Free Republic

Beijing usually takes pride in its tight grip of the information that flows inside and outside of China. However, several recent incidents seem to reveal that Beijing’s iron fist may be losing its grip.Only a week ago, The New York Times reported on the Xinjiang Papers, a 403-page collection of reportedly classified Chinese documents—including speeches by Chinese leader Xi Jinping and other Communist Party officials—on plans to carry out the mass incarceration of the Uyghur Muslim minority population in Xinjiang, as well as government directives instructing local officials on how to coerce Uyghur students with lies and threats. We...

Well, it’s been (almost) three solid years into the Donald Trump Presidency and not one treasonous criminal action has been punished. Not one. ZERO. Zilch. Na-da. Take for example when Hillary Clinton literally laughed out loud at a question about her email investigation — had to wipe her eyes, she laughed so hard. She laughed at us, at America, for being so clueless as to think she’d ever answer to our laws. And she’s still laughing, because she’s right: she’s untouchable. The consensus is that even though we know that the first email investigation was rigged by the FBI to...

The more analysts try to figure out Donald Trump's appeal, the more they sound baffled. Pundits cite Trump's verbal sloppiness and ridiculousness as proof that he must soon implode. But Trump sees his daily bombast as an injection of outrage for a constituency now hooked on someone who finally voices their pent-up anger. The more reckless Trump's doses of scattergun outrageousness, the better the fix for his supporters. Trump's vague "make America great again" was the natural bookend to Barack Obama's even more vacuous "hope and change." The popularity of such empty slogans reflects a culture in which no one...

Arsons Reported in North Korea 2010-05-11 Pyongyang blames “hostile elements,” but residents see the fires as protests against the regime. SEOUL—Authorities in North Korea’s Yangang province have warned citizens of the isolated Stalinist state to be vigilant for “hostile elements” following a spate of arson attacks, local residents said. “Fires of unknown origin have been set to several residential houses,” a resident of Yangang said in a recent interview. “Ministry of Public Security agents and public prosecutors have been mobilized to conduct an investigation,” said the source, who added that there is an “absence of any leads or clues” in...

The Huntington Planning Commission had a major item on their desk last week. It was a new proposed signage ordinance. The first ordinance was established in 1984. The new proposal had business owners showing up at the meeting, causing the vote to stall. Because of the outcry, the vote has been set to take place in December.

       Dmitry Lovetsky / APCommunist supporter Yelena Saratova shouting as she participates in a May Day march in St. Petersburg. About 4,000 Communists marched in Moscow. People Vent on May Day04 May 2009 By Alexandra Odynova / The Moscow TimesTens of thousands of people took part in May Day demonstrations across the country, with many using the traditional labor holiday to criticize the government. "We are marking this holiday against the backdrop of the global financial crisis for the first time," said Communist leader Gennady Zyuganov, whose party rallied about 4,000 supporters in Moscow for a march from...

I worked tirelessly for the Northwest Florida Republican Party for many years. I need to start over and this time seek the beginning of a truly independent party. First, the Democratic Party left us and now the Republican Party has dumped us. The bailout for Wall Street, the banks and the greedy real estate mortgage companies and all their coharts should never have happened. They should have been left in the burning meltdown they created. We have mortgaged our grandchildren and great grandchildren. I cannot believe that I have lived to see our once great and mighty country slide slowly...

Tibet isn't China's only problem, resentment still simmers among Muslims in Xinjiang By WILLIAM FOREMAN,Associated Press Writer AP - Sunday, April 6 HOTAN, China - The chirpy Chinese coffee shop waitress smiled Saturday as she rattled off sites travelers should see in this jade-trading Silk Road town in Xinjiang _ a vast western region of China that like Tibet has a long history of unrest. ADVERTISEMENT But the woman frowned and her brow furrowed with worry when she mentioned Hotan's main tourist draw: a sprawling bazaar popular among the Muslim minority Uighurs (pronounced WEE-GURS). "Oh, don't go to the bazaar...

Much has been written about discontent in the Republican Party. Conservatives are disappointed no one having conservative views on all issues of importance has been in the contest for the Republican presidential nomination. The presumptive nominee, John McCain, has been on the 'wrong' side of many matters before the Senate and has joined with Democrats to sponsor undesirable legislation, thereby causing conservatives to be unenthusiastic about his success. Newt Gingrich, who conservatives had placed some hope in carrying their banner did not enter the race and a substitute, Mitt Romney, did poorly in the primaries, ultimately backing out for 'the...

Discontent heard among North Koreans By Richard Spencer, in Beijing Last Updated: 1:36am GMT 11/12/2006 Many North Koreans are now aware of the poverty of their country and are voicing discontent after years of near-starvation, according to the fullest study yet conducted of refugees from the Stalinist dictatorship. While the popular image of North Koreans is of a nation living in blissful ignorance of the outside world and unquestioning loyalty to the leadership of Kim Jong-il, refugees interviewed while in hiding in China reported that there were increasing signs of dissent. Eighty per cent of those questioned said North Koreans...

STEELTON, Pa. - If Pennsylvania is a barometer, an endangered species list could be taking shape for incumbents in this fall's elections as increasing voter anger spreads across the political landscape. Unhappy voters tick off a list of offenses — some national, others local — in a swing state critical to deciding what party controls Congress for President Bush's last two years and to shaping the presidential race in 2008. Rising gas prices and the continuing bloodshed in Iraq have stoked the Pennsylvania discontent to levels not seen since 1994 when Republicans pushed out Democrats to seize control of the...

Californians on both sides of the immigration debate decried President Bush's speech Monday as insufficient and called for a more comprehensive plan to deal with illegal immigrants and border security. Bush outlined a guest-worker program that would allow migrants to work in the United States in three-year stretches, proposed tougher border enforcement and vowed to work with Congress to reform immigration laws. He made the pitches in a speech in Tucson, Ariz., and is scheduled to talk about immigration again today in El Paso, Texas. As in California, immigration is an issue of concern for many residents in those border...

The state budget impasse has taken a toll on support for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's $103 billion spending plan, with Democrats and Republicans rethinking their approval of his strategy for erasing a $15 billion deficit without raising taxes. After struggling to reach agreements with Democrats, who hold overwhelming majorities in both the Senate and Assembly, the rookie governor now faces a full-blown mutiny from within the ranks of his fellow Republicans as well as opposition among Democrats. "I was prepared to vote for the governor's budget as modified by his May revision," said Sen. Ross Johnson, R-Irvine, vice chairman of the...

Lebanese poll: 56% consider Syrian presence ''illegitimate'' 29-06-2004, 11:36 A public opinion poll published Tuesday demonstrated that 56% of those polled rejected the Lebanese regime's contention that Syrian presence in the country was 'legitimate and provisional,' with 40% supporting that concept. In addition, 69% of the Lebanese oppose an extension or renewal of President Lahoud's term in office and 90% reject the concept of Syria appointing the president of Lebanon. The poll was conducted by the Beirut weekly Ash Shiraa, whose three consecutive polls in 1998 convinced the late Syrian President Hafez Assad to back then army commanding Gen. Emile...

With summer fast approaching, Iran’s internal security forces are gearing up to crackdown on anti-government demonstrations which usually escalate in the months of June and July. There have been many protests in Iran’s major cities already. In March, violent anti-government protests erupted in Fereydoun Kenar, Marivan, Boukan, and Isfahan. And earlier this month, teachers in Tehran and elsewhere staged demonstrations that led to the closure of many schools across the country. Moreover, more than 20,000 people took part in a protest by tea growers in northern Iran last week. To stem the rising momentum of popular protests, Iran’s theocratic rulers...

The history books show that George W. Bush's father lost the 1992 presidential election to Bill Clinton by 370 Electoral College votes to 168. As usual in our system, the popular vote was nothing like as decisive as the Electoral College numbers suggest. It actually went as follows: Bush 38 percent, Clinton 43 percent, Perot 19 percent. Did Perot cost Bush that election? Nobody really knows. The number crunchers are still squabbling, and you can find arguments pro and con. The following statement, though, is incontrovertible: A strong third-party candidate can change the result of a presidential election, causing the...

<p>HATTIESBURG — Some faculty members at the University of Southern Mississippi are fed up with President Shelby Thames.</p> <p>University of Southern Mississippi President Shelby Thames, who took office on May 1, 2002, reflects on the successes and challenges of his administration's first year.</p>