Free Republic

WASHINGTON (AP) — The National Prayer Breakfast, one of the most visible and long-standing events that brings religion and politics together in Washington, is splitting from the private religious group that had overseen it for decades, due to concerns the gathering had become too divisive. The organizer and host for this year's breakfast, scheduled for Thursday, will be the National Prayer Breakfast Foundation, headed by former Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark. Sen. Chris Coons, a regular participant and chairman of the Senate ethics committee, said the move was prompted in part by concerns in recent years that members of Congress did...

Was the Southwest debacle "the perfect storm"? No, it was not.While you're still stuck at some crowded airport -- perhaps one where the police are telling you that you're trespassing -- the apologies have begun. Southwest Airlines CEO Robert Jordan finally, after more than two days of chaos, offered a heartfelt video of apology. I'm sorry. I meant an utterly robotic video of an apology written, it appeared, by a lawyer. On the heels of wide-scale disruptions, we're working diligently to Safely recover our operation & accommodate displaced Customers & Crews. We know this is unacceptable & sincerely apologize. If...

But, all along — and long after the series had gone into syndication, and years of reruns — there was a hidden joke in “Hogan’s Heroes.” It was simply this. Many of its characters were played by Jewish refugees from the Nazis. Consider: Colonel Wilhelm Klink, the commandant of the stalag. His chief characteristics: vanity, insecurity, paranoia, and basically inept, in constant fear of being sent to the Russian front. He was played by Werner Klemperer, a veteran German entertainer. He was born into a family that was part of German-Jewish cultural aristocracy. His father was the renowned conductor Otto...

It's one thing to send your neighbor a completely insane rambling letter demanding that they cease something that you don't want them to do. That alone takes a certain level of unhinged manicism. When that letter is written so poorly that parts of it are almost incomprehensible, it takes the whole thing to another level. It's kind of like getting into an argument on the internet; if you're unable to adequately and accurately express yourself, you will be torn apart based on that alone. Why on earth is this neighbor so riled up in the first place? I wouldn't consider...

Last week, a shocking moment of truth broke through the huge effort elites normally put into hiding their disdain for the rest of us. At an event sponsored by the libertarian Cato Institute, President of the Peterson Institute for International Economics, Adam Posen—a man who appears to be paid $450,000 a year—made clear his absolute contempt for the working class.

An academic at a teacher training college has claimed efforts to improve vocabulary in schools are ‘racist, classist and ableist’.Ian Cushing, lecturer in English and Education at Edge Hill University, believes tackling the ‘word gap’ – the difference between the language range of typical middle class and working class or disabled youngsters – has ‘colonial’ roots.

GREENSBORO, N.C. – In settlement of a lawsuit that Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys filed on behalf of several pro-life citizens who were arrested for engaging in peaceful prayer and sidewalk counseling outside an abortion facility, Greensboro city officials admitted that the pro-life citizens were cited for their “exercise of constitutionally protected First Amendment rights.” As part of the settlement, the city agreed that the First Amendment protects engaging in pro-life advocacy on public sidewalks and further agreed to uphold citizens’ First Amendment rights in any future proclamation order related to a public-health emergency like COVID-19. Based on the city’s admission...

MECKLENBURG COUNTY, N.C. — The Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office has announced that it will no longer be pulling over drivers for non-moving violations. Deputies said they will not be stopping drivers for things like inspection violations, driving with a revoked license, having window tinting that’s too dark or having a taillight out. The sheriff’s office said this change in policy is part of an effort to address racial inequality that they said is apparent in traffic stops. Channel 9′s Glenn Counts spoke with a community activist who is applauding this decision. Robert Dawkins, with Action NC, said officers used minor...

A liberal man who admitted shooting a pro-life grandma who was merely canvassing against a radical pro-abortion ballot measure in Michigan still doesn’t face any criminal charges. More than a week has elapsed since Richard Harvey shot the unnamed pro-life advocate in the back on September 20th. Harvey has admitted to shooting an elderly pro-life woman who was canvassing homes to campaign against Proposal 3, which would legalize abortions up to birth in the state. Meanwhile, his wife is a radical leftist and abortion activist who regularly threatens conservatives in social media posts. During a recent local TV interview, Harvey...

<p>LONDON (AP) — For years, global health officials have used billions of drops of an oral vaccine in a remarkably effective campaign aimed at wiping out polio in its last remaining strongholds — typically, poor, politically unstable corners of the world.</p>

Washington Post White House correspondent Tyler Pager drew astonished laughter when he asked White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre if President Joe Biden’s recent successes and his Covid isolation are “just a coincidence.” After being sprung briefly after a negative test, President Biden went back into isolation over the weekend due to a rebound Covid infection. Meanwhile, the Senate passed the bipartisan CHIPs bill and reached an agreement on the Inflation Reduction Act. At Tuesday’s White House briefing, Pager connected those dots, asking Jean-Pierre if the successes are a “coincidence” and citing the success of the 2020 campaign during isolation....

In peer-reviewed breakthrough, embryos grown from stem cells; diverse group of scientists says method may one day be used to ethically grow cells for replacement human organs An Israeli lab has grown synthetic mouse embryos with brains and beating hearts — in an egg-free sperm-free procedure that used stem cells taken from skin. The breakthrough, published on Monday in the peer-reviewed journal Cell, represents the first time that an advanced embryo of any species has been created from stem cells alone, cell biologist Prof. Jacob Hanna of the Weizmann Institute of Science told The Times of Israel. Hanna, whose team...

Retirees were tricked out of their savings in a telemarketing scheme involving fake federal agents, authorities say.In one example, officials say a retired Massachusetts nurse was swindled out of over $900,000 in funds from her bank and retirement accounts. She thought her identity had been stolen and that she needed to transfer her money to new accounts — accounts owned by fraudsters pretending to work for agencies like the Social Security Administration and U.S. Department of Justice.

The mayor of a California city said an error by contractors was responsible for the zigzagging lane lanes on a city road that left some residents scratching their heads. SNIP Velazquez said the lines were supposed to be slightly curved, but the instructions were apparently misinterpreted by the contractors who painted the lines. "Basically, it just comes down to the contractor. Somebody didn't read the plans correctly," Velazquez said. "It was not designed to look very odd."

A Rhode Island sports bar apologized on Monday after sharing a meme on Facebook making light of Anne Frank’s death at the hand of the Nazis. “It’s hotter than an oven out there… and I should know,” read the Atlantic Sports and Bar’s Friday post over a picture of teenage German-Dutch diarist Anne Frank, who was killed by the Nazis in 1945. The post was seeking to make a joke about the heatwave rolling through Rhode Island. The restaurant came under immediate criticism from social media users, some of whom called for a boycott of the restaurant until it issued...

The Biden administration is once again moving to abridge American rights, using its favorite new and invented minority, “transgender” people. The primary right being abridged in this case is freedom of religion, as the concept of pretending to be a gender different from one’s birth gender runs counter to many faiths. The right is also tied directly into the questionable morality of medical treatments such as puberty blockers and gender reassignment surgery. Transgenderism is also being used by the radically liberal administration to limit people’s speech by requiring them to use inaccurate pronouns, to destroy the security and privacy of...

Thousands of Israelis gathered in a Tel Aviv hangar on Wednesday night as the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), one of the most influential political organizations in the United States, held its inaugural Israeli conference. Conservative activists and top Donald Trump administration officials spoke about how much the former US president has done for Israel, praised Israel’s high birthrate and called on Israelis to fight on the conservative side of America’s culture wars. But the key draw for many was celebrity pundit Ben Shapiro, who gave the evening’s keynote address. SNIP “Do any of you watch CNN International?” he...

Authorities said two recent fires in Blue Springs were both caused by lithium-ion batteries that are commonly found in most homes. No one was hurt in the fires. Rechargeable batteries are found in a variety of products. The fire department said to make sure your smoke detectors work and take action. The pictures show what's left of a Dyson vacuum that caught fire from a third-party battery purchased on Amazon. The fire started in the primary bedroom closet while the family was at home. "They burn at really high heat. It takes a lot of water," said fire Capt. Derrick...

Hours after UN rights office claims Shireen Abu Akleh killed by Israeli security forces, military says it can’t complete investigation without examining bullet, held by PA. The Israeli military on Friday rejected a United Nations report claiming that its soldiers shot the bullet that killed al Jazeera reporter Shireen Abu Akleh on May 11, saying the investigation was flawed without access to crucial ballistic data. In a statement titled “Where is the bullet,” the Israel Defense Forces again urged the Palestinian Authority to hand over the bullet, as it and government ministers questioned the methodology and fairness of the probe....

Israel has been keeping the Biden administration in the dark on its covert operations against nuclear targets and scientists in Iran, CNN reported. The network quoted current and former U.S. Intelligence sources saying that “Israel does not inform the U.S. of its operations beforehand, and often never acknowledges their role – even privately.” The sources added that administration officials have taken a broadly “hands-off approach” to Israel's operations, instead of pressuring its closest Middle East ally. They also expressed concern over the possibility of a miscalculation that could spiral “out of control,” as Israel appears increasingly “willing to take matters...