Free Republic

A rare fungal infection that can strike healthy people is rising across the U.S., prompting calls from public health officials for heightened awareness and national tracking. Cladophialophora bantiana (C. bantiana) is a black yeast-like mold that can infect the brain and contains a dark pigment called melanin, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Data from a microbiology laboratory at the University of Washington shows that detection of the fungus nearly quadrupled between 2023 and 2025. Between January 2009 and July 2026, researchers identified 48 confirmed cases and one probable case of C. bantiana...

They’re on the interstate in Texas and can do almost everything a human truck driver does, except honkOn a busy freight corridor, the 240 miles of I-45 between Dallas and Houston, it was bumper-to-bumper, like usual, when something out-of-the-ordinary happened. A big rig let in several cars from the on-ramp. Another 18-wheeler changed lanes to make space for a truck pulled over on the shoulder.Neither honked its horn—the baritone blasts anyone who has ever driven a hatchback can’t forget.They’re driverless trucks: they don’t need to honk and can’t on their own, said Aurora Innovation, a major driverless trucker. The trucks...

***** Tunes For Our Troops ~ The Freeper Canteen Presents: "Numbers" Music *****~ Support The Artists You Hear Throughout The Canteen ! ~ ***** Warning: Not all music may be appropriate for children! Please click with caution. Thank you! Tunes For The Troops This music is provided for the entertainment of our Troops, Veterans, Allies & their families! Enjoy the variety of musical selections that the Canteen DJs provide throughout the thread. Please ping any DJ with your requests for the Troops! All music is removed on Monday.Thanks to all the DJs for their time & effort providing entertainment...

Congressional Democrats on the House Armed Services and Intelligence committees are demanding President Donald Trump explain why Ukrainian forces’ access to SpaceX Starshield services was restricted earlier this week. In a letter first reported by MS NOW, Rep. Jason Crow, D-Co., ranking member of the Armed Services Committee; Adam Smith, D-Wash., ranking member of the Select Committee on Intelligence; Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn.; and Rep. George Whitesides, D-Calif., lambasted the Trump administration for refusing to respond to congressional inquiries on who directed changes to Ukraine’s access to Starshield, the military-grade version of Starlink services. The lawmakers were not satisfied with...

Thieves swiped voters’ mail-in ballots from a post office in the Bay Area, sparking fears of election fraud after another theft of ballots last week. The San Mateo County Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder’s Office said in a Thursday press release that it was notified that the election forms were recently stolen from a US Postal Service Office in Daly City, including mail-in ballots from San Mateo County voters. The county, located just south of San Francisco, and the US Postal Service are actively investigating the theft. It’s unclear how many ballots were stolen, the county said. The county’s election division encouraged voters...

"You called Ukraine a disgrace for attacking Russia. You want Zelensky out. Have you forgotten that it's President Putin who started the war?" Guttierez asked. "Well, you know, I know the details, okay?" Trump answered. "And at some point, I'll release the details. But I don't care anything except for one. I want that war ended." "Twenty-five thousand soldiers on average a month are being killed. Last month, 32,000 soldiers," Trump said. "And I think the two leaders, I do, with both of them— I think they want that war ended, too. And I think it's going to end. That's...

Rep. Ilhan Omar’s father was a “feared” colonel in the Somali National Army (SNA), far from the “educator” he was presented to Americans as, a veteran who served in his regiment claimed to The Post. Nur Omar Mohamed has been accused of hiding his military past from US authorities when he arrived and claimed asylum with his family in 1995 — which could have disqualified him from claiming refugee status. A retired military officer still living in Somalia has spoken out for the first time to shed light on the “career soldier” who was a trusted operator in dictator Siad...

Guess what? You HAVE lived long enough to see an actual flying car.Amazing times indeed. We Went To The Tesla Roadster Event | 4K~Easy

WASHINGTON — President Trump said he dined Thursday night with comedian Bill Maher, musician Kid Rock and sports commentator Stephen A. Smith. “I think they had a good time. We talked about everything, it lasted a long time,” Trump told reporters Friday as he left the White House for a campaign trip to Georgia. “Even though they have to sort of put on a certain little facade for their people, they like Trump, and I actually like them. We had a great time.” “We even took a little tour of the ballroom. We went inside the ballroom with beams that...

The Justice Department under the Biden administration opened an investigation into Representative Ilhan Omar, Democrat of Minnesota, in 2024 to scrutinize her finances, campaign spending and interactions with a foreign citizen, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The inquiry, initiated by the U.S. attorney’s office in Washington and the department’s public integrity unit in June of that year, appears to have stalled for lack of evidence, according to one of the people who requested anonymity to discuss internal department matters. The investigation appeared to be thrust into the public spotlight on Monday, when President Trump blindsided department officials...

A Washington state school district has agreed to publicly apologize, undergo religious liberty training and pay $275,000 in attorney’s fees after a lawsuit challenged policies that required elementary school students to keep Bibles concealed in sealed envelopes, according to a Christian education organization whose CEO says children felt pressured to hide their faith. Joel Penton, founder and CEO of LifeWise Academy, told Fox News Digital in an interview Thursday that parents described the emotional toll of the Everett School District’s restrictions, which also included requiring families to submit permission slips every week for their children to attend voluntary, off-campus Bible...

Okay, so apparently Katie Zacharia didn't work out as press secretary. However, is there a chance she could have remained on that job if she wasn't so nervous at the get-go? In fact, could she have been able to get over that hump of first day nerves if she had been calmed down by just a few shots of whiskey (or rum or vodka)? I say this from some personal experience. I spent a couple of summers years ago traveling the race car circuit (NASCAR, Indy 500, and other car races) in the Midwest, East Coast, and the South. No...

A new poll of the Ohio Senate and gubernatorial races shows Democrats ahead in both contests. In the Senate race, a Bowling Green State University (BGSU) poll found former Sen. Sherrod Brown (D) ahead of Sen. Jon Husted (R) by 6 points, 48 percent to 42 percent, among likely voters. When BGSU surveyed the race in September, Brown had just a 3-point lead. Ohio voters were evenly split 48 percent to 48 percent on who they think will win, regardless of whom they support. That is narrower than September, when more thought Husted would win. In the governor’s race, Democrat...

Kyiv lacks an answer, for now, to Moscow’s mass-produced new weapons In a field in central Ukraine, an experimental drone zoomed into the sky as engineers demonstrated its potential to intercept Russia’s jet-powered attack drones, which are tormenting the country. The prototype, called a Zirka, reached a top speed of 280 miles an hour as its propellers whirred frantically. Not fast enough, the testers acknowledged.“We still need to find a counter-jet solution,” said Lika Volovych, a manager at the Zirka’s manufacturer Noctis, as she watched it buzz high above.On the horizon, black smoke rose from a Russian drone strike on...

The Denver Post’s editorial board has come out against Amendment 87, the proposed graduated income tax ballot measure. In an Oct. 11 editorial, the board argued that extracting $2.7 billion in a single year from the state’s largest businesses would “do more harm than good.” While the board took exception to some opponents’ claims, such as the measure’s impact on businesses under $500,000 in taxable profit and on deductions for seniors and veterans, it concluded that the risk to Colorado’s largest employers outweighs the benefits. Citing conversations with Gov. Jared Polis and Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce president J.J. Ament,...

President Volodymyr Zelensky used his appearance at the Oct. 16 summit of EU leaders in Brussels to list the main things Kyiv needs to survive the winter and beyond, but those asks won't come cheap. "I am grateful for your support for Ukraine," Zelensky told EU leaders. "Without a determined European Union capable of making strong decisions Putin would have gone much further by now," Zelensky said. But with Russia ramping up its use of ballistic missiles and jet-powered Shahed drones to pummel Kyiv, and the U.S. taking steps to undermine Russia sanctions and Ukrainian security, Zelensky also came to...

Bigger agencies, higher spending, and expanded workforces don't always make government more effective.My recent trip to Malibu from Los Angeles was my first post-wildfire drive through the Pacific Palisades and, my goodness, there's nothing like seeing something with one's own eyes to grasp the enormity of the devastation. The obliterated hulks along Pacific Coast Highway 21 months after the tragedy raise multiple issues, including ones related to the excruciatingly slow rebuilding process. This being California, the state has yet to grapple sufficiently with the reasons the wildfires started—and the failed response to them. But late is better than never, so...

HeeHaw's owner argues that “no reasonable officer…would have believed that such force was necessary or justified.”The Georgia officer responsible for killing a 1-year-old miniature donkey, HeeHaw, has filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit against him, claiming the body camera footage proves he "reasonably believed the donkey posed an imminent threat to a fellow officer." But even if it doesn't, the officer argues he is immune from liability. In the early morning hours of August 30, Hannah Michelle Israel was at her Cedartown home in western Georgia when she received a distressing phone call. A supervisor with the Cedartown Police...

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A Center City woman was arrested after allegedly refusing to move out of the path of a delivery robot. The confrontation was captured on video and has since drawn online attention. Philadelphia police said officers responded to the 1200 block of Filbert Street after witnesses reported a disturbance involving Carolyn Marvin and an Uber delivery robot near Reading Terminal Market. According to police, Marvin repeatedly blocked the robot's path and ignored multiple commands from officers to move. She was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct. Marvin tells Action News she was protesting the use of delivery robots...

Secretary Mullin and Commissioner Scott observed ongoing construction on secondary barriers and met with construction crews as the Trump Administration marked 17 months of ZERO releases of illegal aliens at the southern border. The latest data from CBP also revealed that Fiscal Year 2026 saw the lowest amount of border crossings of any fiscal year in American history. ...“Thanks to President Trump’s bold leadership, we have had ZERO illegal aliens released into our country for the past 17 straight months—that’s promises made, promises kept in action.” In Fiscal Year 2026, CBP completed construction of 250 miles of new border barrier...