Free Republic

Donald Trump plans to immediately return to work Friday, a day after becoming the first ex-president ever convicted of felony criminal charges — while warning President Biden to “buckle up” now that he can focus on the campaign trail. The former president, 77, is scheduled to speak at 11 a.m. Friday at Trump Tower in Midtown Manhattan, where he is expected to again rip what he called a “rigged, disgraceful trial” that ended Thursday with him convicted of 34 felonies over “hush money” payments. His campaign also had a warning for his 2024 rival. “Crooked Joe Biden and the Democrats...

Shiny brown seedsSaturday 30th August 2008 Dear Family and Friends, It's a noisy afternoon as I sit writing this letter. The Msasa trees are throwing out their seeds in preparation for the new season. Every few seconds another pod loses control and cracks. There is a distinct click and then the pod splits, curls and falls onto the hard, dry ground, scattering shiny brown seeds into the dust. Summer is almost upon us and change is in the air. Smoke is also in the air as yet again uncontrolled fires burn in every direction and on every horizon but we...

am sitting in the shade of a big old Msasa tree writing this letter by hand because yet again the electricity is off. It is a magnificent day so typical of early winter in Zimbabwe: a wide blue sky, comforting warm sun and a refreshing gentle breeze. It’s hard to concentrate on telling this tragic story of events here when so many jewels are on display just a few feet away: a blue headed lizard nodding on a lichen covered branch; lines of red soil left by white ants climbing ever higher into the tree; bright orange crane flowers and...

Medieval belt buckle discovered The medieval belt buckle Archaeologists unearthed a medieval belt buckle in Perth following work to repair a collapsed sewer. The group were allowed to examine the area in the Kirkgate as Scottish Water repaired the network. The copper alloy buckle is believed to date back to the 12th Century and was found along with animal bones, shells and pottery. A panel of experts will decide where the buckle should be housed, but it is hoped it will end up in Perth Museum. Catherine Smith from SUAT archaeological consultants told the BBC Scotland news website how they...

Zimbabwe Inflation Tops 100,000 Percent Thursday February 21, 9:01 am ET By Angus Shaw, Association Press Writer World Record Breaking Inflation in Zimbabwe Soars Past 100,000 Percent HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) -- The official rate of annual inflation in Zimbabwe has rocketed past the 100,000 percent barrier, by far the highest in the world, the state central statistical office said Thursday. Second-placed Iraq has inflation of just 60 percent, according to international estimates. In a brief statement, the statistics office said inflation rose to 100,580 percent in January, up from 66,212 in December. A further breakdown of its calculations would be...

Saturday 29th September 2007 Dear Family and Friends, Standing outside over yet another smoky fire late one afternoon this week, a Go-Away bird chastised me from a nearby tree. I'm sure this Grey Lourie is as fed up of me intruding into its territory as I am of being there - trying to get a hot meal for supper. For five of the last six days the electricity has gone off before 5 in the morning and only come back 16 or 17 hours later a little before midnight. "Go Away! Go Away!" the Grey Lourie called out repeatedly as...

Dear Family and Friends, Zimbabwe has begun harvesting the results of six years of mismanagement. We are continuing to have a bountiful rainy season and every day the heavens open and wash our troubled land. Streams and rivers are flowing, dams are filling, the vegetation is flourishing but all this water is causing crumbling, decrepit and un-maintained systems to come dangerously close to falling apart. This week the reports of diarrhoea and cholera have continued and we have seen the most appalling television coverage of foul and filthy piles of sodden and decaying garbage in and around the capital city....