Free Republic

WARSAW, Poland – Holding out Poland's transformation to democracy as a model for the world, President Barack Obama on Saturday exhorted Western allies and the American public alike to extend their support, energy and vision to those now reaching for democracy in the Middle East and North Africa. Obama wound up his six-day trip to Europe with a message aimed squarely at the people of the United States, saying that in a time of tight budgets, "I want the American people to understand we've got to leave room for us to continue our tradition of providing leadership when it comes...

WASHINGTON – Federal Reserve officials cut their forecasts for growth this year and signaled they stood ready to take new steps to keep the recovery alive if the economy worsens. A new document, released Wednesday, revealed a more cautious mood among the Fed policymakers in light of Europe's debt crisis, a volatile Wall Street, a stalled housing market and high unemployment. With risks growing, Fed officials at their June 22-23 meeting saw the need to explore new options for bolstering the economy. That's a turnaround from earlier this year when they were moving to wind down crisis-era supports. No new...

WASHINGTON – President Bush wants to bolster the multinational fight in Afghanistan by reminding NATO allies that the war is in their interest – and by persuading them to send more troops into battle. But this will be a challenge for Bush, who was en route to Ukraine Monday at the start of a trip that will also lead to Romania, Croatia and Russia. The NATO alliance is strained currently and is engaged in soul-searching about its place and mission in a rapidly changing world. Beyond Afghanistan, Bush is trying to score a breakthrough on a U.S.-based missile defense system...

UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 7 -- The United Nations has offered to bolster its presence in Baghdad for the first time in more than three years, laying the groundwork for a more ambitious role in mediating the country's sectarian disputes. The move comes three weeks after President Bush delivered his second personal appeal to Secretary General Ban Ki Moon to help resolve some of Iraq's intractable religious and ethnic conflicts. The top U.N. political adviser, B. Lynn Pascoe, told the Security Council Tuesday that the United Nations would be prepared to increase the size of its mission in Baghdad by nearly...

Washington- The Senate voted unanimously Thursday to bolster security at U.S. borders by pumping hundreds of millions of dollars into more patrols, surveillance flights and sensors to catch illegal immigrants sneaking into the country. Senators approved the $32.7 billion budget for the Homeland Security Department next year by a vote of 100-0. But they rejected proposals to boost funds for cities and states at high risk of terrorism attacks, a sore subject amid a recent spate of terrorism-related arrests and threats targeting metropolitan areas. With border security and immigration reform a top election-year priority, the Senate also agreed to make...

RAMADI, Iraq - More than 80 men, known as the Sons of Al Anbar, stepped back into the desert heat of Ramadi Saturday, after completing eight weeks of training at the Iraqi Police Academy in Jordan. The men left their homes to train as Iraqi Police officers in early February. For weeks they trained at the Jordan International Training Center to hone their skills as policemen in the volatile city of Ramadi. The basic police training program is designed to provide fundamental and democratic policing skills based on international human rights standards to the students, in preparation for assuming police...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 17, 2006 – Three years ago, U.S. Navy SEALs secured the Basra and Khwar Al Amaya oil terminals and started maritime security operations in the Persian Gulf. Today, the U.S. Navy and its coalition partners continue operations there and have expanded the range of the maritime mission, but continue to support operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. A utility landing craft and an MH-60S Seahawk helicopter provide assistance to a distressed vessel off the coast of Kenya Jan. 31 while conducting maritime security operations in the Indian Ocean. Naval forces supplied the ship with 10 days of...

1/12/2006 - KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. (AFPN) -- Keesler is at the forefront of the battle to restore the Mississippi Gulf Coast of Hurricane Katrina’s wake. After the storm devastated the base and surrounding communities Aug. 29, Keesler’s training mission temporarily stopped as it recovered and began humanitarian relief operations, or HUMRO. The base began documenting HUMRO efforts after the hurricane. As of mid-December, the database reflects: -- 291 total missions involving 10 or more people. -- 122,736 meals ready-to-eat issued. -- 187,660 pounds of food and clothing distributed. -- 239,227 gallons of water passed out. -- 20,256 work...

Christianity Today, October 2005 Raiders of the Lost PoolNew finds bolster the historicity of John's Gospel. by Gordon Govier | posted 10/26/2005 09:00 a.m. The Pool of Siloam, considered a metaphor in John's Gospel by some New Testament scholars, was in fact a huge basin at the lowest point in the city of Jerusalem. Recent excavations have uncovered two corners and one side of the pool that stretched for half the length of a football field. "It's very exciting," James Charlesworth, a professor of New Testament at Princeton Theological Seminary, told CT. "It's very important for the study of the...

Units assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division have provided security for elections in Afghanistan and Iraq, so this mission came as no surprise to the paratroopers. BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, Aug. 8, 2005 — The first group of paratroopers from a battalion of the 82nd Airborne Division rapidly deployed to Afghanistan to bolster security in advance of the country’s upcoming provincial elections began arriving here July 16. Approximately 700 paratroopers from the 1st Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment were scheduled to arrive in Afghanistan in mid-July to join more than 1,500 paratroopers from the 82nd’s 1st Brigade Combat Team who have...

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United Nations, acting after deadly suicide bombings apparently driven by Muslim extremism hit London, launched an initiative on Thursday to build new bridges between the West and Islam. The campaign's aim was to "bridge divides and overcome prejudice, misconceptions, misperceptions, and polarization which potentially threaten world peace," U.N. chief spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. Recent events had "heightened the sense of a widening gap and lack of mutual understanding between Islamic and Western societies -- an environment that has been exploited and exacerbated by extremists in all societies," he said. Secretary-General Kofi Annan was pursuing the...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. retirement system does not need a major overhaul or private accounts and can be stabilized through a series of smaller fixes, the nation's largest lobby group for the elderly said on Wednesday. The AARP, formerly known as the American Association for Retired Persons, said the amount of wages that can be taxed for Social Security (news - web sites) should be raised from $90,000 to $140,000. The change could be phased in over about 10 years and would cut the projected shortfall by 43 percent. The government should also diversify investments for the fund that...

Three ancient Romanian maps bolster accuracy of “Persian Gulf” name VIENNA (IRNA) -- Three ancient maps kept in a Romanian academy confirm the accuracy of the name Persian Gulf to denote waters off the southern coast of Iran, said an Iranian embassy official in Bucharest Friday. Speaking to IRNA, the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that researches made by the Romanian academy uncovered a map called "Asiac Nova Descripto" dating back to 1584 in which the Persian Gulf is historically referred to as "Mar Mesendin Ol Sinus Persicus." The Romanian academy is one of the most important...

<p>Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante continued Tuesday to build his campaign treasury with massive donations from the state’s Indian tribes, with the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians announcing that it would give him $1.5 million and spend another $500,000 on get-out-the-vote efforts on his behalf.</p>

<p>NEW YORK - A key measure of future economic activity rose in May, beating analysts' expectations and bolstering hopes that the economy may be headed for a rebound.</p> <p>The Conference Board reported Thursday that its Index of Leading Economic Indicators increased by 1.0 percent in May, after a 0.1 percent rise in April and a 0.2 percent decline in March.</p>