Free Republic

Pope Francis blamed Europe and the United States for the deaths of children in Syria, Yemen and Afghanistan, saying Saturday that wealthy Western countries fuel conflicts by selling weapons in war zones. Speaking to students and teachers of Milan’s San Carlo Institute, Francis said the reason there are so many wars around the world is “the rich Europe and America sell weapons … used to kill children and kill people.” Without such firepower, the pope added, there wouldn’t have been war in countries such as Afghanistan, Yemen and Syria. . “A country that produces and sells weapons has on its...

With drug violence raging in Mexico, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives says a surge in federal agents in Arizona has helped the United States recover about 1,300 firearms in the last 100 days, many of them believed bound for Mexico. Federal law enforcement officials say the success is prompting the ATF to roll out similar techniques in seven additional cities believed to be hotbeds for gun traffickers. The current operation involved the deployment of a Project Gun Runner Impact Team (GRIT) to combat the deadly flow of weapons from the United States to Mexico's ongoing drug...

Doctors tracking swine flu in California are investigating a new theory: What if it didn't originate in Mexico but instead had been floating around the border region for months? Growing evidence in California suggests that early flu cases had no apparent origin in Mexico. Many of the early California victims — including the first two cases — say they hadn't traveled to Mexico and had no contact with pigs. Some may have fallen ill before the first Mexicans did.

Meeting face-to-face with Mexican President Felipe Calderon, President Obama on Thursday said the U.S. is to blame for much of Mexico's drug violence, and he set up a major congressional gun-control battle by calling on the Senate to ratify a treaty designed to track and cut the flow of guns to other countries. Mr. Obama said he wants to renew a ban on some semiautomatic weapons but that it is not likely to pass Congress. Instead, he called for the Senate to ratify a decade-old hemispherewide treaty that would require nations to mark all weapons produced in the country and...

WASHINGTON — Tighter gun control and stronger law enforcement in Southwestern states were recommended Thursday by lawmakers concerned about drug violence in Mexico possibly spilling across the border. --snip-- "The United States and Mexico border violence can only be solved if we look at all parts of the equation," Rep. John Tierney, D-Mass., said Thursday during a House subcommittee considering changes to U.S. gun laws. "Let’s examine our gun laws, let’s cut down on U.S. drug consumption, let’s ask there to be more resources to root out drug-money laundering," he said...

MIDI - OH WHAT A BEAUTIFUL MORNING - scroll down to Good Morning section for the MIDI We saw savagery on 9-11.....to the terrorists that day was heaven We hadn't attacked them, it was uncalled for...but they knew they could count on own liberal whores They say prepare the indictments...and offer some therapy They say prepare the indictments...why it was done we will see We're the bad guys the liberals keep saying...like a jackass they just keep on braying They have a solution that's always the same...on the US of A they are placing the blame They say prepare...