Free Republic

The Pledge of Alliance is unconstitutional ­ or so we are told by a federal appellate court located in California. By a 2 to 1 margin the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that allowing school children to recite the Pledge is an impermissible establishment of religion. One judge had the good sense to dissent from the holding, but the other two simply defied logic, legal reasoning, and the Constitution. To say the court's ruling is outrageous is like saying the sinking of the Titanic was unfortunate or that the events of September 11th were unpleasant. With their ruling,...

Snuggled in a backpack, the wide-eyed baby peered from beneath his red hat at the pageantry of yesterday's 29th annual Seattle Gay Pride Parade. "It's his first parade," said Pat Fremon, the adoptive father of 6-month-old Mark. "This might become a family tradition." Seattle Fire Department battalion Chief Molly Douce bears the brunt of a fire extinguisher wielded by Lt. Tracy Franks during the annual Gay Pride Parade on Capitol Hill. Fremon and his partner, Tim Sheehy, who have been together 20 years, said they were happy to see so many gay and lesbian families at the Capitol Hill parade,...

Seven children have been given short-term expulsions from Sherwood Middle School for carrying three water guns -- toys that two parents say didn't contain any water and were never used -- on the last day of classes in May. Though the School Board has no policy that mentions water guns, Sherwood Middle does: Principal Phyllis Crawford said toy guns of any kind are banned from school grounds. Those seven children, including Brittnee Brown, received conditional expulsions, which means they'll attend school for at least a month at Valley Park Alternative School before being allowed to return to Sherwood Middle, according...

he WorldCom accounting scandal threatened to grow yesterday as the company disclosed that its profits might have been exaggerated as far back as 1999, or two years earlier than previously disclosed.The disclosure of new accounting problems, which one person briefed on the situation said could indicate that WorldCom overstated profits by more than $1 billion in 1999 and 2000, was the latest blow for the company. Last week it said that it had overstated pretax profits by $3.8 billion in 2001 and early this year.It also disclosed yesterday that it was in default on some debts and that its...

Re: WorldCom, Inc., HO-09440 Sworn Statement Pursuant to Section 21(a)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 1. This statement is submitted by WorldCom, Inc. (the "Company") in response to the Commission's June 26, 2002 Order (the "Order") directing the Company to describe in detail the facts and circumstances underlying the events described in and leading to the Company's June 25, 2002 press release (the "Release") regarding its intention to restate its 2001 and first quarter 2002 financial statements. The information provided in this Statement reflects the Company's best understanding as of this date. However, in light of the...

Women Protest Middle East Violence Email story to a friend One of the oldest women's groups in the country is holding a national conference at Goddard College this weekend. The Women's International League For Peace And Freedom descended on the state capital for a demonstration reminiscent of the Vietnam anti-war movement. This time it's the Israeli-Patestinian conflict. Joan Drake came all the way from Washington D.C. to join other members. Holding signs in front of the post office on State street and then marching around the block, organizers said the demonstration grew out the conference, which drew about 200 people...

"I oppose them," says Tony Sanchez. Applause, nods, knee slaps. What does the Texas Democratic gubernatorial nominee oppose? School vouchers. Who's clapping? The Texas Association of School Administrators. Clap away, brethren. A considerable chunk of the ground on which educational bureaucrats have been resisting vouchers fell away just two days after Sanchez's declaration, with the U.S. Supreme Court's affirmation of a Cleveland plan tailored for students in failing public schools. The decision is sensational in both the grammatical and the popular sense. The court creates a proper public sensation, rejecting arguments against vouchers based purportedly on worries about church-state...

With tears welling up in his robotic eyes, Minority Leader Dick Gephardt (D-MO) showed a rare flash of emotion as he recounted how his 94-year-old mother worried about the cost of her prescription drugs. Makes you want to cry—-cry about how far our society has degenerated that the only family more and more seniors rely on is Uncle Sam. Time was, families relied on each other, with dependencies inverting over time. Parents raised children when the youngsters could not provide for themselves, and then those children, as grown adults, would care for their aged parents. It’s a process was...

Doctor Reprimanded In Stillborn Baby Case Monitors Showed Problem With Baby's Heart Rate A Lebanon doctor has been reprimanded by the state for her role in the delivery of a baby that was stillborn. The New Hampshire Board of Medicine says Dr. Deborah Glazer failed to respond in a timely manner to fetal monitors indicating problems with the fetus' heart rate. The monitors showed a problem with the fetus' heart rate for three hours prior to the delivery in January 2001 at Alice Peck Day Memorial Hospital. Glazer was the attending physician during the delivery by Cesarean section. The state...

Festival Celebrates Life In 'Armpit Of America' Magazine Gives Town Dubious Distinction POSTED: 3:37 p.m. EDT July 1, 2002 BATTLE MOUNTAIN, Nev. -- They live in the armpit of America and they're proud of it. Folks in Battle Mountain, Nev., are holding their "Festival in the Pit." It's the town's response to being dubbed the armpit of America in an article in The Washington Post Magazine. Instead of an old-fashion egg toss, organizers are staging a deodorant toss as part of the festivities. Shar Peterson, from the local Chamber of Commerce, says Battle Mountain is trying to get a bit...

EVEN if we were not attempting to prosecute a war against terror, the time would have long since arrived to reconsider our relations with Saudi Arabia. That the Saudis, of all people, should now be regarded as a virtual ally in this conflict only underscores the need at last to settle matters between us. Although the catalog of disagreements on our agenda is long, and many of the items are by now familiar, it is helpful to review the list. BY ANY modern standard of civilization, the kingdom of Saudi Arabia is a bizarre place. In an age of spreading...

Please keep adding 07/02/02 Elizabeth Smart dated updates to this thread... Remember to keep checking back to this thread today for today's developing news on the Elizabeth Smart Kidnapping. Elizabeth was taken from her home at about 1:30am on the morning of June 5th, 2002. Brigette's Ping List - (How To Join & How It Works)If you would like on my Elizabeth Smart Ping List, Please send me a "Private Reply" with your request... Please do not post a "Public Thread Request" as I may accidently overlook it. Also you can click here to visit my profile page and to...

Give family issues equal time By Marianne M. Jennings Linda Ellerbee, Nickelodeon's "journalist," had a Nick-at-Nite show called "My Family Is Different." Ellerbee, GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) supporter, taught children "diversity, tolerance and respect" for same-sex parents and their children. Ellerbee had an in-studio focus group. There were three children of gay and lesbian couples, a gay NYC fireman with three adopted children, and a gay principal from Minnesota who has no children but who assured us that parents love him. Ellerbee posed questions loaded with negative pregnants, as it were, to her stacked group: "Do you...

Report: China using Israeli 'Harpys'From the International Desk Published 7/2/2002 12:39 AM WASHINGTON, July 1 (UPI) -- China has deployed Israeli-made anti-radar weapons opposite Taiwan, the Washington Times reported Tuesday. U.S. intelligence spotted several Israeli-made "Harpy" drone weapons engaged in large-scale exercises in southern Fujian province opposite Taiwan, the Times quoted defense officials as saying. "The Chinese were observed moving them close to the coast," one official said. The official declined to say how many weapons had been seen. The Harpy, a pilotless drone weapon equipped with anti-radar sensors and a bomb, flies near a target radar for up to...

02.07.2002 08:38:01 On board Tu-154 of "Bashkir air lines" in essence were located the children Moscow.2 July.INTERFAKS - in the aircraft Tu-154, which suffered catastrophe in the south of Germany, was located 57 passengers, including of approximately 50 children from Bashkirya, who were headed to leisure for Spain, reported "interfaksu" in the state service of civil aviation RF.     Including on board the aircraft there were 8 children of up to 12 years.     Children from Bashkirya had to fly out to Spain even on Saturday; however, they were late to their voyage, after arriving into the airport Sheremet'yevo...

July 1, 2002, 10:18PM Bank sues 11 insurers over Enron By DAVID IVANOVICH Copyright 2002 Houston Chronicle Washington Bureau WASHINGTON -- J.P. Morgan Chase Bank is accusing a group of insurance companies of fraud for refusing to pay nearly $1 billion in claims stemming from the Enron Corp. collapse. J.P. Morgan has sued the 11 insurers -- including Travelers, Liberty Mutual and Federal Insurance -- in an effort to collect on $965 million in surety bonds purchased to guarantee transactions involving J.P. Morgan, Enron, and an offshore J.P. Morgan entity known as Mahonia Ltd. Last month the insurers accused J.P....

JULY 1, 2002 Anthrax? The F.B.I. Yawns By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF The F.B.I.'s bumbling before 9/11 is water under the bridge. But the bureau's lackadaisical ineptitude in pursuing the anthrax killer continues to threaten America's national security by permitting him to strike again or, more likely, to flee to Iran or North Korea. Almost everyone who has encountered the F.B.I. anthrax investigation is aghast at the bureau's lethargy. Some in the biodefense community think they know a likely culprit, whom I'll call Mr. Z. Although the bureau has polygraphed Mr. Z, searched his home twice and interviewed him four times,...

Public opinion surveys are part and parcel of our instant information age. We recognize that polls can be crafted to elicit the desired results, and undeniably sometimes are, yet we Americans remain fascinated by what the rest of us think. Sometimes, opinion surveys merely reveal how easily public opinion can be molded by what’s accepted as conventional wisdom. Last month’s ABC News poll on Watergate is an example. When asked if they knew enough about the scandal to tell the basic facts to someone else, 65 percent of participants said no. Yet almost an identical percentage, 63, simultaneously asserted that...

Please parody the following article from http://losangeles.craigslist.org/w4m/4490297.html. The best parody will win a pound of tofu and a poster of Phil Donahue. An open Letter to the Tall White Guys: You work with me nearly everyday. But to say that you know me would be incorrect. I’m the woman who ultimately stands between you and your dreams of how the world should really be. And I want you to know that I’m on to you. I’m the professional woman in the next office, the secretary down the hall, the girl who cleans your home, the peer who sits next to...

Play nice, kids By Jim Caple Page 2 columnistWe are one step closer toward raising a generation of paste-devouring Ralph Wiggums. Is this what you want, wussies?If you thought some schools went overboard when they banned dodge ball last year, consider this: A Santa Monica elementary school principal recently banned tag, saying the game can only be played under the strict supervision of physical education teachers and not at all during the lunch hour recess. That's due to: one, the risk of injury; and two, a "self-esteem issue," because whoever is "it" could be considered a "victim." "We had some...