Free Republic

SACRAMENTO--Assemblyman Dean Florez said Tuesday he is not worried that his scathing indictment of incompetence by officials of Gov. Gray Davis' administration in the Oracle computer scandal will bring retribution from the governor. A spokeswoman for the governor said Davis does not engage in "petty politics," such as refusing to sign bills by lawmakers who criticize him. But the episode left many people wondering how Florez, a Democrat from Shafter, will fare in Sacramento now that he has cemented a reputation as a maverick who doesn't hesitate to investigate and publicly criticize leaders of his own party. As the...

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE Office of the Spokesman For Immediate Release June 18, 2002 MEDIA NOTICE RESULTS OF THE DIVERSITY IMMIGRANT VISA LOTTERY (DV-2003) The Kentucky Consular Center in Williamsburg, Kentucky has registered and notified the winners of the DV-2003 diversity lottery. The diversity lottery was conducted under the terms of Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. This Act makes available *50,000 permanent resident visas annually to persons from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States. Approximately 87,000 applicants have been registered and notified and may now make an application for an immigrant visa. Since...

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- People who live within a 10-mile radius of the state's four nuclear power plants will be able to get potassium iodide tablets beginning in July, state officials said Wednesday. The pills provide limited protection against cancer in the event of a radiation release from a terrorist attack. They're being made available as a precaution in the event of a terrorist attack. "We have enough supplies for every person who works, visits and vacations in the area near nuclear facilities," Health and Senior Services Commissioner Clifton R. Lacy said. Potassium iodide, chemical symbol KI, is the only...

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Lots of Graphics: Post your favorite image of the St. Mary and Child, the Holy Family, or St. Joseph with the Child Jesus A thread to bless our eyes, hearts, souls, and minds: Kissing the Face of God Morgan Weistling

  Amazing Dylan lyrics on Israel. Must read the entire lyrics. ___________________________ The Neighborhood Bully by Bob Dylan - 1983 Well, the neighborhood bully, he's just one man, His enemies say he's on their land. They got him outnumbered about a million to one, He got no place to escape to, no place to run. He's the neighborhood bully. The neighborhood bully just lives to survive, He's criticized and condemned for being alive. He's not supposed to fight back, he's supposed to have thick skin, He's supposed to lay down and die when his door is kicked in. He's the...

Time Not Right for Bush Mideast Speech, White House Says WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House on Wednesday condemned a suicide bombing at a Jerusalem bus stop and said its immediate aftermath was not the right time for President Bush to lay out his ideas on Middle East peace. The White House also said that Bush believes Palestinian President Yasser Arafat must do more to stop attacks like the suicide bombing that Israeli police said killed four people at a Jerusalem bus stop. A similar bombing on a crowded Jerusalem commuter bus killed 19 people on Tuesday. "It's obvious that...

SACRAMENTO -- Politicians and their aides are convinced the state Capitol is crawling with FBI agents in the aftermath of the Oracle debacle and amid insinuations of policy for sale in the governor's office. Assembly Democrats were warned in a closed-door meeting last week to avoid any appearance of a link between fund raising and lawmaking, because "someone is sniffing around the building," one lawmaker said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The caucus's counsel reminded members that "even the implication" of a connection between a policy discussion and campaign fund raising could lead to serious legal trouble, the lawmaker said....

Landmark President Mark R. Levin will testify 10 a.m.m, tomorrow before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, the Subcommittee on Worforce Protections, Room 2175 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC. Mark will testify oabout Landmark's complaints to the IRS, the Federal Election Commission and the U.S. Department of Labor over the National Education Association's political expenditures and activities in violation of federal tax, finance and labor laws. The hearing promises to be exciting because NEA General Counsel Robert Chanin is also scheduled to appear on behalf of the union!

Jose Padilla was on the move, but his alleged mentor, Abu Zubaydah, was in custody in a secret location—and talking. A glimpse inside the underground war June 24 issue — It was the usual transatlantic flight: nine hours of fidgeting to get the pillow right, first-run movies flickering mutely on small screens, an indigestible flow of starchy food and drinks. Bound for Chicago from Zurich on the morning of May 8, the passengers of Swiss International Air Lines Flight 8 saw nothing amiss. Certainly they didn’t know they were on the front lines of a global war being waged under...

Just wanted to know that You can hear me read the Wednesday 8:30 pm entertainment newsbreak on newstalk 1150 WNDB AM here: WNDB

The London-based Arabic-language daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat published an interview with Umm Nidal, the mother of the shahid [martyr] Muhammad Farhat. During the first Intifada, Umm Nidal had hidden 'Imad 'Aql, the commander of Hamas's military wing "Izz Al-Din Al-Qassam Brigades," in the family’s home for over a year. The following are excerpts from the interview: Q: "How did the idea of carrying out a Fidaai [martyrdom] operation develop in [your son] Muhammad's soul?"Umm Nidal: "Jihad is a [religious] commandment imposed upon us. We must instill this idea in our sons' souls, all the time... What we see every day –...

Those worrying about the erosion of liberty in this time of crisis often quote Benjamin Franklin, who said, "Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." The problem with this advice is that it is well over two centuries old, and no one back then could have imagined the dangers we face today. We are at war and should be expected to sacrifice some liberty for safety. According to a national poll taken recently by the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan, seven out of 10 Americans...

<p>Those sources said the grand jury, which has been collecting evidence for weeks, has focused on building a paper trail on the abuse committed by priests and the response of Law and his deputies.</p> <p>They suggested the chances of criminal charges arising from the grand jury appear remote, but said the prospect of new evidence being turned up, and the huge amount of church documentation, favored a grand jury probe.</p>

PARIS (AP) - Throughout Europe, airports were deserted and airplanes grounded after air traffic controllers in France and other nations went on strike Wednesday to protest a plan to dramatically reorganize the use of Europe's skies. The massive strike, which began in France at 6 a.m., was expected to interrupt 7,700 flights there before ending at 11 p.m., the Civil Aviation Authority said. That total includes flights that use French airspace but do not land or take off in France. A small number of French air traffic controllers remained on the job, allowing some flights to proceed. Apart from the...

Berkeley May Ban Non-PC CoffeeIf Measure Passes, Violators Could Get Jail Time Posted: 11:17 a.m. EDT June 18, 2002 BERKELEY, Calif. -- How about some sugar and cream with that coffee? Or maybe you'd like some "PC" coffee instead? Some folks in Berkeley, Calif., are calling for only "politically correct coffee" to be sold inside the city limits. Attorney Rick Young has turned in 3,000 signatures at City Hall. They support an initiative allowing coffee brewed for sale to be made only from organic, shade-grown or Fair Trade certified beans. To qualify the measure for the November ballot, just over...

June 19, 2002 Heavy equipment moved into Rampart Range Road area ~The Colorado Springs Gazette Massive flames from the Hayman fire leap into the air Tuesday north of Florissant. U.S. Forest Service personnel estimated the flames at 60 to 100 feet high. The blaze has consumed 120,000 acres. Wind pushed it farther east toward Woodland Park. The Army joined the battle against the Hayman fire early Wednesday, hoping to hold back flames that advanced Tuesday to the back doors of Woodland Park and Palmer Lake. At dawn Wednesday, a group of bulldozers and other pieces of earthmoving equipment from Fort...

SAN FRANCISCO, (CWNews.com) -- Father Joseph Fessio, SJ< who was ordered by his Jesuit superiors to leave San Francisco in what was generally recognized as a disciplinary move in March, has received a new assignment as chancellor of Ave Maria University. Father Fessio, the founder of Ignatius Press, had clashed with the Jesuit order over his plans for Campion College, a new institution with a strong Catholic identity that has been set up on the doorstep of the Jesuit-run University of San Francisco. He was ordered by his provincial, Father Thomas Smolich, SJ, to break all ties with Campion College....

Even though our country is engaged in a war that will eventually allow us sleep without the fear of waking to another 9-11, the mainstream media finds time to celebrate the downfall of Richard M. Nixon. “Watergate” happened 30 years ago, but it still causes Loony Left hearts to flutter! Ironically, during the anniversary remembrance of this infamous ordeal, an important “puzzle-piece” of the Clinton administration was firmly set in place during the very same week. But, the mainstream media found nothing remarkable about a Government Accounting Office report that concluded the Clinton administration was peppered with slobs, vandals, thieves,...