Free Republic

For many Americans, the gap between Christian teachings and MAGA politics is baffling. How can people profess faith in Jesus ― who preached love, mercy and care for the oppressed ― while supporting policies that punish immigrants, demonize LGBTQ people and glorify cruelty? The key to understanding this apparent contradiction might lie in something called “vertical morality.”

Mexican authorities are searching for dozens of missing people and struggling to supply aid to thousands more who were caught off guard by torrential rains that drenched several parts of the country, causing severe damage over the weekend.Officials said Monday that 64 people had been killed and 65 were missing across five affected states near the Gulf of Mexico.The toll is expected to increase in the coming days as search and rescue teams continue to reach areas cut off by landslides.President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Monday morning that her administration estimated that roughly 100,000 homes were affected by flooding and...

The biggest challenge China faces right now isn’t the Trump administration and its campaign to decouple the world’s two biggest economies. It comes from within: China is experiencing population decline on a scale and at a speed the world has never seen. This will create ripples that will be felt across China and the world for decades to come. The impact on China’s long-term growth rate could imperil Beijing’s mission to become a global power to rival or replace the United States. And the huge shortage of labor will potentially affect supply chains of products including Barbie dolls, shoes, mobile...

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel and Hamas moved ahead on a key first step of the tenuous Gaza ceasefire agreement on Monday by freeing hostages and prisoners, raising hopes that the U.S.-brokered deal might lead to a permanent end to the two-year war that ravaged the Palestinian territory.But thornier issues such as whether Hamas will disarm and who will govern Gaza — and the question of Palestinian statehood — remain unresolved, highlighting the fragility of an agreement that for now only pauses the deadliest conflict in the history of Israel and the Palestinians. For Israelis, the release of the 20 remaining...

The maximum weekly unemployment insurance (UI) benefit has increased for unemployed workers across the state. As part of the 2026 State Budget, the State invested nearly $7 billion to pay off the federal UI Trust Fund loan, and bring the fund to solvency and increase the maximum weekly benefit from $504 to $869. Governor Kathy Hochul said the increase in UI benefits comes at the same time as the GOP federal shutdown impacts 115,000 federal employees in New York, leaving them without paychecks. New York State Department of Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon said, “Increasing the maximum weekly unemployment insurance benefit...

Watch live: SpaceX launches Starship Flight 11, finale of Block 2 upper stage | [about an hour to go] Spaceflight Now | 380K subscribers [many] watching now | Started streaming 54 minutes ago

Animal rights groups are now calling on the Canadian government to intervene and seize the whales.Over two dozen beluga whales at the now-defunct Marineland amusement in Niagara Falls, Ontario, could be put down, as reported by Buffalo Toronto Public Media.The park said that if it doesn't get a commitment for financial help, it would have to start euthanizing the 30 beluga whales.The Canadian Fisheries Minister said Marineland is responsible for the whales, but Marineland said it has no other option after permits were denied to export the whales to China.Animal rights groups are now calling on the Canadian government to...

Mayoral front-runner Zohran Mamdani fundraised for an infamous United Nations relief agency with well-documented ties to Hamas over the weekend — drawing outrage from Republican North Country Rep. Elise Stefanik. Stefanik, who has said she’ll run in next year’s gubernatorial election, also tore into Gov. Kathy Hochul over her support for the Democratic mayoral nominee, Mamdani, as she denounced him as an “antisemite.” “On the eve of all the living hostages held by Hamas terrorists finally returning home, @KathyHochul endorsed Antisemite Communist NYC Mayor candidate is raising funds for an organization that participated in the October 7th terrorist attacks and...

For two excruciating years, I have called for the return of the hostages brutally kidnapped on October 7th and held in Gaza. Today is a good day. Surviving Israeli hostages are finally home and reuniting with loved ones. I'm thinking of them and their families on this joyful day and praying for their full recovery. I'm also grieving for all those who can't come home today. Today must also be an important step toward lasting peace in the region — peace for both Israelis and Palestinians. We must end the war in Gaza, surge humanitarian aid, and negotiate a two-state...

A Dallas-based auto lender once praised by the U.S. Treasury for “community development” has filed for bankruptcy amid allegations of fraud and financial misconduct, leaving major U.S. banks facing heavy losses. Tricolor Holdings, which specialized in selling used cars and providing loans to illegal immigrants, built its business model on customers who could not qualify for traditional financing, according to Revolver News, which first reported the company’s collapse. The company charged high interest rates and above-market vehicle prices, marketing the program as “social lending.” Subsequent reporting by Barron’s and state regulators confirmed that Tricolor had repeatedly been cited for delayed...

Somebody told me there was a H-1B application for a head pickleball professional, so I had to look it up. Sure enough. (Jumbo's pickleball) https://guestworkervisas.com/gwv/h1bjunkiesviewtest.php?jobtitle=pickleball

The 2020 census was marketed as an “actual enumeration,” a neutral count of people for apportionment and funding. It was not. The same official who helped block a basic citizenship question in 2018, John M. Abowd, then the Census Bureau’s Chief Scientist, pushed through a new, opaque methodology in 2020 called differential privacy. The new system deliberately injected mathematical noise into every block count in America, turning the census from a headcount into a model with knobs. The knob that mattered most was a single parameter, epsilon, a secrecy shroud known only to a small inner circle. Abowd argued that...

Summary China detains dozens of underground church pastors Crackdown heralds new wave of religious persecution, church spokesperson says U.S.'s Rubio condemns detentions, urges pastors' release BEIJING, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Police in China detained dozens of pastors of one of its largest underground churches over the weekend, a church spokesperson and relatives said, in the biggest crackdown on Christians since 2018. The detentions, which come amid renewed China-U.S. tensions after Beijing dramatically expanded rare earth export controls last week, drew condemnation from Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who called on Sunday for the pastors' immediate release. Pastor Jin Mingri, the...

Doug Lebda, the founder and chief executive of LendingTree, died unexpectedly in an all-terrain vehicle accident over the weekend, the company announced Monday. He was 55. The online lending marketplace said in a statement that Lebda’s death occurred Sunday and described him as a “visionary leader whose relentless drive, innovation and passion transformed the financial services landscape, touching the lives of millions of consumers.” The Charlotte-based company’s board appointed president and chief operating officer Scott Peyree as president and CEO, effective immediately, and named Steve Ozonian, a longtime director, as chairman of the board. “The news of losing Doug was...

North Carolina Republican lawmakers announced plans Monday to redraw their state's congressional map, part of a nationwide redistricting effort aimed at shoring up the party's narrow majority in the U.S. House ahead of next year's midterm elections. “President Trump earned a clear mandate from the voters of North Carolina and the rest of the country, and we intend to defend it by drawing an additional Republican Congressional seat,” North Carolina House Speaker Destin Hall said in a statement. Under North Carolina's current map, Republicans control 10 House seats to Democrats' four. To give Republicans another seat, the GOP-controlled Legislature could...

A New Jersey county that could play a decisive role in the next month’s statewide elections will be reprinting its general election ballots after the Republican National Committee successfully argued that a ballot redesign unlawfully favored Democrats.The dispute began late last month when Democratic County Clerk James Hogan replaced Gloucester County’s legally required party-column ballot format, where each political party’s candidates appear under a single vertical heading, with an office-block layout that grouped all candidates for each race together, regardless of party.Republicans argued the change undermined their visibility on the ballot and blunted their “Vote Column A” campaign after winning...

The United Kingdom has slapped 4Chan with a £20,000 (around $26,000) fine in a bid to clamp down on platforms that are hindering Online Safety Act (OSA) investigations. UK telecoms regulator Ofcom says the fine was issued after the controversial social media site ignored “legally-binding information requests” related to global revenue and its illegal harms risk assessment. Starting from tomorrow, 4Chan additionally faces a daily penalty of £100 (around $133) for either 60 days or until 4Chan complies with the information requests, up to a maximum of £6,000 (around $8,000). “Today sends a clear message that any service which flagrantly...

PUSHMATAHA COUNTY, Okla. (KTEN) — An Antlers woman was killed and her mother was seriously injured after being struck by a pickup truck in Pushmataha County late Saturday night. Oklahoma Highway Patrol deputies said 46-year-old Heather Linn-Schutt and her daughter, Emma Marie Linn, 22, were involved in a physical altercation in the northbound lane of State Highway 2 north of Antlers at 10:15 p.m. As the women were fighting, they were struck by a pickup truck driven by a Plano, Texas man

In America today, our two major political parties are moving in opposite directions. For Republicans, it might be the “best of times.” Under the leadership of President Donald Trump, the GOP is feeling confident. Republicans have a strong chance to retain control of the Congress in 2026 midterm elections despite the party out of power traditionally gaining many new seats. This political environment is different. President Trump has had an incredibly successful first nine months of his second term and this will help Republicans in the midterm elections. After four years of no border security under the previous administration, it...

Daniel had predicted the exact day Israel’s Messiah would arrive (69 weeks of years; 173,880 days after the command to restore and rebuild Jerusalem on the Jewish calendar; Dan. 9:25; Neh. 2:1-8). That day had arrived. He and His 12 disciples were walking toward Jerusalem. They were approaching the towns of Bethpage and Bethany on the Mount of Olives (Luke 19:29). He sent two of the 12 ahead to look for a colt that had never been ridden and to bring it to Him. They found the colt, took it back to Jesus, cast their garments on the colt, set...