Free Republic

The USA just gave Russia an excuse to seize all of Ukraine Abraham Stein Apr 25 The United States has just given Russia a valid reason to take complete control of all Ukraine. Today, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Diplomat Anthony Blinken paid a visit to the Ukrainian president Zelensky in Kyiv, it was their first visit with Joe Biden as American President. The visit made it clear that the United States is directly involved in the conflict with the Russians, and the comments from Secretary of Defense Austin makes it abundantly clear that only a full Russian takeover...

Think you’d beat your dad in an arm wrestling competition when he was your age? Bad news: he’d probably kick your ass. Men today are weaker than they were 30 years ago, research in the Journal of Hand Therapy found. In the study, men aged 20-34 have lower grip and pinch strength – which measures how strong your hand and upper extremities are – than the same aged guys did three decades ago. In fact, the average grip strength for men ages 25-29 is nearly 12 kilograms lower today than it was before. Your grip may not seem super important...

A new study shows that Germans’ best-loved activity is sitting in front of the idiot box—and when they’re not doing that, they’re probably slumped in front of a computer. The study carried out by British American Tobacco seems to show that—despite recent protestations that they’re the industrious Europeans—modern Germans are among of the biggest layabouts in human history. Only three percent of the 2,000 people surveyed said that they don’t regularly sit in front of the telly, making it by far Germany’s most popular pastime. On the other hand more virtuous, traditional German pastimes like camping, joining a club—or even...

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg loves us. He wants us to be healthy. So he’s taken it upon himself to pass laws to stop people from eating too much salt, trans fats, and big sugary drinks. He believes these new laws will make a difference. Of course, they might, but so will passing a law that requires everybody to eat only 1800 calories per day. When Mayor Bloomberg gets a hold of the new exercise study, there’s no telling what new laws will be passed. According to the medical journal The Lancelot, “a third of the world’s adults are physically...

Conservatives love brash New Jersey Governor Chris Christie because he always speaks his mind, and his remarks at a forum on the economy (hosted by George W. Bush) were no different. Christie talked about the nation's bleak outlook, thanks to out-of-control entitlement spending -- and as usual, he didn't mince words. Christie spent most of his 30-minute speech on New Jersey budget issues, but brought up national policy toward the end. He said it is the least optimistic period he’s ever seen for the nation. "It’s because government’s now telling them, stop dreaming, stop striving, we’ll take care of you....

Christie: Nation of couch potatoes By: Darius Dixon April 10, 2012 12:01 PM EDT New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said Tuesday that the U.S. is turning into a “paternalistic entitlement society” that will bankrupt the country financially and morally because “we’ll have a bunch of people sittin’ on a couch waiting for their next government check.” “I’ve never seen a less optimistic time in my lifetime in this country and people wonder why,” the first-term Republican governor said at the Bush Institute Conference on Taxes and Economic Growth in New York City. “I think it’s really simple. It’s because government’s...

Not just the eating but also the actual position of “couch potatoes” is harmful, new research shows. It has been known for some time that people who watch hours of TV a day tend to be at higher risk of becoming overweight or obese. The connection was thought to be because of munching junk food while watching. But Tel Aviv University researchers have found that not just the eating but also the actual position of “couch potatoes” is harmful. Being stretched out in front of the TV is considered to be “active inactivity” and causes viewers to gain weight. Such...

As all cat-lovers know, every moggy has moments when they seem almost human in their behaviour. Now, a new internet craze celebrates the feline friends who like to sit back and relax in style. A host of websites, viral emails and blogs have been circulating pictures of ‘cats that sit like humans’ — and they’ve even been featured on TV. Here we give you the best of the kitty couch potatoes.

Are future national park trips for America’s youth likely to be on-line virtual experiences rather than the real thing? A University of Illinois at Chicago ecologist says there may be cause for concern. Oliver Pergams, research assistant professor in biological sciences at UIC, reports in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Environmental Management that a rise in at-home entertainment activity, such as playing video games and surfing the Internet, corresponds with a decline, in per capita terms, in visits to U.S. national parks. Rising oil prices showed a strong association as well. The turnaround began in 1988 after a...

WOW!

Hey..It's time for this guy to go. What's your honest opinion? ..and yeah, I know a lot of FReepers don't like American Idol, but I gotta ask! :-P

For education and discussion only. Not for commercial use. Having nothing better to do with their time after installing FlatTVs with Ambilight technology in George Clooney's (and other cast members') Hotel de Russie hotel room so he (and they) could live better than the average bear while filming the new "Ocean's Twelve", the friendly folks at Philips commissioned Harris Interactive to ask pointed questions about home entertainment of consumers in 13 countries. (Sorry, Iraq wasn't included.) The results of the Philip's Global Home Entertainment Survey are sure to be studied by generations of historians to come for the deep insights...

North Carolina State is leading Notre Dame 21-3 at the half. Just before the end of the half, Pat Haden made a laugh out loud comment: "Notre Dame has had more problems with the football today than Martha Stewart has with the SEC." Use this thread for a discussion of today's games.

TV show to put US democracy to the test The next President of the United States could be the winner of a new Pop Idol-style reality television show. US trade newspaper Variety reports that plans are under way for an ambitious series which would climax with the US public choosing a "people's candidate" to run for president in 2004. Cable network FX has joined forces with Austin Powers director Jay Roach and producers RJ Cutler and Tom Lassally on the long-term project, American Candidate. The idea is that the show will go on the hunt for untapped political and leadership...