Free Republic

NCHORAGE, Alaska -- Gov. Sarah Palin has a long fix-it list to review after her visit to two western Alaska villages Friday. Palin and Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell tagged along with Christian evangelist Franklin Graham and his emergency relief group Samaritan's Purse at they brought food into the communities of Marshall and Russian Mission. On the trip Palin told the assembled crowds that she wanted to remind them she worked for them, that they hired her and she wanted to hear what she can do to serve them better. In smaller meetings with community leaders Palin heard how the villages...

One in five Los Angeles County residents -- nearly 2.2 million people -- are receiving public assistance payments or benefits, a level county officials say will rise significantly over the coming months as the fallout from the recession continues. The percentage of people on county aid already equals the figure at the height of the 2001-03 recession and far exceeds the one in seven who needed help during the economic downturn in the early 1990s and the one in nine assisted in the collapse of the early 1980s.

UNITED States Ambassador to the Philippines Kristie Kenney assured Cebu City officials and the youth sector of the US Government’s support for clean air initiatives, through a $73-million assistance for energy and environment-related projects. Kenney said yesterday that Cebu will benefit from the US’ assistance, which the Philippine and US governments signed earlier this month. The financial aid will be used for clean air programs, and will fund projects or initiatives to help public utility vehicle drivers use cleaner fuel, start solar power generation and rural electrification... (snip) ...For their part, the students committed to Kenney that they would help...

Members of Congress and foreign policy experts alike have urged for defunding of UNRWA. [United Nations Relief and Works Agency]. The lack of financial transparency, members of Islamist terrorist organizations on UNRWA's payroll, are only two of the legitimate reasons why UNRWA should be defunded. But the U.S. State Dept. has just increased by $20 million a financial aid package for the Hamas terrorist population in Gaza.

An Iraqi policeman from the Maysan province distributes first aid kits to the families of Abu Rummanah during a combined humanitarian operation with Soldiers of the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cav. Division in Amarah Jan. 23. Photo by Pfc. Todd Rogers. FORWARD OPERATING BASE GARRY OWEN — Iraqi Police from the Al Hussein Station, assisted by Soldiers from the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, joined forces during Operation Goodwill to send a positive message to the citizens in Amarah Jan. 23. “We have a lot of things to coordinate between us and...

National Police Lt. Col. Sattar Jabbar Awda hands out humanitarian aid to locals in his sector of Basrah, Jan. 14, 2009. The Iraqi National Police are complimenting their security mission by helping out the community by building soccer fields, painting schools and cleaning cemeteries. Photo by Staff Sgt. Aaron Thacker, Multi-National Division South East. BASRAH — The winter chill was broken for some Iraqis as a company of Iraqi National Police recently distributed blankets, heaters, flashlights and other items to Basrah residents. This is one of several humanitarian events the National Police, 1st Battalion, Basrah Brigade, 4th Division have provided...

<p>George W. Bush has been singled out as the American president who has done the most for Africa. So where's the recognition, both in the media and the black community, of this worthy achievement?</p> <p>Bill Clinton might have been America's first black president, but it seems he didn't do as much for Africa as Bush has. Bob Geldof, Irish rocker and Africa activist, says the Texas oilman, who is wrapping up his second trip to the continent, "has done more than any other president so far."</p>

(IsraelNN.com) The IDF announced early Tuesday morning that it would hold its fire from 09:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon for the three-hour daily humanitarian ceasefire period in which Gaza residents come out to stock up on free food and medical supplies. The full shipment of 100 truckloads of humanitarian supplies is expected to make its way through the Kerem Shalom Crossings, according to IDF Major Peter Lerner, spokesman for Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT). However, there appears to be a real question as to how many of those supplies are actually getting to the residents once they...

AL-ANBAR PROVINCE, Iraq — Marines from 2nd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 5 and Police Transition Team 4 teamed up Dec. 26 to help Iraqi Police from the Port of Waleed to form good relationships with their new neighbors in the town of Walej. Over the past six months, nomadic shepherds and their families, destitute from drought and disease which ravaged their herds, were forced to move from the desert into the town of Walej. Located in a remote region of western al-Anbar province near the Syrian border, Walej was an Iraqi Army compound prior to 2003. It...

WASHINGTON: Even as the current US' monetary aid to Pakistan has drawn flak from various quarters, the Pentagon has said that the Central Command is working on a plan which will involve more funding to the Pakistani military for countering terrorism. A senior Defence Department official, however, said that the idea is still in the nascent stage and not flagged through the Secretary of Defence and Capitol Hill yet. "... right now we've got, in addition to the coalition support funds and the foreign military financing, there is a proposal coming out of CENTCOM to provide some additional financial assistance...

KABUL, Afghanistan, Nov. 28, 2008 – An Afghan woman and her seven-month-old son, who were severely injured by militants during an operation in Kapisa, Nov. 20, were released from a Coalition forces hospital in Bagram this week. The woman and child, whom Coalition forces believe lived with the militants, were injured when one of the militants detonated a hand grenade inside the compound. Coalition forces provided medical care on the scene, however; their injuries were so severe, that forces evacuated them to a military hospital in Bagram for further treatment. The woman and child both sustained head trauma and fragmentation...

Where I come from in West Africa, we have a saying: "A fool at 40 is a fool forever", and most African countries have now been independent for over 40 years.

Iraqi children thank an Iraqi Policeman with smiles after receiving a case of bottled water in the 9 Nissan district of eastern Baghdad, Nov. 20, 2008. Photo by Sgt. Jeremy Todd, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division Public Affairs. FOB RUSTAMIYAH — Iraqi Police (IP) officers and U.S. Soldiers attached to 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, teamed up to distribute humanitarian aid to those who needed the assistance in eastern Baghdad, Nov 20. The IP and Soldiers from Company A, 1st Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment, 1st Brigade combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, attached to 4th BCT, 10th...

The government kicked off a program Wednesday that aims to prevent foreclosures by letting an estimated 400,000 troubled U.S. homeowners swap their mortgages for more affordable loans.

A local Iraqi woman receives a humanitarian assistance package from an Iraqi Army Soldier in the Shulla community in northwest Baghdad, Sept. 10, 2008. Photo by 1st Lt. Christopher Taylor, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (AA) Public Affairs. BAGHDAD — Iraqi Army (IA) Soldiers partnered with Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers conducted a humanitarian assistance (HA) drop in the northwestern Baghdad neighborhood of Shulla, Sept. 10. Iraqi security forces (ISF) and Coalition forces (CF) have conducted numerous HA drops throughout Shulla, but this one was unique because it was planned and executed by the IA with minimal CF...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 9, 2008 – The Pentagon will send an assessment team to Georgia to determine what role the U.S. should play as the nation’s military rebuilds after clashes with Russia, a Defense Department official said today. “The Department of Defense is sending an assessment team to Tbilisi later this week to help us begin to consider carefully Georgia's legitimate needs and our response," Eric S. Edelman, undersecretary of defense for policy, told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee. After the assessment, officials will review how the United States will be able to support the reconstruction of Georgia, including...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 8, 2008 – With the off-loading of 17 tons of humanitarian supplies from the USS Mount Whitney over the weekend, the Defense Department’s part in providing relief to Georgia is over, Pentagon officials said here today. The Mount Whitney – the flagship of the U.S. fleet in the Mediterranean – delivered the supplies to the Georgian port of Poti over the weekend. The USS McFaul and Coast Guard Cutter Dallas had previously delivered supplies to the port of Batumi. DoD delivered 1,145 short tons of relief to Tbilisi via 62 air sorties since Russia invaded the Caucasus republic...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 3, 2008 – The United States will provide $1 billion in recovery aid to Georgia, President Bush announced today. Russia invaded the Caucasus republic in August and still has troops in the country in violation of a cease-fire agreement reached Aug. 13. Through Operation Assured Delivery, the U.S. military has delivered more than 2 million pounds of humanitarian supplies to the former Soviet republic. Bush said the new funds will help meet Georgia’s humanitarian needs and support its economic recovery. “More than half of these funds will be made available in the near term and will support reconstruction...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 2, 2008 – U.S. military aircraft and ships continue to bring humanitarian supplies to Georgia, defense officials said today. The humanitarian need still exists in the former Soviet republic, and the United States will continue sending help “as long as it’s needed,” Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said. Russian troops continue to be in violation of the cease-fire agreement signed in August, Whitman said. “There has been some progress, but they remain in violation,” he said. So far, 62 air sorties have flown humanitarian aid to Georgia, and two ships – the USS McFaul and U.S. Coast Guard Cutter...

Israel's extraordinary help for the Arab "Palestinians" should overshadow any consequences in it's war on terror stemming out of "Palestinian" initiated violence      Let alone current contributions and aid, even in the years that the "Palestinians" love to refer to as "occupation", just How "bad" was it really for them?   1967 - 1993   * Economic prosperity, Israeli investment in "Palestinian" business, industry and infrastructure helped the PA GNP grow 13% annually between 1967 and 1980, per capita income grew tenfold, unemployment dropped from 40% to below 5%.   * Standard of living soared, Health gains: Israel built 166...