Free Republic

It's good times for Venezuela's vile communist dictator, Nicolas Maduro.Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva met his Venezuelan counterpart Nicolas Maduro on Monday and called out US sanctions against Venezuela as "extremely exaggerated."Maduro, who is seen as a controversial leader internationally, met Lula on his visit to Brazil. Maduro was greeted by Lula with a hug and back-slap in the presidential palace of Brasilia. Effectively now, Venezuela has been welcomed back into the community of civilized democratic nations, or at least, the community of BRICs and non-aligned nations, no longer a pariah state.Joe Biden sent out some of the...

Second best apparently just wasn’t good enough for this pageant gal’s No. 1 fan. With rage in his eyes and destruction in his heart, an unhinged husband stormed the stage of an “LGBTQIAP+ beauty pageant” in Brazil, hijacked the winner’s crown and furiously slammed it to the ground after his wife was awarded the second-place honors, local news outlet Globo reported.

As mayor of Bogota, Gustavo Petro has put forth a ban on carrying guns in public even with a legal permit. Skeptics have countered that criminals will not follow the ban, and the result will only disarm citizens legally carry guns for security reasons. In 2002 Brazil implemented restrictions which made it virtually impossible for citizens to obtain a permit. According to Brazil’s National Confederation of Municipalities as recently as 2008, more than half of the homocides in Brazil were perpetrated with a firearm, despite restrictions on legal ownership of firearms. The nation suffers at three times the global average...

Gun ownership increased sixfold under former Brazilian President Bolosonaro, homicides dropped 34% A gun expert is asking academics to put their money where their mouths are and bet $1,000 on Brazil as a case study that stricter gun laws won't mean less crime. No one has taken him up on the bet yet, but some have hit back by calling the challenge a "stunt" and saying they will put cash up if the terms meet their requirements. Brazil took a hard turn away from gun ownership with a new left-wing presidential administration this year, sparking a debate on whether Brazil’s...

If investors agree on one thing this year, it's that the dollar is going to fall. That's made the greenback's 2% bounce over the last month particularly confusing. U.S. inflation is cooling and the Federal Reserve may pause its interest rate hikes next month. So the dollar should be on the way down, right? Analysts say a number of factors are probably at play. One is that a range of worries - about the U.S. debt ceiling negotiations, the health of banks, and the global economy's outlook - are burnishing the dollar's safe-haven credentials.

George Santos had better have set aside some of those millions of dollars that mysteriously showed up in his campaign accounts (allegedly) because his lawyers must be running up some hefty legal bills that he’ll need to cover. And that action isn’t all taking place in New York and Washington. One of his lawyers was in Brazil this week, securing a plea deal for him that will avoid a messy trial in that country. The Brazilians had been looking for Santos since 2008 regarding allegations that he defrauded a store clerk out of $1,300 for a suit and a pair...

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Glenn Greenwald announced on Tuesday that his husband, Brazilian lawmaker David Miranda, has died at age 37 after battling a severe infection for most of the past year. “It is with the most profound sadness that I announce the passing away of my husband,” Greenwald tweeted to his two million Twitter followers on Tuesday. SNIP Greenwald added: “His death, early this morning, came after a 9-month battle in ICU.”

One of the greatest betrayals in our history happened while America slept.. When Biden met with Lula da Silva, the founder of the Marxist Brazil’s Workers’ Party and a convicted criminal, it was a victory lap for both socialists. Lula da Silva, Brazil’s former leader, had survived his bribery conviction and rigged an election that overthrew Jair Bolsonaro: his conservative patriotic predecessor. Biden had survived his own trial by fire during the midterms which locked down the 2024 Democrat nomination. Lula also met with fellow Marxists: Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio Cortez. Biden and Lula talked of “democracy” and “fighting...

Police have searched the home of former President Jair Bolsonaro in the Brazilian capital, Brasilia, as part of an investigation into his Covid vaccination records. Police suspect the ex-leader's vaccination record was forged so he could gain entry to the US. Officers seized the mobile phone of the former president and that of his wife and arrested some of his close aides as part of the operation. Mr Bolsonaro has denied any wrongdoing. The former president is a vocal opponent of Covid vaccinations, who repeatedly spread false information about the vaccine and its alleged side effects.

Brazil’s Federal Police searched former President Jair Bolsonaro’s home and seized his phone Wednesday in what they said was an investigation into alleged falsification of COVID-19 vaccine cards. Several other locations also were searched and a half-dozen people faced arrest, police said. The president confirmed the search on his residence while speaking with reporters, as did his wife Michelle on her Instagram account. She said her phone wasn’t seized, contrary to media reports. A federal police official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the person wasn’t authorized to speak publicly, said that Bolsonaro will be deposed at Federal Police...

"China, India, Brazil and several other states close to Russia have unexpectedly voted for a UN Resolution which strongly censures Moscow. "On April 26, China unexpectedly voted in favor of a UN resolution that acknowledges Russia's military aggression against Ukraine and emphasizes the need to respect the independence and territorial integrity of all states... "...Recognizing also that the unprecedented challenges now facing Europe following the aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine, and against Georgia prior to that, and the cessation of the membership of the Russian Federation in the Council of Europe, call for strengthened cooperation between the United...

In Canada Pastor Artur Pawlowski found guilty of violating a the province of Alberta...The case brought against Pastor Pawlowski stems from his speaking to Freedom Convoy protesters in Coutts, Alberta last year during the blockades opposing COVID lockdowns and mandates in Canada... In Oregon Democrat Secretary of State Shemia Fagan resigning effective next Monday... In Brazil the debate over new internet legislation called a "fake news" bill but also called a censorship bill... Tonight in Ukraine explosions reported in multiple regions... A Russian freight train derailing near the border with Ukraine following an explosion... Iranian media says there was an...

[Catholic Caucus] Brazil's Bishops' Conference blames the country's polarisation on the "extreme right" and "traditionalist groups"Also trashes Pope Benedict see below- marked red Presentation of the report during the General Assembly of the Bishops of Brazil Presentation of the report during the General Assembly of the Bishops of BrazilIn the last session of the 60th General Assembly of the Episcopal Conference of the Bishops of Brazil, the Brazilian episcopate gathered in the Noé Sotillo auditorium of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Aparecida to discuss a report commissioned by them under the title: "Threats to ecclesial communion in the...

Argentina's central bank approved a payment delay through the end of the year for imports of services and freight transport worth $2 billion in an effort to manage a severe shortage of foreign currency in bank coffers needed for such transactions. South America's second-largest economy after Brazil is struggling with a prolonged financial crisis marked by triple-digit inflation ... The center-left government of President Alberto Fernandez has over several months launched measures meant to boost the inflow of foreign currency as well as to buck up a steadily weakening local peso currency, but so far the efforts have mostly met...

Beijing (AFP) – Brazil's president said Saturday that the United States should stop "encouraging war" in Ukraine, as he wrapped a state visit to China in which he has strengthened economic ties with his country's main trading partner. Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva used his trip to push the message that "Brazil is back" as a key player on the global stage -- and to warn that the South American country's deepening relations with China were non-negotiable. Lula was headed on Saturday to the United Arab Emirates for a one-day official visit, and will meet his counterpart Sheikh Mohamed bin...

AB InBev, the brewer behind the Corona, Budweiser and Stella Artois beer brands, has hailed record full year volumes in 2022, as well as the strong performance of its premium portfolio. The business claimed this success was “driven by the investment in [its] marketing capabilities”. While sales and marketing investment fell in 2022 compared to the year prior, CEO Michel Doukeris told investors today (2 March) the company will continue to invest behind its brands as they “deserve” because their “power” drives growth at the business. Across the full year, volumes grew by 2.3% to reach an “all-time high”, the...

The World Economic Forum is trying to make the Red Bishop’s dream a reality. Who is the most dangerous person in the world? An increasing number of people say it is World Economic Forum chairman Klaus Schwab. This Swiss engineer is not a head of state, nor does he command his own army. He does not possess his own nuclear arsenal. Yet as the architect behind covid-19 lockdowns and the Great Reset, Schwab has done more to suppress individual freedom, end free markets, destroy national sovereignty, and promote global tyranny than anyone alive. Klaus Schwab’s father, Eugen Schwab, was a...

Ukraine has been urged to give up Crimea by the Brazilian President. Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva suggested on Thursday that Ukraine cede the Black Sea peninsula to Russia to end the war, adding his Ukrainian counterpart "cannot want everything". -snip- Though vague, Brazil's Lula has put forward a proposal to mediate the conflict with a group of countries. He is due to present his proposal to Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing next week. In March, China also presented its own peace plan, which was flatly rejected by Ukraine and the West. Lula's international affairs adviser Celso Amorim met...

Another four children were injured by the 25-year-old man who entered the creche at around 09:00 local time (12:00 GMT) on Wednesday. At least one of them is reportedly in a serious condition. Police told local media that the attacker had surrendered and was in police custody. In a statement, military police said that the assailant had handed himself in at one of their stations in the town. Firefighters said three boys and a girl were killed in the playground. They are thought to have been between four and seven years old. They added that the assailant had jumped over...

According to Min News, fifty-six countries, including Israel and Japan, want to de-dollarize. Japan is dumping the US dollar as fast as it can. This is a direct result of the lockdowns and the sanctions. Both were highly-destructive failures. It is the beginning of the new world order that will possibly supersede the liberal world order within the next several years. No sane country wants to depend on a nation that will weaponize the system or the “demons in Davos.”