Free Republic

BALTIMORE — A white woman beaten by a group of black students on a bus has prompted a hate-crime investigation, attempts by transit officials to reassure riders of the safety of the system, and radio talk-show chatter over comparisons with the Jena Six case. The uproar prompted two leading black politicians to issue statements decrying the attack. Sarah Kreager, 26, suffered broken facial bones and other injuries after she was punched, kicked and dragged off the bus Tuesday afternoon. Kreager's companion, Troy Ellis, was also attacked, but not beaten as severely. Kreager has an unlisted phone number and attempts to...

DES MOINES -- Hutton Street, a modest, racially mixed working-class neighborhood on the city's east side, was unprepared for the miniature army that invaded it one recent Saturday morning when Barack Obama decided to pay a call. Leading a parade of bodyguards, staffers and about 20 journalists, Obama first knocked on the door of Fortino and Maria Brito. Mexican immigrants, the Britos spoke little English and the conversation was brief. A few houses down, the Democratic presidential candidate had better luck with Jody DeGard, who was "flabbergasted" to see him on her doorstep. Her support tottering between Illinois Sen. Obama...

Baghdad, 25 Sept. (AKI) - A gang of women who are part of the Mahdi army militia, loyal to radical Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, have killed a group of Sunni Muslim women in the al-Washshash district of the Iraqi capital Baghdad. This is according to a statement released on Tuesday by the Congress of the People of Iraq, the party led by Adnan al-Dulaimi, who is also the leader of the Iraqi Accord Front, a key Sunni political bloc. "The vast campaign of forced migration by the militias of the Mahdi Army against the Sunnis in that district of...

Approaching the end of our study of Giants in the Earth, we have discovered so far that our ancient history is not quite what he have been taught in school — or even in Sunday School. From very ancient times, giants have played a dominant role in Earth's history, determining the fate of nations, and even of mankind itself. Yet, our schools have reduced the critical role of the giants to that of a fairytale, lumping them in with religion, folklore, mythology, and everything else that does not fit their sterile secular worldview. And even the church, once the champion...

Rove still on hot seat with Democratic committee investigating Attorney firings by Bush White House, regardless of Rove's resignation today (AXcess News) - Washington - Texas is a mighty big state, but not big enough if Karl Rove expects to call it home once more after he leaves the Bush White House the end of August. Democrats vowed to chase after Rove after he resigns as the President's top advisor in an investigation into the firings of nine U.S. attorneys last year and alleged politicization of the Justice Department's hiring process. Democrats say Rove knows too much and his testimony...

WASHINGTON, July 30 — The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service raided the Alaska home of Senator Ted Stevens on Monday in search of evidence about his relationship to a businessman who oversaw a remodeling project that almost doubled the size of the senator’s house, federal law enforcement officials said. The decision to raid the home suggests that the corruption investigation focused on Mr. Stevens, a long-serving Republican and former chairman, has taken on new urgency. The businessman, Bill J. Allen, the founder of an oil fields service company that has won tens of millions of dollars...

The lawyer for a Gold Coast based doctor charged with terrorism offences says his client is being treated unfairly under tough federal government legislation. Prominent Brisbane solicitor Peter Russo said after spending 12 days in custody without charge Dr Mohamed Haneef now faced a difficult battle to secure bail. That's because under the federal government legislation, those charged with terrorism offences can only be granted bail in "exceptional circumstances". Indian national Haneef has been charged with supporting terrorism for "recklessly" providing his mobile phone SIM card to terrorist suspects Sabeel and Kafeel Ahmed, his second cousins, when he left the...

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — A shadowy group holding a British correspondent for three months threatened on Sunday to kill him, in a video broadcast by the Al-Jazeera satellite TV channel. A spokesman for The Army of Islam, identified as Abu Khattab, told Al-Jazeera that there was no deal to release British Broadcasting Corp. correspondent Alan Johnston, and " if the situation gets more complicated concerning us and our group, then we will ingratiate ourselves to Allah by slaying this journalist."

Israeli soldiers man the Gaza-Israel border fence The shooting took place near the Israel-Gaza border fence Two Palestinian boys have been shot dead by Israeli troops in the northern Gaza Strip, Palestinian sources say. The children were estimated to be between eight and 13 years old. They have not yet been identified. An Israeli army spokesman said the army had shot at several Palestinians near the Gaza-Israel border fence. He said they were crawling towards the fence near Beit Lahiya, "did not heed repeated calls to stop and planted a suspicious device close to the fence". A separate spokeswoman said:...

Commencement today marks new beginning for school he founded LYNCHBURG -- The Rev. Jerry Falwell planned to save America through his students, 3,598 of whom will graduate today from Liberty University inculcated with his evangelical, conservative vision. "The reason he built this place was to change the world," said Liberty student Mark Krom. "It's easy for me to buy into that. He was training champions for Christ." Falwell, 73, died from a heart condition Tuesday in his campus office. Thousands have come to the campus to view his body over the past several days. Falwell, in repose in a coffin...

During several weeks of calls to possible clients of the woman dubbed the D.C. Madam, Brian Ross of ABC confirmed that some fairly important people had used her escort service. But when he put together last night's segment for "20/20," the network's chief investigative reporter decided against outing anyone beyond the two people who already had been identified. "They just weren't newsworthy enough," ABC's Brian Ross said of the names. (By Donna Svennevik -- Abc) "Their names won't mean anything to our audience," Ross said in an interview. "They just weren't newsworthy enough." Instead, he said, "what we really wanted...

WASHINGTON -- The House today tried – and failed – to override President Bush's veto of a $124-billion war spending bill that would have forced him to withdraw troops from Iraq. Even as congressional leaders went to the White House to discuss a compromise bill, the House voted 222-203 to override the veto, far short of the two-thirds necessary for passage. Debate was passionate, as it has been during each of the last two House debates over the war. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) bristled at suggestions from the White House that Democrats are planning to surrender to terrorism....

Though it's unclear if he told anyone about his plans to stage a shooting rampage at Virginia Tech, from childhood, Seung-Hui Cho showed an appetite for brutality, according to a new report. The Washington Post reports that while Cho was unusually quiet as a child — according to relatives, he refused to respond to greetings and didn't want to be hugged — when he fought with his older sister, Sun-Kyung Cho, his actions spoke volumes. Relatives say he punched her with shocking force. Despite signs of trouble, Cho's mother didn't seek treatment for him because he did well in school,...

An April 14 deadline has passed and there are no signs that North Korea has begun to shut down its main nuclear reactor, as it agreed to do in February. VOA's Luis Ramirez reports from Beijing, where diplomats have gathered to see where the nuclear disarmament negotiations are going next. Chief US negotiator, Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, speaks to the press in Beijing, China Saturday 14 Apr 2007 Chief US negotiator, Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, speaks to the press in Beijing, 14 Apr 2007 The four-year-old process to get North Korea to begin dismantling its nuclear...

Three chlorine gas attacks in Iraq are reported to have killed eight people and left hundreds injured, including six US troops. Two of the attacks were near the city of Falluja, the third near Ramadi, west of Baghdad. Both areas are hotbeds of al-Qaeda militants. Chlorine gas can cause severe burns to the throat and lungs and can kill after only a few breaths. There were at least three such attacks in Iraq in February. 'Vomiting' The heaviest casualties were in a suicide attack on Friday evening at the entrance to a housing estate south of Falluja in which six...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Cisco Systems said on Wednesday it sued Apple Inc. for infringing its "iPhone" trademark, after Apple unveiled a multimedia phone of the same name. Cisco said it was seeking an injunctive relief to prevent Apple from copying its iPhone trademark. Linksys, a division of Cisco, has launched several wireless products with the iPhone name. On Tuesday, a Cisco spokeswoman had said the two companies had been in discussions, and that it believed that Apple would agree to a final document and public statement concerning the trademark.

Former US president who entered the White House after the Watergate scandal without receiving a single electoral vote. Gerald Ford, who has died aged 93, will be remembered for exposing an extraordinary constitutional weakness unforeseen by the founding fathers of the United States. Having been a notoriously mediocre congressman, he went on to fill the country's two principal executive posts without the benefit of a single electoral vote. When voters were eventually given a chance to legitimise his presidency in 1976, he became the first White House incumbent in 44 years to be thrown out of office. Opinion polls showed...

Now that Dems have held on to a slight majority.. a lot slighter than what Republicans had in the last house races.. I have a question: Will Democrats share power... will they appoint equals from both paries to represent the people? I know They wanted power sharing last time Republicans won with a very clear majority. this election was won with a 50k-100k vote margin you know

Barack Obama, the Kenyan-American political superstar, appears to be edging closer to a run for the White House in 2008. Speculation in the US media over a potential Obama presidential campaign intensified last week as Time magazine published the senator's photo on its cover beside the headline, "Why Barack Obama Could Be the Next President." All the major American newspapers are meanwhile running reviews of Obama's new book, The Audacity of Hope, which the author is touting in a series of interviews on American television. The generally favourable reviews do not fail to note the possibility that the author may...

[insert movie title here]mocks the truth and dishonors the memory of 9/11 victims to serve a cheap, callous political agenda. winner gets a cookie.. now keep in mind that the same people that say this were all for it before it was against them