Free Republic

The biggest story of 2025, to judge from the number of people who sent it to me, was this raccoon: In case you somehow missed this story: In late November, this raccoon got into a state liquor store in Ashland, Va., by falling though the ceiling. Once inside, the raccoon ransacked the store, leaving a trail of broken bottles... ...and apparently consuming a large quantity of booze before passing out in the bathroom next to the toilet. That’s where the raccoon was found by a store employee, who called an animal-control officer, who took it to an animal shelter. When...

We have frozen all child care payments to the state of Minnesota. You have probably read the serious allegations that the state of Minnesota has funneled millions of taxpayer dollars to fraudulent daycares across Minnesota over the past decade. Today we have taken three actions against the blatant fraud that appears to be rampant in Minnesota and across the country: 1. I have activated our defend the spend system for all ACF payments. Starting today, all ACF payments across America will require a justification and a receipt or photo evidence before we send money to a state. 2. Alex Adams...

Over the past few years, Minnesota has become ground zero for what federal prosecutors now call “industrial-scale” fraud targeting taxpayer-funded social programs. What began as a single high-profile case exploiting COVID-era child nutrition funds has snowballed into revelations of potentially **$9 billion or more** stolen across multiple programs—mostly Medicaid-funded services. The schemes share common threads: shell entities, fake billing for services never provided, kickbacks, and luxury spending or transfers abroad. Here’s a clear, chronological breakdown of how it started, how it grew, and where things stand today. The Spark: Feeding Our Future and Aimee BockThe scandal traces its public origins...

CHRISTMAS BIBLE-ART EPISODE #19 of 33 SHEPHERDS, FIRST TO SEE THE SAVIOR L U K E CHAPTER 2 She gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good...

VIDEOHappy New Year to everybody! The year 2025 is ending on a very high note especially since I found out that Scott Jennings must be viewer of the DUmmie FUnnies. How do I know this? Because on December 30 Scott caused yet another meltdown among the liberal CNN crew by mentioning that the Lt. Governor of Minnesota by wearing a hijab was dressed up like the "Handmaid's Tale." Before that very apt observation no other media outlet or figure made that comparison EXCEPT for the DUmmie FUnnies three days earlier on December 27 with a video on this very topic...

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., was at the forefront of expanding federal funding for pandemic-era food and childcare programs. Those programs are now at the center of fraud allegations among the Somali immigrant community in her home state. Omar, who represents a congressional district with a sizable Somali population in Minneapolis, championed the MEALS Act in 2020 at the height of the pandemic and offered an amendment that would allow the federal government the ability to grant waivers to state governments for increased costs. Omar introduced the Act with the goal of removing oversight barriers to the expansion of federally funded...

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy hammered California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) on Tuesday, accusing him of lying about a supposed extension for revoking thousands of commercial driver's licenses (CDLs) issued to non-citizens. Duffy has long been trying to crack down on the practice of issuing CDLs to truckers who, at times, struggle to understand English or read basic road signs. As common sense would dictate, having such drivers on the road is a dangerous (and sometimes deadly) proposition. The Secretary's fiery retort follows a report that the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) was granting a 60-day extension to approximately 17,000...

Japan is restarting the world's largest nuclear power plant, after a 15-year shutdown following the Fukushima disaster. Nuclear power used to account for over 30% of Japan's national electricity, so seeing these reactors come back online restores a key pillar of Japan's energy system. Japan's mountainous terrain forced each region to establish large, redundant energy systems; therefore, the return of nuclear power gives Japan surplus capacity and flexibility in an otherwise stagnant environment. With the global energy trade growing more unreliable by the day, Japan is now better positioned than most to weather the storm.

Iran has been gripped by demonstrations amid the country's economic crisis, with social discontent fueling open protest against the regime. Media and authorities have pinned the blame on foreign intelligence services. Thousands of people have protested in Iran in recent days against the dramatic devaluation of the currency, amid an economic crisis that has engulfed the country. What began as a strike by shopkeepers and bazaar merchants on Sunday has become an outcry of political anger, with some even chanting "Death to the dictator!" The spontaneous protests have already spread from Tehran to other cities, such as Isfahan and Mashhad.

More than 2,800 pounds of grass-fed ground beef has been recalled over possible E. coli contamination. “Mountain West Food Group, LLC, a Heyburn, Idaho establishment, is recalling approximately 2,855 pounds of raw ground beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O26,” the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced. Nearly 3,000 pounds of ground beef across six states was recalled on Saturday due to possible E. coli contamination, the Department of Agriculture said. https://t.co/rVv3fSebPC pic.twitter.com/2aeSpqRZkp— Yahoo News (@YahooNews) December 30, 2025Fox Business has more: The “Forward Farms Grass-Fed Ground Beef” items packed in 16-ounce...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3JfOxx6Hh4 In this video, we walk through the anti-consumer AI circlejerk contributing to what we think is an "AI bubble." NVIDIA, AMD, and Intel are now all sort of working with each other, despite also being the only competitors in some of their market segments. This creates opportunity, we think, for price fixing and anti-consumer collusion; at the same time, the three are now crossing over in their partnerships with OpenAI, CoreWeave, Oracle, xAI, and other AI-obsessed companies demanding more AI pickaxes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3JfOxx6Hh4

BREAKING: In response to the massive daycare fraud being exposed by independent journalists using state websites, WA State Senator Lisa Wellman has pre-filed legislation to hide information about daycares and their operators from the public

A recent video by conservative YouTuber Nick Shirley alleged nearly a dozen day care centers in Minnesota that are receiving public funds are not actually providing any service. After the video went viral, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem announced a "massive investigation on childcare and other rampant fraud" in the state. CBS News conducted its own analysis of nearly a dozen day care centers mentioned by Shirley: all but two have active licenses, according to state records, and all active locations were visited by state regulators within the last six months. CBS News' review also found dozens of citations related to...

Alternative media outlets have spotlighted the Somalia money laundering, tax evasion, and financing of illicit activities that mainstream news sources have ignored. Their investigations reveal elaborate scams within Minnesota's Somali community, spanning child nutrition, autism therapy, housing stabilization, and child-care programs, and exposing the loss of billions in taxpayer dollars. An often-overlooked aspect of racketeering involves Hawala dealers, a money-transfer system that allows Somalis to send funds locally and internationally. These dealers also offer money orders, debit card issuance, and check cashing, providing anonymity and requiring minimal documentation. Such money transmitters create opportunities for fraud and money laundering. When the...

A "Reaction Video" from a "reaction" couple, which are great (Bikkuri personal opinion, and one of my favorite couples)... They have been one of my favorites to watch.. a different generation, whom no one would expect to even listen to our generation, nor type of music.. (I avoid 'U-Tube' as much as possible, but some things can't be avoided.)

🇺🇸Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem 🇮🇱(12/31/25)[Prayer]Countdown To The New YearMatthew 6:9-149 “This, then, is how you should pray: “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation,[a] but deliver us from the evil one.[b]’ 14 For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do...

here are few places on earth more symbolically American -- or more globally recognizable -- than New York City’s Times Square. It is a commercial crossroads, a cultural billboard, and increasingly, a battleground for ideological messaging. That’s why many New Yorkers and visitors were understandably bewildered -- if not outright angered -- by a massive green digital display dominating Times Square just before Christmas proclaiming: JESUS WAS PALESTINIAN. The color choice was no accident. Green is the traditional color of Islam, and the message itself was plainly political. Online reactions quickly labeled the display “divisive,” “inflammatory,” and “inappropriate.” Yet the...

At a press briefing, NYC Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani said he'd work with union leaders to end horse carriages in Central Park, and hire 200 lawyers to "Trump-proof" the city. Transcript linked below video.

It was somewhat surprising, and a little dispiriting to me, the number of counter-arguments that - even at the website of a far-right madman - framed what is now an existential crisis for the entire west in sentimentalist and pseudo-mystical terms, if not explicitly left-wing ones - such as "nation of immigrants". As to the broader arguments about America as a "proposition nation", here is one response to Vivek Ramaswamy:Cernovich @Cernovich · Follow Everyone claiming America is a creedal nation should move to Liberia - a country with a Constitution broader and more protective of civil rights than our own....

The welfare state is one giant scam. Once you start handing out money, much of it will be stolen. And the more they steal, the more thieves will show up and at that point you either cut off the dough or go bankrupt. If you look at our federal, state and local budgets, they’ve been climbing, so the thievery is only getting worse. The Somalis are only the tip of the iceberg. A US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) report found more than $5 billion in taxpayer funds went to “questionable” rental assistance recipients during the final year...