Free Republic

Planning a last-minute trip to Yosemite or Arches national parks just got easier—at least on paper. The Department of the Interior announced this week that it is canceling the seasonal timed-entry reservation systems at Yosemite National Park in California and Arches National Park in Utah, two of the country’s most visited national parks, effective immediately. The agency also confirmed significant changes to the vehicle reservation system at Glacier National Park in Montana for the 2026 season. “Our priority is keeping [the national parks] open and accessible,” Kevin Lilly, the acting assistant secretary for fish, wildlife, and parks at the National...

WASHINGTON — The powerful House Oversight Committee is investigating a sadistic, nihilistic terror cult known as “764” that preys on minors and coerces them into sex acts, self-harm, animal torture, and other vile actions. Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) and Subcommittee on Federal and Government Reform Law Enforcement Chair Clay Higgins (R-La.) demanded Tuesday that the FBI give lawmakers a briefing on its efforts to undermine 764. “Reporting indicates the FBI has opened more than 250 investigations tied to the group, which preys on children and teenagers on popular online platforms,” Commer and Higgins told FBI Director Kash Patel...

According to reports, an Australian tourism firm found itself embroiled in controversy earlier this year when it put out an article about an idyllic destination known as the Weldborough Hot Springs. ... Keen to visit the hot springs but with no idea how to actually get there, tourists headed to the general area and then asked local businesses for directions. The trouble was, the hot springs didn't actually exist. It turned out that the company had been using an AI to write some of its articles and the system had 'hallucinated' the entire thing. The firm's owner explained that they...

The Russian invasion force is in disarray following the deactivation of its Starlink satellite communications. Meanwhile Ukrainians are rushing to get their terminals whitelisted to maintain the service. Both sides have made extensive use of the commercial Starlink service, which provides long-range, jam-resistant communication. Now the service operated by SpaceX is being denied to the Russians, and only terminals officially registered in Ukraine will work. “The Starlink terminals added to the ‘whitelist’ are working. The Russians’ terminals have already been blocked,” Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said in a statement on Thursday, The effect on the Russians has been catastrophic,...

One year into President Donald Trump‘s second term, the political temperature around the country is at an all-time high. This is hardly surprising given our sustained and intense polarization. The Democratic Party is still reeling from its November 2024 loss. But what it offered, a substitute candidate who entered the scene at the eleventh hour, had little appeal. Former Vice President Kamala Harris is far more mentally competent than was the diminished Joe Biden. However, she represented something average Americans reject: extremism. There is much to say about the wrong behavior that both parties have displayed in recent years. And...

Iran is stirring the pot, muddying the waters, and somehow has enough IRGC to do that, while being short-handed in Iran. Per Mahyar, once the water is muddy, they can crack down on the uprising in their own boarders, and be very ungentle about it.

America’s “deaths of despair” - fatalities from drug overdoses, alcohol abuse, and suicide - have climbed for more than two decades, reaching levels unseen in modern times. The long-run trend is stark. After mid-century stability, the curve bends sharply upward after 2000, driven first by drugs and later joined by alcohol and suicide. The data, drawn from the Senate Joint Economic Committee’s “Long-Term Trends in Deaths of Despair” report shown below, are clear. The deeper question is why. COVID made a bad situation worse. Lockdowns and restrictions stripped away social contact, church gatherings, family support, and purpose. Economic uncertainty due...

A man with a 30-year criminal record, reportedly at least 72 arrests, and around 15 convictions, lit a 26-year-old woman on fire on a train in Chicago Monday night. She is fighting for her life in critical condition.Mayor Brandon Johnson on Thursday called it an “isolated incident.”The “isolated incident” highlights everything that is wrong with progressive politics and Democrat leadership in all too many of our cities: let the criminals run free, forget about the victims, and vilify the police.But it only got worse for the Windy City Friday night, as the rampant violence and death the city has become...

We can draw a few conclusions from an off-year election, when iconic races in blue states went, as expected, overwhelmingly Democratic. Nevertheless, there is only a year left before the midterms. So Republicans must react to even these paltry results. 1) Democrats' chaotic nihilism still works. The chaos strategy causes so much turmoil, noise, and negative media coverage that the confused voting public simply cannot sort it all out. The public wishes the upheaval would just go away and often blames those with the most current authority -- logically, the incumbent Trump and his administration. 2) Every day of Trump's...

[Catholic Caucus] Pope Leo XIV: There’s no template for synodality across all countriesThere is no single model for what synodality should look like in all countries and cultures, Pope Leo XIV said in a discussion with synod leaders from around the globe, held at the Vatican on Friday.“We have to be very clear, we’re not looking for a uniform model. And synodality will not come with a template where everybody and every country will say this is how you do it,” the pope said in the Paul VI Hall Oct. 24. “It is, rather, a conversion to a spirit of...

“Instead of winning on issues, the left resorts to melodramas that no one believes in anymore.” —Victor Davis Hanson. Welcome to the first Monday in October. Know what that means? It means, by federal statute (28 U.S.C. § 2), that the Supreme Court convenes for its new term. Thank goodness, because it’s pretty obvious by now that the Party of Chaos seeks to hogtie and paralyze the executive branch of the government in order to promote the chaos that the Party of Chaos has deftly created for our country. Something must be done. Chaos is now the Democrats’ preferred milieu...

NORWEGIAN GRANNIES STRIKE AGAIN! Over two dozen masked robbers steal an estimated $1 million worth of jewelry from Heller Jewelers in San Ramon, California. The robbers accidentally locked themselves in the store and ended up firing multiple rounds at the glass door to escape. The thugs arrived in six vehicles and parked 100 feet from the store entrance. After they left, the police engaged in a high-speed pursuit but called it off due to "public safety concerns." Seven of the 25 suspects have been arrested, ranging in age from 17 to 31. They were all from Oakland, California, and are...

Meals on Wheels has stopped operating in downtown Portland as its frustrated bosses say they can't keep staff safe in the crime-ridden city. The charity said this week it is closing its two facilities in the city, with frustrated Meals on Wheels Chief Executive Officer Suzanne Washington telling reporters it was a 'long time coming.' Washington lamented a lack of action to curb crime as the reason for the decision, which brought the charity's 20-year stay at its popular Elm Court location to a close. 'I can’t keep our staff safe and our volunteers safe because there’s always something happening,'...

Leftist politicians and the legacy media promote unchecked tolerance, diversity, and inclusivity, often ignoring the consequences. Anyone who has lived with a loved one struggling with addiction knows the painful tension between loving the person and despising their behavior. Addicts often manipulate friends and family into enabling their descent into dysfunction, and well-meaning but misguided loved ones can inadvertently hasten their collapse. This dynamic mirrors a broader societal issue in the West. Leftist politicians and the legacy media promote unchecked tolerance, diversity, and inclusivity, often ignoring the consequences. The result is an influx of unvetted immigrants who resist assimilation and...

The White House said late Wednesday that it had fired Susan Monarez, the new director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, after a tense confrontation in which Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. tried to remove her from her position. A lawyer for Dr. Monarez said in response that she was refusing to step down. Dr. Monarez, an infectious disease researcher, was sworn in just a month ago by Mr. Kennedy, but had clashed with the secretary over vaccine policy, people familiar with the events said. Four other high-profile C.D.C. officials quit en masse, apparently in frustration over...

President Donald Trump said his administration is going to look at deploying the U.S. military to other American cities, including Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles, at a press conference where he announced that he was taking federal control of the police department in Washington, D.C., and deploying 800 National Guard troops there to crack down on crime. Speaking from the White House briefing room in an extended and rambling press conference while flanked by members of his Cabinet, Trump declared the move “Liberation Day in D.C.” and said he was seeking to “rescue our nation’s capital from crime, bloodshed,...

A new term is spreading: MEGAFIRE. Blazes so massive, they generate their own weather systems. This one sparked by “lightning” on July 4th, now over 112,000 acres scorched after tripling in size in just 3 days. It’s producing 40 mph winds, lightning, and storm clouds FROM the fire itself. How is that even possible? MEGAFIRES making weather. Earthquakes. Floods. Tsunamis. All hitting in sync, all over the globe. This isn’t just a bad year. It’s engineered chaos. HAARP. Geoengineering. Full-scale weather modification. Why does it feel like every natural force is breaking at once?

A disabled Portland resident announced she is suing the city for refusing to take action against the ongoing Antifa occupation outside the ICE office, saying that community members have been "trapped in nightly torture" for nearly a month due to ongoing violence and noise disturbances stemming from the unlawful occupation. Cloud, who was recently featured in a viral video confronting Antifa for blasting a makeshift sonic weapon during quiet hours, told The Post Millennial in a statement on Friday that the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) has failed to uphold their oath in protecting the community from black clad agitators who...

Hours after thousands of people flocked to downtown Los Angeles for a day of demonstrations, the scene took a turn from peaceful to violent as rising unrest spurred police to deploy tear gas. "The demonstration has taken the street. A DISPERSAL ORDER has been issued for all persons located on Alameda south of Aliso and North of Temple to immediately leave the area," LAPD wrote in a warning on X. "People in the crowd are throwing rocks, bricks, bottles and other objects. Less lethal has been approved. Less lethal may cause discomfort and pain. It is advised that all persons...

Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) broke with the Democratic Party and condemned the anti-ICE riots that broke out in Los Angeles, pointing out that it is “anarchy and true chaos.” In a post on X, Fetterman explained that he “unapologetically” stands for “free speech, peaceful demonstrations, and immigration.” Sen. Fetterman Breaks with Democrats, Condemns L.A. Riots: ‘Anarchy and True Chaos’ 277 A protester throws a scooter at a police vehical near the metropolitan detention center ofAP Photo/Jae C. Hong Elizabeth Weibel9 Jun 2025310 2:34 Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) broke with the Democratic Party and condemned the anti-ICE riots that broke out...