Free Republic

Americans are popping pills at a rate that might surprise even their doctors—and most of what they’re taking, they chose themselves.Nearly two-thirds of U.S. adults take at least one pill each week, and one in six takes five or more, according to a recent study published in JAMA, highlighting how central medications—both over-the-counter and prescription—are to everyday health.Researchers surveyed 21,000 volunteers aged 18 and older between 2023 and 2024 to discover the most common drugs Americans are taking.Top 10 Drugs Taken by AmericansThe top 10 drugs identified by researchers provide a snapshot of the most common health concerns among Americans.According...

A chief operating officer at a mid-size technology company recently described her return-to-office rationale with unusual candor. “We don’t actually know if the work is getting done well,” she said. “We know it’s getting done. We just can’t tell if it’s excellent or mediocre until something blows up. When people were in the building, I could walk a floor and know within ten minutes which teams were thriving and which were drifting. I lost that.” She didn’t mention culture. She didn’t mention collaboration. She described, with precision, an assessment problem—the inability to distinguish between work that’s adequate and work that’s...

For those who have tons more knowledge than me of the Navy and militaria - Watching the videos of our Navy ships launching missiles, I note each ship is flying a larger than normal American flag up on their top most mast. Some one told me once that when a ship is at war, the flag is flown as high as possible as a warning signal to other ships in the area "This ship is at war, stand clear!" Is that what I am seeing? Thanks

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) told reporters on Wednesday that “everybody in America” should watch how their representatives vote on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding bill expected to come to the floor on Thursday. “You better watch that board. And everybody in America better watch that board. Anybody who votes to block funding for the homeland, it is shameful,” Johnson said. “I don’t know how to describe it. It speaks to a long record of Democrats’ deliberate efforts to undermine America’s safety and the essential operations of DHS.” Democrats have demanded that the White House significantly reform its immigration...

Police in Cleveland, Ohio, are asking the public for tips after two young Black girls were found dead inside separate suitcases buried in shallow graves on Monday. Cleveland Police Chief Dorothy Todd said during a news conference that the girls, believed to be between the ages of 8 and 13 and 10 and 14, were found Monday evening. The discovery was made Monday evening after a man walking his dog near East 162nd Street and Midland Avenue, in a field near Ginn Academy, found a partially buried suitcase and called police. Police responded and located a shallow grave and found...

On Wednesday’s Morning Joe, Joe Scarborough swooned over Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico after his primary victory over Rep. Jasmine Crockett. Scarborough said that Talarico had “exploded onto the national stage, a lot like Barack Obama.” Scarborough unapologetically repeated the analogy: “Yes, I will say, a lot like Barack Obama.”Get the rest of the story and view the video here.

We thought we were under a heightened security threat, and yet crazies keep getting into hearings on Capitol Hill. As we reported on Tuesday, an ICE Watch agitator had to be dragged out of a hearing by Capitol police where Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee.On Wednesday, the U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services was holding a hearing when Capitol police, with assistance from Sen. Tim Sheehy, dragged an antiwar activist and Green Party candidate out the door. Listen to his little friends crying, "A sitting U.S. senator just broke the hand of a...

According to a statement released by Leiden University, a groundbreaking ancient DNA study has provided new information about a pivotal transitional period in prehistoric Europe. The research underscored the remarkable genetic stability in the Low Countries and shed new light on the mysterious origins of the so-called Bell Beaker culture. A team of geneticists and archaeologists analyzed the genomes of 112 individuals who lived in the Rhine–Meuse region of the Low Countries -- today's Netherlands, Belgium, and northwestern Germany -- between 8500 and 1700 b.c. The data revealed that when Europe's first farmers arrived from Anatolia around 4,500 years ago,...

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - The U.S. State Department is advising travelers to use caution this month if they plan on traveling to Mexico for spring break. The agency has issued a Level 2 travel advisory for the country following a wave of cartel violence in recent weeks. What we know: Level 2 means travelers should "exercise increased caution." While popular spring break destinations like Cancun are under this Level 2 status, that is not the case for the entire country. The backstory: About a week ago, the world watched as violence broke out in parts of Mexico. Fire engulfed cars, blocking...

ILULISSAT, Greenland (AP) — Fisherman Helgi Áargil no longer knows what to expect on Greenland ‘s fjords, where he spends up to five days at a time on his boat with his dog, Molly, and the ever-changing northern lights in the sky as company. Last year, his boat got stuck in ice that broke off the nearby glacier. This year, it’s been very wet instead. His income is just as unpredictable. An outing could bring him around 100,000 Danish kroner (about $15,700), or nothing at all. The Arctic’s rapidly changing climate is bringing more questions for Greenland, the semiautonomous territory...

A Santa Clara County jury has reached a verdict after a three-month trial in the case of a Los Gatos mother accused of hosting alcohol-fueled gatherings for teenagers and exposing them to harm. Shannon O’Connor, 51 — who has been dubbed the “Party Mom” — pleaded not guilty in 2023 to 63 felony and misdemeanor charges, including child endangerment, sexual battery and furnishing alcohol to minors. According to court documents, prosecutors identified 12 juvenile girls, referred to as “Jane Does,” and eight boys, “John Does,” as victims. O’Connor was found guilty of 48 of the 63 charges against her. Of...

U.S. Senate Republicans rejected a bill to halt the war against Iran in an early show of support for Trump’s campaign. The resolution, which failed 47-53, demanded congressional approval before any further attacks. A twin bill in the House also faces an unlikely path against a GOP majority when lawmakers vote on it Thursday morning.

HAVANA (AP) — Cuba said Wednesday it has filed terrorism charges against six suspects it claims were aboard a Florida-flagged speedboat that is alleged to have opened fire on soldiers in waters off the island’s north coast. The Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement that the suspects of Cuban origin remain in pretrial detention, adding that it will ensure “due process” as it continues to act “in defense of our people and the country’s institutions.” The government has said 10 heavily armed Cubans from the U.S. who were on board the boat opened fire as they tried to infiltrate the...

WASHINGTON — Lou Holtz, a legendary football coach who helped University of Notre Dame win the 1988 National Championship and coached at six colleges and universities, has died. He was 89. The University of Notre Dame confirmed his death Wednesday in a news release, and the Holtz family issued a statement on X.

🚨 James Talarico just won the Dem primary in Texas. Still, many people still have no idea who he is or how his campaign was built on the intentional distortion of scripture. Watch this full episode of the Live Free Podcast to learn how to spot a wolf in sheep's clothing 👇

Steve Toth, a hard-line conservative Texas state representative, defeated Representative Dan Crenshaw in a close-fought Republican primary on Tuesday that will sweep from the House a former Navy SEAL who has occasionally broken with fellow Republicans, according to The Associated Press. The race, in a strongly Republican district in the Houston area, was a referendum on the candidates’ fidelity to President Trump and his agenda, and whether a conservative with an independent streak like Mr. Crenshaw could still have a place in the party. Mr. Trump did not endorse either candidate, a notable blow to Mr. Crenshaw, who found himself...

Wall Street Apes@WallStreetApes·16hDr. Keyan Zomorodi explain what’s really happened in Iran“You know when you hear us Persians say that we've been foreign occupied by Islam, what we mean is genuinely the people that have taken us over, these guys are right here. (He shows Iran leaders) They are not even Iranian, they are not even Persian. These lot are Arab Islamists who have come into our country, taken us over and forced our people to follow their rules.Look at the flag that they replaced ours with. (Shown in video) Can you see the small letters embedded within the flag? These...

Explanation: What’s looking back at you isn’t a cosmic eye, but Shapley 1, a beautifully symmetric planetary nebula. Shapley 1, also known as the Fine Ring Nebula or PLN 329+2.1, bejewels the southern sky constellation of the Carpenter's Square (Norma). The nebula is the result of a star near the mass of our Sun running out of fuel and shedding its outer layers. Glowing oxygen from those expelled layers makes up the circular halo. The bright central point is actually a binary: a white dwarf, the remaining stellar core after the outer layers are expelled into space, and another star,...

Leave her at the altar! She is “The Bride!,” one of the absolute worst movies I have had the displeasure of watching in this job.

Proposed labeling change has become a priority for Tracy Beth HoegThe FDA's top drug regulator, Tracy Beth Hoeg, MD, PhD, is working to hire a researcher and friend who wants the agency to add new warnings to antidepressants about unproven pregnancy risks, the Associated Press has learned. Adam Urato, MD, a maternal-fetal medicine specialist and critic of antidepressant safety, is pressing the FDA to add a boxed warning to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), the drugs most commonly prescribed for depression. Urato's petition says the medications can cause pregnancy complications, including miscarriages and fetal brain abnormalities that may lead to...