Free Republic

Imagine a robot that could do your laundry, make your bed, cook your dinner, or stock the dairy section at your local grocery store. Humans have long been able to teach robots how to do individual tasks, but instructing them on these more sophisticated jobs has been an elusive goal, despite billions of dollars invested into robotics. Robots with neurotic personalities, a la C-3PO of Star Wars fame, can come off as relatable to people, a new study finds. Now, a team of scientists in Switzerland has made progress in the quest to invent helpful robots that can act on...

East Village residents who voted for New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani by a 40-point margin are now suing to stop a building in their neighborhood from becoming a temporary homeless shelter. The lawsuit, filed with the New York City Supreme Court on Monday, shows hesitation even among Mamdani supporters about the cost of implementing some of his plans. News of the lawsuit has prompted conservative mockery online, with figures like Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, noting the irony of Mamdani’s supporters turning on the fruits of his administration. "Oops," Sen. Ted Cruz said in a post to X. New York City...

Following direct remarks from both Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, a triggered Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney says the U.S. will not be permitted to dictate terms of the USMCA renegotiation, now scheduled for formal talks with Mexico only beginning May 25th. According to the Canadian leadership they do not need the United States in order to maintain their economy. The unfortunate people of Canada are very close to finding out exactly what that level of arrogance delivers. USTR Jamieson Greer was just in Mexico meeting with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and the Mexican trade...

I have three monitors on my desk. The left one shows the order book. The middle one shows Truth Social. The right one shows the investigation queue. On April 21st, the left screen moved first. I am a Senior Surveillance Analyst at a commodities exchange. I have held this position for nineteen years. My job is to monitor trading activity for suspicious patterns and generate compliance reports. I am employee of the quarter. I have a mug. At 19:54 GMT on April 21st, someone placed 4,260 sell orders on Brent crude futures. They did this during post-settlement. The window after...

[Catholic Caucus] Pope Leo XIV affirms informal blessing for homosexual couples and downplays sexual sinPope Leo affirmed the position outlined in Fiducia Supplicans of informal blessings for those in homosexual unions while opposing a ‘formalized blessing,’ as proposed by German Cardinal Marx.On a return flight from Africa Thursday, Pope Leo XIV responded to a question about the Church in Germany issuing formalized blessings for homosexual couples, saying that the Vatican has objected. He made it clear, however, that the impromptu blessings of homosexual couples and couples in adulterous unions was still permitted as the Vatican document Fiducia Supplicans teaches, contrary...

The Justice Department on Friday dropped its criminal investigation into Fed Chairman Jerome Powell. This clears the way for Trump’s Fed Chair nominee Kevin Warsh to be confirmed. Senator Thom Tillis vowed to block Trump’s Fed Chair confirmation until the Justice Department dropped its investigation into Powell. US Attorney Jeanine Pirro made the announcement on Friday morning: "This morning the Inspector General for the Federal Reserve has been asked to scrutinize the building costs overruns – in the billions of dollars – that have been borne by taxpayers. The IG has the authority to hold the Federal Reserve accountable to...

Russian President Vladimir Putin could travel to the G20 summit in Miami in December, the Kremlin said on Friday after U.S. President ​Donald Trump suggested it would be very helpful if he did attend and that it had been a mistake to expel Russia from the G8. The United States has invited Russia to the annual meeting of Group of 20 countries that Washington is holding this year in Miami, and Moscow has accepted the invitation, a U.S. official familiar with the matter said on Friday. Putin has not attended a G20 summit since 2019 due to the COVID pandemic...

Too Woke for this state's attorney. Watch video...

In the last few years, there has been a trend by recruiters and companies to 'ghost' candidates. Ghosting is the act of ceasing ALL communication with a candidate in the hiring process. It can happen at the initial contact, all the way to final interviews. I've even heard of ghosting happening after an acceptance letter was sent! I feel this is utterly unacceptable. I feel it is important for us all to reprimand recruiters (and companies, for that matter) and chide them when they ghost. I know, I know, they may not g.a.s., but still, I feel it is crucial...

The Justice Department on Friday dropped a criminal investigation into the Federal Reserve and its leader, Chair Jerome Powell, regarding a renovation project at the central bank's Washington headquarters. "This morning the Inspector General for the Federal Reserve has been asked to scrutinize the building costs overruns – in the billions of dollars – that have been borne by taxpayers," said U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro in a post on X. "Accordingly, I have directed my office to close our investigation as the IG undertakes this inquiry."

Varney then concluded by noting that it seems as though Hemingway was calling Trump's current situation a "disaster" for not only him, but for the Senate and the House. Following the Fox Business broadcast, eager viewers flooded social media with their thoughts on Varney and Hemingway's discussion. Taking to X, one Fox Business viewer pointed out, "Even @FoxNews acknowledges that nearly 70% disapprove of Trump's handling of things."

RT 39 m 14 e I've been messing around with AI and guitar history for a while now... and honestly, I had to film this. In this video, I sit down with ChatGPT and quiz it on guitar pedal history - the Tube Screamer, the Big Muff, the Maestro FZ-1, DOD, JHS, Jimi Hendrix's rig... the works. And what you're about to watch is kind of alarming. It hallucinates pedals that don't exist. It agrees with things I KNOW are wrong when I push back. It confidently states dates it can't actually source. And then when I ask it to...

Sitting on bench seats in a retrofitted old hearse, stuck in quintessentially choked Los Angeles highway traffic, I listened to a woman narrate the macabre details of an 80-year-old murder. The guide, Blaze Lovejoy—whose business card identified her as a “dark storyteller” and “Manson specialist”—had already driven us through Hollywood. Now she was bringing us to downtown Los Angeles, the heart of this particular darkness. Lovejoy wore combat boots with flames across the toes and had a microphone headset on, her British accent giving the narration a Vincent Price vibe: “A Hollywood dream turned to a real-life nightmare, with a...

24 APRIL 2026 According to a US EIA release, China had the largest strategic oil reserves in the world as of as of December 2025, before the coordinated emergency release agreed following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz (US EIA press release, 20/04/2026). According to analysis, China added large volumes to its commercial inventory during 2025 (average of 1.1 mbl/d) reaching almost 1.4 Gbl of crude oil at the end of the year. Since government-held inventories are not reported by China, the EIA estimated that they held approximately 360 mbl. After China, the US held the second largest inventory....

A mother whose teenage son was jailed for assault after he was filmed slamming a classmate to the ground and stomping on her face claims her boy is the victim. The mother alleged her son did not instigate the incident, but said that he will 'lash out' if he is provoked. She further denied the suggestion that he was upset the victim refused to give him her number, claiming the pair are friends and text frequently

The police just came to my office and confiscated all my firearms. Just happened.

Seattle could lose hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue as Starbucks expands operations in Tennessee, a local outlet estimates. Fox 13 Seattle reported Tuesday that the Emerald City "could lose up to $750 million in tax revenue in the coming years as Starbucks expands in Tennessee instead of Washington." In a press release Tuesday, Starbucks announced it will invest $100 million and bring 2,000 new jobs to Nashville. "Starbucks has major plans for its newest business location, where it will employ up to 2,000 people over the next several years to serve in a variety of corporate-related operations,"...

BEIJING: China's Commerce Ministry said on Friday (Apr 24) it was banning exports of dual-use items to seven European entities over arms sales to Taiwan, placing them immediately on its export control list, in a rare case of Europe-targeted, Taiwan-related sanctions. The entities, including German defence electronics firm Hensoldt and Belgian-based defence and sporting arms manufacturer FN Browning, have participated in arms sales to Taiwan or "colluded with Taiwan", a commerce ministry spokesperson said in a statement.

We’re now more than three weeks past the mandatory April 1 deadline for New York’s annual state budget. So far, few details have emerged about the reasons for the delay. Negotiations are supposedly taking place among the Governor and the leaders of the two houses of the State Legislature. But what are the sticking points? It is likely that by far the biggest, if not the only significant sticking point is what to do about the impending deadlines of the troublesome Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act of 2019, or CLCPA. This Act sets required “renewable” energy and emissions reductions...

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