Free Republic

Thank goodness for Michigan’s fifth-graders. The results are in for statewide student tests administered last spring, and fifth-graders provided the highlight: More than half made a score deemed ‘proficient’ on one of the four subject-area tests administered. But not by much. Specifically, 50.6 percent of fifth-graders scored ‘proficient’ or better in English, saving the state from having the majority of every grouping of grade and subject branded as less than proficient in English, math, science and social studies. The fifth-graders’ math test was one of 18 grade and subject groupings covering students from third to 11th grade in those four...

While he finds Donald Trump’s popularity unbelievable, Brad Pitt is trying to understand why people are supporting the Republican presidential candidate. “I can’t bring myself to think that Trump will be in charge. In the simplest terms, what brings us together is good, and what separates us is bad,” the 52-year-old actor tells The New York Times’ T Magazine. Pitt quotes the Oscar-winning film “The Big Short” and says, “When things are going wrong and we can’t find the reason for it, we just start creating enemies.” “You gotta understand,” he tells the magazine, “that it’s also in our DNA....

It's no surprise that inequality in the U.S. is on the rise. But what you might not know is that math is partly to blame. In a new book, "Weapons of Math Destruction," Cathy O'Neil details all the ways that math is essentially being used for evil (my word, not hers). From targeted advertising and insurance to education and policing, O'Neil looks at how algorithms and big data are targeting the poor, reinforcing racism and amplifying inequality. These "WMDs," as she calls them, have three key features: They are opaque, scalable and unfair. Denied a job because of a personality...

Is the electric car the inevitable wave of the future? Is the internal combustion engine finished, through, a relic of the 20th century—as many are now saying? I have argued before that electric cars are overhyped. I calculated that the Tesla, for example, is still a really bad deal when you compare its substantial extra costs against the cost of operating a similar gasoline-powered car over five or ten years. But what if I'm wrong? For example, how much of that calculation is due to the inflated cost of a Tesla, which uses all of the positive publicity lavished on...

Yesterday I heard a perspective about Kaepernick’s refusal to stand for the National Anthem that compels me to help explain the Veterans’ Perspective on this issue. The view expressed on the radio was that Kaepernick’s should NOT sit on 9/11 because, while on any other day it is acceptable, to express one’s rights in such a manner on 9/11 it would be highly inappropriate. It is important to point out that this comment was made by a New York radio commentator — so perhaps that explains his perspective’s emphasis on the New York – 9/11 emotional connection. After all, the...

In mid-January, everyone's favorite market indicator Dennis Gartman, made an infamous prediction when oil was trading in the mid-$30s, when he said that oil won't hit $44 again "in my lifetime" Sure enough, three months later, oil "killed" Gartman, or at least his credibility, when it jumped above $44. We thought that Gartman had learned his lesson, and would avoid such bombastic forecasts in the future. Turns out we were wrong, and earlier today Gartman again appeared on CNBC, where he said that "investors shouldn't expect the commodity to break through $55 for a few years."

Striving to snag the curious vote, Clinton's lead press secretary, Brian Fallon, urged "those who are so eager to see Hillary give a press conference can elect her president. Presidents always have press conferences. As the head of government she'll have a lot to say to the press." Fallon justified the campaign's dearth of media interaction as "just building up the suspense and anticipation. I hear that there is some speculation that the multiple questions and flashing cameras will spark a seizure. Well, the only way to find out is to get her into office and see." if you missed...

Thousands of Americans were shot to death while Congress was on its summer break, according to gun control activists. The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence reported Tuesday that 4,500 people have been shot and killed since lawmakers left Washington in mid-July. Lawmakers will be greeted by protests from gun control advocates Tuesday when they return to Capitol Hill. "Congress is in for a rude awakening today if they thought seven weeks of vacation would wipe the slate clean,” said Brady President Dan Gross. "While Congress enjoyed nearly two months of sun and fun, the American people paid the ultimate...

Mines are closing and the coal industry is facing a run of bankruptcies and other bad news, but a company backed by a $90 million investment is defying conventional wisdom by preparing to open two new mines in Appalachia, the hardest-hit coal region. The mines in West Virginia and Virginia will create some 400 jobs in counties where unemployment ranges close to three times the national average, Ramaco Development CEO Randall Atkins told The Associated Press. "It's a fairly big deal, frankly, for southern West Virginia," Atkins said....

Does President Obama have the guts to call Americans “lazy” to our faces? Or is he more brave to tear us down a half a world away? The president twice called Americans “lazy” today as he addressed a group of young leaders in Laos. “So usually, if you see the environment destroyed, it’s not because that’s necessary for development. It’s usually because we’re being lazy, and we’re not being as creative as we could be about how to do it in a smarter, sustainable way,” Obama said during a town hall meeting.

While primary elections for local offices rarely garner much attention, the results of the August election were dramatic for one county in northern lower Michigan. Of seven members of the current county commission, only one will be on the fall ballot. “I did not anticipate such a dramatic and historic turnover on the Emmet County board,” said Commissioner Charlie MacInnis, who ran unopposed in the primary. “The community clearly didn’t support the massive spending projects that were undertaken without adequate planning or voter approval.” Four of the seven incumbents lost primary contests while another two did not seek re-election. Last...

Another reason to vote Trump! If you’ve seen her stand up, or the movie “Trainwreck,” you know Amy Schumer is less of a comedian than she is a human endurance test. She’s the kind of painfully unfunny celeb who exists so you cage determine how long you’d hold out if you were ever subjected to a Marathon Man-style interrogation. Your torturer will say “talk,” and you’ll respond ” I saw Amy Schumer do two hours at the Funny Bone in Cincinnati, do your worst.” Given that she’s not - in any way - funny, there would be no loss to...

Patriots! He’s the backup quarterback on a team that went 5-11 last season. His team wanted to trade him but no one really wanted to take him. Shocking that this guy’s jersey would be the top seller in the NFL? Not at all! Colin Kaepernick is the perfect poster boy for the self-absorbed American millennial who thinks his own good intentions and smug sanctimony should be all anyone expects. Results? Performance? Responsibility? A whit of discernible brain activity? You’ve oppressed our generation long enough! Congratulations, America. You put Obama on top twice, and now you’re outdoing yourselves:

"Any nation who shares in this goal will be our friend in this conflict." This is not the policy the media likes when you’re running for president, but it’s the only thing any serious president can do. It’s idiotic to stand there on the campaign stump and lay out in detail how you would fight a war. Not only are you giving away your strategy to the enemy, but you also have no idea how to anticipate what might actually happen on the field of battle. So however much you may hear complaints that Trump is “short on specifics” here,...

There’s another Marxist monster making headway on the road to the White House, using a cough and pillow props to distract and fool you When Hillary Clinton is coughing her swelled head off in the White House, Citizen Barack Obama will be living within walking distance in DC’s Kalorama neighborhood. But the powerful, faceless cabal priming Democrat pumps don’t want you to stop and think about that, or about anything else that is real. They want a citizenry speculating non-stop about whatever could be causing Hillary’s coughing fits. Arguments about whether Clinton should be made to release her medical records...

Recently we learned that Hillary Clinton conducted a swap shop in her State Department office where everything including positions on sensitive committees, regardless of credentials, was for sale. We could almost imagine the phone conversations between Hillary and her customers, “You’re on a terrorist watch list but need some vital secret information? Just a moment, let me see what that’s going for today – you know, the price for such accommodations changes all the time.” Unfortunately this is nothing new for the Clintons. When Bill Clinton was in the White House he was not only a sexual deviant, but a...

Instead of using a traditional quiver, this archery shooter uses arrows as hair pins. When she need an arrow she just needs to pull one out of her hair. This young archery competitor is traveling light with no traditional quiver to get in the way. Where are her extra arrows kept? In her hair, of course. This interesting idea lends itself to competition shooting. That is as long as you don’t pull your hair out in the process. For hunting, this large headdress might get caught in branches and brush though. Watch the video as this young lady shows off...

That's right a weapon that was invented in the first century. First Century weapons have to be relics? Not really. Believe it or not, the flame thrower was invented in the First Century. the initial idea for the flame thrower came from the Greeks in the year 1 AD, taking the form of hand-pumped flamethrowers on board their naval ships. Later, the modern flame thrower, or Flamnenwerfer in German, showed up around 1901, and since was used extensively in WWII, Vietnam, and other conflicts. Nowadays, private ownership of flame throwers is not prohibited by federal law, but a few states...

Employment in Michigan has grown in nearly every job sector since 2009. In addition, the state’s unemployment rate is the lowest it has been in 15 years. Since July 2009, Michigan gained nearly 576,000 jobs in major job sectors, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The only sectors that lost jobs were education, which lost 1,900, and government, which lost 37,200. When identified by the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS), the sector that gained the most jobs was professional and business services, adding 172,000 jobs since 2009. The manufacturing sector gained 164,800 jobs, while the health care and...

Here, Bill and his helpers prepare to spread the light of truth to people along the route of this vile parade. In early July, Christian freedom activist Bill Whatcott and a small group of friends used stealth to infiltrate the Toronto sodomite “pride” parade for the purpose of distributing thousands of flyers with a brief Gospel message and the graphic truth about the dangers of homosexual behavior. The flyers also called out Justin Trudeau and other Canadian politicians who aggressively support the militant homosexualist movement. Whatcott signed up to march in the parade under an alias (since he is well-known...