Free Republic

How awful are world politics today? It has me giving money to two billionaires — Donald Trump and Elon Musk. They are real life Obi-Wan Kenobis. One is fighting for my country, the other for my God-given, shove-it-up-the-censors right to free speech. Google messed around with me and I ditched it for Substack, where I am happier and my readers don’t have to put up with advertisements. While the Derp State keeps going after Trump with indictments, mugshots and assassination bullets, Musk is fighting the second worst people in the world — the European Union. The worst work at the...

"The next fight of Starship is ready to fly. We are waiting on regulatory approval. It shouldn’t be possible to build a giant rocket faster than the paper can move from one desk to another."US Congress, NASA is NOW Forcing FAA for Starship Soaring! Here's Why | 10:00ALPHA TECH | 96.1K subscribers | 9,367 views | September 17, 2024

The American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) cautioned the New York State Assembly that pursuing legislation with a narrow definition of employees and independent contractors (IC) could greatly injure the travel agency community in America’s fourth largest state. New York State is considering legislation that would amend state labor laws, tightening the definition of independent contractors and full-time employees. Senate Bill S6699A is sponsored by Robert Jackson, (D, 31st District), and is currently in the Senate Rules Committee. No movement is expected on the proposed legislation until the state legislature reconvenes in January 2020. The Assembly’s version is Bill A8721A....

The California lawmaker who wrote a consequential law requiring employers to provide benefits to more workers announced on Monday that she is resigning from the Assembly to become the chief executive of the state’s most powerful labor organization.

California has claimed victory over the horrible abuse and exploitation of workers at the hands of evil employers with a new bill, AB666, which will make it a crime to work for a living. The new bill, signed into law by Governor Newsom Thursday, will stop the mistreatment of workers forever by making it illegal to work. "Employers used to do bad things -- well, not anymore," said Newsom at the bill signing. "Not on my watch. This solution is guided by SCIENCE. Leading SCIENTISTS say that when you can't work, you can't be exploited by evil corporations and wicked...

As president, Biden would replicate California’s repressive AB5 law. “Last year California passed AB5 affording gig workers protections and benefits like a minimum wage and overtime pay,” Joe Biden tweeted on Tuesday. “Now, gig economy giants are trying to gut the law and exempt their workers. It’s unacceptable. I urge Californians to vote no on the initiative this November.” The initiative, qualified for the ballot on May 22, establishes criteria for determining whether rideshare drivers are “employees” or “independent contractors.” AB5 also targets freelance writers and independent contractors in dozens of professions, including health care. Joe Biden was all in...

Californian independent contractors and freelancers got quite a shock Thursday evening when a state senator compared lost jobs to “lollipops.” Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson represents the 19th District in western Ventura County and Santa Barbara County. In a Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement meeting officials heard arguments for and against pushing forward SB 806 and SB990. The bills — put forth by Republican senators John Moorlach (R-Costa Mesa) and Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield) — aimed to immediately suspend and amend the disastrous AB5 legislation that killed independent contracting/freelance jobs across the state. Moorlach and Grove have been two politicians at the...

Since California’s controversial anti-freelancer bill was signed into law in September 2019, one (not unpredictable) result has been staffing shortages in the healthcare industry, particularly in fields generally staffed by contractors or locum tenens providers: physicians assistants, nurses, nurse anesthetists, and respiratory therapists. As the Wuhan coronavirus made its way into California, advocates who’ve been pushing to fix/amend/repeal AB5 let Asm. Lorena Gonzalez, the bill’s author, know in no uncertain terms that unless enforcement of AB5 was suspended until the crisis passed Californians who needed care from these professionals would die. Gonzalez didn’t listen, and people are dying. The populations...

Are California Democrats—responsible for the state’s new anti-gig-worker law, AB5—so out of touch that they’re not aware of the growing anger of their constituents? It appears so. Since AB5 took effect on January 1, hundreds of thousands of Californians are finding their businesses in tatters. Musicians can’t join bands for a one-night gig, chefs can’t join forces with caterers, nurses can’t work at various hospitals, and writers must cap their submissions per media outlet to 35 per year. Under the law, these freelancers can no longer conduct the same business-to-business transactions they have for years or even decades. Clients with...

When Elon Musk took over Twitter in 2022, it marked a new era for the struggling San Francisco company. Twitter, now known as X, is expected to close its San Francisco headquarters this month, leaving behind the Mid-Market neighborhood it has called home since 2012. The company is reportedly moving its headquarters to Austin, Texas, but plans to relocate its San Francisco employees to San José and Palo Alto, ... ... another blow to a city...buffeted by high-profile business departures and once held up Twitter as a key part of its revival. Downtown San Francisco's vacancy rates have ballooned... Confronted...

First Elon Musk, now Mark Zuckerberg. Zuckerberg’s company, Meta (formerly Facebook), announced it would lease offices in a massive new building in Austin, Texas. Big tech companies, who cut their teeth and built empires in California, are fleeing the state and relocating to Texas. It's almost as if high taxes, stifling corporate regulations, and out-of-control housing costs are unattractive to businesses and long-term sustainability. Who knew? The Austin Business Journal was among the first to report on Meta’s move. “Months of speculation have come to an end as California-based Meta Platforms Inc. — the parent company of Facebook — recently...

Billionaire Elon Musk said Tuesday he will shift the headquarters of privately held SpaceX and social media site X to Texas from California as a result of Gov. Gavin Newsom signing a new gender identity law for students. The law, signed Monday, blocks school districts from requiring teachers to notify parents about changes in a student’s gender identity or sexual orientation without the child’s permission. It also requires the state’s Department of Education to create resources for families of LGBTQ+ students from seventh grade through high school. “This is the final straw,” Musk wrote on X. “Because of this law...

Space X CEO Elon Musk and Argentinian President Javier Milei have met in Texas and spoke about working together to promote free markets and potential lithium projects. President Javier Milei’s chief spokesperson said that during their visit to Tesla’s Austin headquarters, the two talked about a range of issues, including the need to boost declining birth rates globally and the pursuit of technological advancement while upholding “liberty.” Musk has previously expressed his admiration for Milei’s unabashed support of private enterprise as well as his distaste for what he considers to be socialist excesses.

Musk vs. FauciWell, maybe you had the seeming transhumanist Big Tech Czar going after Emperor Fauci on your 2022 bingo card, but I sure didn’t. Yet, as Pope Francis loves to say, we do have a “God of surprises,” and I think Elon Musk looking like a veritable white knight against one of the greatest criminals in American history is a surprise, to say the least. If you weren’t aware, Musk went after Fauci—and gender pronouns, I might add—with a tweet from a few days back, stating: “My pronouns are Prosecute/Fauci.” Now, if there is ever a Twitter Hall of...

Elon Musk on Tuesday offered to host Vice President Kamala Harris for her first unscripted interview since she joined the presidential race on July 21. For 23 straight days, the media have failed to host Harris for an interview. The media have not interviewed Harris on television since June 24, 2024. The last time the press reportedly questioned her at a solo news conference was eight months ago — on December 2, 2023. “Happy to host Kamala on an X Spaces too,” Musk posted on X Tuesday morning. Happy to host Kamala on an Spaces too — Elon Musk (@elonmusk)...

The fight between Elon Musk and Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes has entered unchartered waters. According to a post on X, Brazil’s bar and NOVO party have filed to overturn Moraes’ X ban in the country. Mario Nawfal, a citizen journalist on X, says, “You know you’ve gone too far as a Justice when the Nation’s Bar Association goes after you.” As reported, the OAB (Brazilian Bar Association) and the Novo Party have asked Supreme Court Justice Nunes Marques to overturn Alexandre de Moraes’ decision to suspend X, which was supported by the 1st Panel. Supreme Court Justice Nunes...

Federal prosecutors are scrutinizing personal benefits Tesla TSLA 0.45%increase; green up pointing triangle may have provided Elon Musk since 2017—longer than previously known—as part of a criminal investigation examining issues including a proposed house for the chief executive. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York also has sought information about transactions between Tesla and other entities connected to the billionaire, people familiar with the investigation said. Prosecutors have referenced the involvement of a grand jury. The new information indicates that federal prosecutors have a broader interest in the actions of Musk and Tesla than was previously...

By Denise Chow Four private citizens orbiting Earth in a SpaceX capsule are making history by completing the world’s first all-civilian spacewalk. Billionaire entrepreneur Jared Isaacman, retired Air Force Lt. Col. Scott “Kidd” Poteet, and SpaceX engineers Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon are the crew of the Polaris Dawn mission, which launched into space Tuesday to begin a five-day flight. Their spacewalk began at 6:12 a.m. ET, having been delayed a few hours. During the outing, Isaacman and Gillis exited the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule on a tether. Although they are the only ones to venture outside the spacecraft, all...

Orbiting Earth on board Dragon, the Polaris Dawn crew talked with families of Folds of Honor, an organization providing educational scholarships to spouses and children of America's fallen and disabled military service-members and first responders.UPDATE! Polaris Dawn Crew Calls Military Families From Space | 9:45The Launch Pad | 419K subscribers | 128 views | September 11, 2024

First, you read that right. After a weird pressure campaign, Taylor Swift posted this on Instagram announcing her support for Kamala Harris last night: That text seems a little small, so let’s blow it up a bit: Like many of you, I watched the debate tonight. If you haven’t already, now is a great time to do your research on the issues at hand and the stances these candidates take on the topics that matter to you the most. As a voter, I make sure to watch and read everything I can about their proposed policies and plans for this...