but we now know where these crustaceans fit in the tree of life. This image shows a cypris larvae, or y-cyprid. Credit: Niklas Dreyer Y-larvae, mysterious crustaceans related to barnacles, may be parasitic and are key to understanding barnacle evolution. When most people think of barnacles, they imagine shell-like organisms clinging to boats, docks, or even whales. Yet some barnacles go far beyond passive attachment — they can actually invade and take over their hosts. “Instead of...

A breakthrough pill has proven to lower dangerous, treatment-resistant blood pressure, offering new hope to millions at risk of heart disease and stroke. Credit: Shutterstock A powerful new pill has been shown to bring down stubbornly high blood pressure that resists standard treatments, according to results from a landmark global trial. The drug, baxdrostat, lowered blood pressure by nearly 10 mmHg on average — enough to slash the risk of heart attack, stroke, and kidney failure. Breakthrough Trial Shows New Hope Around the world, an estimated 1.3 billion people live with high blood pressure (hypertension). In roughly half of these...

Seven months in, Trump has curbed illegal immigration, steadied the economy, and scored foreign policy wins—while Democrats flounder without a counteragenda. Trump’s greatest achievement within six months was simply ending illegal immigration as we had once known it—without “comprehensive immigration reform” or any other rhetorical trickery. It remains difficult to find, much less deport, the 10 to 12 million illegal aliens who entered in the last four years. Those who helped break the law, by design or indifference, now believe it was moral to destroy federal immigration law but immoral to uphold it. And it is still unclear whether Joe...

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary General Mark Rutte insisted on Thursday that Russia does not get to decide whether the alliance will deploy its troops in Ukraine. Speaking at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Prague Defence Summit, Rutte stressed that it is Ukraine's decision if it wants NATO's troops to act as security guarantee forces in its territory once a peace deal is struck, as it is a sovereign country. He also urged the public to stop portraying Russian President Vladimir Putin as "too powerful." Furthermore, Rutte expressed his worries about China outpacing NATO in building military...

VALRICO, Fla. - Gov. Ron DeSantis announced on Wednesday that Florida is establishing a Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission at the state level. The governor’s announcement came at a news conference in Valrico on Wednesday morning. The initiative mirrors that of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at the federal level. Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo made a second announcement on behalf of the state during Wednesday’s news conference, saying that the Florida Department of Health will work with DeSantis to end all vaccine mandates in the state. "Every last one of them," Ladapo repeated...

🇺🇸Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem 🇮🇱(9/4/25)[Prayer]Water, Rivers, and Streams in the BibleJonah 1:17 17 Now the Lord provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.________________________

The crisis of the German economy is accelerating. The latest figures from the Federal Statistical Office show a sharp increase in job losses across the industrial sector. On Tuesday morning, consultancy firm EY released alarming numbers based on official data: Germany’s industrial sector has been shedding jobs at a dramatic pace across nearly all segments. Over the past twelve months alone, the industry lost a cumulative 114,000 jobs -- a 2.1% decline in total employment. Since 2019, the year before the COVID lockdowns, a staggering 245,000 jobs have disappeared in German industry, representing a 4.3% contraction. What was once considered...

Since April 1, 2025, there has been dozens of petitions filed to the United States Supreme Court involving Second Amendment challenges. Washington Gun Law President, William Kirk, gives you a quick rundown of where each of these cases are about, so that you can arm yourself with education.

An oversized load struck an overpass on Interstate 70 westbound at Highway 58 in Wheat Ridge on Wednesday, causing delays. The Wheat Ridge Police Department said at 10:30 a.m. that its crews were at the scene to inspect the damage and that there were no injuries to report.

4 September 2025Thursday of week 22 in Ordinary Time Saint Rose Church in Viterbo, Italy Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: Green. Year: C(I).First readingColossians 1:9-14God has taken us out of the power of darknessEver since the day we heard about you, we have never failed to pray for you, and what we ask God is that through perfect wisdom and spiritual understanding you should reach the fullest knowledge of his will. So you will be able to lead the kind of life which the Lord expects of you, a life acceptable to him in all its aspects; showing the results...

Unfortunately for the West, the Muslim world understands the game’s optimal strategy, while the West is barely showing up. In the board game RISK, the goal is world domination. You achieve that by battling other players within and across continents. The best strategy is to take and hold Australia. Once secured, you can build up your troops while defending the single point of access to keep your opponents at bay, then attack in a methodical style and slowly expand. This strategy doesn’t always work, but the notion of finding an easily defendable base where you can husband resources and use...