Free Republic

Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte has been charged with crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court (ICC). The 80-year-old is accused of being criminally responsible for dozens of murders that allegedly took place as part of his so-called war on drugs, during which thousands of small-time drug dealers, users and others were killed without trial. The ICC's charge sheet, which includes several redactions, dates from July but was only made public on Monday. ICC deputy prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang said Duterte was an "indirect co-perpetrator" in the killings, which the court alleges were carried out by others, including police....

The number of children and adolescents with a diagnosis somewhere along the autism spectrum continues to rise. According to the latest research out of Guangdong Pharmaceutical University in China, as of 2020, one out of every 30 kids is now considered autistic, a 52% jump from 2017. Though data from the CDC puts the number closer to one in 44, the numbers are still rising, prompting many medical professionals, teachers, and parents to try to discover the cause. Thursday on Twitter, BlazeTV host Steve Deace posited the question, "What’s the benign, innocent explanation for this [rise in autism]?" The answer...

For decades, the most powerful golf game in Washington has usually been whichever one the President plays. In the past five years, the capital’s power brokers have had almost zero luck joining it. Marvin Nicholson, meanwhile, has had the privilege 103 times since Barack Obama took office. Nicholson is not a Washington stiff. He is a former bartender and caddy who became John Kerry’s body man during the 2004 campaign after meeting the then-senator at a windsurfing shop. He now serves as Obama’s trip director, overseeing all aspects of the president’s travel. But his most important role is arguably as...

Please do not be guilty of the above when considering the legalization of all recreational drugs. Anyone is legally permitted to kill himself slowly with tobacco, once addicted. Equally, a person may legally drink himself to death and/or wreck the lives of those around him with a bottle a day. For such people we have compassion. But for the users of illegal drugs, most of us have only contempt. It is difficult (impossible, actually) to understand the logic of making certain drugs illegal. Apart from legality, what is the difference between smoking a “joint” and having a beer? Further, doing...

Good news boys and girls; our newly sworn in Governor is already hard at work protecting criminals. Governor Corzine is urging the Legislature to pass legislation giving drug users access to clean needles. Failing that, he says he is willing to use his executive power to achieve his desired result. He says it will save lives. Hoorah. It's apropos that he would advocate this, and I don't feel he has much to worry about. Such a measure should pass with flying colors; NJ politicians are always eager to help criminals in their criminal pursuits, and we have the indictments to...

Drug past of police recruits debated As Maryland panel considers easing rules to shore up ranks, some up in arms The Baltimore Sun February 6, 2004 A state panel that sets standards for police hiring and training throughout Maryland is considering a proposal that would allow recruits to become police officers even if they had experimented with heroin, LSD and PCP - a move aimed at increasing the pool of applicants for short-staffed departments.

<p>Senate Democrats are threatening a filibuster of the final version of the Medicare prescription-drug bill.</p> <p>The House and Senate have passed different versions of the hotly debated measure. Angered by reports that a House-Senate conference is leaning toward House Republican positions on key elements of the plan, Democrats yesterday urged President Bush to demand a more bipartisan bill.</p>

In the so-called war against illegal drugs, we have lost every battle. Clear across the globe, just about every concerted effort to eradicate drug use has failed. The given reasons for the dismal results are many, but the prevailing theory is that there is just too much money involved in the drug trade. So much so that the key people fighting the war get paid off, and the “war” is in reality just a “war” in name only. While there might be spectacular sounding successes reported on the evening news, the reality on the ground is never a real setback...