Free Republic

Brisbane residents have slammed Queensland Health for telling them to wear face masks when they drive, even if they are alone. Queensland Health posted on Facebook informing users of the rule after the state government introduced new measures to stem the spread of the deadly disease. 'Do I need to wear a mask in my vehicle? We've been getting this question a lot,' the post read. 'The answer is yes.' Many residents were left enraged and baffled by the rule. Many questioned why they should be forced to wear a mask alone in their car when there is no risk...

What we’re witnessing is the dangerous normalization of a dystopian concept of “freedom” in which government dominates your life “for your own good.”When the Australian state of Victoria issued a 48-hour warning on New Year’s Eve that its border with the neighboring state of New South Wales would be indefinitely closed, it likely secured the award for the most egregious measure by a western government to curb COVID-19. The state government instructed residents to return home by 11:59 p.m. on Jan. 1. Those who did not arrive at the border by the midnight curfew were turned away by police. Thousands...

Coon Cheese is to be rebranded in Australia to Cheer after a campaign by activists against the word's racist connotations. The well-known brand, which has been around for more than 80 years, will disappear from shelves in July. The cheese is owned by Canada's Saputo Dairy Australia which announced last year it would "retire" the name. Coon is historically used as a racist slur, and Aboriginal groups have lobbied for its rebranding for decades. It is one of a number of brands to face pressure to rebrand following last year's Black Lives Matter movement. The cheese got its original name...

Political elites worldwide have criticized big tech companies for banning President Donald Trump from their social media platforms. At present, the president has been banned from Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Snapchat, Reddit, and Instagram. Twitter permanently removed Trump’s account, saying that his recent posts were in violation of the “Glorification of Violence Policy.” German Chancellor Angela Merkel called Twitter’s ban on Trump “problematic,” and said that freedom of opinion is an essential right of “elementary significance,” her spokesperson, Steffen Siebert, said on Jan 11. “This fundamental right can be intervened in, but according to the law and within the framework defined...

"isolate, demonize and destroy" Ammon Bundy of People's Rights speaking live on You Tube at 1015 pm Eastern time tonight discussing what is being done to people when their social media accounts are shut down... The long knife of social media censorship operating far and wide tonight...' Rush Limbaugh making a move against Twitter tonight... An ultimatum from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to President Trump. He must resign immediately or she will initiate impeachment proceedings... Speaker Pelosi saying in a letter to House Democrats that she has spoken to Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley... North Carolina now under a...

Vatican City, Jan 7, 2021 / 12:00 pm MT (CNA).- Australia’s financial crime watchdog said Thursday that it is conducting a “detailed review” of Vatican-linked transfers worth $1.8 billion. The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC), a government agency, said Jan. 7 that it was seeking to shed light on the mystery transfers in cooperation with the Vatican. “AUSTRAC is currently undertaking a detailed review of the figures and is working with the Holy See and Vatican City State Financial Intelligence Unit on this matter,” the agency said in a statement to the Associated Press. Reports of a money...

Platypus eating a worm. ============================================================== The first complete map of a platypus genome has just been released, and it's every bit as strange as you'd expect from a creature with 10 sex chromosomes, a pair of venomous spurs, a coat of fluorescent fur, and skin that 'sweats' milk. The duck-billed platypus is truly one of the oddest creatures on Earth. Along with the spiky echidna, these two Australian animals belong to a highly-specialised group of mammals, known as monotremes, which both lay eggs but also nurse their young with milk. The genes of both are relatively primitive and unchanged, revealing...

MORE ON: CORONAVIRUS As post-holiday infections surge, Lebanon gears for lockdown Cheap hair lice drug may cut risk of COVID-19 death by 80 percent: study UK man is first to get AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine Scotland to enter another national lockdown SYDNEY – Australia’s most populous state New South Wales (NSW) on Monday reported zero local coronavirus cases for the first time in nearly three weeks, as Sydney battled multiple outbreaks and authorities urged tens of thousands of people to get tested. NSW daily testing numbers have dropped to around 20,000 in the last two days from a peak of about 70,000...

An unexpected catch has revealed Beijing’s sneaky underwater spying activities right on Australia’s doorstep – a scary new escalation in tensions. An unexpected Christmas catch has revealed Beijing is actively surveying critical shipping choke-points to Australia’s north. And that could have dire implications if our trade-spat worsens. Three undersea spy drones have been caught in Indonesian waters. They appear to be a Chinese design, and they were in shipping lanes crucial for Australia’s security. They look like simple tubes with wings. But they’re packed full of sensors and a long-range transmitter to send their discoveries back to headquarters. RELATED: Secret...

Police used flash bang rounds and tear gas on a "right-wing" group in Salem, Oregon today as the group faced off with left-wing protesters. A rally involving some 200 people held at Oregon's State Capitol and the home of Oregon's governor. ' Speeches from the protesters opposing coronavirus restrictions and lockdowns in Oregon and shouts of "USA, USA, USA" from them... An Oregon health care worker hospitalized with a severe reaction to the Moderna coronavirus vaccine... Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler said today there will be a tougher response to those who have been involved in two nights of vandalism in...

Measure is virtually unenforceable.. Authorities in Victoria, Australia have banned kissing and hugging on New Year’s Eve despite the fact that there have been no new cases of COVID-19 in two months. State Premier Dan Andrews said hugging and kissing should not take place during celebrations between anyone but immediate family members. “Just as Christmas was a little different this year, New Year’s Eve will be too,” the Victorian Government said. “Take some hand sanitiser with you, don’t share drinks with others and [new year] kisses and hugs should [only] be shared with those in your immediate family.” Quite how...

Protest in Utah next Monday morning when Republican Governor Spencer Cox takes office. Cox endorsing the coronavirus restrictions of outgoing Republican Governor Gary Herbert that included a ban on social gatherings of more than 10 people... "Initial examination does not show a link between the unfortunate incident and the vaccination" That's part of the statement from Israel's Health Ministry following the death of a 75-year man two hours after he had received the Pfizer BioNTech coronavirus vaccine... Why did the World Health Organization change its views on masks earlier this year from being against the mask to supporting it?... South...

China has sailed an aircraft carrier and accompanying warships through the Taiwan Strait in a show of strength one day after a US warship passed through it... Rockets landed in Baghdad's Green Zone today in an attempt to hit the US Embassy... A mass exodus of humanity from major cities in the northern and southern hemispheres in the face of Christmas coronavirus lockdowns... Prime Minister Boris Johnson's snap 4 pm Saturday announcement of a lockdown starting at midnight caused a sudden rush out of London.... Thousands fleeing Sydney Australia where one part of the city is already under lockdown with...

Gladys Berejiklian has introduced coronavirus restrictions across greater Sydney as the state records 30 new coronavirus cases, prompting another wave of border restrictions and throwing Christmas plans into disarray. The New South Wales premier said the new restrictions were introduced to prevent the virus from seeding in other areas of Sydney, after the list of exposure sites grew overnight to include a number of restaurants in the eastern suburbs and a cafe in Forster on the mid north coast. Coronavirus live updates: Ireland bringing in restrictions on UK flights and ferries as other European countries suspend travel Read more Of...

A man who planned to shoot revellers on New Year's Eve in Melbourne's Federation Square has had his jail sentence increased to 16 years by Victoria's Court of Appeal. In May, Ali Khalif Shire Ali was jailed for 10 years over the botched 2017 terror plan, which Court of Appeal justice Mark Weinberg said was intended to "inflict mass casualties on random members of the public". Justice Weinberg, along with justices Chris Maxwell and Stephen McLeigh ruled the May decision was "manifestly inadequate". Justice Weinberg said the decision to increase the sentence to 16 years, with a non-parole period of...

Welcome to the weekend just six days before Christmas preparations underway here there and everywhere. Some scrooges and grinches out there in the USA to be sure of course at the very top in the UK as illustrated in this cartoon... Now the talk show hosts are actually willing to criticize the mask and support businesses being locked down by the government ala Buck Sexton and Glenn Beck. I guess those radio guys need to move in some new direction of course Ammon Bundy and People's Rights leading the way in resisting when it comes to masks and business shut...

China is suffering mass power cuts in the south, prompting cities to dim street lights, suspend factory production and tell office blocks to turn off heating unless the temperature falls below 3C. The electricity crisis appears to have been prompted by a shortage of coal after Beijing banned imports from Australia. China imposed trade bans against Australia after Canberra demanded an inquiry into the origins of coronavirus and criticised Beijing’s treatment of the people of Hong Kong.

Now it is just dangerous. While the world holds its breath over the outcome of the U.S. presidential election, the Chicoms are doing what thugs and bullies do. They have banned the import of a number of Australian commodities: coal, barley, wine, and lobsters. The first reaction of Australia's trade minister to China's ban on Australian coal was "But it will increase China's CO2 emissions!" if China burns Indonesian, Mongolian, or Russian coal instead of the high-quality stuff that Australia produces. The stupidity and naïveté of that reaction was enough to generate a headline on Instapundit: "Australia: Chinese Embargo of...

Peoples Rights in Oregon urging support today for Mazatlan Restaurant in Bend. Owners feeling the heat from the Oregon Liquor Control Board and agent Randy Hancock... The home office of a Washington stare official who's been going after businesses in the state for violating COVID-19 restrictions the site of a protest this afternoon... A lockdown in effect for Sydney Australia's Northern Beaches area until Wednesday Midnight... Poland going into a national lockdown from December 28th to January 17th... The US Senate Commerce Committee out with a report saying that Boeing improperly coached test pilots during the recertification for its 737...

Coal is among the latest in a growing list of major Australian exports hit by severe restrictions in China, also including commodities like cotton, timber wine, lobster, and barley. While Chinese citizens might be able to forgo luxuries for a while like Aussie wine as well as lobster, coal is quite another thing especially given the country is currently facing a broad coal shortage. Here's how Chinese state media publication Sixth Tone described it:Several cities in at least three provinces in central and southern China are experiencing a power crunch, with some local governments beginning to ration power use during...