Free Republic

A tweet from the National Public Radio Public (NPR) Editor on Thursday — on the day of the presidential debate — explained why the taxpayer-funded news outlet has been ignoring the growing scandal surrounding former Vice President Joe Biden, his son Hunter Biden, and the family’s business dealings in China. “Why haven’t you seen any stories from NPR about the NY Post’s Hunter Biden story,” the tweet said. “We don’t want to waste our time on stories that are not really stories, and we don’t want to waste listeners’ and readers’ time on that stories that are just pure distractions.”...

couples living apart in the UK aren’t allowed to have sex — and are forbidden from meeting up anywhere but outside — under a strict new coronavirus measure. The law orders romantic partners who haven’t been shacking up or self-isolating to not touch each other, government officials told the Guardian on Friday. “The purpose of the measures we’ve put in place is to break the chain of transmission between households, and the scientific advice is that there is greatest transmission of the virus indoors,” a spokesman for UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson told the paper. But some observers were hot...

I don’t think it’s unusual to say that author George Orwell’s dystopian story of 1984 is the most intriguing, thought-provoking, frightening, and influential political work of fiction to ever hit bookshelves, media, and film. I think the reason as to why this is so, is because as human history continues to advance, we see numerous elements depicted within this story, play out in our society and in our everyday reality. 1984’s Influence in Politics: Some of the terminologies used within both the book and the film are words that have seeped into our political discourse, so much so, that they...

The Associated Press Stylebook was amended this week to discourage the use of the word “riot” to describe violent protests, instead expanding the definition of “protest” to include violent demonstrations. “Use care in deciding which term best applies: A riot is a wild or violent disturbance of the peace involving a group of people. The term riot suggests uncontrolled chaos and pandemonium,” said the AP Stylebook, which sets style guidelines followed by many mainstream media publications. “Focusing on rioting and property destruction rather than underlying grievance has been used in the past to stigmatize broad swaths of people protesting against...

World-famous podcast host Joe Rogan moved his massively popular and free talk show exclusively to the Spotify platform, and some of its staff members have been triggered ever since. “In a Spotify all-hands company meeting on Wednesday, Spotify CEO Daniel Ek defended keeping transphobic content from hugely popular podcaster Joe Rogan on the audio platform,” Vice Motherboard summarized September 16. "In the case of Joe Rogan, a total of 10 meetings have been held with various groups and individuals to hear their respective concerns," Ek said, according to three sources quoted by Vice Motherboard. "And some of them want Rogan...

Six European Union countries and the bloc’s executive Commission have begun testing a virtual “gateway” to ensure national coronavirus tracing apps can work across borders. The trial starting Monday will allow national computer systems that run tracing apps in the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy and Latvia to communicate with each other via a central hub. If the tests succeed, travelers from each of the six countries will be able to use their own apps while abroad in the other five to ensure they’re notified if they have been in close contact to another user who tests positive. Tracing...

Online form allows NJ residents to report violations of coronavi Online form allows NJ residents to report violations of coronavirus restrictions New Jersey is urging residents to speak out if they see people violating coronavirus restrictions. A new online form allows people to report something that violates Gov. Phil Murphy's executive orders. Examples of violations would be not following social distancing requirements or people holding large indoor events. Residents can report violations anonymously, but officials say that may make it harder to investigate.

... Kamala Harris strongly rebuked President Donald Trump for politicizing the issue of wearing a pandemic mask during an interview Sunday with CNN's Dana Bash. Harris, minutes earlier in the same interview, said she would be skeptical of a coronavirus vaccine distributed by the Trump administration but said a big part of the problem with pandemic response " is that we have a president of the United States who made this a partisan issue and made it a political issue." BASH: Would a Biden/Harris administration support a federal mask mandate? HARRIS: So it's about a national standard. Everyone should wear...

The Atlantic hit piece on President Donald Trump last week used four anonymous sources to allege that he had disparaged dead World War I soldiers two years ago. Fox News reporter Jennifer Griffin then claimed to have “confirmed” parts of the story — though not its main allegation — based on two anonymous sources. The entire story failed to meet basic journalistic standards. But it is a sign of things to come — particularly if Democrats win in November, which is the Atlantic‘s goal. Two, or even four, anonymous sources can be used to claim absolutely anything. The Atlantic described...

Police in Australia arrested a pregnant 28-year-old woman in front of her partner and two children Wednesday for allegedly planning a coronavirus lockdown protest and promoting it on Facebook. Police in the state of Victoria took the woman, Zoe Buhler, into custody at her home after she created a “freedom day” event on Facebook calling for people to peacefully gather against the government’s lockdown measures. “As some of you may have seen the government has gone to extreme measures and are using scare tactics through the media to prevent the Melbourne protest,” the now-deleted event description read, ABC News reports.

Victoria Police officers have been filmed handcuffing a pregnant woman over a Facebook post. Footage was shared online by a Miners Rest couple, northwest of Melbourne, on Wednesday afternoon. As seen in the video above, it shows the woman arguing with police, who claimed she was inciting people to protest the Victorian coronavirus lockdown this coming weekend.

The CDC has changed its recommendations as to testing asymptomatic people for COVID-19. The following is the new guidance from the CDC: If you have been in close contact (within 6 feet) of a person with a COVID-19 infection for at least 15 minutes but do not have symptoms: You do not necessarily need a test unless you are a vulnerable individual or your health care provider or State or local public health officials recommend you take one. A negative test does not mean you will not develop an infection from the close contact or contract an infection at a...

Six out of every 10 registered U.S. voters believe the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic is yet to come in the United States, according to a new Just the News Daily Poll with Scott Rasmussen. A strong majority of 59% of voters believe that the country has yet to see the worst of the virus, while just 20% believe the worst effects of it are behind us. A further 22% expressed uncertainty....

Blazing Saddles is currently streaming on HBO Max, along with a new introduction that automatically plays before the Mel Brooks classic begins… TCM host and University of Chicago cinema and media studies professor Jacqueline Stewart provides the intro to Blazing Saddles. She also did the intro for Gone With the Wind. A little more than three-minutes long, Stewart’s intro puts the bigotry and racist language in context, the host saying, “as the storyline implies the issue of race is front and center in Blazing Saddles. And racist language and attitudes pervade the film. But those attitudes are espoused by characters...

Cultural revolutions are insidious and not just because they seek to change the way people think, write, speak, and act. They are also dangerous because they are fueled by self-righteous sanctimoniousness, expressed in seemingly innocuous terms such as “social activism,” “equality,” and “fairness.”The ultimate aim of the Jacobin, Bolshevik, or Maoist is raw power—force of the sort sought by Hugo Chavez or the Castro dynasty to get rich, inflict payback on their perceived enemies, reward friends, and pose as saviors.Cubans and Venezuelans got poor and killed; woke Chavezes and Castros got rich and murderous.Leftist agendas are harder to thwart than...

Senior pastor Chris Hodges had liked tweets by Turning Point USA founder and president Charlie Kirk.BIRMINGHAM, Alabama, July 16, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – Local government authorities ended a partnership with a Christian church in Alabama offering outreach programs at public housing communities after a senior pastor was criticized online for liking several conservative-based memes. The church also was banned from leasing public high schools for its worship services. According to a report by AL.com, senior pastor Chris Hodges was first denounced by high school English teacher Jasmine Faith Clisby, who pointed out on Facebook that “Hodges, founder of the Church of...

LOUISVILLE, Kentucky -- A Kentucky couple is under house arrest after one of them tested positive for coronavirus and refused to sign self-quarantine papers. Elizabeth Linscott got tested for COVID-19 because she was planning to go visit her parents. "My grandparents wanted to see me, too, so, just to make sure that, you know, if I tested negative, that they would be okay, everything would be fine," Linscott said. After testing positive but without showing any symptoms, Linscott said the health department contacted her, requesting she sign documents. "I agreed to comply to call the Health Department if I was...

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Cuyahoga County’s enforcement of Gov. Mike DeWine’s mask order will largely rely upon complaints filed by the public, rather than proactive policing, County Executive Armond Budish announced Friday. Individuals who see others failing to abide by the mask requirement should call in complaints to the county’s new hotline at 216-698-5050, or file complaints online at cuyahogacounty.us/maskexperience. County workers will then contact the subject of the complaints — either individuals or businesses — to let them know a complaint has been filed, Budish said. Complaints also will be forwarded to the Board of Health, and the relevant city...

“Killing Eve” star Jodie Comer is in hot water on Twitter. The 27-year-old is facing “cancel” cries online after social media users discovered she’s possibly dating a Republican who supports President Trump. This comes amid her vocal support for several progressive causes, such as Black Lives Matter and Pride. Twitter sleuths linked the actress, who plays a queer woman on “Killing Eve,” to a man named James Burke after paparazzi photos surfaced of her sitting outdoors with a mystery man. A man by that name is a registered Republican. However, it’s not evidently clear how Burke’s name was discovered, or...

Scrabble just got W-O-K-E. Players of the classic board game will no longer be able to rack up points for spelling out racial and ethnic slurs, according to Scrabble officials. A total of 236 bigoted words were removed from the official Scrabble word list used at tournaments — in order to make the game friendlier to all types of people, The North American Scrabble Players Association. said Wednesday. “Removing slurs is the very least that we can do to make our association more inclusive,” NASPA CEO John Chew said in a statement. “How can we in this day tell prospective...