Free Republic

Barry Farber, an original pioneer of talk radio who shared his intelligent conservatism with untold millions of listeners during a career in broadcasting that spanned 60 years, has passed away. One day after his 90th birthday on Tuesday, Farber died peacefully at home in New York City, with members of his family at his bedside. On Tuesday, a live program celebrating Farber’s birthday was on in his time slot, featuring his younger brother Jerry, his two daughters Celia and Bibi, and his producer Dahlia Weinstein. During the program, Barry Farber took the mic briefly and spoke his last words...

Many on the left have accused originalism of being nothing but a cover for conservatives’ preferred policy outcomes, but Vermeule’s proposal illustrates how restrained originalists have been. “The Republic” often alarms first-time readers. Not only is Plato’s dialogic style foreign to us, the character of Socrates makes bizarre and even wicked proposals as he outlines a supposed ideal polity, such as a communism not only of property, but also of wives and children. Many readers, including some philosophers, have taken Plato literally and seriously, and therefore condemned him as a proto-totalitarian. Something similar seems to have happened in response to...

"There are no libertarians in a global pandemic." So goes the smug punchline of large-government advocates who point to the necessity of collective action in the face of an unprecedented global crisis. Without government, they say, we'd all be dead. Few libertarians would disagree. The hardcore libertarians at Reason magazine aren't spending their days fulminating over the evils of government-required lockdown orders in the face of a fast-spreading, deadly disease. That's because they, like all other sentient human beings, recognize that collective action is sometimes necessary. But here's the dirty little secret: Institutional failures during this pandemic are more indicative...

The annual conservative conference CPAC is slated to take place later this week outside of Washington, D.C. at the Gaylord Hotel overlooking the National Harbor from Wednesday, Feb. 26th through Saturday, Feb. 29th. President Donald Trump’s closest and most loyal allies will be in attendance, and the commander in chief himself will deliver the keynote address. After his acquittal by the Senate on impeachment charges, Trump gave high praise to CPAC chairman Matt Schlapp; a former President Bush official turned Trump loyalist. On Wednesday, a panel on connecting to GOP voters to messaging will take place with three senior Trump...

Ahoy, suckers! Conservative, Inc., is back at it again, trading in its classic cruise ship motif for a figurative dinghy in its never-ending quest to separate you from your money and themselves from the shredded tatters of their ruined dignity. Woke Rule No. 1 is that anything with “Principles” in its name is a grift. Now, something called “Principles First” – ugh – is trying to shoehorn into CPAC’s spotlight with its “National Summit on Principled Conservatism” to be held in D.C. on February 29th, and for the low, low, almost certainly lib tech tycoon-subsidized price of $10, you can attend...

John Krasinski is pushing back on criticism that his selection of specific military and government characters is somehow his way of playing “red state heroes” -- as some have speculated, according to Esquire -- without dipping his toes in anything political. The former “Office” star, who has played a former Navy SEAL-turned-private military contractor working in Benghazi in Michael Bay’s 2016 film “13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi,” opened up to the outlet about his decision to act in projects that celebrate the military and said his connection to these types of roles is genuine and not a ploy...

What is conservatism? It is a question that could be answered a thousand different ways. On the modern American political scene, conservatism is often portrayed as outdated, offensive, and inconsistent with the rapidly changing times. Yet, at its core, conservatism is still a practical, applicable, and logical political philosophy — a philosophy deeply concerned with maintaining what is good in society while rejecting dangerous and idiotic pipe dreams from the Left. The most convincing argument for conservatism was presented by 20th-century British philosopher Michael Oakeshott. Oakeshott presents a conservatism that seems easy to accept and understand. The basis of Oakeshott's...

In the latest edition of "The Rubin Report" podcast, two people I adore, Dave Rubin and Heather Mac Donald, dialogue about some of the great issues facing America. Interestingly, though both are secular, Dave opened the interview asking Heather about God and religion. She began by saying that she is not conservative because of religion but because of her commitment to empirical truth. It is empirical truth that leads her to affirm, for example, "the necessity of the two-parent family" and "most traditional values." Heather is right that one cannot be committed to empirical truth and be a leftist (though...

The sameness of the words conservative and conservation shows where the future of environmentalism lies.

RUSH: What a week. What an incredible week. I mean, from beginning to end. And it’s still going. And there is still winning that’s happening today. Just incredible. And I’m gonna tell you something, folks. One of the things I’m gratified about — you know, I don’t like to brag, and I don’t like to say, “notice me.” But everything happening to the Democrat Party today, if you go back and you look at excerpts of the award-winning broadcast, go to RushLimbaugh.com, you’ll find that I predicted this implosion of the Democrat Party. And that’s exactly what it is. I...

I grew up in Minnesota, the heart of the Midwest: a blue state of really nice, hard-working people who love winter, lefse, and Al Franken. Starting at about 13 years old until college, I worked for my dad, a successful remodeling contractor, over school breaks. I hated the work. Often the only female on a construction site or a hotel in the midst of remodeling, I felt awkward. I got dirty. I wasn’t good at painting or wallpapering. The hours were longer than anything I’d ever experienced, and we rarely ate out during the day. (Somehow cold granola bars just...

A few years back a friend and I were catching up, talking about everything from old times to politics. At one point we got to talking about talk radio, how it shaped our thinking, and how our respective jobs now make it difficult to tune in like we used to. And then my buddy said something I thought perfectly captured what Rush Limbaugh means to tens of millions of us. “I don’t get to listen to Rush as much as I’d like,” he said. “But I sure feel better knowing he’s out there.” My friend didn’t say that as though...

For people of a certain advanced age, the first openly Republican or conservative fictional character they can remember is Alex P. Keaton from the NBC sitcom “Family Ties.” The role launched Michael J. Fox’s career, but it did something else, too: in many ways, Alex Keaton predicted the conservative movement that we see emerging today. Energetic and aggressive, Keaton was an unapologetic conservative character at a time conservatism was in many ways an apologetic underdog. It is important to note that Alex P. Keaton was born in 1965, the very first year of Generation X. The comic tension he provided...

Christendom Is the Solution for the Emptiness of our Nihilistic Society Grave moral problems are tearing the country apart. For many, this is apparent in the form of broken homes, procured abortion, shattered communities and lost Faith. Many people get it right when pointing out the problems. However, they get it wrong when looking for solutions. Some get it wrong because they look for solutions that address symptoms, not causes. Others search for a way out that involves the least possible effort. In these politically correct times, people are told not to offend anyone by their proposals. Thus, they automatically...

The Conservative movement in America - much like those who fought valiantly at the Alamo - will shortly be overrun and butchered at the hand of a godless and lawless nation and world (Matt. 24:12, Gal. 1:4; Eph. 6:12, Rev. 13). I personally believe that this will finally take place at the Rapture of the church! One might say, "How can that come to be for America in light of Donald Trump's great conservative victories in many parts of the conservative spectrum? My friend, have they been great victories or have we just been getting back a very little of...

Sir Roger Scruton has died and Britain has lost her greatest conservative thinker, writer, fox hunting man, philosopher and all-round-hero of the right. Like so many of the bravest and best, he was a prophet almost without honour in his own country.

Sir Roger Scruton has died. Diagnosed with cancer last summer, he passed away peacefully on Sunday surrounded by his family.

RUSH: One of the things that I have made a point of over and over, and I have for many, many moons, is that most of us feel like we are being governed against our will. Obama, the Democrats win, and they govern against the will of the people. It’s a sinking sensation. And I have made the point over and over again that liberalism is not the majority of thinking in this country, and it’s not even close. And yet it appears to be the dominate way of thinking. So there’s a Gallup poll out here today filled with...

New christian/conservative alternative to FB and twitter

Something new must emerge from the wreckage of the Flight 93 election. This is the second post in an ongoing series of reports and reflections from abroad by Jeremy Carl. Read the first here.–Eds. Hunter Hearns has offered a grim but accurate assessment of the results of the Flight 93 election. Despite the sincere efforts of many talented people (undermined in part, it should be said, by a number of GOP establishment hacks and Never Trumpers), the conservative storming of the cockpit has failed to prevent the plane of state from crashing. Indeed, Hearns indirectly shows the true depth of...