Free Republic

<p>Without a program of their own to reform Social Security, Democrats seem determined to continue demagoguing the issue in the 2002 midterm elections. Their goals, of course, are to retain their razor-thin majority in the Senate and to eke out the handful or so of additional seats they need to recapture the House.</p>

<p>Not all pilots would be armed under the terms of a compromise proposal offered by House Democrats and Republicans on Tuesday, but at least 250 of them would be. That, in combination with the presence of armed federal air marshals, might give would-be terrorists a case of the second thoughts. The greater the likelihood of encountering an air crew capable of defending itself and its passengers, the less likely that an attempt will be made to commandeer the plane. Terrorist thugs almost by definition choose "soft" targets and avoid places where people are more likely to put up a fight.</p>

<p>Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle tried last week to quash debate on Sen. Ted Kennedy's proposed federal "hate crimes" bill. The gambit perfectly illustrated what these men are trying to do to the whole country — shut down discussion about homosexuality.</p>

<p>Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle tried last week to quash debate on Sen. Ted Kennedy's proposed federal "hate crimes" bill. The gambit perfectly illustrated what these men are trying to do to the whole country — shut down discussion about homosexuality.</p>

<p>A new study tells American mothers that the safest way to get the kids to school is to put them on the bus. Not so in Israel. After another Palestinian terrorist incinerated another Israeli bus, a Netanya mother revealed the painful difference to BBC News: "If my kids end up having to get a bus, I will give them a loving speech before they go in case they never come back" —back from the limb-littered killing fields suicide-bombers have made of Israeli cities and towns.</p>

<p>Lawyers and civil libertarians have killed billions of electrons on the talk shows of late trying to figure out what to do with Jose Padilla, aka Abdullah al Muhajir, a.k.a. the "dirty bomber." My recommendation is to keep him locked up for self-protection. If the good citizens of the United States don't take it upon themselves to lynch him, he's liable to kill himself out of sheer stupidity. We have here a guy whose short-lived and exceedingly unsuccessful life of crime was undermined by chronic laziness and inattention to detail. He reportedly often foiled his own attempts to adopt an alias by putting his actual home address on his new identification. This is no Pretty Boy Floyd.</p>

<p>The Bush administration appears to be alone in believing that U.N. peacekeepers deserve special recognition at the International Criminal Court (ICC) because they, as their title suggests, endeavor to keep peace. Peacekeepers engage in humanitarian missions that, almost by definition, don't further the national interests of the government dispatching them in any significant way. Since the motivations for sending peacekeepers are by and large altruistic, the White House has quite reasonably asked the U.N. Security Council to exempt them from prosecution at the ICC, which is slated to open July 1.</p>

Only 35 years old, the new owner of the Brewers, living a dream come true, Allan H. (Bud) Selig went to New York in April 1970 to attend his first owners' meeting. "I was excited," he says, especially when the commissioner, Bowie Kuhn, seated him between two of the game's old lions, the Cubs' Phil Wrigley and the Cardinals' Gussie Busch. "Now, that was heady stuff for a kid from Milwaukee," Selig says. Then the meeting started. "It was all about labor." Uh-oh. "Mr. Busch was slamming a cane down on the floor. He was very angry. Mr. Wrigley was...

<p>Two public school employees from Ohio who are at the center of a national religious-discrimination case involving the National Education Association testified before a congressional hearing yesterday in favor of ending forced unionism.</p> <p>Dennis Robey and Kathleen Klamut told the House Education Workforce workforce protections subcommittee that the nation's largest teachers' union systematically discriminates against those members who have religious objections to supporting the union's political causes, including abortion and homosexual rights.</p>

<p>Al Qaeda terrorists fleeing Afghanistan are using Iraq as an escape route, and an unspecified number remain in Saddam Hussein's country while looking for new bases of operation.</p> <p>Administration officials, citing intelligence reports, said there is insufficient evidence to confirm that the Iraqi dictator has created a safe zone for al Qaeda remnants. Neighboring Iran's hard-line Islamic regime has welcomed al Qaeda fighters to cross the border from Afghanistan and either remain in the country or move on.</p>

Tennessee State Rep. Keith Westmoreland was found shot to death in at his home late Wednesday, a day after his indecent exposure arrest in Florida last week received national media attention. Police in Kingsport, Tenn. say Westmoreland's body was found with a gunshot wound to the chest in what appears to be a suicide. Westmoreland left a note but police have so far declined to release its contents. In a written statement issued Wednesday night, Tenn. Governor Don Sundquist called Westmoreland "an excellent legislator and a good friend who did so much for his constituents and his state." "He...

LAS VEGAS, Jun 21, 2002 (AP WorldStream via COMTEX) -- The FBI said it is investigating a Nevada man's claim that he picked up a conversation in Arabic on his cell phone during which someone said there would be a "hit" on the "day of freedom." "We've initiated a full-scale investigation to determine if this constitutes a threat, and if so, what kind of threat," said FBI Special Agent Daron Borst in Las Vegas on Thursday. Borst said agents have interviewed the man who reported the conversation, Michael Hamdan, and planned to question him again Friday. Hamdan, 54, said...

I’M FED UP WITH a lot of my readers. Last week, I wrote a column about Jose Padilla, aka the “dirty bomber.” In order to avoid repeating myself, let me give short-shrift to my argument and sum up as briefly as possible. I argued then, and believe now, that the U.S. government has the right and, in this case, the obligation to run roughshod over many of Padilla’s rights. Padilla is an enemy combatant. And, according to the Constitution, legal precedent, international law and, most of all, common sense, the U.S. government has the right to treat enemy combatants as,...

Smarts' computers returnedNothing pertinent to case was found on them, police sayBy Derek JensenDeseret News staff writer      Police have finished examining three personal computers taken from the Federal Heights home of Elizabeth Smart following the 14-year-old's abduction more than two weeks ago. Blue balloons and ribbons line Virginia Street leading up to the Smart family's house. Youths from two LDS wards hung the decorations. Jeremy Harmon, Deseret News       The three computers from the Smart home were part of 12 computers seized by investigators in the days following Elizabeth's abduction June 5.      Most of...

WASHINGTON — President Bush telephoned a message of support yesterday to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel and demanded action by Yasser Arafat to curb terror. In the conversation with Sharon, “the President reiterated his determination to push for peace and to find a way to provide more security for Israel and hope for the Palestinian people,” White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said. As Bush and Sharon spoke, Israel pushed ahead with its drive into the West Bank and with a roundup of terror suspects. The House’s top Democrat, Rep. Richard Gephardt of Missouri, questioned whether it made sense to...

(CNSNews.com) - Palestinian gunmen infiltrated a Jewish community and took a family hostage in an attack late Thursday which ended in the deaths of five people, including a mother and three of her children. Reports from Jerusalem say two other children of the same family were wounded, one of them seriously. Two security force members were among another six people injured in the assault in Itamar, a small settlement near the Palestinian Authority-controlled town of Nablus in the northern West Bank. It was the third terrorist attack against Israelis in three days. Suicide bombings in Jerusalem on Tuesday and...

June 20— By Anthony Boadle HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuban President Fidel Castro's government said on Thursday it will adopt amendments enshrining its communist system in the national constitution to counter threats from President Bush.Rejecting U.S. demands that the island open up to democracy and a market economy, National Assembly President Ricardo Alarcon said Bush -- backed by anti-Castro exiles in Florida -- wanted to destroy Cuba's revolution and reverse half a century of social gains."We will affirm that the political, economic and social bases of our constitution are unchangeable," Alarcon said at a rally in Havana's Revolution Square where he...

President George W. Bush today announced the recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the Nation's highest civilian honor. It was established by President Truman in 1945 to recognize civilians for their service during World War II, and it was reinstated by President Kennedy in 1963 to honor distinguished service. President Bush will award the Medals of Freedom to the recipients at a ceremony in July. Hank Aaron is one of the most accomplished players in the history of baseball. Aaron holds the career records for home runs, 755 in his 23-year career, runs-batted-in...

LAS VEGAS, Jun 21, 2002 (AP Online via COMTEX) -- The FBI said Thursday it is investigating a Nevada man's claim that he picked up a conversation in Arabic on his cell phone during which someone said there would be a "hit" on the "day of freedom." "We've initiated a full-scale investigation to determine if this constitutes a threat, and if so, what kind of threat," said FBI Special Agent Daron Borst in Las Vegas. Borst said agents have interviewed the man who reported the conversation, Michael Hamdan, and planned to question him again Friday. Hamdan said he was...

CHICAGO, Jun 21, 2002 (AP Online via COMTEX) -- The City Council has approved use of identification cards issued by the Mexican consulate that supporters say will give undocumented immigrants better access to financial and public services. With Wednesday's vote, Chicago joins a small but growing number of major cities, including Los Angeles, to validate the ID cards. The cards allow bearers to open bank accounts, borrow library books and use other services. "Our economy couldn't exist without the hardworking Mexican nationals who come here," said Alderman Edward Burke, who introduced the ordinance. Critics say recognizing the cards amounts...