Free Republic

There is a deep human impulse to whittle reality down into familiar and self-flattering fairy tales. We all gravitate toward information that validates our preconceptions and vindicates our in-groups. It is cognitively taxing to revise one’s model of the world. And it is emotionally uncomfortable to recognize fault in our allies or merit in our adversaries. So, we are all tempted to sand the jagged edges off events until they fit into ideologically convenient frames. If this impulse is universal, however, liberals (such as myself) like to believe that we are less vulnerable to it. After all, we are the...

Two minutes before Charlie Kirk died, I was searching for him on X. I knew he had just kicked off his latest round of college debate tours and I wanted to see him in action.The first video I saw from his visit to Utah Valley University showed him wearing a broad smile and tossing hats to an audience ready to celebrate him — and disagree with him. He always welcomed both sides.Then I hit refresh on my feed, and saw the unthinkable. A ghastly scene. Kirk was hit by a bullet. Blood was pouring out of his neck.At first I...

Federal agents deployed tear gas and pepper balls Friday to disperse an unruly mob of anti-ICE protesters — including a Democratic mayor — attempting to blockade an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility outside Chicago. More than 100 protesters surrounded the ICE Broadview Processing Center as they “assaulted law enforcement, threw tear gas cans, slashed tires of cars, blocked the entrance of the building, and trespassed on private property,” the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in a statement. (snip) Daniel Biss, the Democratic mayor of Evanston, Ill., was among those taking part in the demonstration. “We. Will. Not. Be. Intimidated,”...

As India corners the world’s silver and China gobbles gold, Western investors pile into sky-high tech valuations—could one major move into silver send prices rocketing in the blink of an eye?…… The Great Silver Rush: Is India Outsmarting the World? India isn’t just importing silver—they’re scooping up every ounce they can find, pushing prices through the roof and sending a signal to global markets. Can anyone stop India’s relentless pursuit of “the people’s precious metal”? What do they know that Western investors ignore? China’s Golden Appetite: Why Gold, Why Now? Just as India is flooding its vaults with silver, China...

[Catholic Caucus] African cardinal: Same-sex ‘blessings’ document ’caused a lot of harm’Cardinal Ambongo said he believes Pope Francis ‘changed his mind’ about the release of Fiducia Supplicans after speaking with the African prelate.Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu has said that Fiducia Supplicans “caused a lot of harm to the Catholic faithful” and was a “bad chapter” in Pope Francis’ pontificate.Ambongo, who is the archbishop of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, made his latest critical comments about Francis’ document permitting homosexual “blessings” during a visit to Poland for the 12th Council of Gniezno peace summit.He told OSV News that a...

The Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement has gained in ranks mostly due to the pragmatic messenger who cuts through party lines, Donald Trump; but also, because the political left went too far into the world of social crazy.For several years, traditional moderates and democrats have been turning away from the messaging of the leftist party now controlled by radical Marxists and publicly declared socialists. Almost everything they created as a point of advocacy made their following spiral into an ever-diminishing circle.Democrats are the party of censorship, gleefully cheering as conservative voices were deplatformed, demonetized, targeted by the social media...

The Democrats are launching a weeklong bid to register voters nationwide, particularly in battleground House districts as their party grapples with increasing numbers of Americans registering as Republicans. The nationwide trends in party registration – detailed in an article published in August by the New York Times – heightened concern that the Democrats’ drubbing in the 2024 election was not the one-off result of a chaotic presidential campaign won by Donald Trump and the Republicans, but rather signs of a broader shift by voters away from Democrats. While the party has in past years left voter-registration efforts in the hands...

Police arrested 64-year-old Anibal Hernandezsantana and charged him with three felonies. Hernandezsantana is being held on $200,000 bail.

64-year-old Sacramento, California man is behind bars and facing three felony charges after gunfire struck the city's ABC10 news station Friday afternoon. Police responded to the television station's building at about 1:30 p.m. following reports of a shooting, according to FOX 11 LA. Suspect Anibal Hernandezsantana was arrested and charged with assault with a deadly weapon, shooting into an occupied building and negligent discharge of a firearm, Sacramento County Jail records show.

Wisconsin farmers face a major threat to their livelihoods, as the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) is pushing a radical fee hike that could devastate auction barns, livestock dealers, and farm families statewide. The proposal would increase licensing fees for auction markets by an astonishing 1,700 percent — from $420 to $7,430 — placing enormous burdens on those who work tirelessly to keep Wisconsin’s agricultural economy alive.As U.S. Representative Tom Tiffany (R-Wis.) warned, this is not merely a matter of dollars and cents: “Democrats cannot manage a budget, so they shift the burden onto you.” “Not...

While Hillary Clinton lays relatively low and Michelle Obama kicks back in an island paradise, Chelsea Clinton has become a relentless, vocal critic of President Trump and his policies. With a signature mix of mild sarcasm and exasperation, she routinely serves up sharp commentary on the 45th president to her 1.5 million followers on Twitter. Clinton, like both of her parents, must carefully balance her resistance against the risk of appearing like a so-called sore loser. Indeed, #MAGA supporters love taunting Clinton with reminders of her mother's defeat. If the trolling irks or intimidates Clinton, it doesn't show. Instead of...

I thought I would see Charlie Kirk again.On April 10, 2025, I went to my first political event. Having closely followed politics globally and nationally for nearly five years, I was more than a little excited to attend a Turning Point USA gathering where Charlie Kirk was set to speak. I was bouncing on my toes as my father, brother, and I approached the large crowd around the tent.I remember debating heavily with myself whether I should go ask Charlie Kirk a question, because I never disagreed with him on anything. In the end, I decided I was content to...

Political change mimics a supertanker in its inertia. Turning direction proceeds imperceptibly at first. Then advances sporadically, punctuated by specific accelerating events. Progress in the new direction proceeds over decades, interspersed by backsliding episodes. Glenn Reynolds examines the operative political dynamic. The Left’s “strategy has consisted of using bullying and propaganda to convince 80% of the population that the views of 20% of the population are in the majority.” Mass gaslighting is ancient. Regimes systematically manipulate reality, making individuals doubt their perceptions, memories, and sanity. Historical revisionism (e.g., the 1619 Project) becomes necessary to support regime lies. America’s current gaslighting...

Hillary Clinton slammed President Donald Trump’s administration on Thursday for trying to “intimidate” late-night host Jimmy Kimmel. ABC announced on Wednesday that Kimmel’s show would be suspended indefinitely after the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chair Brendan Carr threatened to take action against the network. Carr’s threat came after Kimmel’s comments on the killing of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk prompted outrage from Trump’s MAGA base. CNN’s Fareed Zakaria asked Clinton whether the suspension of Kimmel was an example of “state censorship.” “I think this is a very clear example of using the power of the state to suppress speech. It is...

Former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick showed his true character this week with his response to the death of Delta State University student Demartravion “Trey” Reed. On Monday morning, Delta State University Police found Reed’s body hanging from a tree near pickleball courts. The Bolivar County Deputy Coroner’s Office ruled out foul play after their initial examination. “Based on the preliminary examination, we can confirm that the deceased did not suffer any lacerations, contusions, compound fractures, broken bones, or injuries consistent with an assault,” the Bolivar County Coroner’s Office said. “At this time, there is no evidence to suggest the individual...

In February 2023, a routine cataract surgery resulted in the death of 56-year-old Bart Writer.[1] According to a now-settled lawsuit, the surgical team members—namely the surgeon, Carl Stark Johnson, MD, and the anesthesiologist, Michael Urban, MD—were playing a game called “music bingo” during the procedure. (Music bingo, as described in the case, involved naming musical artists or songs as letters, to fill a bingo card while songs were played from Urban’s cell phone.) This game was allegedly regularly played during what were considered simple or routine surgeries. Is the OR a place for fun and games? According to notes obtained...

​Microsoft has confirmed that the September 2025 Windows security updates are causing connection issues to Server Message Block (SMB) v1 shares. The list of platforms affected by this known issue is quite extensive, as it includes both client (Windows 11 24H2/23H2/22H2 and Windows 10 22H2/21H2) and server (Windows Server 2025 and Windows Server 2022) platforms. In a service alert seen by BleepingComputer, Microsoft said this known issue affects those connecting to SMBv1 shares over the NetBIOS over TCP/IP (NetBT) networking protocol. "After installing the September 2025 Windows security update (the Originating KBs listed above) or later updates, you might fail...

In a bid to stave off an infusion of law-enforcement assets into his city by President Trump, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson declared that "the idea that law enforcement is the solution to reducing crime is a sickness. Folks commit crimes because they are desperate. Sending armed cops after them just accelerates that desperation leading to more death and destruction." Johnson went on to praise Gov. JB Pritzker's (D) "Peacekeepers" initiative, saying "rather than give up on folks with criminal records we are going to give them a chance to refocus their efforts in ways that will help the community become...

“An armed man who was posing as a member of law enforcement was arrested by Secret Service agents at the Arizona stadium where Charlie Kirk’s funeral will be held Sunday, according to reports. The man was detained by State Farm Stadium, home to the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals, in Glendale on Friday, the Secret Service told Fox News Digital.”

VIDEOAt a recent press conference in Great Britain with President Trump and Keir Starmer, the British Prime Minister brilliantly one-upped Trump on the subject of illegal immigration. After Trump finished talking about how the USA under his leadership has cut illegal immigration to zero while deporting hundreds of thousands since January 20, Keir Starmer put that record to shame by bragging that he had just deported ONE, count 'em ONE, illegal alien from Britain under the "One-In-One-Out" policy. How it works is that when Britain deports an illegal alien it must also import another illegal alien to replace the one...