Free Republic

One of the fundamental principles that guides this editorial board's world view is the last plank in Joseph Pulitzer's Platform, printed at the top of this page, to "never be afraid to attack wrong, whether by predatory plutocracy or predatory poverty." Nothing says "predatory plutocracy" like a wealthy businessman spending millions of dollars of his personal fortune to try to buy an election.

Dave Spence was hard to miss in the Missouri capital's "Salute to America" parade. Wearing shorts in the 98-degree heat, the Republican businessman from St. Louis County zigzagged down High Street, energetically shaking hands, then jogging to catch up with the RV plastered with his billboard-sized photo. Not so noticeable was his rival in the Aug. 7 gubernatorial primary, Bill Randles of Kansas City. In jeans and a white polo shirt, Randles waved politely while walking down the center of the street alone. His wife Bev handed out candy along the curb while a volunteer followed in the couple's SUV....

The statists in power in Washington can’t handle a citizenry that asks hard questions (when the media won’t), reads the Constitution (when federal judges won’t), and examines legislation (when members of Congress won’t). The statists in power, currently Democrats across the board in Washington but come in all parties and sizes, can’t deal with opposition that speaks its mind in public. They can’t deal with large number of citizens who band together to form a movement when the political parties fail to obey the law of the land. The statists in power cannot deal with dissent. So the Democratic National...

Bob Cook's miliary son created this John McCain ad. Can someone please post the link?

Announcement from Pat Rowe Kerr, State Veterans Ombudsman, Operation Outreach, Missouri Veterans Commission: The next Missouri "Support the Troops" event is scheduled for April 10th at 12:00 p.m. on the south lawn of the Capitol. Spread the word. That is also a celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Missouri Veterans Commission (www.mvc.dps.mo.gov) and we will be recognizing veterans from across the state inside the House Chambers earlier in the day as well. Come and show your support!

Calling Missouri and Illinois FReepers: The Fred Phelps gang is planning to protest the Saturday funeral of Staff Sgt. Gary Harper n Virden, Illinois. Virden is about 80 miles northeast of St. Louis and slightly southwest of Springfield, IL. I'm looking for more information. Ping me if you're interested in going over to support the family and freedom.

After reading about a planned "WorldCantWait" protest on November 2 in Springfield, Missouri, I decided I had to do something in response. Bogeyman and I drove there on Tuesday afternoon, first to find the location and then to determine where we might want to stand.It was a good thing we went early: the Mapquest directions were wrong! I had to ask a woman leaving her office where Park Central Square was. Thankfully, she knew and gave me great directions. Thank you, whomever you are.Wednesday morning we arrived at the square about 10:30 am, parked in Springfield's free downtown parking lot,...

A 16-year-old United Methodist from California is the national spokesperson for National Military Appreciation Month.Congress designated May as National Military Appreciation Month last year and Shauna Fleming wants it to be the "biggest and best" celebration ever.Last year she started a campaign to collect and send a million thank you notes to America's military service men and women. She's been there, done that and has the picture of herself with President George W. Bush to prove it.Fleming is well on her way to her next goal of collecting 1.4 million letters--symbolically one for every person serving in the Armed Forces....

Vietnam veterans will receive a special tribute this year in Branson, the southwest Missouri music mecca with a long tradition of honoring military service. The "Welcome Home: America's Tribute to Vietnam Veterans" scheduled June 13-19 will include a parade, fly-overs by vintage aircraft, golf and fishing tournaments and a day-long concert by performers including the Doobie Brothers, Ann-Margaret, Tony Orlando, the Oak Ridge Boys and the Four Tops. Organizers hope the event will help provide healing to those veterans still smarting over the reception some of them received when they returned from the divisive war. Bill Groninger, who flew more...

Following several weeks of freeping alone, I had company again today at the Jefferson City post office FReep. Jcam's children returned to school and she joined me.Today's "numbers" totals are 4-2-12 (peaceniks-Freepers-signs and greetings of support from passers-by). There may have been more, but we were so busy conversing and having fun that we weren't as diligent as we, perhaps, should have been.Jcam spent much of the hour holding a protestwarrior sign with the peaceniks. She appeared to be having a great time; I'll let her add her own comments.While she stood among the peaceniks, my day was rather quiet....

This morning our little group met at the corner of 6th and Walnut, across from the Post Office in Columbia, Missouri, from 10-11 am to protest the other side. Prov3456 and the Harmonica man were already there when I arrived a little late. The Harmonica man was playing some pretty patriotic melodies in the background, while Prov held her signs along with the beautiful American flag. Her signs read: "We support our Troops and Freedom" on one side, and on the other side, "We shall negotiate freely, but, we shall not negotiate Freedom." John F. Kennedy (Wow! How Powerful!!!) We...

It was a beautiful afternoon, so I decided to get out in the sunshine. I went to the Kerry/Edwards rally at the Missouri state capital building, primarily so I could see for myself how big the crowd was.The candidates were to arrive by train at 5:00 pm. By the time I left for home at 6:30, they still had not arrived. (In their defense, the AMTrack Train is ALWAYS late; we usually wait an hour or more when friends make the 2-hour trip from St. Louis.)I took a few pictures, which are posted if Sonofprov3456 instructed me correctly. After I...

At noon today, I returned to the "top-of-the-T" intersection at the Jefferson City Post Office. To my joy, there was a 100% increase in the size of my group: zip joined me. :) Our group of 2 equalled the total number of peaceniks in attendance today.Within minutes of zip's arrival, we were greeted by a man who stopped his car to tell us "Thank you for being here." Not long after that, a man arrived with two large cups of coffee. He brought them by, "to show his appreciation" to us for being there.The entire hour was like that. I'll...

Dennis Givens, father of slain soldier Jesse Givens, told me at church this morning about this website: "fallenheroesmemorial.com" To learn about those men and women who gave their lives for us, and/or to offer condolences to their families, go to this site and wander around. (But keep the kleenex handy.)(I don't know how to post the link, so I hope someone else will do that for me.)

Well, I did it.After bogeyman discovered last week that a small group of peaceniks stands at the Jefferson City Post Office on Wednesdays at noon, I decided it is time to respond. Because I had to rewrite the "We support our troops" sign to read "I support our troops," I arrived about 12:15 instead of noon. My time was well-spent, and well-received by many.The Post Office sits on the corner of a T-intersection. Four peaceniks, including two Columbia "regulars," stood around the newspaper boxes in front of the building. One man held a big blue flag with the earth pictured...

It was COLD (13 degrees, snow flurries, west-northwesterly winds at 18 mph, wind chill of 2 degrees)but WE WERE THERE!!GulfWar1Vet and I represented all freedom-loving people and the Mid-Missouri Patriots at the post office this morning. At the beginning of the hour, there were 2 of us and 9 peaceniks. By the end of the hour, there were 2 of us and 15 of them. We received a total of 16 "thumbs-up" and 2 "thumbs-down" greetings from passing motorists. No one talked too much today: it was too cold.As always, our gratitude and appreciation go out to the troops around...

The Snowflake, GulfWar1Vet, and I spent an hour on the sidewalk across the street from the Post Office again this morning. Despite the cold, it was fun and our hearts were warmed by the reception we received on behalf of the troops.(Fun jab at Fresno here: I wore only four layers of clothing, including snow-bibs and ski mittens. I stayed toasty-warm the entire hour!)As I was saying, our hearts were warmed by the reception we received from passers-by. Too many thumbs-up to count today. One man, dressed in a blue shirt and blue jeans and standing in the middle of...

Early Saturday morning in Columbia, Missouri a rainy, dark, gloomy overcast day began. After entertaining many contemplative thoughts, I [SNOWFLAKE] decided to go ahead and face the protesters on the other side anyway--rain or shine.As I approached the post office at a little after 10:00 am, I noticed that there were a few of the protesters on the opposite side of the street. Bluesagewoman, Dogrobber, Prov3456, and Zip and Mrs. Zip were not able to be there, probably due to circumstances beyond their control.By the end of the hour, the other side had 17 protesters. They had the same ole...

To our troops and to those who seek our weekly reports, please know that although these reports have become unpredictable, we have not. With the exception of a few weeks ago when we had 8 inches of snow, all or some of us continue to oppose the peaceniks each Saturday morning in Columbia. Snowflake, Dogrobber, Bluesagewoman and I gathered this morning and enjoyed another rousing and patriotic hour in support of the work our military is doing to keep and maintain our freedom. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen!Today's highlights include1) a passing motorist who took his hands off the steering...

Saturday, December 20 was a cool, beautiful day with a cloudless blue sky. A great day for a FReep at the Columbia Post Office (unlike the preceding Saturday when 7 inches, and counting, of blowing snow kept all of us cooped up in our homes). But yesterday we were out again, in full force.I actually arrived about 15 minutes early, only to discover that one of the lead peaceniks was already at his post. Not to be outdone, I joined him at MY post. Moments later, Snowflake arrived. She was followed by Bluesagewoman. We enjoyed the usual ratio: three of...