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Tony Blair flew home yesterday from a summit of the world's eight most powerful nations with his relationship with President Bush strained but not broken.The Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's political future put Mr Blair in the uncomfortable position of having to disagree with Mr Bush at the annual G8 gathering. Even if the Prime Minister was not married to a woman who recently advertised her sympathy for the Palestinians, he could not have signed up to Mr Bush's view that Arafat must go. His own Irish experience has taught him to keep talking, even if that means talking to distasteful...

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Online magazine publisher Salon Media Group Inc. faces the prospect of going out of business if it can't raise more money this summer, according to documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. As of March 31, San Francisco-based Salon said it was down to its last $1.5 million in cash -- enough to keep its business running for three or four months, according to the company's annual report to shareholders. Salon's precarious position prompted the company's auditors, PricewaterhouseCoopers, to conclude there is ``substantial doubt'' about its prospects for survival. The auditor's warning threatens to make...

Ms. Asquith's 6th Grade Class, Philadelphia, PA. The above photo is from this article: FIRST PERSON - A REAL EDUCATION: When a Reporter Becomes a Teacher, She Learns Something -------------------------------------------- Note to FR, from summer: Earlier this month I received a freepmail from someone claiming to be a journalist, thanking me for posting her article, above, here on Free Republic. I have never met this person, nor spoken to her, but in this instance I will take it on faith that she is who she claims because: her article was very unique, and the response from FR posters was overwhelmingly...

VIRGIN VIDEO ON ARAFAT’S TV PROMISES SEXY AFTER-LIFE FOR ‘MARTYRS’ By Michael Widlanski When Palestinian terrorists blow themselves up in order to murder as many Israelis as possible, are they acting out of despair or out of hope? A new Palestinian movie video, which aired today (June 27) on Yasser Arafat’s Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation gives an inside view into Palestinian thinking that may supply the answers. A dark-haired and good-looking 35-year-old Arab man is seen walking with an attractive woman of about the same age. It is clear that she is his wife or his girl-friend and that he...

After those two judges in San Francisco censored the Pledge of Allegiance, some people wondered if the national motto, "In God We Trust," would be next. Guess what: It is. Michael Newdow, the California atheist and self-promoter extraordinaire who was behind the ruling, told CNN he would fight to remove all references to God from government, including from U.S. currency. "One day I was just looking at the coins is what brought this up," Newdow said. "I saw 'In God We Trust' on my coins. I said, 'I don't trust in God,' what is this? "And I recalled there was...

My Pinger isn't working. Perhaps my Hard Drive isn't big enough. Or maybe I used it once too often. All I know, is that it's not reloading properly.Perhaps I wore it down by using it too much.I'm on a slow machine here at home....but I'm trying to do a tuneup.

PRESIDENT MUSHARRAF faced a barrage of criticism from Pakistan’s political parties yesterday after he announced plans to take on sweeping new powers. His critics said that the radical redrafting of Pakistan’s constitution would create a “shadow military state in the garb of democracy”. The amendments would allow the President to dismiss an elected Prime Minister, his Cabinet and the parliament to be chosen in elections later this year. The President would also have the authority to name a person of his choice as Prime Minister. A National Security Council dominated by representatives of the armed forces would be created with...

DoD News Briefing Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld Thursday, June 27, 2002 (Press stakeout following meeting at the Senate) Q: A few words, Mr. Secretary? Rumsfeld: (Can we get?) General Myers here? What -- what do you have to ask? Q: What do you have to tell? Q: Yeah, that's exactly -- Rumsfeld: We just had an excellent meeting with a good number of the members of the United States Senate. They, of course, have just recently voted on the Defense Authorization Bill, and passed it. They are, I think, over there right now completing another vote and then...

THE safety of Tony Blair, George Bush and other world leaders at the G8 summit in Canada could have been jeopardised when a secret security document detailing their every movewas left in a busy picnic area close to the summit headquarters. To the horror of the Canadian Mounties and American Secret Service, the 134-page spiral-bound document, marked “confidential”, was left lying open on a large boulder in front of the main security barrier at the entrance to the luxury resort in the Rockies where the G8 leaders were holding their two-day meeting. It was found by The Times as British...

By Toni Locy, USA TODAY WASHINGTON ? School districts can force the nation's 23 million middle and high school students to take drug tests before they are allowed to join the band, choir, chess club or any other competitive extracurricular activities, the U.S. Supreme Court said Thursday. By a 5-to-4 vote, the court upheld efforts by an Oklahoma school district to keep students from using illegal drugs. In doing so, the court emphasized the "custodial" responsibilities that schools have in lieu of parents to protect "the safety and health" of students. The ruling reflects widespread concern about the environment in...

 Weekday Commentary from Jim Puplava Home P-P-T To The Rescue!Info on PPT: Plunge Protection Team from FallStreet.comNyquist Column 6/24The Coming Attack Changing Preferences The Velocity of Money & The Short Seller's Nightmare Part 2 Now Online Introduce our newFSO Resource Page6/25 Guest EditorialsClyde HarrisonRaw Materials: Economics 101Jim RogersWhy Raw Materials? James Sinclair & Harry SchultzWhen Does The Final Shoe Fall on the Complacent Hedger? Keith M. Barron, Ph.D.A Rising Tide Raises All Boats Ned W. Schmidt Stepping Forward to $1,254 Gold  Wednesday's Market Scoreboard  June 26, 2002  Dow Industrials 6.71 9120.11  Dow Utilities 2.28 268.83  Dow Transports 9.78 2637.7...

Are The FBI's New Guidelines Police State Policies? By Richard Stevens Editor, The Bill of Rights Sentinel Attorney General John Ashcroft, on May 30, 2002, announced the revision of the FBI Guidelines for investigating domestic crime, particularly "domestic terrorism." The public document describing the new Guidelines is available on-line at: www.usdoj.gov/olp/generalcrimes2.pdf. (To see the 1989 Guidelines previously in effect, while they are still available on-line, click on www.usdoj.gov/ag/readingroom/generalcrimea.htm) From Anti-Terrorism to Police State Policies Given that our nation faces the threat of terrorism within our borders, shouldn't we expand the investigatory powers of our national police agency to detect and...

Kananaskis, Alberta.07.05 (local time).The Exercise Bicycles. GWB: (up first, pedalling at 20mph) “Hi, Terry.” TB: (desperately seeking to keep pace) “It’s Tony.” GWB: (increasing the revs to 25mph) “Sure it is”. What’s up?” TB: (with bike clattering loudly) “It’s this ‘Arafat’s got to go’ thing.” GWB: (shifting up to 30mph) “Got to go, got to go, that’s why I’m here.” TB: (bike now making deafening sound)“Er, in Canada?”. GWB: (moving on to 40mph)“No, Terry, in the gymnasium.” TB: (just about hanging in there) “I’m sorry?”. GWB: (shifting to Schumacher speed) “All the fat, its got to go, not an ounce...

My colleague Mike Potemra noted something interesting (a frequent occurrence). The Oxford English Dictionary has added a new sense of the word “America,” a figurative sense, to wit, “a place which one longs to reach; an ultimate or idealized destination or aim; an object of personal ambition or desire.” This caused me a few sighs. And so did a passage, relating to America, in A House for Mr. Biswas, V. S. Naipaul’s first novel, and the one that many consider his greatest. It is, indeed, a very great book, and I have only just now read it. I could barely...

I have a few questions. Hopefully one of you can shed some light on this. GWB has been an excellent president so far in his term, before and after 9/11, but I have a nagging problem concerning behavior the morning of 9/11. I'm not talking about him flying around avoiding DC, that was absolutley the right thing to do. It is this: I'm sure all of you have seen the footage from the Florida elementary school of Card walking over and whispering into GW's ear, letting him know that the second tower had been struck. What confounds me is that...

The Pledge of Allegiance On September 8, 1892 a Boston-based youth magazine "The Youth's Companion" published a 22-word recitation for school children to use during planned activities the following month to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Columbus' discovery of America. Under the title "The Pledge to the Flag", the composition was the earliest version of what we now know as the PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. The October 11, 1892 Columbus Day celebration of the 400th Anniversary of the discovery of America was planned for years in advance, and anticipated much as modern Americans look forward to and plan for the advent...

WASHINGTON, June 27 (Reuters) - U.S. mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae (NYSE:FNM - News) and Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE - News) have enough capital and risk safeguards to survive a prolonged freefall in housing markets or big interest rate swings, their federal regulator said on Thursday. The results are a trial run of a test by the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO) -- the regulator of the shareholder-owned, congressionally chartered firms -- that has been in the making since 1993. The dry run is based on the firms' finances in the first quarter of this year. The outcome gave...

Murdering the bell curve At least we finally have liberals on record admitting there is such a thing as IQ. Six years ago, Eric Nesbitt, a U.S. airman assigned to Langley Air Force Base, was brutally murdered by Daryl Renard Atkins, a repeat violent criminal. It was a heinous and pointless murder: Atkins already had Nesbitt's money and car when he unloaded his gun into the defenseless airman. According to a cellmate, Atkins later laughed about the murder. After hearing the (overwhelming) evidence against him, a jury sentenced Atkins to death. Last week, the Supreme Court overturned that sentence. The...

G8 nations call for PA reform, free and fair elections By Ha'aretz Service and Agencies The Group of Eight industrialized nations on Thursday outlined a vision of two states, Israel and Palestine, within secure borders in the Middle East, but said the Palestinians needed free and fair elections as well as economic and institutional reforms. "We stressed our commitment to work for peace in the Middle East, based on our vision of two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side within secure and recognized borders," the G8 - Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States...

For education and discussion only. Not for commercial use. LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Hundreds of new high-paying aviation industry jobs are coming to Arkansas. Raytheon Aircraft announced Thursday that it will complete painting and interior work on its new flagship Hawker Horizon business jets at its Little Rock operation. The company, which manufactures plans and provides parts, charter and management services, plans to add 350 new jobs over the next five years and construct new facilities at the Little Rock National Airport. The new jobs will pay about $19 an hour, company officials said at a news conference, attended by...