Free Republic

PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe has sanctioned full-scale investigation into the operations of the Law Society of Zimbabwe (LSZ) in a fresh assault on pro- democracy groups in the country, it was established this week. The probe, spearheaded by the police and the dreaded spy Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO), follows the arrest two weeks ago of the law society’s leaders, who were hauled before the courts and accused of seeking to overthrow the government. LSZ president Stern-ford Moyo and secretary Wilbert Mapombere, who both deny the charge, are out on bail. They say letters they are said to have written to the...

Syria: Public Statements Reveal Inner Conflicts 19 June 2002 Summary Syrian President Bashar Assad is complaining publicly about U.S. pressure on his regime that has continued even after Damascus' cooperation against al Qaeda. Despite Syria's help, Washington likely is wary about opposition to its forming Middle East peace plan. For his part, Bashar likely made the statement as a warning that anti-terrorism cooperation may not last if the United States does not give. Analysis Syrian President Bashar Assad has gone public with complaints that, despite Syrian cooperation against al Qaeda, the United States still is putting diplomatic pressure on his...

Airline To Double Fare For 'People Of Size' SAN DIEGO, 1:37 p.m. PDT June 19, 2002 - Southwest Airlines says it will require people who cannot fit in a single airline seat to purchase two tickets beginning next week. Airline representatives say ticket agents will ask what the company calls "people of size" to pay for a second seat if they are too large for another passenger to be seated beside them. Ticket agents already have the option of charging double for large passengers, but they rarely use it. Now, Southwest says it will enforce the policy in every case....

<p>"September the 11th, 2001, cut a deep dividing line in our history, a change of eras as sharp and clear as Pearl Harbor," President Bush told the German Parliament on May 23.</p> <p>A week later, in his West Point commencement address, the president introduced a new concept into American foreign affairs, a policy designed for the new era. In combating terrorist threats, he said, the U.S. will take "pre-emptive action when necessary to defend our liberty and to defend our lives." Since "the only path to safety is the path of action, this nation will act."</p>

Gary Winnick treated Global Crossing as his personal cash cow--until the company went bankrupt. Michael Nighan couldn't believe his eyes. As Global Crossing's North America director of regulatory affairs, one of Nighan's tasks was to review all of the startup telco's marketing and sales material. But what confused him in late 1999 was a map of Global Crossing's network that showed a fiber-optic loop around the continent of Africa. "What's this?" asked Nighan. He was told it was Africa One, an undersea broadband cable that Global Crossing planned to build for a group of telecom carriers. "But I said...

For education and discussion only. Not for commercial use. CLEARFIELD, Pa. -- When the 360 employees at FCI Electronics learned their plant would be closing in October, they didn't apply for new jobs -- they applied for a new company. The workers are promoting themselves online and in trade magazines as a made-to-order work force in a last-ditch effort to remain neighbors in their small central Pennsylvania town. "A lot of us have grown up here, we walk to work and our kids go to school here," said Jim Afton, a 37-year-old senior staff engineer who has worked for FCI...

SEOUL (Reuters) - The United States reckon speed and positioning will make up for what they lack in size when they play Germany in Friday's quarter-final, coach Bruce Arena has said. "We have to be good in a lot of areas to neutralise their physical quality," he told a news conference. "We're not going to get any taller or any thicker overnight ... so we're going to have to make up for it with a little bit of quickness and some brains and some positioning of the ball." Arena said the Germans were as big as any team in the...

<p>Over the next two decades, as many as 40 million young Chinese men won't be able to marry, settle down and start families. There won't be enough wives to go around.</p> <p>Researchers say growing numbers of lonely men in migrant shantytowns and isolated farm villages will pose a threat to social order and could force the Chinese government to tighten its grip on society or even seek military conflicts abroad to keep the restless bachelors occupied.</p>

<p>DALLAS (AP) --  Southwest Airlines is under fire for its policy of charging overweight passengers for two tickets if they spill over into their neighbor's seat.</p> <p>The airline says it is trying to provide a comfortable flight for travelers seated next to large passengers.</p>

Editor's note: When he was president, Ronald Reagan wrote the following piece for Independence Day in 1981. Aide Michael Deaver later wrote: "This 4th of July message is the President's own words and written initially in his own hand." For one who was born and grew up in the small towns of the Midwest, there is a special kind of nostalgia about the Fourth of July. I remember it as a day almost as long-anticipated as Christmas. This was helped along by the appearance in store windows of all kinds of fireworks and colorful posters advertising them with vivid pictures....

Jesse Ventura became an instant third-party hero when he was elected governor of Minnesota -- but failed dismally once in office because he governed like a typical Republican or Democrat, the Libertarian Party said today. "Jesse Ventura is a case study in what third parties must avoid if they want to succeed in the long term," said Libertarian Party Executive Director Steve Dasbach. "After all, if voters want elected officials who lie, break promises, and raise taxes -- as Jesse Ventura did -- then there's plenty of Republicans and Democrats who are more than qualified." On Tuesday, Ventura announced that...

TAMPA, Fla., June 19 — The operators of a Florida Web site that served as an international advertising hub for prostitutes have been arrested following a two-year investigation, police said Wednesday. THE TAMPA-BASED Web site, Bigdoggie.net, carried advertisements from prostitutes in the United States, Britain, Canada, France, Germany and South Africa that enabled then to arrange dates with customers, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. About 50,000 people worldwide paid $129.95 per year to join the Web site, which gave them access to the list of “escorts,” some of whom offered discounts for members, as well as...

Can someone help me understand WHAT is it going to take before Israel takes Arafat out of the equation? How many homicide bombs will it take before they finally do away with Arafat? The only thing I can think of is that they're afraid that Hamas militants will then take over the leadership of the PLO. However, I think that would be a good thing. If you're going to war, then get it on already!

      HELP VICTIMS OF TERROR DONATE NOWREAD EDITORIALSFROM WALL STREET JOURNALJERUSALEM POSTCLICK HERE TO SEE ALL THE FACES OF THE VICTIMSSend Their Families a Condolence Note..NOW NEWS FLASH:Six Israelis Killed, Forty Injured, Eight Gravely, Wednesday in Second Palestinian Suicide Attack in Jerusalem in Two Days Bomber Ran up on Foot to French Hill Intersection Bus Stop from Nearby Palestinian AreaThe scene from the suicide bomb attack tuesday in Jerusalem (French Hill section)19 killed, 50 injured in Suicide Bombing on Jerusalem Bus Body bags of victims lie in front of bus where                    Hand of terror victim #10 lies at scenesuicide...

"Up front tonight, our special guest Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Natan Sharansky joins us to give us Israel's reaction to today's suicide bombing in Jerusalem. The latest count indicates seven dead and many wounded. Today's deadly blast comes one day after 19 people were killed in the worst suicide bombing in Jerusalem in six years. We'll also take a look at the much-anticipated Mideast peace roadmap expected from the White House, which was scheduled to be announced this week, but now will probably be announced next week. Reportedly, this new proposal from the Bush administration will include a plan...

Opposition MPs demanded the Defence Minister release the details of a final report into a friendly fire incident in which four Canadian soldiers were killed, after leaked details of a U.S. report said the pilot acted too impulsively. Progressive Conservative defence critic Elsie Wayne asked Defence Minister John McCallum to release the final report, which was completed Wednesday, immediately. "All Canadians...need to know the facts about this horrible situation," Ms. Wayne said during Question Period. Mr. McCallum said he has not yet received the report. "I will receive it within hours. I have instructed my department to move heaven and...

As President Bush raised a record amount for GOP congressional candidates, federal regulators Wednesday approved some election activities that can still be paid by large corporate and union donations starting next year. With one Democratic member joining three Republicans, the Federal Election Commission defined some of the state and local election activities that will be exempted from the new law banning "soft money" donations at the federal level. By identical 4-2 votes, the commission: -Gave state and local parties potentially more time to assist with soft money those candidates who face primary challenges. The commission did so by concluding that...

"Ever wonder why the villain in action flicks is so often a neo-Nazi? It's because fascism is the only evil liberals can easily recognize as such? The last expatriate from the Third Reich resides in an Argentinean nursing home. Skinheads could convene in a toilet stall. As a viable force, Nazism disappeared almost 60 years ago. Yet neo-Nazis have become a Hollywood staple. The new movie "The Sum of All Fears" involves a billionaire Austrian industrialist who sets off a nuclear device in Baltimore to start a war between America and Russia, so European fascists can take over the world....

Bishop says priests will lose posts By Ray Flanagan As many as six men serving the Diocese of Scranton will no longer be able to act publicly as priests because of the policy adopted by American bishops in cases involving the sexual abuse of minors, Bishop James C. Timlin said Monday. The plan adopted last weekend calls for their removal to be taken without naming the priests or explaining their offenses. The bishop conceded there is a small possibility it could change. "We are committed to be open," he said, but added the diocese wants to "temper" the purging "with...

<p>ALAN COLMES: Welcome back to HANNITY & COLMES. Coming up, is the game of tag too rough for the playground? Believe it or not, some people say yes, which leads us to ask our "Question of the Day," how many kids are injured playing at school each year? That answer's coming up in just a few minutes.</p>