Free Republic

(CNSNews.com) - President's Bush's call on Wednesday for Congress to lift its 27-year moratorium on offshore drilling is an "example of typical Bush White House politics," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev) told Cybercast News Service Thursday. Other leading Democrats on Capitol Hill also said they were surprised that Bush has not yet rescinded the executive office ban on drilling, which was established by his father, President George H.W. Bush, in 1990. "What the president is doing is unfair to the American people to indicate, 'We will let Congress do something about it,' " Reid said. "He has the authority...

NEW YORK - A $1 billion copyright infringement lawsuit over YouTube's ability to keep copyrighted material off its popular video-sharing site threatens how hundreds of millions of people exchange all kinds of information on the Internet, owner Google Inc. said. The company's lawyers made the claim in papers filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan as Google responded to Viacom Inc.'s latest lawsuit alleging that the Internet has led to "an explosion of copyright infringement" by YouTube and others. The back-and-forth between the companies has intensified since Viacom brought its lawsuit last year, saying it was owed damages for the...

WASHINGTON, May 23, 2008 – Searching for a tangible way to help Americans express their deep gratitude to servicemembers for their sacrifices, a Tampa, Fla., couple has designed their own challenge coin. The Grateful American coin is presented in the tradition of military challenge coins. With the five service insignia on one side and the phrase “Thank you for your service from a grateful American” on the other, it’s meant to be a tangible form of gratitude for the recipient. Net proceeds from sale of the coins help support two nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping wounded servicemembers and their...

FORWARD OPERATING BASE HAMMER, Iraq, April 17, 2008 – Soldiers from 203rd Brigade Support Battalion here tested their soldiering skills in a series of physical and mental tests known as the “Eagle Challenge” earlier this month. Team Wolfpack -- consisting of Spc. Louis Pinault, Sgt. Paul Zadzura and Spc. Mark Shaheer -- leads after the foot march portion of the Eagle Challenge on April 6, 2008, on Forward Operating Base Hammer, Iraq. U.S. Army photo   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The April 6 challenge tested physical endurance with a 1-mile run with rifles; a four-and-a-half-mile foot march, which...

CARACAS, Venezuela — For the better part of a decade, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has spent billions of dollars of his country's oil revenue to challenge U.S. interests, build influence around the world and fund a self-styled socialist revolution at home. Yet as Chavez moves from one international crisis to another— most recently a near military confrontation with neighboring Colombia , an important U.S. ally— many wonder how long his oil-funded wild ride will last. Not long, analysts in Venezuela and abroad said, if production continues to decline at the country's state-run energy company, Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. , known...

WASHINGTON, March 21, 2008 – In 2006, a Five for Fighting hit single asked fans what kind of world they wanted, and now they have a forum to answer the question and help five charities at the same time. “Whatkindofworlddoyouwant.com is a ‘You Tube’ for charity, where people can upload videos related to any subject they would like, and then pick a charity from the list I’ve selected,” said John Ondrasik of Five for Fighting, who created the site about a year ago. The charities include Operation Homefront and Fisher House, which support the troops, as well as Augie’s...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 7, 2008 – The commander of the U.S. 5th Fleet in the Middle East today called the behavior of Iranian Revolutionary Guard boats that buzzed three U.S. Navy vessels in the Strait of Hormuz yesterday “unduly provocative.”  Navy Vice Adm. Kevin J. Cosgriff, who also commands U.S. Naval Forces Central Command, briefed Pentagon reporters via video teleconference from his headquarters in Manama, Bahrain. He said the USS Port Royal, USS Hopper, USS Ingraham were inbound to the Persian Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz yesterday morning. The ships were in the midst of a routine transit in...

The Pasadena man who killed two suspected burglars as they left his next-door neighbor's home did not intend to kill them when he stepped outside with his 12-gauge shotgun, his lawyer said Friday. In portraying Joe Horn as a victim of circumstances, lawyer and longtime friend Tom Lambright called the 61-year-old computer consultant "a good family man" who has been devastated by the Wednesday afternoon burglary and shooting. Killed in the incident in the 7400 block of Timberline were Miguel Antonio DeJesus, 38, and Diego Ortiz, 30, both of Houston. Each had a minor previous brush with the law. Records...

DARPA has selected the 11 teams that will compete in the Urban Challenge Final Event on Saturday, November 3 at the former George Air Force Base in Victorville, Calif. The 11 teams will compete for cash prizes worth $2 million for first, $1 million for second, and $500,000 for third place. The teams will attempt to complete a complex 60-mile urban course with live traffic in less than six hours. The finalists will operate on the course roads with approximately 50 human-driven traffic vehicles. Speed is not the only factor in determining the winners, as vehicles must also meet the...

The DARPA Urban Challenge is an autonomous vehicle research and development program with the goal of developing technology that will keep warfighters off the battlefield and out of harm’s way. The Urban Challenge features autonomous ground vehicles maneuvering in a mock city environment, executing simulated military supply missions while merging into moving traffic, navigating traffic circles, negotiating busy intersections, and avoiding obstacles.

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WASHINGTON, May 28, 2007 – The Iraqi government needs to step forward to make progress in governance and revitalize the economy, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said today during appearances on various morning television talk shows. Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, participates in one of five morning talk shows at the Pentagon to help pay tribute to the sacrifices made by U.S. Armed Forces on this year's Memorial Day, May 28, 2007. Defense Dept. photo by U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. D. Myles Cullen   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image...

LYNCHBURG, Va. - Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich told Liberty University's graduating class Saturday to honor the spirit of school founder Jerry Falwell by confronting "the growing culture of radical secularism" with Christian ideals. Gingrich, who is considering a 2008 presidential run, quoted Bible passages to a crowd of about 17,000 packed into the university's football stadium four days after Falwell's death. Despite the somber tone of the day, graduates who covered the football field chanted "Jerry! Jerry!" in tribute to Falwell. "A growing culture of radical secularism declares that the nation cannot profess the truths on which it was...

CONCORD, N.H. - Three retired generals challenged a dozen members of Congress in a new ad campaign Wednesday, saying the politicians can't expect to win re-election if they support President Bush's policies in Iraq. "I am outraged, as are the majority of Americans. I'm a lifelong Republican, but it's past time for change," retired Maj. Gen. John Batiste told reporters. "Our strategy in Iraq today is more of the same, a slow grind to nowhere which totally ignores the reality of Iraq and the lessons of history," Batiste said. "Our president ignores sound military advice and surrounds himself with like-minded...

There's a problem playing any sort of trivia on-line, these days. You can easily hop onto Google, or Ask, or wherever, and look things up. Here is an attempt at a trivia game that is, more or less, Google-proof. The game is entirely fair, and accurate. Some questions are dead lock cinches, others are much harder. A few are ''within context'', meaning that there might be several correct answers BUT the incorrect answers will be ''weeded out'' by answers to the other questions. Rules? Simple. Associate the various clues with ONE, just one, letter of the alphabet. Please answer in...

WASHINGTON, April 18, 2007 – Suicide-bomb attacks on coalition and Iraqi troops and civilians, orchestrated by Al Qaeda and Sunni extremists, present the top challenge in establishing security and stability in Iraq, the commander of U.S. Central Command testified at a Congressional hearing on Capitol Hill today. “Of all the things that we have on the plate in Iraq, the one that I think is first and foremost as a target for us to try to get a grip on and to neutralize is the group that is very clearly al Qaeda-motivated that is linked to Sunni extremists in...

WASHINGTON - Congressional Democrats say there is no doubt President Bush will soon be confronted with legislation calling for an end to the Iraq war. But the new majority must decide how far to go in trying to tie Bush's hands and what will happen after the president's inevitable veto. The debate is likely to expose fissures among Democrats, who remain divided on whether to cut off money for the unpopular war and risk leaving troops in the lurch. "My feeling is at a certain point we're going to have a 'come-to-Jesus' moment in the caucus and talk about whether...

Macao Bank Challenges U.S. Ban as Politically Based By DAVID LAGUE Published: April 17, 2007 SHANGHAI, April 16 — The Macao bank that was a stumbling block to international efforts to dismantle the North Korean nuclear weapons program challenged on Monday a United States Treasury Department ruling that bars the bank from access to the American financial system. Banco Delta Asia, a family-owned bank that the United States has accused of committing financial crimes on behalf of North Korea, said in a statement that the March 14 ruling was “politically motivated” because it was based on disputes between the United...

The Swedish royals have beaten off accusations of illegally trading on the good name of an Italian underwear maker. The complaint comes from the Italian company Calzificio Pinelli, which owns the trademark Solidea, under which it sells underwear. The company claims that the name of Solliden, the royal's summer palace on Öland, breaches this trademark.

Ugandan archbishop says that Militant Islam is century’s key challenge Anglican Archbishop Henry Luke Orombi of Uganda NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK — Much of the church is asleep or in “deep, dark denial” about Islam, Anglican Archbishop Henry Luke Orombi of Uganda said in New York City at the Kairos Journal Award dinner Jan. 26. This was revealed in a story by Gregory Tomlin for Baptist press (www.bpnews.net) in which he wrote, “Orombi, named one of World magazine’s ‘Daniels of the Year’ for 2006, has been at the forefront of the Anglican church’s controversy over the open acceptance and...