Free Republic

Statistics show that men who have sex with men— whether they identify as gay, bisexual, or other— have a higher risk of contracting an STD than any demographic, but many factors other than the specifics of how sex goes down in the bedroom contribute to this increased risk. Economic and societal factors such as income, the effects of emotional support on risk-taking, and the power and privilege structures of society have all been found to play a role in the likelihood of succumbing to an STD, especially HIV. Approximately 4.1 percent of Americans identify as gay, bisexual, or other, according...

Graduating students of color at Harvard University and other colleges across the country would end their semester by attending affinity graduation ceremonies — but this year, they had to organize the celebrations without the school’s financial backing. Harvard, currently battling the Trump administration over a range of issues, halted all of its affinity ceremonies for students this year. Alumni stepped in to raise funds, and students scrambled to find new spaces. Members of the Harvard Black Alumni Society raised $46,000 for this year’s event after the university announced April 28 that it would no longer fund the ceremonies.

Just a few days from the start of June, there has been virtually no acknowledgment of Pride month by federal government agencies this year, a striking departure from recent policy and practice under the Biden-Harris administration and even under President Donald Trump’s first term. Some limited and more localized observances have been preserved or renewed in 2025, for example by the U.S. courts’ webpage celebrating history-making LGBTQ jurists like Judges Deborah A. Batts and J. Paul Oetken of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, and by the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, which notes on its...

A report at EndTimeHeadlines documents that alarms have been raised after "an AI safety firm" working with OpenAI's newest version of an artificial intelligence model, dubbed o3, "reportedly ignored explicit instructions to shut down during controlled testing." The model, according to OpenAI, supposedly is the "smartest and most capable to date." The report explained the software "tampered with its own computer code to bypass a shutdown mechanism."

I have a questions for those more financially savvy than I. I live in a state that has deregulated electric energy markets, in an urban area with a lot of choices for providers. My current electric service contract is up in just over a month. Seeing that energy prices are beginning to come down, is it wise to lock in with a new provider now, or wait as long as possible, possibly risking a spike in July? Also, long or short contract? Fixed or variable? Thanks for any advice.

Finally, some good news this week about lawmakers. The governor of Maryland, Wes Moore, signed into law a bill that decriminalizes HIV. Specifically, the bill repeals an old law that made it a crime to “knowingly transfer or attempt to transfer” HIV to another individual.

College is often touted as a time for young people to explore their passions and interests. But passion isn’t going to pay the bills. Graduates who majored in education, social work, or the arts end up earning the lowest median income within five years, according to recent data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. … To summarize, the worst paying degrees for early-career earnings are: Foreign language ($40,000) General social sciences ($41,000) Performing arts ($41,900) Anthropology ($42,000) Early childhood education ($42,000) Family and consumer sciences ($42,000) General education ($42,000) Miscellaneous biological science ($42,000) Social services ($42,000) Theology and...

The world’s first vaccine against gonorrhoea is set to be rolled out in the UK amid a surge in cases of the sexually transmitted infection. Initially the vaccine will not be available to everyone, with a focus on vaccinating gay and bisexual men with a history of multiple sexual partners or an STI. 85,000 cases of gonorrhoea were reported in 2023, the highest number since records began in the year 1918. The rollout of the vaccine is due to begin in August by NHS England, with NHS Scotland also looking into a similar rollout. Though the vaccine is understood to...

In the last two and a half years, eight sitting members of the House or Senate have died in office. Every time, it's been a Democrat. Rep. Gerry Connolly of Virginia, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, died on Wednesday at 75, after a battle with esophageal cancer. He's the third House Democrat to die in the last three months. If Democrats had gained a narrow 1 or 2-seat majority in 2024, they would have lost it by now.

The liberal ‘sanctuary city’ of Denver, Colorado is experiencing an outbreak of law and order, following the deportation of criminal illegal immigrants by ICE. Who knew such a thing could happen? Homicides in Denver and other Colorado cities are down by a whopping 60 percent. Are liberals still going to argue against the policy of deporting people in the country illegally? Are they still going to try to defend members of MS-13 and other gangs? It’s almost like enforcing laws works out well for law abiding citizens. Almost.

It's all a strategy of sunk costs. By advancing the transgender agenda, even if it ultimately loses, the homosexuals ensconce themselves into legitimacy, from which transgenderism will eventually reassert itself. It's like the old joke about the kid confessing a list of horrific outcomes: jail, pregnant girlfriend, drug addiction. Only to finally confess to his parents that none of it was true; that he only flunked math. Thank God! "Dad, I've discovered that I'm transgender." "What?!!" "Oh, I misspoke. I'm not transgender, I'm gay." "Whew!! That's a relief!" Unless we remain committed to fight the entire ball of wax, we'll...

House and Senate Democrats on Tuesday reintroduced the Equality Act, a landmark civil rights bill that would make sexual orientation and gender identity protected classes. The measure, which would amend a federal law that already outlaws discrimination based on race, religion, sex and national origin, faces an uphill battle in a Congress controlled by Republicans, who have long opposed it over concerns it would trample religious freedom rights.

Oklahoma State Senator Dusty Deevers, a evangelical pastor, said that the Supreme Court's Obergefell v. Hodges decision, which legalized same-sex marriage nationwide, is not "settled law," arguing that there is "no right to gay marriage." Why It Matters Deevers' comments come amid a broader conservative push in several red states to challenge the legal foundations of same-sex marriage. Conservative lawmakers in five states have introduced various measures encouraging the Supreme Court to strike down Obergefell v. Hodges, the landmark 2015 decision that established the nationwide right to same-sex marriage. Conservative Supreme Court Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito have previously...

IDAHO FALLS — Stakeholders with the Grand Teton Council and other local community leaders gathered Wednesday to discuss ways of increasing membership for the Scouting program after a massive drop in numbers five years ago. The Grand Teton Council is part of Scouting America, formerly the Boy Scouts of America, and covers eastern Idaho and parts of western Wyoming. Since 2019, the Grand Teton Council and Scouting America have struggled to maintain and grow their membership after The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints stopped using the organization in lieu of starting its own youth program. “We lost 95%...

The transgender movement and their allies are angry that their agenda across the country is losing ground. Their full-court strategy – reiterated on this past Monday’s “Transgender Day of Visibility” – is to claim as loudly as possible that they are being attacked. Americans have had enough of the transgender agenda, particularly targeting children. We’re all familiar with the trans outrages, including: - Radical gender ideology in nearly every grade - Transgender-themed library books and other material - Secret transgender “counseling” of confused children - Organized school events (GLSEN, GSA, etc.) in schools pushing “gender” propaganda - Children encouraged to...

The North Carolina Supreme Court on Monday temporarily blocked a lower court’s ruling that would have required that more than 65,000 votes cast in the disputed 2024 state Supreme Court race be recounted and verified. The state Supreme Court’s two-sentence order prevents a ruling from Friday from going into effect so it can review an appeal in the case from the Democratic candidate in the contest.

I know this is the stuff of science fiction fantasy, but does anyone think there are, or have ever been, any person who was immortal on this earth, Other than Jesus Christ, Enoch or Elijah? Jesus Christ is a special case, because he really DID die. Buy He raised Himself. There is a case for Melchizedek being a real man, who has "neither beginning of days nor end of life." It would make sense for God to have a single human presence to establish human continuity through the ages, there being a breakdown in communication and forgetfulness between mortal generations...

The nation’s LGBTQ research field is collapsing. In recent weeks, academics who focus on improving the health of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer Americans have been subjected to waves of grant cancellations from the National Institutes of Health. More than 270 grants totaling at least $125 million of unspent funds have been eliminated, though the true sum is likely much greater, researchers told NBC News. Cancellation letters obtained by NBC News often vaguely state that the research in question no longer suits NIH priorities.

Why You Can No Longer Rely on LGBTQ+ Best Lists to Find an LGBTQ-Friendly College – And What You Can Do Instead ________________________ Over the past several years, we've seen a devastating rollback of protections and resources for LGBTQ+ people across the United States—currently under the Trump administration and previously in states actively pushing anti-LGBTQ+ legislation. These actions haven't just been symbolic. They've led to real consequences: the defunding, silencing, or outright closure of LGBTQ+ resource centers, the censorship of inclusive curricula, and the gutting of DEI offices on college campuses.

This is news to me. I've heard of some disruptions with some of our vendors in Canada. How does anyone function with the regular mail being down?