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Forum: General/Chat

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  • My car was stolen. Here are six important things I learned

    02/08/2026 2:20:18 PM PST · by RandFan · 18 replies
    BBC ^ | Feb 8 | BBC
    Thieves don't need a key to steal a carSince the 1990s, most cars have had coded keys containing an electronic microchip which is paired with an engine immobiliser. It was meant to make it hard to steal a car without the key - but that didn't stop these thieves. How did they do it? The police officers who came to my home told me about something known as a "relay attack". It works like this. One thief stands close to the property, near an area where the car owner is likely to keep their keys - usually the kitchen or...
  • American Breezy Johnson wins downhill gold, Lindsey Vonn airlifted off course after crash

    02/08/2026 2:14:23 PM PST · by BigEdLB · 2 replies
    NBC ^ | 2/8/26 | Macklin Stern
    On a Sunday morning filled with all kinds of emotion, American Breezy Johnson won the women’s Olympic downhill race. It was the first gold medal of Johnson’s career and the first awarded to the United States at the 2026 Winter Olympics.
  • Andrew shared confidential information with Epstein as trade envoy, files suggest

    02/08/2026 1:54:07 PM PST · by E. Pluribus Unum · 4 replies
    BBC ^ | February 8, 2026 | Andy Verity
    Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor appears to have knowingly shared confidential information with Jeffrey Epstein from his official work as trade envoy in 2010 and 2011, according to material in the latest release of files in the US seen by the BBC. Emails from the recently-released batch of Epstein files show the former prince passing on reports of visits to Singapore, Hong Kong and Vietnam and confidential details of investment opportunities. Under official guidance, trade envoys have a duty of confidentiality over sensitive, commercial, or political information about their official visits. The former Duke of York, who served as trade envoy between 2001...
  • FBI concluded Jeffrey Epstein wasn’t running a sex trafficking ring for powerful men, files show

    02/08/2026 1:40:34 PM PST · by E. Pluribus Unum · 36 replies
    AP News ^ | Updated 10:43 AM CST, February 8, 2026 | MICHAEL R. SISAK, DAVID B. CARUSO and LARRY NEUMEISTER
    NEW YORK (AP) — The FBI pored over Jeffrey Epstein’s bank records and emails. It searched his homes. It spent years interviewing his victims and examining his connections to some of the world’s most influential people.But while investigators collected ample proof that Epstein sexually abused underage girls, they found scant evidence the well-connected financier led a sex trafficking ring serving powerful men, an Associated Press review of internal Justice Department records shows.Videos and photos seized from Epstein’s homes in New York, Florida and the Virgin Islands didn’t depict victims being abused or implicate anyone else in his crimes, a prosecutor...
  • Linux Mint 20 Text Disappears

    02/08/2026 1:38:18 PM PST · by RetiredTexasVet · 31 replies
    2/8/26 | RetiredTexasVet
    Used my Linux Mint 20 Pc to post some text the other day and it disappeared. That supports the theory that it was not just a Windows 11 problem. Rather than wasting any more time with disappearing text, I'm going to retire from Free Republic. RIP.
  • The Removal of 700 Federal Immigration Agents From Minneapolis Marks a Tactical Shift, Not a Retreat

    02/08/2026 1:25:42 PM PST · by E. Pluribus Unum · 12 replies
    Military.com ^ | February 08, 2026 at 3:00am ET | Haley Fuller
    The Drawdown and Its ScopeOn February 4, 2026, federal officials announced that approximately 700 immigration enforcement personnel would be withdrawn from Minnesota effective immediately. This is approximately 25% of all agents deployed to the area. The personnel being removed included agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection who had been deployed into the Minneapolis–St. Paul is part of a large federal immigration operation. After the drawdown, federal officials confirmed roughly 2,000 immigration enforcement personnel would remain in Minnesota. Why the Remaining Federal Presence Still MattersA continued presence of approximately 2,000 federal immigration agents constitutes a sustained...
  • Donald Trump attacks Team USA skier after 'real loser' launched into 'anti-American' rant at Winter Olympics

    02/08/2026 1:08:36 PM PST · by MinorityRepublican · 58 replies
    The Daily Mail ^ | 08 Feb 2026 | JAKE FENNER
    President Donald Trump is going on the offensive after a member of Team USA competing at the Winter Olympics criticized the direction of the United States' political climate. American athletes competing at the games in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo have been asked questions about their feelings on the country's current political climate - which has drastically shifted under Trump since he took office a second time. While some athletes have expressed their thoughts and feelings - including those against the shifting political temperature - with diplomacy, others have taken a more direct approach. Hunter Hess, a freestyle skier from Oregon...
  • 16 astonishing images from the 2026 Wildlife Photographer of the Year awards

    02/08/2026 12:33:21 PM PST · by Diana in Wisconsin · 15 replies
    Popular Science ^ | February 8, 2026 | Popular Science Team
    From a tender moment between a crane and her chick to a heartbreaking image of a polar bear cub’s final moments, the finalists for the Nuveen People’s Choice Award of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year contest stun. Photographers from 113 countries and territories submitted more than 60,000 images for consideration. A judging panel of photography, wildlife, conservation and science experts whittled the finalists list down to 24 photographs that are now competing for votes from the public. “No matter where you are in the world, it’s time to join the jury and vote in the Nuveen People’s Choice Award...
  • Astronomy Picture of the Day - Active Sunspot Region 4366 Crosses the Sun

    02/08/2026 12:29:22 PM PST · by MtnClimber · 7 replies
    NASA ^ | 8 Feb, 2026 | Image Credit & Copyright: Daniel Korona
    Explanation: An unusually active sunspot region is now crossing the Sun. The region, labelled AR 4366, is much larger than the Earth and has produced several powerful solar flares over the past ten days. In the featured image, the region is marked by large and dark sunspots toward the upper right of the Sun's disk. The image captured the Sun over a hill in Zacatecas, Mexico, 5 days ago. AR 4366 has become a candidate for the most active solar region in this entire 11-year solar cycle. Active solar regions are frequently associated with increased auroral activity on the Earth....
  • Live updates: Lindsey Vonn stable after crash

    02/08/2026 12:23:07 PM PST · by 11th_VA · 38 replies
    Legendary Team USA alpine skier Lindsey Vonn had to be airlifted from the course and underwent surgery on her left leg after crashing in her women's downhill run. It was the 41-year-old's first Olympic event since 2018 and comes just over a week after she suffered a torn ACL...
  • A short musical and visual interlude Titled: MORE ICE PLEASE!

    02/08/2026 12:09:54 PM PST · by BFW · 2 replies
    Youtube ^ | Feb 8, 2026 | @moristory9816
    Bath House berry and Bill the cigar's deportations, the circus parade clown collection.
  • CULTURE Are You Ready for Some Football?

    02/08/2026 11:41:24 AM PST · by Rummyfan · 28 replies
    WFB ^ | 8 Feb 2026 | Michael Rosen
    Three weeks ago, my beloved San Francisco 49ers were unceremoniously dispatched from the NFL playoffs by the Seattle Seahawks, who are vying for their second Super Bowl championship today. The result didn’t surprise many; the Niners were hobbled by injuries to many of their best players and, frankly, enjoyed more than a bit of luck in getting as far as they did this past season. But every year, the Grim Reaper comes for all but one team, and my guys could not evade his grip. More alarmingly, in his new book, the writer Chuck Klosterman predicts the Reaper will soon...
  • Police seen at home of Savannah Guthrie's sister as search for their mother persists

    02/08/2026 11:36:36 AM PST · by LouAvul · 26 replies
    Authorities in Arizona were seen Saturday night leaving the home of “Today” show co-host Savannah Guthrie’s sister as the search for their missing 84-year-old mother, Nancy Guthrie, continues. According to KGUN, the Scripps News Group station in Tucson, authorities spent “several hours” inside Annie Guthrie’s home before leaving with what appeared to be a brown paper sack and another larger item. However, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department (PCSD) did not say why they were at the home.
  • Cops Seen Searching Septic Tank Behind Nancy Guthrie’s Arizona House

    02/08/2026 11:25:14 AM PST · by rexthecat · 49 replies
    New York Post ^ | February 8, 2026 | Alex Oliveira
    Pima County Sheriff’s Department detectives are searching a septic tank behind Nancy Guthrie’s house, with drone footage showing them opening a manhole cover in the backyard.
  • JD Vance and Jake Paul watch U.S. women’s hockey team together at the Winter Olympics

    02/08/2026 10:49:54 AM PST · by MinorityRepublican · 3 replies
    AP ^ | February 7, 2026 | JAMES ELLINGWORTH
    U.S. Vice President JD Vance sat with influencer and boxer Jake Paul as they watched the U.S. women’s hockey team ease to a 5-0 win over Finland at the Winter Olympics on Saturday. Vance and his family entered during the intermission at the end of the first period, with the U.S. leading 1-0. Paul joined them shortly after. Paul’s fiancee Jutta Leerdam is a speedskater for the Netherlands at the Milan Cortina Games. Vance sat with his youngest child, daughter Mirabel, on his lap. Usha Vance, wearing a sweatshirt with “USA” in big letters, clapped along to Queen’s “We Will...
  • Tommy Robinson raising awareness over disturbing trend

    02/08/2026 9:19:37 AM PST · by RandFan · 25 replies
    X ^ | Feb 8 | Tommy Robinson
    @TRobinsonNewEra It's becoming very common of invaders waiting outside nightclubs and frogmarching drunk women away to rape. Be careful out there, girls stay in groups, they've imported beasts. Hat's off to the guy filming, very likely saved these girls from rape.
  • Feds arrest Trumbull County man accused of threatening Trump, ICE

    02/08/2026 9:11:04 AM PST · by simpson96 · 11 replies
    WFMJ ^ | 2/5/2026 | Mike Gountner
    NORTH BLOOMFIELD, Ohio - Federal agents arrested a Trumbull County man Wednesday morning after he allegedly posted a series of graphic threats on YouTube targeting immigration officers, politicians, and American citizens. Charles Bronson Ingram, 47, of North Bloomfield, faces a federal charge of making illegal threats through interstate communications. Investigators say Ingram used a social media account to call for the torture and killing of federal agents and people who support Donald Trump. Federal Bureau of Investigation agents took Ingram into custody on Wednesday after searching his home. According to court documents, agents found several guns and ammunition inside...
  • Diamonds & Private Jets: South Florida woman arrested for $1.2M fraud scheme

    02/08/2026 9:06:49 AM PST · by simpson96 · 9 replies
    CBS12 ^ | 2/62026 | Grace Bellinghausen
    DEERFIELD BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — A South Florida woman was arrested Wednesday after allegedly funding a $1.2 million spree of private jets, mansions, and diamonds by swindling an event decor business. Broward Sheriff's Office Deerfield Beach detectives say the suspect, 32-year-old Keshon Litesha Rivers, operated a scheme from May to August of 2025 to steal over $1.2 million from the owners of Event Décor Direct in Deerfield Beach. An investigation revealed that Rivers targeted Event Décor Direct, a company she had an established professional relationship through her own business, Lock and Key Designs. Detectives say Rivers used the stolen...
  • Mugshot released: Cornell woman arrested after biting trooper during animal neglect investigation [Yikes!]

    02/08/2026 9:03:06 AM PST · by simpson96 · 44 replies
    Daily Press ^ | 2/6/2026 | Sophie Vogelmann
    CORNELL – A woman from Cornell was arrested Wednesday and arraigned on multiple felony charges related to resisting, obstructing and assaulting a Michigan State Police (MSP) Trooper during an animal neglect investigation. Brianna Makosky, 22, was arraigned in the 94th District Court on Thursday on three felony counts of resisting, obstructing and assaulting a police officer. Her bond was set at $4,000 cash/surety. The charges stem from an incident that occurred on Wednesday in Cornell. According to a news release, the MSP Gladstone Post received a report of alleged animal neglect on Tuesday. After an initial investigation, authorities obtained...
  • Guess who's coming to dinner! Epstein files photo shows 'wild' dinner party with Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Peter Thiel back in 2015

    02/08/2026 8:40:04 AM PST · by MarlonRando · 34 replies
    Daily Mail ^ | 2-8-26 | Lettuce Bromovsky
    A photograph from the Epstein files shows a chummy 2015 dinner attended by some of Silicon Valley's most powerful figures, with Jeffrey Epstein later boasting the gathering was 'wild'. The image, released by the US Department of Justice, shows Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg seated at a dinner table alongside SpaceX boss Elon Musk, and Joi Ito, the former director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab. PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel was also in attendance, but he was not pictured. The photograph was emailed by Epstein to himself on Monday, August 3, 2015 - just one day after he...