Free Republic

Footage of police helicopters flying over beaches and parks in Australia to enforce draconian coronavirus lockdown measures is circulating on social media. “Attention, attention, this is a police helicopter,” blares one aircraft looming over a beach in Sydney in footage uploaded to TikTok. “Will everyone congregating in Gordon’s Bay move on,” the helicopter orders. “The local police have been notified and will be attending shortly. Anyone breaching the public health order will be issued a fine,” the loudspeaker adds, as a small crowd of mostly young people make a hasty exit from the scene: People in Sydney’s western suburbs also...

A member of the House of Lords has said the Republic of Ireland should consider rejoining the Commonwealth. Lord Diljit Rana said Ireland needs to have a “rational and serious debate” that must not be “governed by historical distortion, but rather recognize the truth of today and recognize that the Republic of Ireland has much to offer and lots to receive.” […] Ireland left the British Commonwealth in 1949 under the terms of the Republic of Ireland Act. Lord Rana said there would be no disadvantage to the Republic joining the Commonwealth and that the economics benefits of being a...

"We don't have time for meetings. We don't have time for red tape and bureaucracy. We're literally in a war to save our coast. Every hour matters. Every day matters."—Gov. Bobby Jindal (R.-La.) Since Bobby Jindal came on the scene as a U.S. congressman from Louisiana, he’s shaken the status quo. He is an unabashed conservative within the Republican Party—a unique blend of the political and business world. He also gave the party some color. Republicans are sensitive about their perceived “color problem,” and Bobby Jindal added a religious fervor and true conservative credentials along with his Indian heritage and...

HARARE, Zimbabwe - President Robert Mugabe on Friday threatened to pull Zimbabwe out of the Commonwealth after the 54-nation grouping of Britain and its former territories barred him from an upcoming summit in Nigeria. Speaking at the funeral of a ruling party activist, Mugabe blamed his exclusion on states opposed to his government's seizure of thousands of white-owned farms for redistribution to landless blacks. The often-violent seizures have crippled the country's agriculture-based economy. The government has also been cracking down on political dissent, arresting opposition leaders and shutting down the country's only independent daily newspaper. "If our sovereignty is to...