Free Republic

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage fell this week to a record low, the ninth time that has happened in the last year. Even with the cheapest rates in history, the housing market remains depressed. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the rate on the 30-year loan dropped to 3.87 percent this week. That below the previous record of 3.88 hit two weeks ago. The average on the 15-year fixed mortgage fell to 3.14 percent, also a record low. Records for mortgage rates date back to the 1950s. Mortgage rates tend to track the...

30-year weather forecast by Japan By Colin Joyce in Tokyo (Filed: 20/07/2006) Japan's science ministry hopes to harness the power of a supercomputer called the Earth Simulator to deliver forecasts 30 years into the future. The computer, which occupies a warehouse in Yokohama, is one of the most powerful in the world. Scientists will use it to analyse long-term trends using data such as atmospheric pressure, global air and sea temperatures, crust movements and currents. The forecasts will tell which areas are likely to experience recurring disasters such as typhoons, storms, heavy snow, coastal erosion and droughts. The government may...

AL ASAD, Iraq (May 16, 2006) -- "Generation after generation of Marines have grown gray in war, in both hemispheres, and in every corner of the seven seas that our country and its citizens might enjoy peace and security." These words, written several generations of Marines ago by Lt. Gen. John A. Lejeune, 13th Commandant of the Marine Corps, describe with uncanny accuracy the service one proud warrior with Marine Aircraft Group 16 (Reinforced), 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, has given to his country and Corps over a career spanning 30 years. Sgt. Maj. Abelardo Flores passed his position as Group...

Remember the concept “Owning a piece of the American Dream?” That goal you had when you graduated from college to eventually own your own home? Well, some recently released statistics suggest that, although the percentage of homeowners in our nation is at an all-time high, the preponderance of interest-only and home equity loans is creating a society of baby boomers that might never actually achieve this dream. Maybe even more concerning is that these home “lessees” don’t seem to mind. As reported by The Sacramento Bee: http://www.sacbee.com/content/homes/re_news/story/12425263p-13281615c.html "‘Folks paying off their loans and owning their homes free and clear is...

Republicans are pushing to rewrite budget rules in an attempt to remove financial obstacles that threaten the GOP’s effort to reform Social Security. The potential move to craft budget language that would direct the Congressional Budget Office to score Social Security reform legislation over 30 or more years would likely increase the chances that the bill would pass in the 109th Congress. Republicans could also write budget provisions that would remove the program entirely from the budget process.Reshaping Social Security, deemed the third rail of politics, has long been viewed as an almost impossible task. But with the deficit projected...