Free Republic

Social promotion and efforts to ban standardized tests are ways of shielding adults from accountability.If you stare really hard—and maybe squint—at last week’s federal report on long-term K-12 education trends in the U.S., there is some good news. Math and reading scores among 9-year-olds have improved a little since 2022, and most of the gains were driven by struggling students. It’s a signal that those in the youngest cohort of test takers are recovering from the disastrous pandemic school closures. The good news pretty much ends there. Among 13-year-olds in nearly every demographic group, test scores in math and reading...

For the longest time, Seattle has held a terrible grudge against police. It all started back in 2020, when the whole “defund the police” campaign was in full swing following the death of George Floyd. The Seattle City Council acted quickly, slashing the police budget by a whopping 20%. This, in turn, led to less support for our officers, resulting in hundreds of officer resignations. And where has that gotten them? Nowhere…fast. Several businesses have closed down in the area due to the increase in rampant violence. And now a new report suggests that, under the leadership of a Democratic...

The parent company of Sam Adams said its Boston Taproom ran out of the brand's flagship Boston Lager over the weekend because Scotland soccer fans in Boston for the 2026 World Cup drank four times as much as the bar usually sells. Boston Beer Co. said in a news release that from Thursday to Sunday, the Tartan Army -- Scotland's supporters organization -- drank four times what the company normally stocks during a typical four-day holiday stretch like the Fourth of July, adding that it had to schedule an emergency delivery of beer Saturday morning and are adding extra deliveries...

Walter Parazaider, a co-founding member of Chicago who was with the band from its start in 1967 through his retirement in 2017, died Wednesday, family members announced. He had been suffering from Alzheimer’s disease for six years.Parazaider played reed instruments in the band for that 50-year run, and may be most easily recognized for his flute solo in “Colour My World,” though he was more often found on the saxophone. In the band’s earliest conception, he was the only horn player, and he is often credited as the one whose idea it was to bring an entire horn section in...

During a break at the G7 summit, cameras captured a series of informal and candid moments between world leaders as they engaged in casual conversations away from the formal agenda. The most talked-about moment came from an interaction between Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and US President Donald Trump, where their body language and expressions quickly became the focus of online discussion. Other leaders were also seen chatting, greeting each other, and exchanging remarks in a more relaxed atmosphere, offering a rare glimpse into the informal side of high-level diplomacy. The clip has since gone viral, with viewers analyzing gestures,...

The History Guy remembers the battle of the Meuse Argonne, the largest and deadliest battle in the history of the United States army. The episode discusses events and shows photographs depicting a period of war, which some viewers may find disturbing. The History Guy uses images that are in the Public Domain. As photographs of actual events are often not available, I will sometimes use photographs of similar events or objects for illustration. The History Guy: History Deserves to Be Remembered (formerly "Five Minutes of History") is the place to find short snippets of forgotten history from five to fifteen...

Two Utah court clerks have been accused of flipping off surveillance cameras as they snuck illegal migrants out of a courthouse to help them evade Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, according to federal officials. Jennifer Joma, 27, and Lauren Kelsey Morrow, 26, were indicted on June 3 after they allegedly carried out the sneaky scheme at Logan City Municipal Justice Court in Salt Lake City on April 9, court documents stated. The clerks were working at the courthouse when they saw an ICE Enforcement and Removal Officer (ICE-ERO) enter 'to arrest an illegal alien for immigration related charges,' the...

Daveigh Chase, the former child actor who voiced the character of heroic Lilo in 2002’s acclaimed Lilo & Stitch and that same year was named Best Villain by MTV Movies Awards for her effectively creepy portrayal of the evil Samara Morgan in The Ring, died Tuesday of complications from meningitis. She was 35. Her death was announced to TMZ by her boyfriend Roy Hernandez, who had just this week set up a GoFundMe page for the ailing Chase. Hernandez wrote that recently “Daveigh was diagnosed with meningitis and several serious blood infections. Her condition has become critical, and the doctors...

An Obama-appointed judge in Atlanta, Georgia, who is accused of having sex with a high-ranking police officer in her chambers and lying about it, said “there is no excuse” for her behavior. Judge Eleanor Ross of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia recently revised apology letters to her former clerks who allegedly heard the judge and the officer having sex, Bloomberg Law reported Thursday. The three-line documents were revised after reports said Ross failed to address her conduct as the judiciary required her to do. The Thursday letter read: I am profoundly sorry for exposing you...

WASHINGTON -- Dana White stood at the dais with the winning fighters flanking him at 3 a.m. Monday, hours after the UFC president and CEO completed one of the more audacious events of his career, a fight card on the South Lawn of the White House. He made one thing clear. He's never doing this again. "I can't afford it," White said. "I'll never do the Sphere again, and we'll never do this again." White kept to what he insisted for months, that the White House card would be a "one-of-one" event and not the beginning of a trend, similar...

Most visitors hit the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, and the Vatican, then leave Rome thinking they have seen it all. This guide goes deeper. You will discover 10 hidden gems in Rome that most tourists miss, including secret viewpoints, underrated museums, underground Rome history, and quiet local corners you can actually enjoy without the crowds.From the haunting Non-Catholic Cemetery and the Pyramid of Cestius to the Aventine Hill Orange Garden and the Knights of Malta keyhole view, this is off the beaten path Rome at its best. We step into Baroque Rome at Chiesa del Gesù, explore the Baths of...

The United States on Wednesday released the official text of the memorandum of understanding reached over the weekend with Iran. A senior US administration official read out the 14-point document, which spells out provisions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, easing certain financial restrictions on Iran and sets out expectations for addressing Iran’s nuclear program during future technical talks. Titled the “Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding between the United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran,” the document was released after outcry that its text hadn’t been released publicly. “This is fundamentally an agreement that allows us to open...

Bonnie Tyler, a Welsh singer and songwriter, woke up from her medically induced coma on June 15, but she “remains very unwell” according to her official website, and she is in intensive care in Faro, Portugal. “Although her condition is improving it is a slow process,” her website said. “Her doctors remain confident that she will make a good recovery but it is going to take time.” The 75-year-old singer was rushed to the hospital on April 30, The U.S. Sun reported. Tyler was then put into a medically induced coma last month after complications from emergency intestinal surgery for...

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 41-year-old mother of four pleaded guilty Wednesday in federal court to punching a Florida Highway Patrol trooper and kicking an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer and will now face sentencing. News4JAX tried to speak to Jennifer Cruz as she exited the courtroom, but she had no comment. Back in January, Cruz pleaded not guilty to the charge and despite arguments from federal prosecutors that Cruz posed a flight risk because of connections to Mexico, a federal judge ruled Monday that she can be released on an unsecured $50,000 bond -- meaning she won’t have to pay...

Jefferson County Probate Judge Yashiba G. Blanchard was suspended on May 21, the same day the Alabama Judicial Inquiry Commission filed formal charges against her with the Court of the Judiciary. The complaint details a pattern of abuse of power, docket mismanagement, bias, intimidation, and retaliation that harmed patients, families, and court staff. One of the allegations involves Blanchard’s handling of involuntary commitment and guardianship cases. The complaint claims she routinely delayed or canceled probable cause hearings, creating a massive backlog. In one case, hospital staff repeatedly contacted her office begging for a hearing so a patient could be discharged...

Explanation: How did a hamster wheel get into space? The Hamster Wheel Nebula (Longmore 8) was discovered by Andrew Longmore in 1976 as a part of a larger survey of the southern sky. This survey employed several improvements in photographic technology, including the use of highly sensitive film, to capture deeper and fainter objects on plates that were examined by eye and catalogued. The featured image, taken at Observatorio El Sauce in Chile, depicts an intricate wheel structure of glowing hydrogen that was thrown out into space by a dying star and ionized by the leftover white dwarf. This structure...

There can only be one rock band that is unquestionably and certifiably the cool kids’ choice in 2026, and whatever indie cred the rest of you kids may carry, this town ain’t big enough for both you and Rush. The reconstituted version of the recently dormant group just wrapped up a sold-out, tour-opening four-night stand at the Kia Forum that was a triumphantly climactic week in Rush’s unexpected reentry as a cultural and musical force in the 2020s. Two heroes walked into the Forum — Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson — and three walked out, as new drummer Anika Nilles...

It’s been nearly eight months since the Las Vegas Aces were crowned WNBA champions for the third time in four seasons. They still have not received an invitation to the White House, a team spokesperson confirmed to The Athletic. President Donald J. Trump has yet to host a WNBA or NBA championship team during his terms, and this will be the first time the Aces have not made a White House visit after winning a title. USA Today was first to report the news. The Athletic reached out to the White House for comment on whether the Trump administration will...

Denver Public Schools board members voted unanimously May 20 to dismiss a 50-year-old foreign language teacher following a district investigation and an independent review into student complaints about a class assignment. The board voted 7-0 after meeting in executive session to consider the firing of Jennifer Honka. Honka taught French Language and Culture at Northeast Early College for all of her eight years with the district. Officially, Honka was fired for incompetence and neglect of duty. There was no public debate among the board members prior to the vote. Honka's classroom instruction first came into question during the 2023-24 school...

NEW YORK, NY — According to sources, Vice President JD Vance stumbled upon an incredible discovery on Tuesday when he made contact with a tribe of illiterate, feral women. The all-female tribe was discovered in a television studio where anthropologists believe they ate garbage and pretended to put on a show for their pantheon of primitive gods. Their clothing was allegedly a mixture of rags and what appeared to be remnants of the JC Penney Spring Collection. Vance took copious notes while in their presence, hoping to get his findings to a local university so the tribe could be further...